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Published: February 28th 2007
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Mekong Vista
The view from our bungalows. The sunsets were magnificient with the island spotted river in the foreground. After crossing the Mekong in the early morning, we made our way south and again partially traversed the river to the island of Don Det. Only one of the 4000 islands scattered throughout the Mekong, Don Det is quite a special little place. Only recently has it become a tourist destination, and we didn't have trouble locating a very chilling guesthouse on the riverfront for only $2.50 per bungalow. We were taken by surprise when, upon asking for a bungalow, a ~~14 yr. old girl came forward and organized our rooms, then made us all lunch! With no other adult in sight we were quite confused but after seeing how well she ran the place we simply went along with it.
Our time there was limited due to our financial difficulties in Pakse, but we enjoyed it nonetheless. We enjoyed many of sunny afternoons though they were honestly toooo hot because without power on the island from 11pm - 6pm each day, there were no fans or even refrigerated drinks to ease the heat. We quickly got used to it though and found shade in certain restaurants, and of course the river offered refreshing swims.
The island was
Lounging in the Hammocks
Barely able to cope with the intense and breezeless 35 degree heat, we only lasted a few minutes in the sun before jumping in the river or darting to a shady restaurant. a lot larger than we imagined, and we discovered this one day unintentionally. The night prior a local western guy came around town selling these amazing fresh doughnuts and other baked goods - which was quite a treat for us. We bought more than our share but found ourselves craving more the next day. We asked around town where we could find this magic baker, and they pointed down the side of the island, and instructed us that "just walk down, you can't miss it, you'll smell it!" Excited we began our little search, and after walking for about 45 minutes (we later found out it was only a few hundred metres from town) we had almost made it entirely around the island. We knew we hadn't smelled it though and were so dedicated to finding this place we just kept walking. Without water, the intense heat got to us and we gave up the search. Disappointed, we returned to town and demanded an explanation from the lady that directed us in the first place. "Oh.", she remembers, "I forgot that today he shut down the bakery and is doing some renovations, I guess THAT's why you guys didn't smell
A Sunset
Much better in person, but spectacular nonetheless. it!" GRRRrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! The upside is that we got to see some of the sights and had a tour of the island, but oh how bad we wanted those chocolate banana doughnuts...
Nee, the "hotel operator" was a very friendly and happy girl, which is hard to imagine because this 14 year old girl worked her tail off all day cooking and carrying out the basic hotel operations. We had fun talking to her and telling her about anything we could. I had a spare toothbrush and toothpaste tube that I received from my Aunt Jann, our dental hookup, and decided that Nee should have a toothbrush (her teeth were beginning to...rot.) She was surprised and happy about the gift, though humble at first. Later though, I caught her in the act of vigorously brushing her teeth in front of a mirror, foaming at the mouth, and having a blast. She was somewhat embarrassed at being "caught in the act" but I took a minute to show her proper technique (she was all over the map) and some basic dental hygiene that I hope she follows!
Aside from the odd highlight (very minor compared to other places) we really
River Tree
This massive tree/island is counted as one of the 4000, which really makes for a cool boat ride across the river winding around these little stubs of land. Anyone know the name of the tree? didn't get up to a lot on Don Det. We enjoyed the food, the rare sound of music when the generators turned on at 6pm, and the odd tube float in the river to escape the heat. The Mekong, though massive, was almost totally still around the island because the river is spread out so much and slowed down by the thousands of islands scattered from shore to shore.
We left on the 24th to make our way back to Bangkok to meet our Aunt and Uncle who were arriving on the 25th. A crazy tuk-tuk ride brought us up to the border (I had to ride on the roof with all the bags, though it was honestly the best seat considering the breeze, the sun, and the fresh air.) The border was eventless, after waiting in line with locals who were trying to cross into Thailand, a border official practically got angry with us because we "should have known" that we don't have to deal with any searches or fancy paper work, and we were quickly ushered through the border after a quick passport stamp. It's amazing how much they disregard backpackers as potential smugglers of any kind,
Fishin'
At dusk the river fills with local fishermen hoping to fill their nets with tasty treats. It's very interesting to watch their techniques. they simply whisk them through.
We stayed a night before taking a very nice bus back to Bangkok (the last of our trip so we thought to spoil ourselves.) Upon arriving in Bangkok we were utterly shocked at how hectic, smelly, loud and full of life the streets were compared to the last two months in Indochina. We quickly discovered that the shopkeepers were ridiculously rude compared to the more remote places we visited. It was an eye-opener, but we kind of expected that from Khao San road, which is essentially the busiest backpacker location in all of Southeast Asia. After meeting up with our Aunt and Uncle, we quickly booked into a very nice resort down the coast and eagerly left Bustling Bangkok.
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Jamie
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james ur such a sweetheart
hey james...ur too cute giving that little girl ur toothbrush! sounds like its amazing, i think my next trip will definetly be there, althought i think i'll need a guy to go with me? or how bout south america? anyway i hope you guys can stop off in amsterdam, nothing like there but good in its own way...i'll send you an e-mail...enjoy!! xox jamie