Chiang Rai (Thailand) - Pakbeng (Laos)

---

Thurs 15th to Sat 17th Feb:
Well, we got to Chaing Rai on the 15th. The next day we (after having cold showers in our outside bathroom) went to see the sights. There are 2 Wats in Chiang Rai, we saw them both. Get In.
Just kind of walked round, saw the market etc. Later we found a bookshop, well, it was a Dutch guy and a Thai women, married we guess. The family live downstairs whilst the guy (called Orn) runs 'Orn's bookshop'
from upstairs. He was a strange fellow.

Th next day, on the 17th, we got up at 4.30am and made a mad dash to the bus station. Instead of the 6am bus we were going to get, a woman ushered us on to the 5.15am one, full of locals. She said it would get us to Chiang Khong for 8.30am, it was quite a bit later we arrived. The bus had a great scenic view, but stopped at almost evry village and hamlet on the way to drop off newspapers. The bus lady's daughter was lying on seat looking ill. She had Dengue fever. She was quite chatty and friendly, with her husband driving it was a real family bus.

So about 9.15am we got to Chiang Khong, and got the first Tuk tuk up to the immigration place, got our Thai exit stamp and got a boat over the river to Laos. It's really odd that you stand on one side of a river and it's Thailand, cross a 50 metre river and you're in Laos, just odd.

So now on Laotian soil, at Huey Xai, we got our visa's stamped - and even the immigration guy tried to sell us a boat journey and a hotel room. We also had to pay an "overtime fee." for our visa's to be stamped. We walked up to the main town and bought slowboat tickets to Luang Prabang. Slow-boat. Sounds romantic, dosn't it?
It wasn't. After 8 hours being sat on a boat with solid wooden benches so close together that you have to sit at an angle (There isn't enough room for your knees to face forward). We arrived at Pakbeng.

Ah, Pakbeng. 7th ring of Hell. It's a little town, halfway down the river. Because all the boats stop there overnight, they have their own economic district. Pakbeng economy means that everything costs double sometimes triple the amount it does anywhere else in the country. Plus the electricity stops at 10pm prompt, and everyone tries to sell you weed. We both started to get homesick, with the lack of McDonalds, hot water, TV and salt and vinegar crisps (which don't exist in SE Asia, only Nori Seawed or Crab flavours, dirty ba***rds).

In the early hours of the morning electricity could be utilized, so Camera was charged and photos were taken. This explains the lack there-of images from Chiang Rai up till now.

---

Comments

[dan]

homesick for maccas?
you are joking about the mcdonalds aren't you? this is your humour please tell me it's true