La Pluie Dans Hué

Yikes! Thought I'd never dry out... best fill you all in with the last few days!

After the "Room 01" incident, I was rather shook up and still very tired from the awful bus journey. Although I did have an offer to join my new Aussie pals, Nicole & Irene, at the local mud spa, I declined as my bearings were all out of whack! Instead, I retreated to the new room, and had a light nap, which was slightly disturbed by the odd ant or two crawling over me...

That afternoon, I finally emerged from the room and bumped straight into Josh, who I knew was staying at the same place, but I wasn't expecting to see him that early in the day. We wandered down to the beach, which was obviously very beautiful, but it was such a shame that it was still very, very grey and cloudy. I tried to locate a geocache in the area, but for the second time in Vietnam, it was allegedly placed on a "power distributor" with a magnet and again I couldn't find the blasted thing!!! I'd better get one somewhere before I leave the country next week.

Nha Trang, beautiful but grey, grey, grey...

On Saturday, the weather hadn't improved, so I decided against a boat trip around the coast. I sometime struggle to decide between a "free boring day stuck in a hotel room" or a "spoiled day-trip day that cost money" - sad, really!!! Anyway, determined not to stay in the hotel, I ventured out for breakfast and then treated myself to a pedicure. I enjoyed it so much, I then got a manicure too, so all the dead skin and flaky bits that I'd been biting at were no more! Admittedly, I didn't bother with any nail polish (as I knew that it would look shabby after a few hours backpacking), but it was only £5 in total. BARGAINOUS!!!

I took a long walk along the beach, then spent the rest of the afternoon uploading the rest of my Angkor photos. Damn this weather, it makes it all too easy to just sit online!!! After grabbing dinner with the Aussie girls, it was soon time to board another overnight bus... oh dear...

I'd like to say it was better this time (as I had a bed with more legroom) but it wasn't. The roads between Nha Trang and Hoi An are ATROCIOUS, and so my head was banging along the bottom of the floor for most of the night. Plus, we had a snorer and a shrieking baby. Could've murdered someone, I'll tell you... Still got another damn night bus to catch yet as well!!! I'll never do it again, not unless I know for sure it is like the one to Pakse in Laos.

Anyway, I arrived in Hoi An at 6am ish, to another scramble of touts and hotel staff trying to get you in to their place. I was too tired to argue and so soon me, Irene and Nicole were sharing a room in a nice hotel with free internet (oh dear) and a pool. I was grateful to share with the girls, as a single there would have been way out of my budget, but it was very reasonable to split a triple room.

We headed out to The Old Quarter and were soon in the market, getting hassled. I thought Turkey was bad, but I can honestly say I've had my fill of Asian markets. I soon ended up with a fake Kipling bag ("Where's my monkey?") and some little paintings, which will no doubt go in a shoebox with all my other foreign artwork! Oh yeah, forgot to mention, first thing that morning, we went to a tailors to get measured up for some bespoke clothes - I opted for a Oriental blouse in blue Chinese silk, a bargain for $20 (but still a source of concern, given the many horror stories about dodgy shops I'd heard). We had to go back after 5pm to collect our garments.

Old Quarter Market, Hoi An

So 5pm arrived, and we went back, but the lady from the morning soon hurried my out of the shop and said to come back after 6.30. So that was concerning, especially as I was still wondering why they'd been so keen to give us free bottles of water that morning that weren't sealed... was it so that they could drug us, and we would be chuffed with whatever bit of tat they'd knocked up for us? I'm getting extremely paranoid with all this travel, it's a shame really. I started out being quite trusting, but the constant hassle gets to you a bit and you forget that most people over here are really kind and genuine.

So, it was a great relief to find that after the second time, my blouse was there as promised and looked great and well made. I then had barely enough time to run round the corner to meet Rianne and Daniele at their guesthouse, my Dutch and Italian friends from Chiang Mai, who were in Hoi An for one more night.

So yesterday, after Irene and Nicole checked out a 6am to catch an impromptu flight to Hanoi, I changed hotels and joined Rianne and Daniele in hiring bikes so we could ride to the beach. It was still overcast and spitting, but I was so glad to actually get onto the sand and have a good swim, it didn't matter that it wasn't perfect weather. At lunchtime, imagine my surprise when I guy I went to primary school with walked past my table - we probably hadn't spoken for a good 15 years, so it was hilarious to have a good chinwag on a little beach in Vietnam. It is indeed a very small world.

