Blogs from Bolaven Plateau, South, Laos, Asia - page 3

The tuk tuk drivers were quite fierce and we got the impression straight away that there are a lot of people here trying to make money from not a lot of tourists. After looking at about 6 different rooms we settled on the Hotel Sala Champa which looks lovely but is pretty soulless (another lonely planet recommendation!). We spent the day trying to sort onward transport and accommodation and to book a trip to the nearby Boloven Plateau for the next day. After much to-in and fro-ing and some very high prices (£120 quid for a trip to a waterfall with our guesthouse!!!??) we sorted ourselves a local guide for the next day. Our first stop was a small tea plantation and wewalked through the plants and tried the tea which was pretty good considering it ... read more

We spend a night at the transit hub of Pakse, catching up on emails and restoring our cash supplies before catching the bus to Tadlo on the Bolaven Plateau. This fertile highland of forests and plantations rises 1500mtr above the Mekong valley and Tadlo is a small village built on the banks of the Seset river surrounded by waterfalls. The ancient bus is almost falling apart, I'm sitting above the groaning gearbox which almost seizes up on every steep stretch, before finally giving up on one monster hill. They get it fixed quickly and soon the au natrelle aircon is working again (ie. air coming through window of moving bus) phew! The bus is crammed full...every seat taken and people also perched on the sacks of rice that are stacked in every available space. Tourism is ... read more

"""Hé, deze bloemetjes groeien ook in belgië... Allez in de zomer toch""" ALdus guy bij zonsondergang in Tad lo, het doel van onze heenrit. 't Was echt weeral de moeite, watervallen, zwempartijen, uren op de bike, stortregens, koffieplantages en de daarbij horende drogende koffiebonen, rode aardewegen met stof en bulten als gratis optie, kleine dorpjes met gelukkige kids en doodskisten onder het huis voor als het zo ver is, weeral de ontmoetingen met collega travellers, een Francaise die na een stortbui niet meer terug durft rijden naar de asfaltweg en die we met plezier en een beetje leedvermaak verderhelpen, kinderen langs de weg die niet meer hello roepen maar "sabbadii" (of zoiets), local die minstens een halfuur emmers in een put vult en ze uitgiet over de weg tegen het stof,... 't Was weeral de moeite, ... read more

After the fun n frolics we had on the last scooter adventure, I decided to do the Boloven Plateau in Southern Laos the same way. The main drop off point for Boloven is Pakse, so having recovered all my stuff from Paksong, I headed there. I was in two minds whether to head straight off on the bike the day I arrived, but feeling pretty knackered after the overnight bus journey (which was actually much better than the daytime one!) I decided to stay one night in Pakse instead. Having walked around the guesthouses in town, I decided to treat myself to a night at The China Wall. It was about 10 pounds for the night, but incredibly good value. Considering some really small, dirtyish places go for around 7 pounds here, paying the extra few ... read more

Ob sedmih auf. Pospravila sva mrezo - jap, Andrej ima eno s sabo, v katero sva lahko stlacila dve postelji! - in sla na sprehod ob Mekongu. Usput za zajtrk: pecene bananice, 7 za 2 jurja! Najprej sva sla mimo reke Se Don do tourist info centra, da sva se pozanimala za Don Daeng, otocek zraven Champasaka, kamor sva hotela. Nadaljevala sva ob Mekongu do Japanese bridge (enega od treh preko Mekonga) in nato do - marketa!!! Ta v Pakseju je menda eden vecjih v drzavi in videno bi gotovo ustrezalo opisanemu, ker je res spektakularen. Imajo vse, od zivih zab (they come in all sizes) do zame neznane zelenjave (=velika frustracija). Ujagala sem tudi en Lao coffee za 3k in mandarine za 4k za kilo, kar je res dober deal - za oboje. Medtem ko ... read more