Blogs from Laos, Asia - page 578

Asia » Laos » West » Luang Prabang March 25th 2005

Singapore - Bangkok - Luang Prabang Since no airline yet flies from Singapore direct to Luang Prabang, where we were to start our journey, and the morning flight out of Bangkok was too early for a connection, we caught the late evening Singapore Airlines flight to Bangkok and checked into the Quality Suites, a ten-minute drive from the airport. I had booked this hotel on the web, and my success rate on selecting hotels this way is pretty good: but this time my instincts failed me. It had looked acceptable on the page, but perhaps I was seduced by the price, since we were just sleeping in the place - 2,190 Baht (then US$55) for a large suite, including airport transfers, breakfast, tax, etc. But it was, to be generous, rather tired and seedy. Our great ... read more

Bye Bye to Laos

Asia » Laos » West » Vientiane March 24th 2005

Vertical runway

Bon Bon on the Go Go

Night train to Bangkok. Laos to Thailand. Friendship Bridge. Early morning start. Sad to say goodbye to Laos. We had a free day in the morning before we had to catch our train back to Bangkok. Basically Penny and I walked around a bit looking for a nice place for breakfast when Penny bumps into a girl named Helen whom she met in Chiang Mai a few weeks earlier. So it was nice to have breakfast with someone new to talk to. Then somehow or other we asked an American, Sophia, if she wanted to join us as well. Turns out that she's from Martha's Vineyard and owns a clothing shop there. I don't know what it was exactly but there was something a little bit different about Sophia..but since it was her Birthday I should ... read more

Missing Luang Prabang

Asia » Laos » West » Vientiane March 24th 2005

Jaliya Guest House, Luang Phrabang

LOB

Before the roosters started crowing, we hiked to Wat Phu Si (a temple atop a 300 ft hill in the middle of the city) to see the sun rise over Luang Prabang. Somehow the sun beat us to the top, but with the smoke and dust in the air it was a dramatic red disc over the beautiful village of Luang Prabang. At the top, we took a spin on an old Russian anti-aircraft gun - it was very nostaligic for Benny. We brought a small breakfast of mangosteens (a dark purple fruit with a tough outer skin and sweet/sour white sections on the inside) and some tangerines. On Xieng Thong Road we rented "Crocodile" bikes for the day. These were were Mom Jones' kind of bikes and made it easy to get around the city ... read more

Back to Vientiane

Asia » Laos » West » Vientiane March 23rd 2005

Bon Bon on the Go Go

Another flight out Vientiane in the cards Tour almost done. Easy morning. Basically slept in. Headed out for brunch at the bakery. Did a bit of surfing on the internet. Showered up. Went to the airport for our flight to Vientiane. Upon our arrival and settling into our accommodations, Penny and I headed out for a walk into town to explore the environs. Basically we ventured up a few streets...nothing too exciting. Came across a bakery where we picked up a few goodies and then settled ourselves down by the big fountain. Eventually we walked towards the Mekong River where the group had decided to meet up for some pre-dinner drinks. There are tons of riverside bars that line the Mekong. Really nice place to just chill out. After dinner we headed to the Khop Jai ... read more

Another village trek

Asia » Laos » West » Luang Prabang March 22nd 2005

Diamond in the rough...

Bon Bon on the Go Go

On a morning trek Uphill, downhill. Hot, hot sun. Look! A waterfall! Morning trek through the hills and villages. Walk through the rice fields where it was pretty steep in some areas and very dry. Had two slips because it was so dry. Or perhaps I just don't know how to walk because my sandals seemed like ice skates! Ultimate goal was to see Kusai Waterfalls. Awesome tiered waterfalls. I went in for a small dip and it was oh so refreshing. There were tons of food vendors along the way to the falls trying to get us to eat at their stalls but we wanted to see the falls first and just power walked on by. They were pretty much all offering the same stuff. Fried rice or noodles. The best was the guy selling ... read more