Anyway, after a great day where I actually felt like I had done something constructive, I said my goodbyes to Rianne and Daniele (who were leaving on the night bus to Nha Trang) and retired to my room where I decided to repack my bag whilst watching Die Hard 2. It was nice to have Bruce Willis for company, LOL! I discovered that my trainers (that I haven't worn since I trekked in Chiang Mai) have gone mouldy, so I'm sooo glad I spent a fortune on them and have ruined them already!!! Oh well, they are still wearable, just stinky!!! When I know there will be some hot sunshine, I'll give them a good scrub with Vanish, but until then, I daren't get them wet again!

So, I was up again early this morning to check out and head back to my original hotel to board the bus to Hué, another sleeper but quite bearable in the daytime. It was a relatively short journey, and I was checked into a reasonable room by lunchtime. ($6 but on the ground floor next to reception - the hotel guy thought I was loopy when I checked until the bathroom bin and behind the towels before accepting it!!!)

I barely had time to settle before I heard the rains begin. I could tell, even from the confines of my windowless room that there was no point going outside, so I quickly drifted off to sleep for a much-needed nap... Hours later, it was till lashing it down, but I'd started to feel woozy from the day-sleep. I decide to brave the flooded roads, nearly knee deep in places, to walk to a supermarket for face wash and shower gel, as I'd run out days ago.

So I was soaked again, and nothing is drying at the minute. I can smell the dampness everywhere! I did give my sandals a good scrub with soap though, seeing as they were wet already, so that should freshen them up a bit. And, it was heavenly to have a hot shower (first one in ages that worked!) with Dove shower gel, as I'd been managing with cheap hotel soap!

The weather forecast is pretty horrendous for the next few days. That left me with another difficult decision: to stay in the hotel watching TV tomorrow, to leave Hué and go straight to Hanoi tomorrow night and have a whole week stuck there, or to risk a day-trip in the deluge. I opted for the latter so I'm off to the Vietnamese DMZ tomorrow, and hopefully when it does rain, it doesn't disrupt things too much. It's a real shame that Vietnam has been so wet - it hasn't just been heavy downpours in the afternoon interrupting the sun, it's been real grey misery... I don't feel I've been able to enjoy it as much as possible, especially being on my own for times as it isn't that easy to bump into people out and about when everyone is running around under ponchos!!!

But, at least I'm off on the trip tomorrow and then I'll have one last day in Hué, hopefully seeing the Citadel, on Thursday before I arrive in Hanoi Friday on morning. I just hope to goodness that I can get to Halong Bay and that the weather doesn't ruin that - if I can't sail out there, I'll be in Hanoi for 6 nights and by all accounts there doesn't seem to be that much to do there. I'll be very ready to leave Vietnam by then, so I hope some good fortune comes along to ensure that Halong Bay is a success and redeems my experience here before I have to leave...

What Doesn't Kill Us, Only Makes Us Stronger...

Well, that's the theory, and I will confirm it should I ever make it home in one piece, with all my nerves intact!

The sleeper bus from HCMC to Nha Trang was NOT at all like the one I took to Pakse. Each "bed" was a single reclining chair, very airline-like, where you put your feet under the head of the person in front. Great - only if you were lucky enough to not be by the toilet, as the mini-stairwell leading to it meant that the footroom was non-existent. How pleased I was to be in said bunk, 7C!!! I then committed that heinous crime, I moved to an empty bed, and then completely looked oblivious when the rightful occupant boarded. I'd like to be able to say that I felt guilty when the poor guy slept with his knees around his ears in my bed... but I didn't!

It was quite a hideous trip, not only did the driver beep his horn all night, the roads seem to be covered with cattle grids in Vietnam and we weren't allowed to use the toilet. Don't know why. We did have ONE toilet stop, throughout the entire 10 hour trip, but this was pretty pointless after only one hour on the road and had no benefit to the succeeding nine!!!

We arrived at last in Nha Trang (peeing it down, crap crap crap!) Isomehow ended up on the back of a motorbike, all bags in tow, to a hotel that promised a single for $5 a night. Lo and behold, it was the Good Hotel, which incidentally, a friend I met in Laos is already staying at, although he did warn me that "Good" was a bit of a misnomer...

Anyway, I had to wait a while for the room to be ready, so when I finally was let in, I was happy to take it. Double bed, fan, looked clean enough... I soon realised that I probably wouldn't be getting much sleep tonight, as I was only partitioned off from reception (and the awful Vietnamese karaoke on the TV) by a pane of glass. Thaknk Goodness for earplugs!

