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Published: October 20th 2006
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Chiang Mai Night Market
I seriously have no more room in my back pack if i did i would come home with 15 pairs of Fisherman pants $4 each I spent a couple more days in Chiang Mai as I was really enjoying their way of life, the people are beautiful and it is a very relaxed outdoor atmosphere.
Most days I would get my daypack and just walk to see what I could find. On my final day in Chiang Mai walk I met and spoke with many local people who approached me. even a gentleman from Japan came up to me for a chat. I found out some local knowledge and that on Mondays many Thais wear yellow as a support for the king (as he was born on a Monday) and on this particular night the Kings son was in town and there was to be a celebration and parade for him.
I plained to go back to that area later that night to join in but on my way I got way laid when I walked past a street vendor that was selling wine which he makes himself. He had Strawberry wine, Ginseng wine, Lychee wine, apple wine all for 20 baht for a glass (maybe 75 cents) with a little table and chair behind him. So I sat for a few hours with
some locals and had a few strawberry wines… it was 10% and I think if I understood correctly, they use 1.5 kilos of strawberry for every bottle - it was quite delicious.
Wednesday I hoped on a mini bus to go to Laos, we travelled 5 hours to the Thailand - Laos border and stayed the night in Chiang Kong. It was so humid there and the town seemed to be quite small with just a main street and a big ferry crossing to take one over the Mekong to get to Laos.
The group that I caught the mini van with would be the group that I hang around with for the next 4 days. 2 aussies, 2 irish, 2 brits, 1 russian (he went awol after our first meeting) and a girl from Holland.
We had a few drinks in the restaurant in Chiang Kong which was open air and looked over the Mekong then decided to ‘hit the town’ right across the road was a small bar with a pool table so we stayed there. They hadn’t had any people in their bar for 2 weeks before we all came crashing in. I think
Chiang Mai
I was just walking around the city and i came across this wonderful area we left an impression.
The next morning we were told to meet for breakfast at 8am as we were leaving for Laos at 9. So after we had our visas to enter Laos we went through immigration, had a bit of a wait, walked down to the river, had a bit of a wait and caught a tiny skinny boat that struggled to take the 8 of us over to Laos.
Then a short walk and a bit of a wait, a truck ride, and a bit of a wait, another short walk, and we were on our boat, just a bit of a wait and we were on our way.... We finally left at 12. Our boat was very crowded and had delightful wooden seats or a wooden floor covered by a bamboo mat.
I moved to the front of the boat to spread out and sat on the ground on the bamboo mat. My new Irish friend Liz and I hung out there and whole time.
The scenery was spectacular. The Mekong River is very dangerous and the current is so strong and there are whirl pools that go at a huge speed, giant
Chiang Mai Pizza shop
Everyday i would walk past this statue and every day there would be a new type of pizza in his hand (made fresh that morning)... it made me laugh every time i saw it!! logs and it is an awesome site. We sailed past lush jungle were you could just see the tip of the huts in a village, often a golden roof of a temple could be seen through the trees.
We arrived into Pak Beng, Laos at about 5.30 and 6 of us broke from the group and booked into a cute little guest house which reminded me of a tree house. Their electricity was powered by a generator which was turned off at 10pm every night and wasnt turned on until after we left he next morning.
We had dinner over looking the Mekong and jungle then went to a platform next to a mountain and drink until the generaters were turned of at 10. which means no light and no fan and no hot water….. and of course no flushing toilets but this is just to be expected these days……..But its all good!!
Thursday morning we all pile into the boat again but this time I am not so lucky and end up spending my 7 hour boat ride on a wooden seat. But the time goes fast, I get to think about things that I usually
Thailand - Laos Border
Having breakfast in Chiang Kong, Thailand, that's the Mekong River behind me and the village you can see is Laos. don’t have time to think about. I spend hours thinking and questioning the meaning of life, why am I here, what am I here to do.. I put myself in mother natures hands and trust that she will show me the way.
The breeze is light and the sun is shining, I borrow liz’s walkman and spend hours just watching the scenery. So green and lush. It goes from dense jungle to sandy beaches to rain forests to less dense. This area around the Mekong is the 2nd best ecological area in the world behind the Amazon. The amount of species in these parts are endless.
We arrive into Luang Prabang at dusk and i book into a wonderful guest house. First impressions are wonderful, it is warm and relaxed with french architecture. This is the 2nd largest city in Laos and is a world heritage site.
I unpack my bags and spread my stuff all over the room.... I am pretty tired and plan to have an early night.
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Aunty
non-member comment
wow
praps you can come into my classes and teach these kidlets about just how beautiful our world really is. ... and praps next trip you can take an old aunty with you.....