lkrhoads
Laurie Rhoads Joined: October 13th 2008
Logged in: February 5th 2012
Logged in: February 5th 2012
Travel Blog Posts
My most common pose for 10 days, usually not this smiley, though!
This morning I was released from 10 days of voluntary silence and am now back out in the 'real world.' It feels strange to be here in a not entirely wonderful way, but I feel a renewed sense of peace and serenity which will hopefully serve me well as I get ready to head back home after being away for 7 and a half months. We strived to do everything mindfully (and therefore more slowly) at the retreat, the exact opposite of the way we usually live in the modern (western) world. I'm hoping that I will maintain the meditation practice after leaving here and not get too sucked back in to regular life to keep up the discipline. Not only was the retreat almost entirely silent for participants, but we also didn't have the distractions ... read more
A lot of people ask what it's like to travel alone here, and I can say that I have enjoyed it for the most part. I do, however, think that Southeast Asia can be a little tougher for a solo traveler than some other parts of the world I've traveled in, such as Latin America and Europe, just because of the way that accommodations are set up. In Latin America and Europe (and Australia/New Zealand, from what I understand) there are backpacker hostels everywhere that often have dorm rooms and common hangout spaces and/or bars and restaurants right there. That is sometimes the case here, especially in particular backpacker havens like Vang Vieng, but usually you are in a guesthouse or a little hotel that doesn't really have common spaces and so you don't automatically meet ... read more
Trying on my 'fancy' dress at Lucky Number
Hoi An is another UNESCO World Heritage site and is charming in a similar way to Luang Prabang, although a little (OK, maybe a LOT) pushier in its commercialism. The streets sound a little something like this: " You buy something? You look in my shop? Looking free! Good price! Motorbiiiiike? Want cold water? Coke? Not lucky today- no sales! You be lucky first customer! Motorbiiiiike? Madame, madame- Look! Cookies? Chips? New shoes? Beautiful dress, many fabrics! Where you from? When you come to Hoi An? How long you stay? Motorbiiiiike? Are you married? How old are you? Pretty lady, dress for you! Where you go? You go beach? Motorbiiiiike? I really enjoyed my time there and ended up staying for 6 nights, partly out of lack of inertia and partly because I was reunited with ... read more
Line leading up to the entrance
Going to see Uncle Ho's preserved body was probably one of the creepiest things I've done in a long time. I guess I went out of macabre curiosity and a sort of side-show interest, which I realize is not the most respectful of attitudes, but I can assure you that I had second thoughts about the whole thing once I got there. Ho Chi Minh was born in 1890 and led the Viet Minh Independence movement against the French colonialists starting in 1941. He continued to be a major power in Vietnam until his death in 1969 and even (or especially?) now maintains a strong cult of personality, much like Evita, Che, and Fidel, among others. After its fall, Saigon was renamed Ho Chi Minh City (quite a mouthful, but it seems that it is still ... read more
View of sleeper bus to Hanoi
. . . and I really love Indian food. That probably sounds like a real non sequitur, but stick with me on this one, if you will. I was in the northern part of Laos, in Luang Namtha, and wanted to make my way over to Vietnam, either to Sapa or Hanoi, whichever seemed to be easier/quickest. I suspected that it would probably take me two full days of travel to make the trek across the border, but it actually ended up taking three! Three loooonnng days that have already been semi-covered in my bus tips blog. I was trying to head to the northernmost border between Laos and Vietnam, though I hadn't met too many people who had braved that one. In fact I think I only met one couple who had come through that ... read more
Waiting for the bus to leave
I've already written about my "V.I.P" bus experience, but since then I've gotten a lot more bus/minivan/songthaew-riding experience in Laos under my belt. The roads in northern Laos are, by necessity due to the mountainous topography, quite curvy. I think the country has come a long way in terms of infrastructure from what I understand, but some roads are extra difficult to travel because of the mudslides that flow through in the rainy season and are not cleared off so that they dry into hard, dirt speedbumps for the rest of the year. The nausea factor of the already curvy roads is exacerbated by the fact that the driver is usually trying to swerve to avoid these 'speedbumps' as much as possible. I have had A LOT of time to work on this blog (at least ... read more
The back of the bus filled with backpacks, suitcases, bags of rice, and firewood
I've made it safely back to Luang Prabang after a very . . . interesting . . . bus ride on the "V.I.P" bus from Phonsavan. I've learned from my bus journeys thus far in Laos that the roads are extremely curvy, though well-paved, at least. I got to the bus station in Phonsavan this morning hoping that I could make it farther north than Luang Prabang today, but had mostly given that idea up after I learned that the bus ride would be eight hours on the windy, mountainous highway. We headed off down the road in good spirits on our "V.I.P." bus that seemed pretty OK and had not one live rooster on it (unlike my last bus from Vang Vieng to Phonsavan). We seemed to be moving at a snail's pace, though, and ... read more
Jars
The Plain of Jars, near Phonsavan, Laos, is a big plain of, well . . . jars. This vast expanse of stone jars is one of the great unsolved mysteries (aliens, anyone?) of the world and is pretty much the only reason to make a trip to Phonsavan. It has the feel of a town that is just starting to be developed into more of an attraction-- still on the traveling path, but a bit less trampled than the usual backpacker circuit. The people I met there were perhaps a bit more 'serious' in their travels, especially in comparison with the spring break-esque party scene I had left behind in Vang Vieng. According to an NGO in Phonsavan called MAG (Mines Advisory Group), Laos is the most bombed-out country per capita in the world due to ... read more
March 23rd 2009
Beginning of Day 2 on the river
As I started to write this blog (which is backdated by a couple months), I decided to look at the Wikpedia description of Vang Vieng just for curiosity's sake. At the end of the entry, under the "See also" section was a hyperlink to "Banana Pancake Trail." That name made me chuckle to myself, because I think that Courtney and I have definitely been on that trail once or twice and we certainly indulged in a delicious late-night banana chocolate pancake whilst in Vang Vieng (and other places!). I clicked on the hyperlink to see what it was all about and here is what the entry said: "The Banana Pancake Trail is the name given to the well-trodden and constantly growing routes around South East Asia travelled by backpackers and other tourists. The Trail has no ... read more
I just thought this was a cool shot
I think that Luang Prabang definitely deserves its place as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is truly a beautiful place and even the constant gray caused by the slash and burn agriculture couldn't take away its beauty and charm, though I must admit that it would have been even lovelier with some blue skies now and again. Admittedly, my photos are somewhat disappointing and don't really capture all that Luang Prabang has to offer, but trust me, it is lovely and I would highly recommend it to anyone! Luang Prabang was the ancient capital of the Luang Prabang Kingdom and remained the capital of Laos until the communists took over in 1975. The current capital of Laos is Vientiane, which is, from all accounts thus far, an unremarkable little city that isn't much worth the ... read more
