Halong Bay & Catba Island

The past few days in Halong Bay were very relaxing and serene. We had a great group of people and stunning scenery.

Our group, which now consists of nine members (Olly & Enda, James & Nick, Andy & Emma, Susan & Michele, and myself), woke up early and had light breakfast of bread and jam in our guest house.

Our guide for the next few days came and met us at the guest house. I never caught his real name, but he told us to call him Dragon. Go figure.

We took a short walk through the Old Quarter to our mini-bus, which couldn't pick us up at the guest house because traffic was too heavy at 8am to get to us.

On the mini-bus we met three other groups that would join us on our tour of Halong Bay and Catba Island. The first group was three older but very jovial French people (Gills, Chantel, and Ann Mari). The next group was an American newly wed couple (Ian & Kate). And last but not least two very interesting Indian friends from Bangalore (Suneil & Kaushal). A grand total of sixteen people.

The mini-bus ride from Hanoi east to Halong City took about three hours. Most of the time was spent sleeping and listening to music, except for one rest stop where everyone got out and ate lime flavored ice cream pops.

After arriving at the Halong City harbor, our group was led by Dragon to the docks where we boarded a Huong Hai junk boat. It was a wooden, three story boat that consisted of many twin share sleeping cabins on the first level, a dining room on the second level, and a hard top for sun bathing on the third level.


Huong Hai junk boat

The boat immediately pulled the anchor and took us out into the emerald green waters of Halong Bay. We had lunch (rice, fried vegetables, corn soup, fish, and shrimp) as the boat was puttering through the Bay and weaving around the myriad of small islands with steep rock faces and a little vegetation and floating village.


Venturing into Halong Bay


Our junk boat captain


Floating village

The first stop was at Surprise Cave. It was an absolutely massive cave hidden high inside one of the islands. It was cleverly light with different colored flood lights concealed at the base of stalactites which provided a nice ambient feel and gave the impression of walking around the moon. So surreal it felt like walking through an attraction at Disney World.


Mouth of Surprise Cave


Inside the cave

There was a superb balcony at the mouth of the cave which gave a spectacular aerial view of the bay, and a great place to sit and drink a bottle of water.

Once aboard the boat again we went to Catba Island to make a quick stop and pick up some dinner supplies before heading to a nice quiet cove for swimming.

Everyone took turns jumping off the the various levels of the boat. The French women just floated around while Gills performed graceful high dives. A few people pulled off forward flips, but I just did can-openers from the top level and tried my best to splash all the on-lookers on the boat.


Nick, Olly, & James relaxing

We then ate dinner on the boat (rice, tuna fish, fried vegetables, and pork), and settled in drinking beer. Eventually the party moved up stairs to the hard top where we rigged up a CD walkman to a small portable speaker and listened to reggae. We drank beer and played drinking games until late in the night under the stars. Enda and Michele slept on the top, but everyone else gradually went downstairs to their own sleeping cabin.

The next day we woke up about 7am, had a brief swim, and ate a light breakfast of baguettes and jam. The boat went back to Catba Island where we changed to a smaller boat and went back out into the bay.

The smaller boat took us to a small island where we got off and went for a two kilometer walk to a small village. Nick, Susan, and Ann Mari stayed in the village playing cards and relaxing while the rest of us went for a three hour hike up a mountain.

The rocky mountain trail went straight up. We made many stops because everyone was sweating profusely in the heat and humidity. I can safely say I've never sweated so much in my entire life.

At the top of the mountain we had an amazing view of the bay and a long rest to drink more water.


Aerial view of the bay

Walking down the mountain, James and I began chatting about Jack Kerouac books the 'On the Road' and 'Dharma Bums'. I told James about the character Jaffy Ryder running down a mountain screaming as he hopped from stone to stone thinking about jazz. Very similar to our own decent.

Back at the village we had a much needed big lunch in the shade and did our best to rejuvenate after the strenuous climb.

We then walked back to the small boat and went to little sand beach for swimming and sea kayaking. I was so tired I spent most of the time floating in a life saver ring, but eventually teamed up with Enda for a paddle around in a sea kayak.

The boat then took us back to Catba Island where we checked into the Catba Island Plaza Hotel. Everyone got cleaned up and then met in the lobby and hoped on a bus which took a few kilometers down the road to eat dinner.

