The Jars of Phonsavanh...

We arrived yesterday in Phonsavanh after a 6 hour bus trip from Vang Vieng. Today we went out to see the Plain of Jars sites that are scattered around the area. They are large carved stone funerary urns , 2-3000 years old. We also stopped in a village that has used some of the bomb casings kindly deposited by the Americans in their fences and building, quite a unique sight.
Laos is the most bombed country on Earth, between 1960 and 1970 some 2 million tonnes of bombs were dropped, something equivalent to a plane load of bombs, every 8 minutes, 24 hours a day for 9 years. Amazing.
There are many, many unexploded bombs in the countryside, keeping what would have been tourist sites off limits until they are cleared.
Also new to us was the armed presence along the road and even on the bus. Apparently there have been some skirmishes recently between the army and some local bandits, so every 5-10 kms on the main road there are a few guys having a snooze with an AK47 by their side. Ready for ...well I'm not sure. The 'Bus Marshall" was a chap with a short stock AK under his jacket, who also did alot of sleeping...so, as long as this was a trait also enjoyed by the baddies, order would be seemingly maintained.
Vang Vieng was a nice relaxing stop for us, we tubed down the river a couple of times. It was great to gently float down in the sunshine, although it is a weird sight to see a couple of hundred other tubers doing the same thing (well you don't actually see that many - that's how many start...most never make it down, choosing to stop at the bars and swing off the rope lines all day before getting a tuk tuk back to town before sunset).
Vang Vieng also had its share of something we have seen at every stop in Laos. Local Parties. At first we thought we were lucky for spotting one in Luang Namtha, but now we realise it goes on every day, everywhere. Marquees are erected, tables and chairs laid out and music is blared. Everyone dances in a circle around the dance area....maypole-esque, while twirling their hands to the music that is a cross between bad karaoke and a ring tone.
Next stop for us is jumping across the border to Vietnam where we have some time before our folks pop over to travel with us for a few weeks which we are looking forward to.

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Vang Vieng

Quick update from Sunny Vang Vieng. We came down by bus yesterday morning to find a much changed riverside town from Dee's last time here. Lots of new buildings but still the lovely backdrop of the Karst landscape and the cafes with lots of cushions and movies to accompany your fruit shakes. Tubing down the river and some more motorbiking are just some of the things we are looking forward to here.

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Laos update

:: Beautiful Luang Prabang ::

We caught an early bus from Luang Namtha to Pakmeng intending to connect with a tuk tuk to take us to our final riverside destination of Nong Khiaw that evening. After spending an hour watching locals load goods and a motorbike onto the roof of the bus we were all set to go. At 9am (an hour later than we'd been informed the bus would depart) the entire tourist population of the town suddenly appeared and boarded the same bus. It very weird to see so many westerners around, almost out numbering locals, and strange to actually understand what everyone is saying. It was also annoying that everyone else had the correct information and an hour extra in bed.

Having a big group of backpackers on the bus turned out to be a stroke of luck when we reached Pakmeng when the only tuk tuk driver in town wanted over a hundred thousand kip per truckload of foreigners he ferried on to the next destination Nong Khiaw. Without a group you're forced to pay big or simply wait for people to randomly turn up.

We stopped for a night in Nong Khiaw before taking a small long boat up river one hour to the village of Muang Ngoi. Each expedition on these long boats feels like a Guinness World Record attempt for most amount of tourists ever squashed into a small space. Sitting knee to knee opposite someone else your forced into the foetal position. Not matter how uncomfortable you look there is always a guy motioning you to squeeze along a little further so he can make room for 5 more tourists with gigantic backpacks. When everyone is wedged in tight the ticket collection begins causing uproar as people desperately try and elbow their way into their own pockets.

:: Our View ::

The squashing, squeezing and loss of feeling to the rear end was more than worth it though. Arriving up the river to the small town of Muang Ngoi we could see lots of little wooden bungalows with hammocks perched high above the river. 20 minutes later and less than 2 euros a night the worse off we were swinging in our hammocks enjoying the scenery.

:: Ours is the one with the biggest roof ::

Mong Ngoi village can only be reached by boat making it a sleepy isolated little town. Limited electricity (6pm to 10pm) adds to the appeal; after 10pm the village is lit by candles and torch lights. From a tourists perspective it's a fantastic place, lots of trekking, lovely beaches, clear river water to swim in, kayaking, tours and many riverside restaurants to eat in. We did all of the above but our favourite activity was walking up river before sunset and floating back down with the current to our bungalow.


We're in Luang Prabang city now... we got here a few days ago after a taking a slow boat down river. This 6 hour trip (made all the more pleasant by lots of leg room and cushions) took us past numerous small villages and through the beautiful Laos countryside. A couple of times we had to disembark so the boat could be navigated through rapids or shallow waters. In one such village all the kids rushed into the river to push the boat along past the shallows. Obviously the highlight of their day ... and a source of some pocket money.

Arriving in Luang Prabang late in the afternoon we started the usual search for accommodation. We soon realised how complacent we've become, we've always had a choice of places to stay no matter how late we've arrived into a new place. Finding accommodation in LP is a full on foot race where no one takes any prisoners. I've never seen such a squeeze for accommodation. Scores of backpackers were roaming the streets with their bags all getting a "no room in the inn" response. It was impossible to get away from the crowd. In the end I stuck with the bags and Marcus went off in search .. he ended up running into places ahead of people with bags trying to pip them. Eventually he found a hotel who only had a room because they had mislaid the key. There's a big turnover every morning but come 6pm in the evening you have to feel sorry for today's new arrivals forced to wander around in heat.

:: Monks passing a Papadum maker ::

Luang Prabang is the same beautiful charming city that I passed through 6 years ago. Thankfully the no high rises or department stores muscled they way in over the years. The old quarter is particularly attractive with it's leafy streets, funky restaurants and cafes and decorative wats. Hundreds of orange clad monks with black umbrellas fill the streets adding to the uniqueness of this city.

We're waiting for our Vietnam visas at the moment, once we have them in hand we'll depart south for Vang Vieng. This place has long been known as a backpacker hangout, over the years it's become more western and touristy and these days people either love it or despise it. We're going in with an open mind, to be honest, gently tubing down the Mekong and watching some reruns of "Friends" doesn't sound like the worst way to while away an hour or two. Who knows... we'll let you know how we get on!

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Welcome to Laos

Pushing South from our Internet HQ of Jinghong (did anyone notice the new website ? ) we headed for the Laos border at Mengla. Overnighting on the Chinese side, we enjoyed our last Chinese dinner (for a while) and prepared for the day ahead which promised to bring the fun that crossing land borders brings.
Bumping along yet another 'broken' road (below a spanking new one being built) we made it to the Chinese departure offices and smoothly made our way across. Arriving at the Laos side it was a different story. The horizontal queueing that we thought the Chinese had perfected was on show here, leading to a very long delay in fighting our way to the window to get stamped into the country.
Once across we were very clearly in a different country. The Chinese made road aside, things were alot less populated, alot more laid back with very different farming on display.
We have camped out for the last few days in Luang Namtha, about 50kms from the border. This is a developing town with some guesthouses and trekking organisations popping up in recent years. The villages around the main town are all very reachable on motorbike. We scooted around today doing lots of waving and "Sabadi" ing to the kids who have great smiles as they run out of the houses. We are on the move tomorrow heading further South, stopping at a few smaller places before we hit the relative big smoke (and the crusty baguettes).

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