Rain, sunsets and karaoke

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So we have now left Komg Lor and headed for Tha Kek on the mini bus. The journey took about 5 hours pretty much none stop apart from a comfort break so,a rather boring journey sad to say. Near the outskirts of the town we stopped to see the 'great wall' which used to surround the city to protect it. There isn't much left now but in one or two places you can see how high the wall was. I'm a bit sceptical that it was built rather than carved out of rock as it looked more like it was a natural formation rather than man made, but who am I to argue, they know their own history.



We arrived at our hotel and dumped our bags and headed off for food. As luck would have it the rain just started as we were leaving so we headed for the first decent looking restaurant we could find.



As we were ordering our food the heavens really opened and the torrential rain came down for about forty minutes. The restaurant did a nice line in fried crickets and grasshoppers, Boon was eating the odd one and assured us they were lovely. Pauline took one for the team, bit the bullet and tried one and said they tasted a bit like almonds, however Paddy and I were not convinced and declined the offer to try one. Although it was sheeting it down and the sides of the restaurant were open, we were ok as we were inside, but after eating we were stranded for a while until the rain eased off. As soon as we could we headed back to the hotel. I went via a local store aNd purchased a chocolate brownie magnum ice cream which was yummy and I have yet to see in the UK. They also have strawberry and cappuccino varieties too. Walls pull your finger out and sell them in the UK lol.



Sadly the afternoon was a bit of a write off due to the bad weather so we all took the opportunity to have a little siesta. About 6 pm the rain had stopped so we went for a walk round the town and along Mekong river which separates Laos from Thailand. The sunset was beautiful, see photos.



After the sun set we went for food and I had the best meal in ages! A grilled chicken breast, the best chips ever and veggies with a mushroom sauce preceded with a salad and bread roll all washed down with a Laos beer lol



We decided it was too early to head back for the night so we headed back via the very small market where there was a shooting skeet game. 3 shots for 2k kip. Boon our tour guide hit 2 out of 3 and won a couple of little silly stuffed toys, Paddy and I scored zero lol.



Then we headed to the karaoke bar for a beer and to see how it's done in Laos. It wasn't very busy when we arrived but there was a birthday party going on and there were lots of balloons up in celebration. The party goers were in full swing singing when we got there. As the evening wore on the room started to fill and there was a real vibe about the place, a bit like being in a night club.



There were videos to accompany the songs with the words written in Laos script and in modern letters as if it were English but in Laos if that makes any sense lol. Most of the songs seemed to be about heart break and lost loves and were seriously bad with pretty garbage acting. American soaps meets 1980s videos, all soft focus, shoulder pads, wind machines and fake crying lol. All good fun. We did try to encourage Boon to sing but he was too shy I think. In between the songs they played English music which we chair danced too lol.



From there we headed back to the hotel where it seems a military contingent of officers were staying for the night, completed with MPs as armed guards, so we were obviously on our best behaviour lol.



Xxxxxxx

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