relax

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A 1.5 hour boat ride will take us to Nong khai. 25000 kip per person. It is cheaper because there are a lot of people per boat. The boat we are in has 6 luxurious seats up the front and wooden planks up the back. We are first on and Kathy claims a good seat but being the gentleman we are me and the boys venture up the back with the locals. It is just like an air flight, first class up the front and the cattle squeezed up the back. A very long hour on the river ensues; at times like this I wish my bum stored more fat.

It is terrible when one starts to become blasé with his surroundings but on this trip I am more worried about the cramp in my leg than the wondrous surroundings passing me by. The road is being constructed to Nong Khai and is about half way between the two.

Arriving Nong khai we catch a Tuk Tuk, a Ute with 2 rows of seats in the back with a canopy over the top, when the back is full people then stand on the back bumper bar. We find accommodation overlooking the river. 250,000 kip per room.

A relaxing afternoon is spent swinging in the hammock watching the water flow by. Kathy and I hire a bicycle and ride over the bridge to the village and do a quick tour. A wedding is in progress, a very colourful affair indeed with lots of music and Karaoke of course. The party can last for days as we realise as we lay in bed, across the river the sounds of want to be rock stars lulls us to slumber!

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