I took a long shower, grateful to wash off the stench of cold sweat that had developed overnight, whilst sweating profusely in the AC, glad I don't have pnemonia. I was a little perturbed to spot a pair of thin worms, snaking their way along the bathroom floor. Not to worry, I soon showered them down the plughole! I lifted up the bin, assuming that is where they had originated; I wish I hadn't bothered...

Out came HUGE clumps of ants, and I mean thousands, so soon the entire floor was swimming with black blobs, with me perched precariously upon the toilet seat, in only my birthday suit. I took a good 10 - 15 minutes to get them all down the plughole, which I had to unblock! I rinsed under the bin, and more and more of the damn things kept coming!

It seemed that that problem was solved, until about 6 or 7 more worms appeared, so I rinsed all the walls and around the door frame, releasing a spider in the process. All done, all gone. Until, as I was cleaning my teeth, I looked down and out of a crack in between the wall and door frame, thousands more ants, and their eggs, were emerging back into the room. ENOUGH! I had to get out - cheap is only worth it if it is cheerful, and by this time, I was not! I grabbed the towel, to dry off and then it really was the last straw...

There was now a COCKROACH to contend with, so I yelped and dashed out of the bathroom, leaving the towels and said monster in a puddle in the bathroom. I managed to dry myself off with some napkins I'd taken from a cafe in HCMC, and I was staright to reception to complain.

I'm now in a room on the 2nd floor, that seems to have only one or two ants - it's $6 per night and I made the receptionist check under the bin and behind the towels before I agreed to move. I hope to God I don't get invaded again, my nerves couldn't take it, I am still itching and it was over an hour ago since I left Room 01... I know I will have nightmares tonight...

So, now I am at a loose end, the rain in Nha Trang looks like it will prevent any proper sightseeing, so I'm thinking I will end up northwards sooner than planned. So I could be stuck in Hanoi for longer than I would have liked, but I'll just keep the thought of the Thai Islands ever-present in my mind... Not sure I'm liking Vietnam quite so much anymore!

Good Afternoon Vietnam!

Off I set, on Monday morning, on the nicest bus I've been on so far, it wasn't four decades old, and with only nine of us between forty-five seats, there was plenty of space to stretch out!

I soon got chatting to a lovely couple from the U.K. - Paul is a Brit and his wife, Carolina, is Argentinian. We soon had the world map out and she was giving me great advice about the best things to see in South America, and how to get around! Just hope I don't forget it all before next spring!

The passage to Vietnam was very smooth, so much so that I completely missed our river crossing on a ferry, not quite sure how that happened, but never mind. Soon, we were at the Cambodian-Vietnam border, a far cry than the one from Laos. Here, there are casinos along the roadside, and there's an actual building with passport control, X-ray machines and duty-free!!!

We arrived in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC, or Saigon for old-schoolers), just as the thunderous deluge began. Thank goodness I had put my waterproof cover over my rucksack before setting out that morning! It quickly became apparent that the stories of Vietnam being more expensive were indeed true, $10 for a single room!!! Well, that might not sound like much, but don't forget, last week I paid only 50p!!!

I'm not quite sure how it came about, but soon a Vietnamese lady was escorting us down a side alley and before I knew it, I had arranged a room for myself for $5, which was actually big enough to sleep three people, with it's own balcony nonetheless! Paul & Carolina had got a similar deal barely round the corner, and we were staying in local houses, rather than the usual guesthouses, which made a refreshing change.

We arranged to meet that evening for dinner, after the rain had stopped. I made my way over to their place, but there was no sign of them yet, so a spent a long hour chatting to their hostess and playing with her two tiny chihuahuas, Boh Boh and Moh Nee. So cute, but hard to believe that they are actually dogs and not large rodents!!! She gave me a sweet green bean snack to try, which was not too bad - I was not so keen on the milk snack, which was like sweet, cheesy, gone-off milk. Oh well, at least I wasn't rude and I did indeed finish it all off.

Anyway, once the guys had emerged from their room, we headed out for dinner, which was remarkably cheap, it was Happy Hour and our food was discounted by 10%, first time I had seen that! We arranged to meet up the following day for a wander around HCMC.

Off we set on Tuesday morning to the large market in the Cholon area, around 6km away from where we were staying. We decided that it would be lovely to stroll along the Saigon River en route (mistake - poo!!!) and then it seemed like our destination would never appear - it was lunchtime by the time we arrived and I was thoroughly drained by the stifling heat and craziness of the motorbike drivers here. MUM - please note that although I had to walk out in front of seething masses of bikes, none of them hit me and as I am here writing this, you can see I'm not in traction somewhere!

