Si Phan Don (Darrell}

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Although translated as "4000 Islands", only a few of islands that split this part of the mighty Mekong are actually inhabited. We had originally decided on the quieter of the populated islands, Don Det, as our chosen destination, but had to change our plans when we found that it would require chartering a boat ourselves. Instead we headed for neighbouring Don Khon.

The longboat that carried us out was well loaded with people and packs and sat deep in the water. We slalomed between islets until coming upon a tiny stretch of sand surrounded by a few open restaurants and cafes. The room we chose on the other side of the small island was the typical asian wooden bungalow, just large enough to hold a bed.

For a few dollars we hired two very basic bicycles and followed the road along the edge of the island. There is no traffic, or even a road, on the northern end of the island where we were, but there was a large choice of places to eat, serving delicious food and cold Beer Lao. On the southern end of the island we came across an old railway bridge, and pushed our bikes across the channel to Don Det. This second island was much like the first, with simple little guest houses and restaurants built along the shoreline and dogs and chickens scuffling in the shade of the palm trees.

Our cycle path took us to the western edge of the island, where the Mekong filtered through a network of large boulders and made several large drops. The result is a pretty spectacular series of waterfalls over 100m wide. Further on a still inlet provided a beach and a place to swim, and we took the time to refresh ourselves from the hot sun in the icy water.

As we were leaving the small beach, we noticed that Cath's rear tire had gone completely flat. We had to walk the rest of the way back to the bridge to find a guy with a workshop. He fixed the tube in a novel way that involved setting the tyre alight at one stage.

With everything repaired, we sat down for a drink at one of the stilted restaurants overhanging the water and watched the sun setting behind the 3 999 other islands.

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