Laos

Deciding that 6:30 in the morning was too early for me to surface, we decided to wait in Chiang Mai for an extra day and get the later bus to Chiang Khong (later being 8:30 zzzzz). It was a fairly standard bus journey through the winding roads of northern Thailand. We were accompanied on the bus by about 10 other tourists all with the same goal as us to cross the Thai-Laos border between the booming metropolis of Chiang Khong and the bustling town of Huay Xai (in reality I think both towns exist almost solely for the purpose of border crossings).

On arrival in Chiang Khong we quickly got a Tuk Tuk to the Thai-Laos border where we got ourselves a crammed long boat across the Mekong. On the other side we found ourselves in Huay Xai where we stayed in a guest house (BAP) close to the pier, whose owner is described in our guidebook as “Hard as Nails” which is loosely translated as “battle-axe”.

The plan was to get the slow boat down the Mekong to Luang Prabang which would take two days. We arrived in Huay Xai after all the travel agents had closed so the only place to buy our tickets was from the Guest House. Mrs. Hard as Nails kindly offered us free cushions (to protect our delicate derieres on the wooden benches aboard the boat) if we booked with her. We decided the next morning to book with her and found out that our free cushions were in fact 10000 Kip each (roughly €1).. So after some pointless arguing we got down to the pier to board the boat.

Finding reclining cushioned car seats was our reward for being 2 hours early (making our “free” cushions redundant). The 2 hour wait did afford us the opportunity to stock up on some fresh pineapple (I'm going to miss that) and other assorted snacks for the trip – except the bananas, which I forgot, which will not be forgotten!

The journey was slow (as the mode of transportation would suggest) and although the scenery was stunning in places, we were pleased to arrive in the apparently sleepy village of Pak Beng. The hours had passed relatively painlessly though,

We were very glad to have met a Scottish/Irish couple who kept us company for the journey along with a few good books and the most well behaved baby ever, the son of a swiss couple, who was naturally enough accompanied by his parents!

Arriving in Luang Prabang, we found a place to stay and headed for something to eat and for a wander about town, finding ourselves almost immediately in a thriving night market – totally geared towards tourists, but great all the same.

Our second day in Luang Prabang was a quiet one. After a badly needed lie in, we decided to investigate some of the activity options available to us. Ultimately, we opted for a 2 day mountain biking, trekking and kayaking tour with the well established Tiger Trails.

Starting the next morning, we were given mountain bikes and helmets. Before the cycle we were asked to try out the bikes in the car park where I proceeded to press the brakes and then go over the handle bars. Embarrassing as that was I quickly found an excuse. The brakes were on the opposite sides so I changed them around and on we went. Our guide was a pleasant but quiet person who was in need of a little exercise it seems. Both myself and Fiona finished the cycle ahead of him and on our bikes while he pushed his up the last hill.

After lunch we boarded a small long boat and headed up stream where we went for a short walk through elephant tracks and jungle to a small village. We stayed the night there and the next morning headed to the river to kayak our way back. After a few small rapids and only one dunking (due to a leaky boat might I add) we made it back to dry land in one soggy piece!