week nine
another hangover day to kill so it's time for another typing extravaganza.
Oct 31st.
our second day with the rental motorbikes, we head to a hot spring where we're turned away by an expensive entry fee and head to a waterfall instead. on the way, the paved road turns into dirt, the dirt into pot holes and then turns into a winding footpath that is no longer navigable on the bikes.. so we abort and head back to the gorgeous canyon to catch the sunset.
great indian food for dinner and we lazed the rest of the evening away.
Nov 1st.
game plan is to head to lao as soon as possible which turns out to be the overnight bus tonight to the northern border.
we spend our time waiting around in different stores and cafes as we have already checked out of our room. i am compelled to have one more good pad thai before leaving thailand and danielle burns a lay of skin off her mouth on the "thai spicy herb salad".
couldn't resist a grand opening of an ice cream store where we're amazed by their home made recipe.
when it comes time to board our bus we're happy to see it.... 6 hours of winding road and discomfort result in sleep deprivation and irritability.
Nov 2nd.
at 5am we're dumped at some guest house near the border and sleep on mats in a common area until awakened by activity. the border crossing was confusing and expensive, but went smoothly. faced with the option of getting to our destination by 14 hours more bus or riverboat, we choose boat. and what better way to travel down a large, winding, choppy river than at top speed, white knuckled and wedged into a space no bigger than 18 inches deep, 20 inches wide and 30 inches long. another 6 hours and a sore ass later, the lao city of luang prabang is reached where our river joins the infamous mekong.
Nov 3rd.
breakfast is served at a well built restaurant and everything comes with a baguette. bakery shops and european style alleyways are of distinctively french influence.
we take a walk to the royal palace museum and take in some history and contemporary art. after a siesta, we grab a bite to eat and go out for a few beerlao in search of another canadian we met on the boat.
Nov 4th.
a bit burnt out, we have our brunch baguette sandwich and rent bikes to explore the area some more. it seems there is a temple/monastery every two blocks and we stop for a closer look at the ones in good repair.
the last order of business was to head to the top of a large hill in town on which an impressive golden temple sits. the 300 some steps were worth the view of the city perched on the bank of the mekong.
Nov 5th.
bus leaves at 8:30am so we're in a rush and i forget to turn in our room key after paying for the hostel. a panicked guesthouse rep knocks on my window on the bus, much to my confusion.
having sorted out the key, we're off at a painfully slow rate climbing and weaving through the beautiful hills of northern laos. curious eyes fall on us as the bus storms through roadside villages in the hills. some of the children smile and wave and some look sullen.
8 hours pass before we arrive at phonsavon into a frenzy of guesthouse pushers offering free rides and hot shower. a canadian couple from the yukon whom we met in thailand are on our bus, so we all head out for some spicy indian food.
afterward my memory gets hazy.. 4 large beerlao between us at dinner, then we're invited by some locals and our tour guide to drink laolao (rice whisky with all sorts of herbs, mushrooms, insects, etc swilling around inside).
shots and beers and shots and beers... armwrestling.. and when it was all said and done, we were locked out of our guesthouse. banging on the door didn't help so i got the phone number off the sign and had someone call for me and open sesame.... SLEEP
Oct 31st.
our second day with the rental motorbikes, we head to a hot spring where we're turned away by an expensive entry fee and head to a waterfall instead. on the way, the paved road turns into dirt, the dirt into pot holes and then turns into a winding footpath that is no longer navigable on the bikes.. so we abort and head back to the gorgeous canyon to catch the sunset.
great indian food for dinner and we lazed the rest of the evening away.
Nov 1st.
game plan is to head to lao as soon as possible which turns out to be the overnight bus tonight to the northern border.
we spend our time waiting around in different stores and cafes as we have already checked out of our room. i am compelled to have one more good pad thai before leaving thailand and danielle burns a lay of skin off her mouth on the "thai spicy herb salad".
couldn't resist a grand opening of an ice cream store where we're amazed by their home made recipe.
when it comes time to board our bus we're happy to see it.... 6 hours of winding road and discomfort result in sleep deprivation and irritability.
Nov 2nd.
at 5am we're dumped at some guest house near the border and sleep on mats in a common area until awakened by activity. the border crossing was confusing and expensive, but went smoothly. faced with the option of getting to our destination by 14 hours more bus or riverboat, we choose boat. and what better way to travel down a large, winding, choppy river than at top speed, white knuckled and wedged into a space no bigger than 18 inches deep, 20 inches wide and 30 inches long. another 6 hours and a sore ass later, the lao city of luang prabang is reached where our river joins the infamous mekong.
Nov 3rd.
breakfast is served at a well built restaurant and everything comes with a baguette. bakery shops and european style alleyways are of distinctively french influence.
we take a walk to the royal palace museum and take in some history and contemporary art. after a siesta, we grab a bite to eat and go out for a few beerlao in search of another canadian we met on the boat.
Nov 4th.
a bit burnt out, we have our brunch baguette sandwich and rent bikes to explore the area some more. it seems there is a temple/monastery every two blocks and we stop for a closer look at the ones in good repair.
the last order of business was to head to the top of a large hill in town on which an impressive golden temple sits. the 300 some steps were worth the view of the city perched on the bank of the mekong.
Nov 5th.
bus leaves at 8:30am so we're in a rush and i forget to turn in our room key after paying for the hostel. a panicked guesthouse rep knocks on my window on the bus, much to my confusion.
having sorted out the key, we're off at a painfully slow rate climbing and weaving through the beautiful hills of northern laos. curious eyes fall on us as the bus storms through roadside villages in the hills. some of the children smile and wave and some look sullen.
8 hours pass before we arrive at phonsavon into a frenzy of guesthouse pushers offering free rides and hot shower. a canadian couple from the yukon whom we met in thailand are on our bus, so we all head out for some spicy indian food.
afterward my memory gets hazy.. 4 large beerlao between us at dinner, then we're invited by some locals and our tour guide to drink laolao (rice whisky with all sorts of herbs, mushrooms, insects, etc swilling around inside).
shots and beers and shots and beers... armwrestling.. and when it was all said and done, we were locked out of our guesthouse. banging on the door didn't help so i got the phone number off the sign and had someone call for me and open sesame.... SLEEP
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12:48 AM
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