Cholon Market, Ho Chi Minh City

After seeing a couple of pagodas later on, I needed to get back home for a nap, which took longer than expected as there happened to be a huge university complex right over the direct path I would have liked to have taken! That evening, I organised a day-trip to the Mekong delta and purchased an air ticket from Hanoi to Bangkok, so I need to be 1000km northwards by Bonfire Night!

Yesterday, I went on the delta trip, and it was OK. Another box ticked, but I have indeed seen enough of the mighty Mekong for several lifetimes. We visited a coconut candy 'factory' (which is delicious and very chewy, like a cross between coconut fudge and toffee) and a honey farm where I held a python! After lunch, we took kayaks along canals shaded by water palms (I was waiting for Martin Sheen to appear from the depths as any moment!) to sample some local fruits and hear traditional Vietnamese music.

Rowing down the Mekong Delta

Last night, it was again time for me to be productive and organise my transport for the next two weeks. It took several pages of notepaper and a lot of guide-book studying, but for $40, I am taking an open bus to Nha Trang tonight (sleeper, to save on accommodation), and then I will have stops in Hoi An, Hue and finally arriving in Hanoi in about a week's time, so I can visit Halong Bay and be back in good time to get to the airport for my flight to BKK.

So, today, I have been wandering about the city, trying to dodge the traffic and moto touts, who don't seem to understand that some of us are content to walk for free! I also plucked up the courage to get a haircut! Yikes, after one I had in Korea 18 months ago, that was quite a feat, believe me. But rest assured, I do NOT look like a small Vietnamese boy and for £1.82, who could complain?

So I have a few more hours to kill, and hopefully I can get back into the guesthouse to retrieve my backpack (as I can't quite remember which shop the lady works in, if she isn't at home!) This internet cafe is cheaper than the one I've been using previously in HCMC, only 13p per hour! Although it stinks of old houses!!! So, off I go to Nha Trang, which is supposed to be a beautiful beach town, althought the whole of Vietnam seems to have thunderstorms forecast for the next 10 days or so... Poncho anyone?

Cambodia!

We left Kratie early on Tuesday morning and set off on yet another long journey, this time to Siem Reap. We finally arrived around 4pm, which gave us just enough time to get from the bus station to a guesthouse, drop off our bags and then hop into a tuk-tuk to...

...ANGKOR WAT!

Yes, after nine years of waiting, the time to see this masterpiece had finally arrived. We got to the entrance gates just after 5pm, which meant we could buy our tickets there and then for sunset, but they would only start from the following day, so in effect, we were getting a little bit of a freebie! Of course, there was no way that I could commit a heinous offence by buying just a one-day pass - oh no, I went for 3 full days!!!

Our tuk-tuk drivers recommended that we view the sunset from a mountain overlooking Angkor Wat, so off we set up the path, just as the sky started to turn beautiful shades of orange. Just as we made it to the top though, and began our ascent up some steep steps, the heavens opened and it absolutely HEAVED it down! So, it was just hilarious really, we just stood under my umbrella (which was not use for 4 people at all), getting soaked, and worrying about all the precious non-waterproof belongings we had in our daysacks, as we'd all been keeping our most important bits and bobs near to us on the bus journey!!! By some miracle, nothing was ruined, at least in my bag!

Once back at the guesthouse, we dried off and grabbed some dinner. It was soon time for bed before getting up (YET AGAIN) at the crack of dawn, literally this time... 4.30am did my alarm go off on Wednesday, and by 5.15am, we were back outside Angkor Wat to watch the sunrise. Was it worth it?...

...What do you think?!!

The early start meant we had loads of time to cram in the main sites on the "little circle" route that most people view. After watching the full sunrise, we spent about an hour exploring the complex, viewing the bas reliefs and for me, all this was done whilst listening to Tomb Raider themes on my iPod, I was in the game at last!

Next stop was Angkor Thom, the walled city just north of AW. The approach to the south gate was particularly impressive:

Devas lining the approach to Angkor Thom

The Bayon is within Angkor Thom, and it really is a spectacular place, 216 stone faces look out, in the cardinal directions, over the forest. I've never seen anything quite like it. After taking in a few more of the Thom temples, it was time for lunch and then just as it started to rain in the afternoon, we were off to Ta Prohm, THE Tomb Raider temple (well, in the film and as far as I am concerned, that doesn't count!!!) But anyway... this is the one that has the trees growing over the walls, so I really was in my element here and a good few Lara Croft poses were struck by yours truly! I must get around to wading through the hundreds of photos I took that day!