The dinner was okay, but it got overshadowed by a variety of strange bottles resting on the bar near our table. Each bottle contained wine with different fermented animals inside. Seahawk, gecko, snake, etc. Very strange.


Fermented wines

The Indian guys (Suneil & Kaushal) with stomachs of steel surprised everyone by ordering a few different fermented wines.


The instigators: Suneil & Kaushal

After dinner everyone went walking around the town looking for a bar. We found one place with drink specials and a free pool table, but it was too hot and the pool table was not in the best condition, so James and I went walking around looking for another place.

We came across Suneil, Kaushal, Ian, and Kate sitting outside the restaurant where we had eaten dinner. They were sampling more fermented wines and convinced us to sit down and try the "Ghost Wine."


"Ghost Wine"

James and I each downed the mysterious ghost wine before we asked what it was we drank. Evidently, ghost was actually a mispronunciation of goat. Much to our disgust, it was fermented goat penis. We saw the bottle to prove it.

With the worst behind us, we decided to sample a few other wines for the fun of it. We tried honey wine, made from fermented honey comb.

Eventually other members of our group walked by, so we slyly talked them into trying the 'ghost wine'. Before the explanation was given, Nick said it tasted familiar. Kind of nutty, like walnuts. Everyone exploded in laughter.


Nick: the aftermath

We continued to try the snake and gecko wines. Each was very strong and needed a water chaser directly after.

Everyone was very tipsy and the restaurant closed on us, so we set out to find a karaoke bar to continue the fun. We asked three young local guys, who led us on a wild goose chase around town before we abandoned them and walked into a very chill bar with real rose peddles hanging from the ceiling and scattered all over the floor.


Hanging roses

We then hiked back home late at night, trying our best to find our way back to our hotel. Under normal circumstances, it would probably not be a good idea to walk back, but we had a group of eleven, so we felt quite safe.

The next day everyone woke up very hung over, ate a light breakfast, and boarded the big junk boat again for our return to Halong City.

Rain clouds began blowing in as we crossed the bay and brought very cool weather for the first time in days. Many people sat on the hard top of the boat and enjoyed the strong but cool winds until the torrential downpour came.

Suneil and Gills didn't come into the main dining cabin with everyone else, but stayed on the bow of the boat and danced jovially in the rain. Hilarious.

We arrived at the harbor after dropping anchor briefly and waiting for the rain to pass and went to a nearby restaurant for lunch.

Then we boarded the mini-bus again and drove three hours back to Hanoi. We said our goodbyes to everyone on the side of the road in the Old Quarter and got in a taxi that brought us back to our hotel.

Everyone was exhausted, but all nine of us got cleaned up and went out to eat pizza at a place called Pepperoni's. It was the first western food I'd had in a while and it tasted pretty good.

We came back to our hotel and went to sleep in an air-conditioned room. So nice.

Hanoi

Hanoi is the busiest city I've been in since Bangkok. Maybe even more so. The most scooters honking horns than I've ever seen and heard before.

Yesterday morning I slept in until 11am. Just couldn't be bothered trying to wake up early after the bus ride from Vientiane.

My hotel in Hanoi has free, fast internet, so I spent most of my morning posting a few pictures to some previous entries. It's a smidgen of the photos I've been taking, but at least it's a glimpse into what I've been seeing and doing. A big thank you to my friend Stiles for helping me get them on the net.

Once everyone else was awake we went to the Kangaroo Cafe for a light lunch of western food. It was a restaurant/adventure tour shop, so we began looking into boat trips around Halong Bay and Catba Island.

James and Nick had to head off to the airport to meet a couple old college friends that were flying in from Bangkok, so Enda, Olly, and I went off exploring the city.

We walked past the first ATM machine I've seen in over two weeks on our way to the Temple of Literature. It was a very Chinesey courtyard in memory of influential Vietnamese poets, teachers, and philosophers. Very impressive.


Front gate of the Temple of Literature

The Temple of Literature is divided into several courtyards full of ancient trees and lots of greenery. Each courtyard was slightly different in decoration.


Enda in the courtyard


Old man taking a rest in one of the courtyards

Maybe the third of fourth courtyard down had a short concert by some Vietnamese women dressed in traditional clothing playing a variety of bamboo instruments and singing songs.


Vietnamese traditional instrument

For a finally to the 15min concert the women walked through the audience and placed large straw hats on certain members. My friend Olly was one of the chosen ones. Pure comedy.


