Blogs from Laos, Asia - page 3

HE SAID... In this short trip we travelled through two Southeast Asian countries. We spent six days in Thailand (travelling northwards from Bangkok to Chiang Khong), and then ten days in Laos (travelling southeast from Huay Xai to Vientiane). We usually try to contain our travel adventures to a single country, as it allows us to get to know the place – the food, the people, the political atmosphere, the historic impacts and the currency. However, we’ve occasionally swayed from our one-country travel rule, and with fantastic results. We explored Guatemala, Belize and Mexico in 2016, and Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria in 2018. Both trips were extraordinary, and with the exception of Belize, I really felt we gained a real sense of each individual country. With this in mind, we weren’t too worried about breaking our ... read more

When you’ve heard it, you must see it; only after you’ve seen it make a judgement with your heart… ~ Lao Proverb HE SAID... Today we were continuing to explore the friendly and peaceful city of Vientiane. We woke late and headed down to the Family Boutique Hotel’s large dining area for a late breakfast. It was the last few days of our Thai-Laotian holiday, and we were focused on relaxing in Vientiane. As was becoming customary on this trip, I enjoyed fresh baguettes and omelettes – my favourite way to start each day in Laos. I also helped myself to cornflakes, toast and jam, excellent coffee, terrible tea and the strange orange cordial that features at every breakfast buffet in the country. After our leisurely breakfast, we shared a jumbo (motorbike with a covered trailer ... read more

Don’t blame the buffalo if your fence is not good… ~ Lao Proverb HE SAID... Today we were exploring the caves and villages on the outskirts of Vang Vieng. Having arrived in the late afternoon the previous day, we had not explored much of this tourist-centric town on the eastern bank of the Nam Song (Song River). However, we had the whole day ahead of us, and we were intent on getting out of town and into the caves on the western side of the river. We woke late and had a late breakfast – it was the first time we’d taken it easy in Laos. The buffet breakfast at Phetchaleun Hotel was fairly basic, but there was an incredibly fresh baguette on offer, and it mixed perfectly with the freshly made omelette, so I had ... read more

Although he who walks behind an elephant may feel secure, he is likely to get splattered with elephant dung… ~ Lao Proverb HE SAID... Today we were continuing to explore the calm and alluring township of Luang Prabang. We woke early, but headed to breakfast fairly late at 7:30am. I enjoyed muesli with yoghurt and milk, but I made the mistake of ordering the special eggs with toppings – a type of baked eggs with sweet bread and sweet Chinese sausage. I simply didn't like it (which is VERY rare for me), so I had to re-order a vegetarian omelette, which was so much better. The woman in the kitchen wasn’t very impressed with me at all, but then again, I don’t think she was all that impressed with people in general. Cold orange cordial and ... read more

A person’s stripes are inside; those of a tiger are outside… ~ Lao Proverb HE SAID... Today we were arriving in the calm and alluring township of Luang Prabang. After another full day on the Mekong in a long wooden slow boat (we’d pushed off the riverbank at Pak Beng about eight hours earlier), we arrived at a berthing area for slow boats just outside Luang Prabang in the early evening. We clambered onto the riverbank, struggled up a particularly steep set of stairs to the roadside and jumped into a waiting minibus – we were heading to Legend Hotel, our comfortable accommodation in Luang Prabang for the next three nights. In the lead up to this trip, I found time to read A Dragon Apparent – Travels in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam by Norman Lewis. ... read more