Anyway, I could ramble on and on about Angkor for pages, but I won't - the following day, I went off on my own back to the area to view the main sites on the "big circle" route and planned for the third day to be spent visiting a smaller area of temples at Roulous before visiting AW one last time for sunset. It wasn't to be, alas, as on Friday, it was overcast and then raining for most of the afternoon. It was a bit of a shame, but I felt that I had done it all justice in 2 days (plus it gave me 7½ hours to kill in an internet cafe and I finally got some more pictures uploaded to Flickr (check them out!!!))

On Saturday, I left Siem Reap and headed to Phnom Penh. Really, they should do bus miles!!! I stayed at Okay Guesthouse, near The Royal Palace, which I managed to cram in that afternoon. It was very beautiful, but similar to The Grand Palace in Bangkok, so it was a little bit "been there, done that!" but on the positive side, also "box ticked!" The Silver Pagoda was a bit of a damp squib - yes, there are some amazing treasures in there, but when most of the silver floor tiles are covered with carpet, and the ones that are exposed are covered in duct tape, it's a little hard to be excited. The guide books always make things sound much more exciting than they often are...

On Sunday, I got up early (not by choice now, but by body-clock habit) and walked to the S21 Prison, Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. It wasn't quite as gruesome as I was expecting, but it was a very sombre experience to witness the school that was converted into the Khmer Rouge's main prison, where over 17,000 people were tortured and later executed at the Choeng Ek killing fields. it was hard to imagine how all this happened, under Pol Pot's dictatorship, just a few years before I was born. I also learned that for a long time, the Khmer Rouge were supported by the U.N. - how did that happen, it beggars belief???

In the afternoon, I took a motorbike ride to Choeng Ek Genocide Memorial - Mum, please note that I DID wear a crash helmet, so my insurance should have covered me!!! It was much smaller than I expected and again, not quite a grim, but still very humbling. It is now very serene, almost like an oasis of calm after the horrors that were carried out here, the peace interrupted only by the croaking of frogs in the pools formed in where many of the mass graves were excavated...

Sunday evening, and a long day, I decided it was time to leave Cambodia and head off for pastures new. I booked my ticket, bought the guidebook and set my alarm - ready to head off (on my own, nonetheless) to Vietnam!

Leaving Laos

It was yet another early start for the intrepid travellers on Saturday, as we boarded yet another minivan, this time bound for Don Khong, the largest of Laos'4000 Islands. Soon, we were on the banks of the Mekong, waiting for another ferry to whisk us over to Muang Khong, the main (and perhaps only?) town on the island. Well, hamlet would be more accurate!!!

We quickly found a simple but cheap guesthouse (which was welcome after the expense of Vientiane) and dropped off our bags. We were soon off riding around the island on bicycles, all this before midday! It was great to finally feel like I was in the real Laos, cycling past forests, rice paddies and cattle grazing by the roadside.

As we sped along, the guesthouse leaving us further and further behind, I imagined getting a puncture and having to walk all the way back again in the midday sun. it would be just my luck! However, things were going swimmingly until Kendall's bike chain came off, and it took considerable effort and the use of some sturdy twigs to get it back on again, especially as it had got wedged behind the front and back cogs, and was bone dry - not a single drop of oil anywhere! It was a relief to set off again, and thank goodness we had got our bad luck over and done with for the day!

We enjoyed a leisurely lunch back at the guesthouse, before setting out in the afternoon in the opposite direction, and this was even more rewarding as we passed through many tiny settlements and watched the locals harvest their rice crop by hand. It was so good to be away from the tackiness of Vang Vieng, and the posh, touristy boutiques of Luang Prabang! Some children were fascinated with us as we zoomed by, so we stopped for some 'hellos' and photos - one little guy was chuffed to take a red biro from me, bless him!

Beautiful Laos Children

After using the GPS to work out that we were a good 5km away from the guesthouse (and that was as the crow flies), we thought it best to head back again. It wasn't long though before I found it a real struggle to keep going. "Are we going uphill?" I asked, my thighs burning, which I couldn't quite understand as the road looked as flat as a pancake...

Flat was the operative word - I looked down and Emma had a puncture! Damn it, I knew it!!! I peddled on regardless, but as the girls started to move away from me, it was futile to continue on. Kendall offered me her bike, and she took Fiona's (who hitched a ride on the back). Katie then took mine by the handlebars and cycled all the way back to the guesthouse with two bikes. I felt awful about it, but when I attempted to do the same, my weedy arms couldn't take the weight and I just couldn't cycle in a straight line.

