Luang Prabang is gorgeous and is actually a UNESCO protected World Heritage city. (Although because of that it comes with an 11.00pm curfew which is when all bars close and you have to be in your hotel room! Or you leg it to the bowling alley which is apparently the all night party! Lols - we didn't make it though) It reminded me of Hoi An in Vietnam, very old and quaint, especially at night when all the lights are lit on the bars and restaurants. It’s an old French colonial town and the buildings definitely add to the atmosphere as does the Mekong running through it. We arrived in the dark and from the first few hostels we tried we could tell it was a posher place than Vang Vieng (that’s not hard) as the prices were more than double. We did our ritual of me waiting with the bags while Tymon walks around to find a place as he is much better at the bargaining that I am and he came back with a very nice place. He’d left me sitting at a street restaurant which was the real deal Laos BBQ which we had yet to try so we headed back there for dinner. Oh my goodness – it was goooood! Each table has a hole with hot coals in and you get a tray like dish to place on top of the coals with a moat around the bottom. You get given a plate of meat & or fish depending on what you choose and a basket full of veg and noodles and a kettle with some broth in. You pour the broth in the moat & add the noodles and veg, put some fat on the top of the tray and then cook the meat on the top sides of the tray dish. It is sooooo delicious. We ended up eating there every night bar one and we were there for 4 nights.
The next day we hired push bikes and went for a cruise around town to some temples. At one we entered we came across 3 big towers which were all blackened at the top from fire, and it was then we noticed the alter like centre. They were cremation alters. We walked further down to the monastery to have a look around and Tymon got talking to one of the monks who said that there was going to be a cremation very shortly and he invited us to stay. So we did. Soon a lot of people started to arrive and there was a large crowd of uniformed people. The funeral was for a high ranking officer in the police and there were so many people. Family and friends as well as colleagues. The monks were all sat in a line in front of everyone as they read out chants which one young policeman told us were the blessings so that he would cross over safely to the other side. The family would repeat some of them, but it certainly didn’t seem to be a sad occasion. There were no hysterics or crying. The police all stood up in formation at one point and said…something (in Laotian so no idea) and then people queued up to go up to the alter and see the open casket and leave an incense stick and or pour a symbol of coconut water on the body, which we think was actually petroleum. Then everyone clears the space as the coffin and flowers and gifts left are set on fire. And it burns, openly on this alter it all burns and the flames are huge. It was quite a sight. As the coffin starts to disappear and ashes start to form the crowds disperse and that was it – a Laotian cremation. We got to walk up to the coffin before hand and pay our respects and the family did not mind us being there and taking pictures. It was quite a moment to have witnessed.
The next day we followed the walking route around town as it is full of temples, including the Royal Palace. The palace was nice full or the usual but the best bit was round the back in the garage they had all the old school cars. They were pretty much nearly all American and they had been gifts to the King. He had an old school speed boat too and a jeep. They don’t make cars like they used to! It was a tiring day walking around for so long and the temples weren’t really that impressive to be honest. The artwork in particular was a bit lame as it was all spray painted on through stencils – not very sharp so it all looked a bit careless, (obviously this was all pointed out to me by Tymon) but nevertheless it was a nice day out around town.
Our final day we went to a waterfall. We bumped into a guy who we had met in 4000 islands and he was travelling with some other people so we all jumped in a tuk tuk out to this waterfall. We even got soaked on the way as Songkran was beginning (the water festival for New Year) and there were people already on the street throwing buckets of water and being in the tuk tuk with no windows or back door there’s no escape from the water. You just have to take it. Cameras and all!! Anyway, it was the best I have seen in Asia. It’s stunning. It’s like a park the whole area and it has about 6 or 7 different pools and falls. The water is really clean as well so lots of people were swimming there. But we had heard about a secret pool that you climb to which was the second to the top tier pool and you could overlook all the others. We’d got our instructions passed on from other travellers and off we set. The directions were basically climb up to the top as you would normally to the lookout view and just before you get there turn right. Ignore and pass the ‘Do Not Enter’ sign and walk along the jungle area, climb up a waterfall (literally – with fast flowing water) and then you come to the pool. It was all a little bit dangerous but the pool at the top was worth it. Although secret my ass! There were about 20 people there – obviously word of mouth travels fast in the travelling world. But it was still amazing. And the infinity bit where you could look down onto the others was really cool. Again a little scary as the edge is only made of clay and it’s very crumbly so I think it’s an accident waiting to happen, but thankfully I didn’t fall over the edge and shatter myself against the rocks below!! We had an adventure climbing down to the pool below too which was good but as my fingers were still healing I had to give up at one point and wait as I couldn’t climb up, I needed 2 hands. It really was so great and even though there were a lot of people up there, we still felt smug when we walked back down to the bottom and saw people swimming in the pools below, like we knew a secret and had a better experience than them! (Childish I know – but you know it’s true :0)