Olly wearing a lampshade

After the show the women invite all the guests to have a look at some CDs and other souvengniers at a small table next to the stage. One of the women got a bit fussy with me when I didn't buy anything, but I didn't let it get me down.

We walked back to the Ho Hoan Kiem Lake for a cold drink at one of the many sidewalk cafes, and afterwards we met the two Irish girls (Susan & Michel) that were on our bus ride from Vientiane.


View of the Thap Rua (Tortoise Tower) located in the middle of Hoan Kiem Lake

The five of us went walking through the Old Quarter of the city shopping around for different boat tours. It was difficult because there are many travel agencies offering similar package tours, so we consulted the Lonely Planet Guide Book. That made thing even more complicated because if the guide book recommends one agency by name, all other agencies in the area change their name to capitalize on the publicity. Scam after scam.

In the end we walked back to our guest house to meet James, Nick, and their two friends Andy and Emma. We all had a chat and decided to go with the package tour offered by our guest house because it was the easiest option.

Our group then went out for a few drinks and some good eats. We ended up in the Jazz Club that had a really hot local Vietnamese jazz band tearing it up on stage. I had a nicely prepared meal of stir-fried shrimp with cashew nuts and dried chilies and some spring rolls to boot. Very tasty.


Jazz Club by Quyen Van Minh

After dinner we all headed back to the guest house to get a good nights sleep and prepare for the next three days around Halong Bay and Catba Island. Should be very nice and relaxing.

Good Morning Vietnam!

I arrived in Hanoi late last night after a marathon bus journey from Vientiane.


Vietnamese Flag

The bus ride was so bad and uncomfortable it's become total comedy to me at this point. Thank God for books, music, and sedatives.

When my friends and I booked the bus from Vientiane to Hanoi we repeatedly asked the travel agent two questions. Is it a tourist bus meant for foreigners? Is there AC?

The answer to our questions was a resounding yes, but nothing is as it seems.

The bus came 30min late to pick us up from our Guest House near the Mekong River. At the time, aside from two other Irish girls, we were the only ones on the bus. We were able to pick our seats with lots of leg room and everything seemed hunky dory.

Then we drove to a nearby bus station where loads and loads of local Lao and Vietnamese people boarded the bus bringing with them every household appliance imaginable. Rice cookers, TVs, radios, electric fans, toilets, and even three wooden doors were hoisted to the top of the bus. I didn't see any kitchen sinks, but I wouldn't be surprised if there was one somewhere on the bus.

It took us two more hours to leave town because the bus stopped every couple blocks so people waiting on the sidewalks could load up more appliances and God only know what else.

Once we started moving it was smooth sailing. I took a 10mg Valium that knocked me out for most of the night. We made one stop on the border near the city of Vihn around 2am or 3am for food and to wait for the border to open.

We crossed out of Laos and into Vietnam around 7am. It took us more than two hours to cross the border and I've never seen such blatant government corruption in all my life.

Getting out of Laos was easy. All passengers from our bus crowded around one window clerk and threw our passports in huge bundles through to him. He never looked up to see who or what he was processing.

Then we were told to walk through the no-man's land to the Vietnam entry point. Upon entering the building we were told to fill out a Medical Quarantine form and submit it with our passport. The government official demanded 2,000 dong or 2,000 kip or 2 dollars before he would give your passport back. The funny thing is that none of these denominations are even closely equal. (2,000 dong = .15 cents/ 2,000 kip= .45 cents/ $2 = 32,000 dong). Not to mention all the money went straight into the offical's pockets.

Once we got our passports back we were told to go around the corner to receive and fill out another official customs form and give our passports again. This time the a separate official demanded $1 before he would stamp your passport and allow you to enter the country.

After that debacle we all boarded the bus again and continued north through the mountains and some serious road construction that halted the bus for another couple hours in the searing heat of the afternoon sun. No AC whatsoever. It was hot. Damn hot! Africa hot!! You could open a widow, but it wouldn't do any good because it was HOT!!!

We made a stop for lunch at a small highway shack around 2pm that provided some comic relief. I ran out of cash and had no money of any kind to pay for lunch. My friends were all running low as well, but my Irish friend Enda said he would lend me a couple bucks to eat.

When the waitress came around to take our orders I jokingly told her I didn't have any money. She laughed, but she still took my order. Plain rice and fried vegetables. When she delivered my food she again asked me if I had money and I said no. I told her I'd wash dishes in exchange for my food, but she didn't really understand.