Eventually, we all made it home again and worked out that we had done about 15 miles over the course of the day, not bad really! Cold showers were required all around and then we just took it easy until dinner on a verandah over the Mekong. It was time for bed as another early start lay ahead of us...

On Sunday, we took a little boat south along the river to Don Det, a much smaller island close to the border with Cambodia. It was a lovely journey, much better than all the buses we had been cramped into, and soon after landing on the island, we quickly found some quaint little bungalows with a sunset view. Imagine our delight to find that it was only 15,000 kip per night for a twin, which worked out at roughly 50p each!!!

Mr. Ki's Bungalows, 50p per night!!!

We soon met up with Nat, from Wales, who has a photography degree - poor girl had her ear bent by me all day, plus I showed here all my Moo cards!!! I don't think she minded too much really, and we spent the afternoon browsing each others' snaps. We ventured out in the evening to a little Indian restaurant, and I splashed out on a chicken rogan josh (well, I think it was really a tikka masala in disguise), steamed rice, a butter naan and TWO cans of Sprite! Well, I had an excess of kip and once you leave Laos, you can't exchange it anywhere! What a nightmare, when the bill arrived, it was 10,000 less than I thought it would be, so I had to order dessert, just to spend some more!!!

This morning, we had YET ANOTHER early start as we boarded the little ferry back to the mainland and squashed ourselves into another minivan to the Cambodian border. We were dropped off and were a little concerned when the vans pulled away. We were even more concerned when moments later, they drove back past us, with no bags on the roof, in the direction we had just come from!

We were charged a dollar each to be stamped out by Laos immigration, which we were expecting, even though technically this is a scam, as we all had Cambodian visas, paid for in full. However, once we walked the few hundred yards across no-man's land to the Cambodian officials, it all kicked off... They wanted to charge us $2 each to get in, even though we had all paid at least $20 for out visas. I was quite prepared to pay it, as a couple of dollars I could live with (although had it been much more than that, I may have joined in the fuss!)

An American girl started kicking off at the officials, protesting that she had paid already and that "I want you to give me my passport back right now!!!" To cut a very long story short, many people made such a fuss that the passports were stamped and no money was taken - by the time I made it to the front, I simply handed over mine, and waited. I wasn't asked for any money, so when it was handed back to me, I simply thanked them and made a discreet exit...

Anyway, off we went after a good while in a different minivan to Stung Treng for lunch, then onto a third van to Kratie - it was gone 4pm by the time we arrived. The girls went straight out on motorbikes back to the Mekong to go look for Irrawaddy dolphins - I stayed back to have a long shower and a long nap...

Week Three

Well, I've a lot to cram in here since my last post, so I'll try and avoid "going around the houses" too much (good luck with that!)

Last Sunday, we had an easy day - that is, after waking up at 5am to watch the almsgiving to the monks, which was pointless as I was at the wrong end of town and then nothing happened until 6am. After going back to bed, it was a rainy morning, so we took the opportunity to grab a cuppa and plan our onward movements.

In the afternoon, Katie and I made it up Mount Phou Si, so admire the views of Luang Prabang and do a little more temple spotting! I must admit, I had had my fill of the town by now; yes it was very pretty, but I felt like I was stuck in an expensive resort on the Med, all the boutiques and cafes were full of middle-aged Europeans with greying hair. No offence to middle-aged Europeans with greying hair, but I'm backpacking, I could have seen you all out on the Greek islands, this is Asia!!! I guess there was just something I couldn't put my finger on about LPB that didn't sit right with me, but to many others, they loved the place, so each to their own I guess.

Monday - we were off on a "VIP" bus to Vang Vieng that should have taken "4 hours" - and there was a lovely toilet on board!!! Hmmmm, the toilet didn't function, and was dirtier than most of the squatters I have encountered so far, the "AC" was possibly wind because we were moving, the roads were HORRENDOUS and then we suffered a blowout at the rear of the bus, just under where we were sat! Everybody jumped up and someone spotted "smoke", so mass hysteria set in and everyone shouted "stop the bus!" and grabbed their belongings. In fairness, it was a standard puncture and the "smoke" was probably dust, but it later transpired that many people thought that the local guy with a rifle sticking out of his trousers, that we had noticed at lunch, had got a little trigger happy!!!

Bang Vieng!!!