Then we left, very excitedly to go to Huay Xai, the border town to cross into Northern Thailand but also the jump off point for the Gibbon Experience. We had heard about the Gibbon Experience back in Cambodia and it kept popping up as we travelled through Laos and it just sounded too good to miss. And boy – it was amazing, incredible, out of this world, once in a lifetime opportunity…you get the picture! We got there a day early as you have to register and sign all the waiver forms, which are not very comforting, but there’s nothing you can do about it if you want to do it. So bright and early the next day we took our small backpacks (we left our big ones at the office as that would be interesting zipping along with them on our backs!) and piled into a 4 x 4 truck. We sat in the open back with 2 others and got chatting away for an hour or so and then we arrived at the drop off village at the foot of the jungle. At this point I was already sneezing like a trooper – it had begun in the car – and my hay fever kicked in big time. I’m sure it’s one particular kind of tree, but it was really bad and that was really annoying as my eyes were itchy and I was snot city – but I just had to get on with it! We then had to trek through the jungle paths for about 1.5 hours to get to the base camp where the guides stayed. It was really really hot and hard work climbing but we were all talking so it didn’t seem that hard. At the base we got the intro talk and our harnesses and put them on as the next trek to get to the tree houses in which we would be staying would involve the zip lines! We’d been given the low down on arrival by a guy who was leaving about the best tree houses to stay in. 1 was the most central to all the zips, 5 was way out but was a posh tree house, 7 was a bit isolated with no nearby zipping and 2 was the private double tree house. Which incidentally we had pre-booked. However on arrival at the base when we were all asked who wanted to go with who we teamed up with another 5 people and another couple took the private which now I am so glad about. It was sooo much more fun doing it in a group! So we set off and we had bagged tree house number 1 which was also thankfully the nearest to camp.
So it came to our first zip line. To paint the picture we are about 150 metres ABOVE the ground and higher than most of the tree top canopy. You have 2 clips on the harness. One safety and the other the brake. The guide makes sure you are all clipped on right and then you sit down in the harness and pray as you let yourself going flying over the trees out into the jungle! Whooooo Hoooooo – what a feeling. At first I didn’t even look down I was just concentrating so hard on the end and braking. But I made it without any problems. Ah it was just such a thrill and I was shaking a little! :0)
The next zip we did brought us into our tree house. There is no way of getting in or out apart from zipping which is soooooo cool! And the tree house – WOW. It’s every kids dream – a real tree house, built around a tree 200 metres in the sky. We had a little kitchen and sitting area, and below that were 5 sleeping spaces under the mosquito cloth and the bathroom. Which is a bathroom and a half! It actually only has one wall, one curtain and the other 2 would be walls are open so you look out over the jungle! Mind boggling. Don’t even ask me how they engineer the running water! And the toilet is hilarious, it’s a squat down and the hole just falls all the way to floor. You can be done peeing by the time it hits the floor! Hahaha. Tymon and I took the top of the tree house which a private area for 2 with fantastic views over the jungle – we just stood there for ages looking at it.
Breakfast, lunch and dinner are zip lined in by the guides and are left in thermas dishes incase you’re not around. So we had some lunch at which point the guide says ok I’ll see you tomorrow. Have fun this afternoon, and off he zips. From that point on you can basically zip around the circuit on your own! We all went in the group and I tell you that first time connecting onto the line without the guide there telling you you are hooked up correct and safely is frightening. Infact even as we were headed back to the base camp on the third day I still checked my cables about 3 times each time. So off we went zipping around for the afternoon and the guy we had met was right. Tree house number 1 was awesome for connections. We had a nice circuit of about 7 zips which we did twice before heading back to the house to clean and freshen up before dark. It was an amazing first day! We sat down to dinner that had been left and talked by candle light although the bugs were massive and kept flying around us because of the light – but I was pretty good you know – no screaming or antics!! I’m getting better definitely! They did have light which was solar powered but it was much cozier with the candles. Oh and I forgot to say – the tree house even came with a cat!! Poor little thing stuck up there but he was a little daredevil – jumping out onto the tree branches and chasing lizards! I couldn’t watch. I was sure it was going to fall! That night once we all in bed and it was dead quiet the jungle was sooooo noisy! We could branches being broken which sounded like fire crackers and as if it was coming right into the tree house whatever it was. So even though the mattresses were quite comfy on the floor and the net was thick cloth so the morning light wouldn’t wake you at some ungodly hour, I didn’t sleep that well (not that I ever do these days!) But it was awesome at the same time.
