Leaving Thailand was very sad because it truly was an unforgettable year in the land of smiles. It really felt like we were leaving home by time October 1st rolled around. Before heading back to the States and the "real world" we decided to meander around Southeast Asia for a few months. Why not right? We loved every minute of Thailand, but just didn't know when we might be back in this part of the world and we wanted to see more of what the region had to offer. Off we were to Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia & Sri Lanka and what great adventures we had in the 75 ensuing days!
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| Cruising Down the Mekong & Starting An Adventure! |
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| Beautiful Luang Prabang |
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| Rope Swing!! |
First up was Laos and a relaxing, scenic 2 day slow-boat down the Mekong river into Lao's cultural capital - Luang Prabang. We spent 5 wonderful days strolling around this beautiful, lush city climbing mountains, diving into pristine waterfalls & soaking up unique Lao charm intertwined with French culture. It was so much fun partying with other travelers from all over the world at arguably the coolest bar on the planet - Utopia (Google it).
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| Loved This Place & These People |
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| Lao Lao! |
Next up was Phonsavan and the mysterious Plain Of Jars. Nobody knows why hundreds of massive stone Jars litter the landscape of this region, but we enjoyed trying to figure it out for ourselves. We had a great motorbike jaunt past waving school kids & an eerily scarred landscape due to US bombing raids during the Vietnam War. Yes, this city opened our eyes to the terrible influence that our country had on the region (and still has today in the form of unexploded ordinance). Nonetheless, very interesting shots of the local rice whiskey (Lao Lao) & spending hours with a few drunk & fascinating Laotians eased our somber mood considerably.
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| One of the Many Massive Jars That Littered the Landscape Here |
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| Styling Through the Countryside |
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| Very Interesting Place |
Lastly on our trip to Laos was Sam Neua which is the country's least visited provincial capital. We came here to check out the Caves of Vieng Xai where the communist government of Laos hid during the Vietnam War. An extremely beautiful, fascinating & impressive place to visit considering an entire community not only survived, but thrived in this extensive network of tunnels & bunkers built into the unique landscape. US bombs dropped all around this place every day for 9 years straight at a staggering cost of $2 million a day! Apparently, the US public was not aware and thus it was dubbed "America's Secret War". It was an eye-opening experience to say the least & sadly, the place held more meaning to us because our country caused the whole thing to happen. Nonetheless, it was wonderful to truly get off the beaten track, although that meant constantly kick starting my failed manual motorbike & getting scolded by a man at a soccer game for drinking BeerLao in public.
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| Great End to a Fun Day |
10 wonderful days in Lao and looking back at it, I wished we had spent more time there. The people were wonderful, welcoming & happy, the landscape gorgeous and yet the country is much less developed than its more popular neighbors. We were able to get more of a glimpse of how life really was & boy was it refreshing. Next up - Vietnam.
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| Epic Bus |
In all the planning for this 3 month trip, I was the most nervous about this particular portion - the bus from Sam Neua, Laos across the border to Thanh Hoa, Vietnam. Online, I had read nothing but horror stories and wasn't even sure if it was possible. "The Bus Ride from Hell" they called it. While it was far from Hell, it didn't exactly go smoothly. We had our share of roadblocks. Along with our new Dutch friend Debbie who tagged along on my rough motorbike the previous day and a dutch guy Cornel, we were the only foreigners on the voyage. Some things that stand out that I remember about the bus ride: The driver had some shady scheme going where he would stop at random houses along the route & people would hand him stacks of cash to deliver to friends & family across the border in Vietnam. BTW, the border agents never checked the lock box full of cash upon entry. Giant bundles of water buffalo hooves in burlap bags & cages of live chickens & goats fastened securely (or not so securely) to the roof of the small bus. Waiting along the side of the road in blaring heat for 30 minutes because an entire semi truck had flipped on its side blocking our passage. Being by far the last ones to get our passports back at the Vietnam border & proceeding to exchange the few Lao Kip we had left into Vietnamese Dong at blatantly terrible exchange rates. Jody actually bartered with the agent for a better conversion rate! All this and we made it to Vietnam relatively on time. Still now just thinking about that miserable day on the bus makes me smile. What an adventure!
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| Roadblock!!! |
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