Made it to Luang Phrabang, Think We'll Stay

Asia » Laos » West » Luang Prabang March 22nd 2005

Lao Airlines, Chiang Mai

LOB

Our flight on Lao Airlines was delayed, but only for 40 minutes which is to be expected I guess as the two major Thai airlines run the airports. The Chiang Mai airport is actually much nicer in my opinion than the airport in Bangkok. Clayton almost got us sent home trying to bring contraband onto the airplane in his carry on bag. He seems to think that we are going to need his leatherman knife in Laos (I don't plan on hacking my way through the jungle!). You never know with Clayton, we might end up in the jungle yet. It turns out he had to go back through and check his bag which really wasn't so bad because our flight was the only one into Luang Phrabang and by the time we got through the ... read more

A day in Luang Prabang

Asia » Laos » West » Luang Prabang March 21st 2005

No horns please!

Bon Bon on the Go Go

The Royal Palace A very palatial place No photographs please! In the morning we had a tour of the Palace/National Museum planned for us. Not much to write home about. After the tour it was "free" time for everyone to do as they pleased so we basically went our separate ways. Penny and I checked out the daytime markets to look for some material and perhaps a skirt or two for Penny. Mission accomplished! Then we spent a bit of time on the internet and ended up having a late lunch of noodles and tons of water. A quick trip to the Red Cross to get a cheap massage was next on our list of things to do...we only went to do our part for the Red Cross. haha Since we had such a late lunch ... read more

Sabaai dii from Luang Prabang

Asia » Laos » West » Luang Prabang March 20th 2005

Bon Bon on the Go Go

Twisty, windy roads Road trip to Luang Prabang Night Market tonight. Basically we had another travel day to Luang Prabang. It was about 6.5 hours on a twisty, windy road. Pretty uneventful. Waved every so often to the people as we passed by them on the road. Got into Luang Prabang in the late afternoon. Penny and I walked about town and saw the night market vendors getting all set up for selling. We headed back to meet the others for dinner. After dinner we went to the Hive Bar for a few drinks. Decided to stray from my regular Pepsi (one of the reasons being that they were charging 3x's more than usual) and got a Lao Lao cocktail. Boy was that Margarita nasty! Lao Lao is rice wine and pretty lethal in my opinion. ... read more

Kayaking in Vang Vieng

Asia » Laos » West » Vang Vieng March 19th 2005

Rich and Holly kayaking

Bon Bon on the Go Go

Wow! It's been a while since I've updated my blog. The reason being internet (if available) in Cambodia and Laos has been about $6/hr! I'll try and update the last week as time permits. I have been doing lots so there will be lots to report. Thank goodness I've been taking notes! haha I'll start with today's fun since it is still fresh in my head. The eight of us signed up for an all day kayaking and cave exploration trip here in Vang Vieng. All wet. Still laughing. Kayaking on the river. Water low…thank God! After a bit of a late night out last night Penny and I made it to the kayaking place by 8:30 in time for our breakfast. Service was a bit slow but that was okay since the kayaking place that ... read more

Uneventful day; Eventful night

Asia » Laos » West » Vang Vieng March 18th 2005

Bon Bon on the Go Go

Happy Birthday Rich The ring. Laughs. Cake and Buckets. Whooping it up time. Today started out as an uneventful travel day. Nothing too spectacular happened on our three hour journey to Vang Vieng from Veintiane. Our arrival into Vang Vieng was about mid-afternoon after a morning drive from Tad fane to Pakse and then a flight out to Vientiane. After settling into our accommodations we all set our on a walk about town to get oriented and suss out the travel places for our next days activities. None of us were really keen on tubing down the river compared to the all day kayaking adventure. Not sure if the man describing the tour or his little three year old son did the better sell because the little guy was really cute and I see him being ... read more

Brief history of Laos

Laos was under the control of Siam (Thailand) from the late 18th century until the late 19th century when it became part of French Indochina. The Franco-Siamese Treaty of 1907 defined the current Lao border with Thailand. In 1975, the Communist Pathe...more history

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