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Don Det/4000 Islands
Journey from Kratie, Cambodia to Don Det/4000 Islands, Laos went smoothly. Laos Visa administered at the border with no issues surprisingly, other than a further $2 charged on top of the $34 because it was 4.30pm and 'overtime' kicks in at 4pm....??.
Swift boat ride across to Don Det and our search for accommodation began. We were informed that the 'sunset' side of the island was 'the' place to be. However no room at the inn, so we installed ourselves at Mo's Guesthouse (GBP 3 a night between us!) on the 'sunrise' side of the Mekong River. Photo of our 'en-suite' says it all. It was rank - you get what you pay for. In fact we were totally unimpressed with Don Det in general. Over-priced, crap food and knackered locals - you had to actually wake them up in the local shop - go around the counter and give them a prod - you could have cleared them out! They just did not seem arsed. Also Don Det is mainly a hub for those fond of a joint or 10. We realised quickly that a high percentage of the travellers in the resort were stoned and basically
kipped in their hammock by the Mekong all day. Not our bag....
Pakse
Nice quiet town.
As ever the Asian morning markets proved to be an entertaining event. All sorts on offer - from congealed bowls of frogs to 48 piece dinner sets, totally random. The locals are fascinated by the Westerners ('Falang') and they have no issues BLATANTLY staring at you for AGES (then talking about you with their mates) Clearly bang out of order in our culture, but you just have to ignore it..when in Rome etc.
We hired bikes one day (that is bicycles as opposed to Mopeds) and scooted around, stopping for bottles of Beerlao by the Mekong eating fresh pork (possibly??) kebabs, cooked in front of us on a makeshift grill.
We did intend to hire a moped each to discover the Bolaven Plateau...Gina got about roughly 5 seconds up the main street before she nearly ended up under an oncoming tuk-tuk. Not her forte clearly. (Darren was fine - nipped up and down the street no bother). What was more worrying was the fact that the bloke from the moped hire shop was keen for me to "practice more lady!". Her right leg
was bleeding and a cracking bruise was developing on her left knee. The guy didn't seem to give a toss... No driving licence required, helmet optional and a totally incompetent driver - and they would still let you go off into the sunset - unreal!
So instead of the mopeds to the Bolaven Plateau we took a proper tour in a minivan (far safer option) and nailed it all in a day. Fantastic waterfalls, beautiful scenery and great fellow travellers on the trip. We visited some small, tribal villages which were an eye-opener, especially the fact that most of the kids start smoking the tobacco pipe at 2/3 yrs old! Clearly a very poor community, yet all of the wooden shacks had a TV blasting out Thai channels! The highlight was watching the local kids playing about at the waterfalls. They were having a great time and kept showing off diving from rocks into the water - fearless!
We also managed to squeeze in another excellent massage in Pakse - for GBP 3 each for an hour. Heaven!
Vientiane
The 12h journey from Pakse to Vientiene (the capital) was our first experience of the overnight bus = HELLISH. Especially
when you're 'bed' (top-bunk) was directly opposite the toilet (hole in floor stuff) and the guy in the adjacent bunk had gut-rot. It was a loooong night. The buses have the cheek to call themselves 'VIP Buses'!! Some even have neon signs claiming 'KING OF THE BUSES' ...my ar*e.
The capital is actually quite a small, quiet city. Pleasant enough but not a huge amount to do. The most eventful day was our walk to the Vietnamese Embassy (via the Patuxai) and experiencing possibly the worst service we had EVER received from the embassy staff. They were so, so, SO rude it was actually funny, we ended up laughing in the office itself which I think p*ssed them off even more. Anyway. World Cup fever was kicking in and we were v excited about the opening game...until we discovered a) there was a chance it wasn't going to be shown as the electricity supply in Laos can be temperamental and b) if it was shown it would be Thai commentary - no John Motson!!
We did see the opening game (not the ceremony as no signal...) total anti-climax as it was all in Thai with a dodgy TV reception.
Gina was particularly concerned given it was England's first game the following evening, so along with Ian and Michelle (a great couple we met - and with Ian being English also) we took the decision to get the venga bus to Laos' 'party central' - VANG VIENG!!! BRING ON THE TUBING!
Vang Vieng
The bus to Vang Vieng was over an hour late to collect us and then on the dodgy, winding journey (through beautiful countrysde) the exhaust fell off!! One of the drivers simply got off the bus, picked up the exhaust, give it a quick wash in a nearby stream then shoved it back on the bus somehow...worrying.
Vang Vieng itself is so, so far detached from what Laos is, you may as well be on an 18-30 holiday in Magaluf. However for a day or two it is entertaining and a good laugh. It is famous for 'In The Tubing'. i.e. sitting in a massive rubber ring, floating down the Mekong River whilst getting dragged into various bars en route to drink buckets of Laos Whiskey, free shots of tequila and jump off zip-lines. Each bar has MASSIVE speakers and belts out music from 8am-8pm for
those that want to start early! Laos Whiskey and the Mekong (plus plenty of drugs available if that's your scene) is a dangerous combo...we made it out ok, but there have been some fatalities in the past and we were not surprised. The next day you spend recovering, drinking Beerlao at one of the many bars which are furnished with comfy beds/chairs to watch either a) Friends b) The Simpsons or c) Family Guy. That is it.
The 'drugs scene' was totally blatant in Vang Vieng with menus for opium, mushrooms etc. in most restaurants. We saw some absolute states - people just off it for weeks. You certainly did not feel like you were in Laos, the 'scene' was pretty irritating after a few days (unless that's a sign we're getting too old for this malarkey?!) so we headed to Luang Prabang in Northern Laos. Only 6h on a packed minibus through the Laos mountains....
First impressions of Laos - yet another beautiful country, loads to see and do, amazingly friendly people (bar Vietnamese Embassy staff). The landscape/scenery is fantastic, more hills/mountains than Cambodia. Think we're going to like it here!
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surviving
you might survive this but will your livers.....xx