We eventually arrived in Vang Vieng after 7 hours (OK, 30 minutes of that was stoppage time whilst the back wheel was changed). Vang Vieng is a pointless little backwater that exists only for tubing, a silly 'sport' where you float downriver on an inflated tractor tyre inner tube, stopping every few hundred yards at bamboo shacks, to get drunk and jump off rope swings and zip lines. Sorry, I can't be more generous than that; without the tubing, there would be nothing there. The main street was a line of guesthouses, playing Friends on repeat all day, every day. I decided to avoid alcohol whilst tubing, so it was quite boring for me to sit in the bars doing nothing, so I decided to float off down to the end. Once again, that was just my opinion, as everyone else had a great laugh!

Katie was feeling a bit ropey, so she decided to float downriver with me, so off we went, avoiding the bars and just taking in the scenery (which in fairness to VV, is pretty spectacular). The heavens opened and we froze for about 10 minutes, then I got wedged on a tree in the middle of the river, which was absolutely hilarious as I had to pull Katie back by the arm, so she could hold on to the branch while I freed myself... we had a real giggle over that one!

Eventually, we could just about make out a (poor) sign that the tubing stretch was at an end and we needed to disembark - unfortunately, we were right on the other side of the river and the current was very strong. I jumped out of my tube, and was pleasantly surprised to find that it was only a few feet deep at this point... However, the current was so strong that it was pulling me along the gravel bottom on my feet and it was impossible to stand still. I could see the "Get Out Here" sign moving closer and then away from me again at a huge rate of knots, and it was only when a local boy jumped into rescue me, did I manage to make it to the river bank at last!

By Wednesday morning, we were ready to leave and after getting up early, we managed to squeeze onto a minivan to Vientiane at 9am. We had had enough of VV and arrived in the capital in the early afternoon. We had a bit of a shock when all the guesthouses claimed to be full, and then when we did find one with space, it was three times the price of a room in VV. Very expensive for Asia, but I guess still very cheap compared to home.

We had a general wander around the town and market in the afternoon, and then met up with Josh, Guy and Adam for a lovely dinner at La Terrasse (as recommended by the Lonely Planet and Rough Guide). I settled for a tomato salad whilst the others splashed out on steaks, and we had a lovely evening strolling through the night market. On Thursday, we took a tuk-tuk to Phra That Luang, the national symbol of Laos, and it was great to actually see some authentic Asian culture.

The national symbol of Laos

That morning, I had walked over three miles at 7am to the Cambodian Embassy to drop off my passport and visa application. I then had to do the trip again at 4pm to collect it, so I certainly got my fair share of exercise! Mad, you might think, but it would have been 160,000 kip in a tuk-tuk or an extra $20 for an agent to arrange it for me, so you do the math...

At 9pm, we boarded the "VIP" sleeper bus to Pakse - oh no, not "VIP"!!! However, we were pleasantly surprised when it finally pulled up at the bus station and it had proper air-con, actual beds, pillows and duvets, and looked as if it wasn't half a century old! It was great, just like caravanning (well, a little bit!) I was lucky enough to have a "double" to myself, so I settled down to read Homer's Odyssey with my head lamp, before I popped on the eyemask and ear plugs and settled down for the night.

We arrived in Pakse at around 7am this morning and quickly hopped into a tuk-tuk to Sabaidy Guesthouse. Quaint little place, reasonably priced, miserable staff, poor communication skills, but it will be fine for one night until we head off to the 4000 Islands tomorrow. Today, we were off on a tuk-tuk yet again, this time going on a river ferry with it, to Wat Phou, a pre-Angkorian Hindu temple in the mountains near Champasak. It was very Tomb Raider, I was expecting wolves to jump out at me and to find shotgun shells under rocks, but it was nowhere near as impressive as the Rough Guide made out - I'll save that kind of excitement for Angkor Wat. However, it was another box to tick and another place I have seen that many others will never get the opportunity to visit, so it was well worth it.

So, here I am again after a much needed shower and I'm very, very tired. It'll be an early night tonight before another early morning bus trip to Don Khong. I'm not sure how likely it will be to find an internet cafe on the islands, so it may be some time next week before I am online again. By that point, I should be in Cambodia (YIPPEE!!!) but that all depends if we make it across the "unofficial" Laos-Cambodia border... See you on the other side!

Laos Lowdown

Yes indeed, Laotians have the Internet (and I happen to be in the nicest net cafe so far, with a fast connection and an SD card reader!!!)

The adventure continues on - we got up early on Thursday morning, to be stamped out of Thailand, shuttled across the Mekong to Laos, where it took a while to organise our visas, but nothing too stressful. By around 10am, we were walking the plank onto the slowboat, like pack horses complete with all our bags, and goodness knows how I didn't take a tumble! As we expected, we were confronted with rows of hard, wooden benches, but the atmosphere was good.

