The Gem and the Missing Fin

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We set out from Chiang Mai at about 10am heading towards the Laos border at Chaing Kong. We got in the Mini bus and drove around picking people up from different hostels and immediately one person in particular stood out. He was a finnish bloke called Tony, and how he had got as far as he had i have no idea. For six hours on the bus we were listening to his travelling tales which involved taking an assortment of valium, morphine, opium and booze at varying levels over the space of a couple of months. He hadn't slept for two days, and on arrival at the border he bought a bottle announced that he had had 20 valium that day and went for a swim in the Mekong. After that he came back and then disappeared for the evening as he got the impression we didn't like him. We had dinner and met a load of people who we spent most of our time in Laos with.

The next day we crossed the river into Laos, and then got on a 2 day slow boat to Luang prabang. Amazing Tony found his way there, now covered in scratches and with a massive lump on his arm, apparently he had jumped off a roof. He bought another bottle of whiskey and with the help of the locals finished the bottle off (reluctantly at first and then when they realised he was just hammered decided to polish it off and offer it to the whole boat. He slept for most of the rest of the first day except when he tried to get off at a local village declaring he was staying here. Unfortunately but not unsurprisingly the villagers turned him back on to the boat and he went back to sleep.

Cruising down the Mekong was absolutely awesome and it was such relaxing couple of days. Despite the guides warning beforehand that if it rained we might have to spend an extra night on the boat (why rain would affect the boat going down a river i have no idea) we actually arrived a couple of hours early on both days. We had a nights stop over at Pak Bang down the Mekong. About 15 of us had a meal and then drinks afterwards.
The next day we got back on the boat to carry on the journey. There was no sign of Tony. He had told us he only had 70 dollars to his name so whether he decided to turn back and take the boat back to thailand, or whether he is still in Pak Bang working off the worlds worst hangover i don't know. The rest of the days boat journey was quite relaxing except we were positioned nearer the engine this time which was pretty loud. Me and Will also saw a horrible bloated corpse floating down the river which noone else saw and they thought we were making up. Why we would make that up i don't know but it was pretty horrific.

We arrived in Luang prabang in early evening, found ourselves a hotel and then had a look at the night market. This was short lived as it started pissing it down pretty heavily so we headed for cover and had a soaking wet dinner and a couple of beers. The next day we went to see an awesome waterfall which, unlike in thailand, had really clear water. There was a rope swing off a tree and a pool area to swim in also. We had decided to rent some scooters (sorry mum) and after Will had ridden there it was my turn to ride back. Its safe to say I was a natural motorcyclist and I think Will was pretty much hitting it the whole way home but it was fun and by the end i felt more confident. It has definitely made me consider getting a motorbike when i get back even though they weren't very powerful bikes. We had dinner that night at the night market food street, which was a lot cheaper than the restaurants but absolutely delicious. We then went to a bar serving cocktails and had a couple of drinks before the 11:30 Laos curfew.

The next days we got up early and saw a few more sights in Luang prabang before getting the bus down to Vang Vieng. The trip there was both awesome and horrible at the same time. It was some of the best scenery I have ever seen as we curved our way up through the mountains. On the other hand however it was almost impossible not to feel sick as the driver flung the minibus round 90 degree corners (which were ever 50 meters down the road) without slowing down. Me and Will apparently looked quite funny both asleep hunched over forward lolling left and right in unison as we hurtled round the corners.

We got to Vang Vieng with Fraser and Mel, a couple we had originally met in Chiang Kong, and decided to have an early night. The next day we rented to bicycles and cycled to a cave and waterfall a couple of kilometers away called the blue lagoon. We had a wander through the caves and had a dip in the pool before carrying on a bit further down the road only to find another blue lagoon. We soon worked out that the real blue lagoon had got a good review in the Lonely Planet guide, and therefore every farmer along the road had called his cave "blue lagoon" and was charging suckers like us to see it. We eventually got to the real Blue lagoon (quite along way away) which was awesome. The caves here were absolutely huge and we had a walk around inside for about 40 or 50 minutes before heading outside for a swim in the lagoon in the rain. The rain didn't stop and so we had to cycle about 7 km back in the soaking rain which wasn't that pleasant an experience.

That evening we caught up with some of the others we had met who had stayed an extra day in Luang prabang and arranged to all go tubing the next day. For mum and dad and others who might not know what it is tubing is basically floating down a river, either in a rubber ring or just swimming, stopping at bars along the way and getting pissed. However the four or five main bars can be no more than 500 metres apart, meaning its really just a bar crawl. The whiskey shots were free all day and its not really surprising that we were drunk by the time we got to the second bar. The other attraction is the array of rope swings, jumps and slide from the bars into the river. We were cautious at first as the river looked quite shallow but someone went in first and then the floodgates started. Water, booze and rope swings of 10 metres or more are not really a good mix and there were a few dodgy landings in the water. The beauty of it being that because of the booze the pain was minimal. We were some of the last left floating down the river and got back to the town just after dark. It was a great day but i dont think i could do it for more than a couple of days, which made the bloke who said he'd been there for 36 days all the more impressive.

The next day we woke up and having sobered up started to feel the pain. We were saw all over and over the next week or so bruises started appearing. I had one on my inner thigh and one on my chest, and also a bit tongue but the best injury by far was Wills, a huge bruise that covered almost half his back. We got on the bus that day to Hanoi, changing over at Vietienne.

Laos is such an awesome country, the people are so friendly, the hassle is minimal compared to thailand, and as we have since found out compared to Vietnam too. Everything is so cheap and if I had more time i would liked to have stayed longer. Luang prabang is such a nice city, with a great mix old temples, colonial french architecture and also plenty to do both in the day and at night. The Lonely Planet called it the jewel of South East Asia and i would have to agree. I am in Hoi an at the moment about half way down Vietnam and will write more soon

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