The time came to settle the bill and she asked me for $2. I told her again I didn't have any money and I started helping her clear the table. She just laughed and told me where to go with all the dirty dishes and used chop sticks. The ladies in the kitchen squatting next to the soapy water basins laughed even harder when I placed all the dishes next to them on the ground and offered to give them a hand.

In the end everyone was laughing so hard at the thought of a foreigner cleaning the dishes that they just let me go without paying anything. I got a few cheers from my companions and even got some laughs from the locals aboard the bus.

Our bus kept trucking down the highway for what seemed like an eternity before we finally arrived in Hanoi about 10pm. A full 28 hours after we left Vientiane.

A hotel employee named Spring boarded our bus and gave us a pitch about her hotel and offered to give us a taxi ride to the center of town if we agreed to just look at her hotel. She was nice and polite and said her hotel had free internet, so we all agreed.

The taxi wasn't big enough for all seven of us, the two Irish girls (Susan & Michel) also agreed to come along, so I was the odd man out. Instead of piling into a van taxi, I got to ride on the back of a scooter for the 11km trip to the center of town. Fun but very scary.

Traffic in Hanoi is chaotic. Scooters, scooters, and more scooters. There are no stop lights, so everyone just cruises through intersections, honks their horn, and avoids everyone in their way. If you're walking across the street, just walk at a steady pace, and the cars and scooters will avoid you. Don't run because the drivers can't judge which way to swerve around you and never ever stop.


Scooters


More scooters

Anyway, we arrived at the hotel and it was nice and cheap. We all checked in and then went for a walk to find some food. After walking all around the lake in the old quarter, we finally stumbled upon a great night market with cheap food.


The night market


Steve (a short lived addition to our group), James, and I chowing down.

We ate well and then came back to the hotel for some much needed sleep.

Vientiane

My friends and I took a VIP bus from Vang Vieng to the Laos capital city of Vientiane. The bus ride was okay, but not exactly VIP.

The rumors I'd heard about Vientiane being an average city with nothing too special have held true. I'm not impressed.

After arriving and checking into a Guest House near the Mekong River, we went walking to find a travel agent to schedule a bus to Hanoi. It was a little more difficult than usual because we were trying to pay by credit card and Laos still operates on a cash money system.

We finally booked our tickets, but my friend James and I had get a ride to a nearby hotel to run our credit cards. Everything worked out okay in the end.

Last night we went in search of a night market to eat some cheap ethnic food, but nothing looked very appealing. We ended up eating fried rice in a sidewalk cafe and then walked down the Mekong River and sat in a TexMex restaurant that served BeerLao on draft.

We discovered that Vientiane is the only place in the country that serves BeerLao on draft, so we did a bit of a pub crawl and found a nice beer garden to hang out in, but a massive rain storm blew in and ended our pub crawl very quickly. We got rained in at the bar and stayed there until the owners closed down and asked us to leave.

In the rain we all sprinted back to our Guest House and crossed one street that resembled a small river of rushing water. Needless to say we all got in okay, just soaking wet, and went to bed.

Today we woke up and walked through a morning market that was too dirty and cluttered to be satisfying, so we then went in search of the BeerLao brewery to kill some time before I bus leaves later tonight.

On a hunch we walked to the Arc de Triumph because we were told the brewery was nearby. We circled the Arch in the hot sun, but did not see any BeerLao signs, so we asked a tuk-tuk driver.

He drove us about twenty minutes out town towards the brewery. We almost broke his taxi because we weighed too much for the small cab, but we made it. Unfortunately, the brewery was closed because it was Sunday.


The locked gates of the Beerlao Brewery

Our cabbie drove us back to town and dropped us off at the Lao Bowling Center, so we decided to kill some time in the AC and bowl a game for the fun of it. I came in second place with a 130 only because James rolled three straight strikes on the last frame and beat me with a 150.


Olly throwin' rocks

I'm now trying to gear myself up physically and emotionally for a mammoth 20 hour bus ride from Vientiane to Hanoi. James and I each bought one Valium from an over the counter pharmacy in preparation for the journey. It might help ease the pain a little bit, but no matter how you look at it, this will not be an enjoyable ride.

Hanoi hear I come.

Vang Vieng Video

It's been raining for the past few days, so for the most part I've been lounging around Vang Vieng in the open air restaurants watching DVDs and relaxing. Each restaurant has at least one large CaseLogic filled with pirate DVD videos.