Crossing the Mekong

We set off downstream and the views were beautiful. By mid afternoon, we had commandeered the rear (aft?) of the boat and were singing loudly to songs such as Wonderwall, The Final Countdown and Livin' On A Prayer - much to the amusement (and bemusement) of the locals!!! Thank goodness for iPod speakers!

We touched down in Pakbeng some time after 6pm, after a long but fun day. Then it happened again, touts and tuk-tuks descended on us like locusts and after retrieving our bags from the hold, we made our way up the hill into the tiny village. Our guesthouse, Bounme, was basic, but cheap and cheerful and suited us just fine. We enjoyed a lovely Laos meal in a local restaurant (and Laos fried rice is even more delicious than Thai fried rice!)

Pakbeng is practically just one street, and Laotians are early to bed, but we met up with some of the guys from the boat and then it was time for some good ol' drinking games. We were in the only bar with music, and that was thanks to an iPod being plugged into the speaker system! At about 10.30, Katie, Fiona and I made our way home, and the electricity went out en route - none of us had remembered a torch, so we managed to stumbled up the potholed slope to our guesthouse, arm in arm!

Off again we were on Friday morning for the second leg on the slowboat. We boarded at about 8.30am, but didn't leave for over 2 hours as one person on the boat had not given in a ticket!!! This resulted in an official making everyone show their passports and ticking off names on a huge list. I don't know if, or how, the issue was resolved, but it set us back a good couple of hours!

Day 2 was not as fun, as most people were really tired and all available floor space was filled with sleeping bodies. I lay down in the corridor at one point, in the dust and sand, just because I was too tired to sit upright any longer. It was a huge relief to finally make it to Luang Prabang yesterday evening.

Again, the touts descended but in full force - we just needed a break after the trip and took it upon ourselves to seek out our own accommodation, as recommended by the Rough Guide. We were a little disoriented, but yet again, Emma's map skills were spot on and the Heritage guesthouse appeared in view. Unfortunately, it was being gutted and renovated (just as the touts had warned but did we believe them??) so we settled for a little place, Namsuk, further up the road. 50,000 kip sounded extremely pricey and we weren't able to barter them any lower, but we were that drained, we agreed to stay for the night.

On reflection, we calculated that it was only GBP 1.60 per person per night, and that it is going to take a while to get used to all this silly Laos money!!! It was then time for dinner and after yet another delicious meal (of rice!) we met up with most of the people from the boat, who had all gone off in a myriad of directions with various tuk-tuk touts! There's not much to do in Laos of an evening, so while most people went off to the 24-hour bowling alley, I elected to go back to the guesthouse for an early night, I was far too tired for any strenuous activity.

When I got there, I was rather concerned to see that the guesthouse had locked up for the night, especially as I had been assured that guests were free to come and go as they pleased. I sped back to the gang, but they had already left for the bowling alley! Once again, I tried the door, which wasn't actually padlocked, but wedged shut somehow. I tried knocking... and knocking... and knocking. No answer.

OK, I can wait until the others get back, I thought, but I felt like I was being eaten alive and I didn't relish the thought of spending a few hours outside. I ran over to another guesthouse to tell of my plight, hoping that a local might be able to rouse my landlord, but he just told me to keep knocking! Eventually, a flicker of light appear around the door, and a sleepy looking man emerged - I was so relieved - until I saw that the room behind him was not my guesthouse!!!

So, I was banging on the wrong door, I was so apologetic, but the adjoining property wasn't a guesthouse either and the one next to that was, but not the right one! I was thoroughly confused, and felt awful for getting this guy out of bed, but I sheepishly walked down the road to the next crossroads - and then I saw it... my guesthouse, in an entirely different place to where I thought it was, with an unlocked door that I could creep through up to my room in shame... Something to tell the grandkids about, hey?!!!

Today we went off to Kuang Si waterfall, which was absolutely beautiful and a great time was had by all, swimming around in the turquoise pools. We were quite a large group by this point - me, Katie, Fiona, Ashley & Brian (U.S.A.), Sophie (Belgium) and Kendall, Josh, Guy & Vicky (U.K.). When we returned to Luang Prabang in the afternoon, it was gloriously hot and sunny, and after a big lunch of rice (again!) I was nodding off! It was good to take a warm shower and do a spot of laundry before heading here to the Internet cafe.

Kuang Si Waterfall

I think I'll take a wander around the night market later on, and maybe a bit of temple spotting tomorrow... who knows!