Don Det and 3999 More Islands

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Ken and I walked into the bus station in Vientiane to get on our sleeper bus to the 4000 Islands, also known as Si Phan Don. Ken had gotten his ticket from a different place than I had. We ended up trading with people to get seats next to each other because I had movies and snacks. We heard the bus was leaving at 7. It was 6:50. The guy at the counter told us the bus was leaving in 10 minutes, once the last people arrive. Whatever that means. The guys on the bus said 8:00. We had no idea what time the bus was leaving. We found some Brazilians taking the same bus as us and got noodles with veggies, which turned out to be delicious. We decided to just get on the bus and leave when it left. The seats were BEDS. REAL BEDS. Like, double beds with two pillows and two blankets. Completely horizontal. I cannot stress enough how happy I was. We got water and a snack from the bus company, watched True Grit, and slept so well. Without Valium, thank you very much.

We arrived in Pakse at 6:30. I was not pleased to leave the bus. I was hoping it would take us all the way to the 4000 Islands. We got off the bus and waited around for a while. A man told us to stay. Another man told us to go somewhere else. Again, we heard about 3 different times for the bus. EVENTUALLY, a bus arrived. We got on and drove for a bit before we stopped at a travel agency. Everyone had to get off the bus to get their "official" ticket, but it was really just a ploy to get business for this travel agency. It went like this for most people:

Agent: "Where are you going?

Person: "Don Det."

Agent: "Where you go after?"

Person: "Cambodia"

Agent: "Expensive to book trip on Don Det. I give you good price. *maps out route on piece of paper* When you going?"

Person: *insert date here*

With me, it went more like this:

Agent: "Where you go after?"

Me: "No clue."

Agent: "Ok, here's your ticket."

We filed back on the bus and picked people up all over the area until the bus was full and people were standing. We arrived at the bus station and were pointed in the direction of the ferry. On the way we tried to get money out of the ATM, but the ATM was out of money. We got our ferry tickets and piled on a small tippy boat with all our bags up front. We got to the beach at Don Det and got off the boat into the water (thankfully I have sandals). I had booked a bungalow, which turns out, was 1.5km away from town. We had to get money but there were no ATMs on the island. Restaurants functioned as ATMs with a 6% charge (boo), but I didn't really have a choice, so we found one and got money. We started our trek with all our stuff down the long dirt road. We crossed bridges and dodged motorbikes and stray dogs. The road was full of local shacks and bungalows and restaurants. There were chickens, animals, and children everywhere. We passed through a tuktuk graveyard and found the bungalows. Mr. Tho, who owned the bungalows, had overbooked and told a guy he could stay another night, which put Ken and me out of a place to stay. Mr. Tho felt awful and booked us at his friend's bungalow for the night and paid for it. The bungalow was a private shack with a bed in it and two hammocks out front overlooking the lake.

The 4000 Islands are located in the Mekong River on the Laos/Cambodia border. The islands range from small trees popping out of the surface of the water to sandbars to inhabited islands. It's beautiful and quiet and serene. We settled in and got brunch (banana pancake for me) before spending most of the day laying on the hammocks, happy to no longer be on a moving vehicle. It had been 24 hours of travel. We wandered into town to find dinner and had kebabs. Then we wandered further into town to hang out and see what the town had to offer. It's full of bars, shops, and guesthouses. Everyone walks, bikes, or motorbikes. We were interested in a tour the next day because it was Ken's only full day on the island. We tried to make a deal with a guy for 120,000 kip instead of 180,000 kip but he got mad at us when I told him that's the number he said. We walked along more and found a group of people haggling with another tour guide. With all of us, we only had to pay 160,000 kip each for a full day kayak tour. We walked the long road back to the bungalow and slept while the wind howled outside.

The next morning we woke up to really cold weather. I put on a long-sleeved shirt over my bathing suit and we walked downtown to the restaurant where we were to get breakfast, which was included in our tour package. We were sitting with a nice Aussie couple, an Irish woman named Diana, and an Aussie named Ian. We sat around lamenting about the cold, and then a guy came over and asked who wanted single kayaks. Ian, Max (a Kiwi), and I raised our hands. We got dry bags and life vests and our kayaks. We paddled around while we waited for everyone else to get in. It was a pretty big tour. It was absolutely worth the money, though. We started by going across the Mekong against the current, which was definitely a workout. Then we hit rapids. They weren't huge rapids, but they were big enough to be really fun in a kayak. I was so glad to have a single kayak because I had so much control and could whip myself around whenever and wherever I wanted. I made friends along the way and turns out there was a big group of about 9 solo travelers who had all just met up and had been traveling together for a few days to a week.

By now it had warmed up. We swept around into a riverbank and dragged our boats up. We walked around a small bushfire (controlled) and walked through the jungle and over very thin rickety bamboo bridges until we arrived at some massive waterfalls. The day before, Ken and I had tried to just rent kayaks ourselves but were told that it wasn't possible because people could accidentally go over the waterfalls. As soon as we saw them, we understood why. They were big and powerful and gorgeous. Men were fishing off rocks and a dead bloated water buffalo circulated around a small pool, stuck until the current changed. I met a girl named who was bunking with Ian and not enjoying it. It was her birthday the next day, and she was considering leaving Don Det because of this guy (justified by meeting him). I invited her to stay with me on the night of her birthday and she immediately accepted. At the same time we asked, "What's your name?" I ended up traveling with Hayley for over a week. On the way back to the kayaks, an older French woman (60-ish) stepped onto a rock the wrong way and had a bad fall. Thankfully a doctor who spoke French was around to help her. Hayley and I led the rest of the group because our guide was way ahead. She caught up to us on the other side of the river. She was okay, but had some teeth that shifted and a big bruise on her leg. Poor woman. We arrived back at the kayaks for a lunch of potatoes, chicken and veggie skewers, and hardboiled eggs. We got back in the kayaks and bumped over rocks and through rapids for a while longer.