My friends and I have been catching up on all the newest releases. The past few days I've watched Shrek 2, Kill Bill Vol. 1 & 2, Fahrenheit 9/11, Starsky & Hutch, and many others. It's been very lazy, but much needed down time.

However, we did take a great kayaking trip down the Nam Song River. We met about 9am in a downtown restaurant and had breakfast with some other people that were going to join us. Most notably another British couple and two thirty something year old Italian ladies that had just arrived in town.

After breakfast we all piled into a tuk-tuk taxi and drove about 20km north up the riverside. In a large gravel parking lot, we unloaded and got a very brief lesson in how to paddle a kayak. Then, we paired up ( I paired with Enda, an Irish friend) and got into our kayaks. They were really more like fun-yaks than proper kayaks, but it was still fun.

We paddled down river about 30mins splashing and being splashed by our guides before we stopped off at Elephant Cave. It's properly named because there's a strange, natural rock formation that looks exactly like an elephant just inside the shallow cave, but over all it was not interesting to me. Our guide, named Nuan, gave everyone a short history lesson about the cave and how Lao people used it has a hiding place during the war. There was even an old bomb strung up next to the entrance that's now used for a bell to signify lunch and dinner time.

After exploring Elephant Cave for a bit, we walked through a Hmoung Hill tribe village to Water Cave. The entrance to this cave was a small hole in the mountain located in a small lagoon. We each jumped into the lagoon and held on to a rope to work our way inside the cave against the strong current rushing out. The water was cold and there was no light once we entered the cave. Everyone just tried to stay together while we hung onto the rope and slowly inched along deeper into the cave.

About halfway into the cave our guides gave everyone candles to light our way. Several times the water was too shallow and we had to crawl between boulders and under low over hangs, getting extremely muddy in the process and trying our best not to let the candles go out.

We explored the Water Cave for about an hour and then returned to a riverside shack for lunch. Our guides prepared fried rice, beef & veggie kabobs, bananas, and we each got three shots of Lao Tiger Whiskey.


Goofing around outside the water cave

After lunch we paddled for a couple more hours through some small grade 1 and grade 2 rapids and stopped off a two places for jumping into the river. The first place was a wooden scaffold with two make shift diving platforms. The lower platform was about 4m high and the highest platform was about 8m high. Everyone took turns jumping and watching our guides show off by doing flips. A couple guides even dragged their kayaks up and went off while in the kayak. Just good fun.

Once back in town, everyone got cleaned up and gathered at our guides' restaurant for free cocktails. They gave us some strange but sweet concoction made of coke, Tiger Whiskey, and Red Bull. We all sat around drinking and talking about our day's adventure.

That was my most productive day since arriving in Vang Vieng. One other day we did go swimming in a great little blue lagoon at Vang Vieng Resort, but it was raining a little so we didn't stay long before going back to town for more movies.


Swimming lagoon at Vang Vieng Resort

I have to get out of this town before I waste any more time, so the plan is to take a VIP bus to Vientiane tomorrow morning. I've heard Vientiane is not a very exciting place, but it's the best place to catch a bus to Hanoi.

Next stop is Vietnam.

Luang Prabang to Vang Vieng

Yesterday mourning I took a minibus about five hours south to the small town of Vang Vieng.

It was hard to leave Luang Prabang because I really liked that town. It had a great atmosphere in the downtown area with many comfortable restaurants and a great night market down the middle of the main street. There were also many cheap food stalls down a back ally to buy authentic Lao dishes and cheap beer.

I did a bit of shopping and bought a handcrafted, standing paper lamp for about $35. It's just over a meter tall and about 30cm wide. I can't wait to assemble it in my house once back in Japan.

The day before I left I discovered a fantastic tea house that bought and sold used books. It was a great place to lounge around and rest while you read. Twice a day they showed artistic movies in an upstairs chill out area where people would congregate across pillows all over the floor.

Anyway, the minibus ride to Vang Vieng was much more comfortable than public transport and probably a little faster. The road wound around through the misty mountains which were kind of teton-esque. Occasionally we saw uniformed guards carrying AK-47s and in many places there were mud slides caused from recent rain and the occasional fallen boulder that partially blocked the road. After looking over the edge of the road into a mountainous abyss, I'm very glad we had a safe journey.

