I'm writing this on the 10 (Sunday) - arrived safely and everything's fine except that I am feeling incredibly frustrated by the lack of decent internet access. Either it's too slow, you can't upload photos, or else they have these tiny little booths where my face is 3 inches from the screen. I'll try to post more later - there has to be a decent internet cafe somewhere in Kochi? hmmm (after checking out 3 other places), not really. Anyway I will just try and do my best to give you guys some news. So--------------------- The flight was ok and there [View Full Entry]

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Just checked out of my room so this is it - the end of my Asia adventure. I really would love to continue for another month...I was just thinking how fun it would be to get a ticket for Hanoi. Perhaps next year. I have had a fabulous time in Bangkok and Laos where everyone stays calm and you always feel safe and I am not looking forward to all the grumpy hysterical people I will have to affront in the metro. C'est la fin. J'ai passe des moments extraordinaires et j'ai surtout apprecie d'etre dans des endroits ou personne ne [View Full Entry]

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Back in Bangkok, I decided to explore the city a little. The river taxi stop is not far from the guesthouse so I took it to go to Chinatown. Also a few photos from my last night in Vientiane. De retour a Bangkok et moins fatiguee et plus habituee au chaleur je profite pour explorer un peu la ville. Chinatown et le river taxi et aussi quelques photos de ma derniere nuit a Vientiane. [View Full Entry]

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Je suis arrivee hier a Vientiane...10h30 de bus...le plus penible jusqua present mais c'etait aussi le derniere fois demain je pars pour le Thailand et puis bientot de retour a Paris, c'est passe trop vite. Arrived in Vientiane yesterday, 10 and a half hours on the bus because I did the long haul from Luang Prabang to Vientiane straight through without stopping in Vang Vieng. It's nice to be back in Vientiane. This vacation has gone by too fast. Tomorrow I leave for Thailand and then on Thursday return to Paris.... Some photos from Luang Prabang - the boat race and [View Full Entry]

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Tomorrow is the big annual boat race in Luang Prabang so I will stay here at least through to Thursday. Leave for Vientiane on Friday (10 hours of bus again...) and then back to Bangkok on Monday. Demain c'est le course de bateaux a Luang Prabang et aujourd'hui ils s'entrainent... [View Full Entry]

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It's been rainy and overcast since Friday so the photos are just ok. I'm going to stay until Wednesday so maybe I will have some luck tomorrow and get some good light. Il pleut depuis Vendredi alors pour les photos ce n'est pas l'ideal. Peut etre demain... And also if anyone out there is planning a trip to Laos I cannot speak highly enough of the Footprint guide I've been using. The people with the Lonely Planets are all complaining and asking to borrow my Footprint - it's been really reliable and accurate and I'm happy I chose it, you can [View Full Entry]

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Tout va tres bien a Luang Prabang. Je viens d'arriver apres 8 heures de bus alors je suis un peu fatiguee. Depuis ma derniere poste je suis allee a Sam Neua (un autre monde - c'etait genial - pendant les deux premiers jours il n'y avait pas d'electricite de tout dans toute la ville, alors pour l'internet...) et ensuite Phonsavan (ou l'electricite ne marchait que de 19 heures du soir au 7 heures du matin). Ici a Luang Prabang il parait que l'electicite marche 24 sur 24 alors demain je vais profiter pour mettre des photos de mes recents aventures... Arrived [View Full Entry]

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The day after I arrived in Phonsavan I visited the Plaine des Jarres, it was really pretty boring. Had I known, I would have skipped Phonsavan and taken the long way to Luang Prabang through Nam Nouan and Nong Khiaw...oh well, perhaps next time. Le Plaine des Jarres ne vaut franchement pas le detour, quelque vielles jarres en pierre et puis c'est tout. Si j'avais su j'aurais pris un autre chemin pour Luang Prabang en passant par Nam Nouan et Nong Khiaw...peut etre le prochaine fois. [View Full Entry]

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This was absolutely the most exciting bus ride of my life...and the longest, and the scariest, and the most uncomfortable as well. Nine and a half hours on twisting mountain roads going through the most beautiful scenery...I got bit by a leech when the bus got stuck and we all had to get out and push so that is another first for me - it's not painful at all and I didn't even notice til I got to the hotel in Phonsavan and my leg was covered in blood and happily the leech had already fallen off so I didn't have [View Full Entry]

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I went out to visit the caves but no one was home...the access is really badly marked so I sort of wandered around and finally found one cave but there was no guide or anything and I hadn't brought a flashlight so I couldn't really visit. It was a beautiful ride out there in any case, the countryside is just magnificent. Je suis allee de Sam Neua a Vieng Xai en songtheaw pour visiter les grottes mais il n'y avait personne et je n'avais pas penser a apporter un torche. Le chemin est assez mal indique - j'ai fini par trouver [View Full Entry]

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