This time when we stopped, we were going to see dolphins. Yes, there are dolphins in the Mekong. They're pinkish gray and have flat noses and are kind of funny-looking. We got in the back of a truck that barely made it up the hill. We drove down a dusty road for a long time before we arrived in a small village full of puppies and toddlers and piglets. We got into small boats and were taken out into the river to see the dolphins. We saw them at a distance and asked if we could go closer. "No, it's Cambodia." Right. Okay.

We puttered back to...land. We walked out of the village and took the truck all the way back to the original pier from when I arrived on the 4000 Islands. The day was over, and we kayaked back to the island by sunset. We went to an Indian restaurant for dinner and then to Happy Bar, where we essentially ended up living for the rest of the week. Happy bar is managed by an English guy named Manni who has one long dreadlock in the back and one long dreadlock as a beard. He heard it was Hayley's birthday the next day and suggested organizing a boat BBQ party. I left shortly after and went to bed in Mr. Tho's Bungalows, which was similar to the one from the night before but with a private bathroom.

Early the next morning, Ken left. I said goodbye and went back to bed. I spent the morning having a long breakfast and reading my book in a hammock. I walked down the street to get some laundry done and ran into some ladies who just offered to do my laundry (no sign for it). Hayley showed up around 12 all in a huff. Apparently we had to go into town ready to go and tell Manni we were coming to the party and pay by 12:30. We quickly got our stuff together and headed to Happy Bar. We cut through the middle of the island this time, walking through rice paddies and cattle and a temple. It was hot, and there was no shade to be found. We met everyone and paid for the day. Then we went and grabbed lunch and drinks. We finally left around 3:00. 35 people (some knew Hayley, some didn't) piled into two boats, each equipped with a big speaker. We cruised over to the island, which was a giant sandbar in the middle of the Mekong. We spent the day having beers, swimming, and hanging out. Manni had us do some relay races that involved human pyramids and rolling and shots and sit-ups. We had barbecued meat, fried rice, and potato salad for dinner on mats with music going the whole time. When the sun set, we crowded around Ariel (Israel) and Andrew (England) who had guitars and beautiful voices. They played and sang and then we got on the boats and headed back to the island. We continued the party at Adam's Bar and then Hayley and I walked home.

We kept extending our stay. We went on an adventure the next day to find our friend Assif. We ended up at Happy Bar for the rest of the day. We had booked a bus to Kratie in Cambodia for the next night, but Manni convinced us to stay for the big Laos party. It didn't take much convincing. At this point, everyone knew us, especially Hayley. We started seeing people we knew everywhere on the island. At Happy Bar, someone would just grab a beer out of the fridge and pour it around for everyone at the table. We shouted at people on the street to come in and met an American girl named Michelle that way. Everyone was stuck on Don Det, but in the best way with the best people. We went to Adam's Bar and watched movies, but we already knew everyone there. It reminded me so much of being back on Block Island.

So once again, we extended our stay. Our last day on Don Det was HOT. Unbearably so. We rented tubes from Happy Bar and spent the day in the water. There was a small island to dive off of, so we had a diving contest and taught Michelle how to dive. We chilled out and had Indian food for our last dinner. When it got to be about 9, we piled into two boats and headed towards the mainland. The weekend would be full of dragon boat races, and tonight was a huge party to start the weekend off. Before we got on the boats, Manni gave us the rundown. Don't show any PDA. Don't touch Laos people on the tops of their heads. If someone hands you a beer, it's yours. Drink the whole thing. No bringing beer or cigarettes on the dance floor.

We arrived to what looked like a night market but with booming music. We pulled some plastic tables together and got beers. There was a huge brightly lit stage and lots of red plastic tables and chairs. The place filled up quickly. There were thousands of Laos people. We were the only white people there. Michelle and I quickly got invited over to a table of locals and they started passing us beers. Then songs came on, so we danced at the table. Michelle got pulled onto the dance floor by a guy. I grabbed a Finnish guy at the table so she wouldn't be alone. The rest of our group followed and soon everyone was out on the dance floor. The night went a lot like this. We were stared at a lot, but everyone was dancing and drinking and having a fantastic time. There were different singers and every three or four songs, everyone would evacuate the dance floor while a guy talked on stage for a long time. Then the music would start and everyone would go back. The music was all in Laos and ranged from hip hop to rock to traditional. It was a really strange evening, but insanely fun. At 1 we headed back to the boats and went home.

Sad to leave Don Det, Hayley and I got picked up the next morning to go to Cambodia. When we got to the bus station, we took care of our visas. We paid $40 (US) and filled out some forms. We gave them our passports and didn't see them for a long time. We piled on a bus and did our best to nap.

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Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Laos
So many islands so little time.