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

One has to cross upstream, higher up, to come downstream properly… ~ Lao Proverb HE SAID... Today we were travelling southeast from Chiang Khong (Thailand) to Pak Beng(Laos). We woke early (5:30am) to catch the sunrise and prepare for an early morning border crossing into Laos. We headed down to the breakfast area of our guesthouse (which was located on the river bank) and settled at a long thin bar table overlooking the Mekong. We helped ourselves from the Bain Marie, piling our plates with stir-fried chicken, stir-fried pork, fried rice and fried eggs. I also enjoyed a small bowl of banana and yoghurt, which was very welcome – it was the first yoghurt I’d tried since arriving in Thailand. Unfortunately, the weak tea and orange cordial weren’t terribly appetising at 7am, and nor was the ... read more

It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop… ~ Thai Proverb HE SAID... Today we were continuing to explore the tranquil city of Chiang Mai. I woke early and used the quiet morning stillness to proofread and edit a work-related quotation request we’d received hours before leaving Australia, and one that I so desperately wanted to finish. We left our hotel (the People Place Hotel) at 8:30am in search of a breakfast café that had been recommended in our Lonely Planet guide, but alas, couldn’t find it. We received some very helpful directions from a young local boy on his way to school, although I should point out that he had no choice in the matter. We’d actually approached his friendly mother for directions, and she told him to ... read more

Wait until the tree has fallen before you jump over it… ~ Thai Proverb HE SAID... Today we were continuing to explore the bustling city of Bangkok. Having explored a few old haunts on our first day in Bangkok, we’d succumbed to jet lag and crashed early, which often occurs when travel exhaustion and unrelenting heat collide. It’s such a heady mix. But here I was, wide awake at 3:30am the following morning, my body clock struggling to adjust to Indochina Time. I decided to start work on a quotation request we’d received hours before leaving Australia. It was a major project, and one we couldn’t ignore. Unfortunately, the submission deadline was 29 January – the day before our return flight home. I had to prepare it as we travelled through Thailand and Laos, and my ... read more

HE SAID... We weren’t meant to be travelling to Thailand and Laos, but a series of events fortuitously conspired to send us to the northern climes of these two Southeast Asian countries. In November 2017 we booked a trip to Colombia. We were scheduled to travel in April 2018, and we were excited. However, a client asked us to undertake a major project in the first half of 2018, so we had to cancel Colombia. We were lucky enough to travel to Eastern Europe later in the year, and our adventures in Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria were fantastic, so we didn’t regret the change of plan. In September 2019 we booked a trip to Colombia. We were scheduled to travel in March 2020, and we were excited. However, a client asked us to undertake a major ... read more