Vang Vieng is a small backpacker's town. It's only a couple of dirt roads lined with restaurants showing pirated DVDs 24 hours a day. It's also interspersed with bicycle and scooter rentals and various kayaking shops to take trips down the river.


Cliffs of Vang Vieng


The plan was to rent a intertube and float down river checking out some of the caves along the riverside, but it's raining today, so it looks like I'm going to sit around and catch up on newest movies I've been missing. Most restaurants are already playing SpiderMan2, Shrek2, and Fahrenheit 9/11.

Maybe tomorrow I'll make it down river.

Jungle Trek in Nam Tha

The jungle trek from Luang Nam Tha was much more authentic and more enjoyable than my previous venture into the jungle. It was not nearly as organized and our guides' English was not exactly up to snuff, but it added to the rustic feeling of the hike.

We met at the Ecotourism office at about 9am. Our group, two Irish (Olly & Enda), two British (James & Nick), one middle aged Dutch tag along (Susana), and myself were joined by another young British couple (Dan & Nikki). After sitting around the office amongst a lot of confusion, we were finally introduced to our guides. One 35 year old guy who was studying English in Vientiane named Keo and one young 18 year old local girl named Nan.

They gave us each 2 liters of water, we all piled into a tuk-tuk taxi, and drove off to the Biodiversity Conservation Center. It was kind of like a national park in that all the animal and plant life are protected as well as the villages located inside the grounds.


Boys from the Hill Tribe riding a water buffalo

After driving about 30min we stopped, piled out all our gear, and began walking through a small village to get to the trail. Just as we were exiting the village we came across an elder village woman leading a group of six year old girls out of the jungle. They were all totting a load of bundled sticks on their backs and one of the little girls was bleeding and crying.

Evidently she had been stung by a bee, ran off in a tizzy, and smacked into a branch that split her eye. Our guide Nan quickly cleaned the wound and put a band-aid on the sniffling girl, and then we were off again like nothing had happened.

The first part of the hike was a slow constant climb that provided spectacular views of the rolling mountains. This jungle area was very similar to the woods and forest in NE Georgia, but there was some bamboo mixed in to remind me I was far from home.

We stopped for lunch at a small bamboo shack located on the top of the mountain. Our guide Keo went off and brought back a couple large banana leaves and placed them on the floor of the shack. He and Nan than began unpacking plastic bags of sticky rice, various stewed vegetables, Chinese cabbage, and chili paste. They emptied everything on the banana leaves and we sat around and ate with our hands. The idea was to take a small clump of rice, add some veggies, dip it into the chili, and eat as much as you can before your mouth catches fire.


Keo and Nan preparing lunch


Everybody eating with their hands

After lunch we started our descent into a hill tribe village. The first thing we did was drop off our bags in a relatively new hut (made from wood rather than bamboo) conveniently located next to a small river and then went on a walking tour of the town.

Keo led us through the village and across a rickety bamboo bridge to the ingenious tiered rice paddies. He gave us the grand tour as we walked single file along the muddy barriers watching villagers catch bucket fulls of frogs and small crabs that might interfere with the newly planted rice.


View of the Village


A very rickety bridge from the village to the rice fields


Enda & Dan walking the muddy barrier between rice paddies

Once back at our hut we bathed in the river and got ready for dinner. While Keo was guiding us through the rice, Nan had been hard at work preparing our food with the village chief.

Our group was invited into the chief's candle lit hut and sat down on the floor around a small wooden table. We had chicken, bamboo soup, more sticky rice, and more chili paste. While we were eating the chief passed out shots of Lao Lao (a special Lao whiskey I believe is made from rice). Once we were finished the chief asked us to introduce ourselves one by one and then opened the floor to any questions we might have.


Nick eating dinner in the chief's hut by candle light

Keo tried his best to translate our questions, but often things were lost in confusion. Basically the village is completely self sustained. They grow all their own crops (mainly rice) and need very little from the outside world.

Nick, the British lad, asked about the sports children play only to find out they love soccer but have to play with melons because the don't have a ball. It made me realize how far a simple gift could go, but I hadn't brought anything to give. Fortunately, Susana had brought a pack a pens and paper from Holland and donated them to be used in the school.

The next day we woke up very early to the sound of all the children from the village weeding around our hut. We had a modest breakfast of coffee and a few cookies, received two more liters of boiled river water that tasted a bit mesquite, and then started walking.


Nick posing w/ a little boy because he was wearing Tottenham Hotspurs shorts.

