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Published: April 23rd 2008
Loas has been really relaxing- it's just impossible to become frustrated with the constant delays there, as life around you moves at such a lazy pace.
I did'nt know what to expect from Loas. It turned out to be a breath of fresh air, as the tourism infrastructure there is much less evolved than it's neighbouring Thailand, so things feel more authentic. This doesn't mean that, like in Vietnam, the locals don't know what it is that Western travellers want, just that travel takes longer and a very real feeling of isolation can be found in this gem of a place- this based on just over 2 weeks there( after this short time I feel that Loas joins Mongolia in places I'd most like to revisit from this journey).
We entered after a long day of travel from Pai, Northern Thailand and a stop at the border and started with the two day river journey to Luang Prabang. This was crowded and with basic seating, but with beautiful scenery and the antics of inveterate old drunks as diversions. Luang Prabang, although peaceful, for us was a little dull, with a large market in the centre of town selling knick-knacks
Monks
On the disused airstrip, Vang Vieng- a very hot day!to tourists and a booming hotel scene. We made a snap decision to head north yo stay in a small Loas village called Moung Neui, which turned out to be just the thing we needed. The place was a village on the Nam river, where the electricity ended at 9.30 or 10 at night. Abosolutely no motorised traffic, except for the odd motor boat on the river. We spent our time eating home cooked Loas food, walking( we went to a nearby village, thorugh rice fields), and swimming in the river.
We then dashed to the party town of Vang Vieng. At first sight the place looked likd the pleasure island from Pinnochio- with blaring music and lit up like a Christmas tree. During the day though, it's a great place for out door activities- we went cycling to a nearby cave and swimming lagoon one day and spent a day kayaking on the river .
The end of our stay in Loas coincided with the Buddhist New Year, a national holiday when the country, like Thailand, erupts into a full scale water fight- we spent three days soaked to the skin, as on every street there were
Mekong Sunset
Luang Prabang water pistol toating locals and foreigners, and in the capitol, Vientienne, the water war fare was also conducted by groups of grinning young people riding in the back of pickup trucks( They even chucked water on each other whilst riding the "freeway").
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Lidija
non-member comment
Bet kad atpakal?
kartejo reizi papriecajus par Jums. Bet kad tad, beidzot, uz Dzimteni? Jauku dienu novelot, Lidija