We hiked through many more rice fields before stopping in a different village for lunch. As we were taking our shoes off and beginning to relax, Nick discovered a leech stuck to the bottom of his foot. Nothing too serious, but it was a considerable size and had been feeding on him for at least an hour or more.


Hill Tribesman smoking a spliff

After lunch we took many pictures of the women villagers dressed in their tribal wear. The children also enjoyed posing for pictures as long as they could view the screen on the digital camera to see their photo. It made me realize that Polaroid cameras would be great because you could give the child his/her photograph.


Women and children from the hill tribe posing with me


Boys posing because they wanted to look at my camera afterwards and see their photo

The hike after lunch went straight up a mountain next to a small stream. Everyone was drenched in sweat, running low on water, and very tired, so we stopped many times along the way. Nick had one miss-step on a rock and landed in the stream, but it was more comic relief than serious.


Our trail on the left going up through the dense jungle

Late in the afternoon we started our descent just as thunder clouds began rolling in. We ending up walking down a red clay trail that began turning muddy and slick as a light rain (nothing chubby) began to fall, but we laughed it off and began brain storming Arnold Schwartzneger movie quotes.


Mists of Lao as we excited the jungle

Once down the mountain we exited the trail into yet another hill tribe village where the women tried to sell us some small handmade bags, but everyone was too tired and wet to care.


Clockwise from the back: Keo, Me, Olly, Nick, Suzanna, Nan, Nikki, Enda, James, and Dan

We made our way back to the guest house by tuk-tuk taxi, took a cold shower because the power was knocked out, and settled down for many BeerLao. All in all it was a great trek.

The next day we got up early and took another nine hour public bus ride back to Luang Prabang. The plan is to relax here for a day and then make our way further south toward the capital Vientiane.

Luang Nam Tha

The night bus from Luang Prabang to Luang Nam Tha was hellacious. I've come to the conclusion that all public transportation here is overcrowded, unreliable, and very uncomfortable.

The bus arrived at the bus station for us two hours behind schedule. When my companions and I tried to find a place to sit, the only available seats were in the very back of the bus with zero leg room. Then our departure was delayed another 15 or 20min because the locals had to strap a refrigerator to the back of the bus.


The night bus. You can sort of makeout the refrigerator through the back window.

I was in fetal position for the entire nine hour drive as the back of the bus bounced around all the potholes in the road. Once we had a flat tire and everyone got out to stretch their legs, and another time we had to stop in the middle of the road because a herd a cattle were blocking the way.

We arrived at the Luang Nam Tha bus station about 6am and walked to the nearby Manichan guest house for a much needed sleep.

We woke up about 12pm, tried to schedule a trek from the Eco Center, but failed to get one for the next day. Then we chartered a tuktuk taxi, and went to check out an old bombed out temple called Pheom Phouk. Its remains have gone untouched, but they built a new temple just next to it. There was a group of four children collecting donations at the temple that we played a few quick games with and then decided to return to town and try the Eco Center again.

We got a jungle trek scheduled and then Suzanne and I walked 5min south of our guest house to an herbal sauna. So nice.


Herbal Sauna hut

We stayed there for about two hours going in and out of the heat and pondered the idea of getting a massage.

After deciding the massage will be much better after our jungle trek, we walked back to the guest house to meet the two Irish blokes and English lads, had a bite of dinner, drank a few beers, and went to bed.

Suzanne got up early and took a day trip to Muang Sing, so the rest of us rented bicycles and peddled our way 6km north of town to a local waterfall.


The hut where we took a breather after the bike ride.


Nick, Olly, and Enda cooling down.

We sat in the sun all day playing in the water, and eventually made friends with some of the young locals who were hiding at the top of the falls having a private party. The funny thing is they went swimming fully clothed. No bathing suits, just jeans, t-shirts, skirts, whatever.

They fed us homemade Lao whiskey called LaoLao and were very entertained with the chance to speak with some foreigners. We occasionally splashed each other with the cool refreshing water, laughed, and ate some kind of cucumber that looked more like a small melon

We eventually biked back to town to take a rest from the sun at our guest house and drink frozen lemon shakes to cool down. We then decided to walk down for another herbal sauna to prepare us for tomorrow long hike through the Biodiversity Conservation Center.

The trek will take a couple days and then we plan to head back to Luang Prabang (transportation currently undecided), so I'll get back to this in a few days.