The guide had said to us before he left that if we wanted to get up and see the gibbons we would have to be ready to leave at 5.30am sharp as they are usually only seen early in the morning as they wake and sing their song but only for about 20 minutes. So we had agreed that we wanted to go. However, unfortunately the girl who was meant to put the alarm on forgot!! Soooo the guide zipped in at 5.30am and was like come on come on! We all jumped out of bed, barely with it, got dressed and harnessed and was out of the tree house within 15 minutes. That was a wake up call if ever I had one zipping across the jungle in the dawning light! Once we were all across the other side the guide started running off like a mad man and the first part to the next zip is all uphill terrain. So it’s 6.00am, you’re barely awake and you’re sprinting up this hill sweating within minutes. It felt more like boot camp! The guide finally stopped and took us onto a smaller path and we could hear the gibbon calls. We started tiptoeing and walking slowly trying to be quiet which is actually really hard in the jungle with dry leaves and sticks and bamboo everywhere! We tried to get to them but we were too late. They stopped calling and they were gone! Gutted – all that for nothing. But he then took us on a little walk and explained all the trees and how they local people use them for cooking and medicine. It was really interesting. By 7.15 we were back in the tree house having breakfast and I felt like I’d already done a days work!
The guide stuck with us as we were going to trek around the jungle to tree house 5 and explore the other zip connections. It was an absolutely incredible day. I know I keep repeating myself and yes it was amazing – but it really was soooooooo AMAZING, words just can’t explain it! The trekking was HARD work, my god I was sweaty betty through and through but it felt sooo good doing some hard core exercise. I pushed on the pace and ahead of the group with another guy and just felt the burn – it was awesome! And the zipping, well you guessed it – AMAZING! We came to the longest one which is 500m and it’s such a rush – the views are awesome and by this point you totally take the time to look at the ground and beyond when you’re zipping and Tymon was making videos so you definitely get used to all pretty quick. In the end we were even wanting more thrills – higher and faster and longer lines! We got back around mid afternoon, exhausted! Had some lunch and a little snooze – well I did, my hay fever was sooo tiring, as well as the 5.30am start! – Tymon went off to the camp with the boys and guides to play football, and then did another few circuits before dark.
That night after dinner, once it was properly dark, 2 of the boys decided to break all the rules and do a night zip! We all warned them not to go – I mean there are bears and tigers out there, but they were determined. They took torches and off they went! They had to do a circuit of 3 in order to get back and we could kind of follow the light through the trees and they were back in about 10 minutes. They both said it was really scary! Especially when you zipped first and were on the other side alone waiting for the other to arrive! Hahaha. They are braver than me that’s for sure and I was just relieved Tymon didn’t go too!!
We had agreed again with the guide to go and find the gibbons in the morning and this time we promised to be up in time. We put on our alarm for 5.00am and were all ready to go dead on 5.30am. Except for one girl, Sally who the night before had an itchy rash come up and by morning was read raw and itchy beyond relief that she couldn’t even go. Which was such a shame as she is a complete monkey fanatic too! She had a little teddy monkey that she took zipping with her and took photos with – lols, it was brilliant!! So that was a real bummer but the rest of us zipped out and off we went – not at quite such a fast pace – at first. We went to the same area as we had the day before but they were moving fast and their calls were coming from another direction and then once again the guide was off and we had to sprint after him up this hill to the top zip line and zip across. Once we were there we all had to cram onto this platform and sit, as across from us (quite far away but still in view) were the gibbons. Slowly but surely we saw them start to move across from one tree to another to another as they started their calls. The noises they make are extraordinary! They sound like sirens and once they all get going in a frenzy it’s mind blowing! We sat on the platform for about 30 mins just watching and listening until they stopped singing and moved out of sight. Ah, it was beautiful. To have seen and heard these gibbons completely in the wild – AMAZING ;0)
After that we headed back for breakfast before going around the circuit again and getting lots of last minute video footage before packing up and beginning the trek and journey back into town!
All in all as I think you will have got from reading this – a total and complete high! I recommend it to everyone! Another must do in your lifetime! That night we all went out for drinks to celebrate and commiserate that we had gone and that we were back. And oddly enough that night several of us came up with the rash – not as severely but I had it on my stomach and arms and it was bloody itchy. The guides said it was probably caterpillars!! (It took a couple of days applying Calamine lotion for it to go – not nice so beware of caterpillars!!)
The next day we left to cross the border into Thailand! We thought we had booked onto the 4.30pm departing boat and then bus but we were woken up at 7.00am to be told that it was full and the only departure available was at 9.30am! Arrghhh that was a hard wake up and get go after the night before! But we made it.
You can actually see Thailand from Laos and the boat takes about 3 minutes to cross the river and voila you are in Thailand! Very easy…but more on that next time!
Before I leave you with Laos and begin Thailand I would like to quickly touch on the history of Laos as I’ve not mentioned it before. Laos is not like Vietnam and Cambodia where they were known worldwide and publicly for their wars and devastation, but they were just as affected. Tymon’s actually reading a book right now called ‘The Ravens’ which is about the ‘secret’ war in Laos as officially the war in Laos didn’t exist. ‘Both North Vietnam and the US denied they had troops there, when infact thousands of North Vietnamese were invading the country and pouring down the Ho Chi Minh trail on their way to the South, and the Americans were fighting hard against them from the air and on the ground via the CIA lead Meo tribesmen. The Ravens were the American pilots, all volunteers, who flew through heavy ground fire to identify targets and call in airstrikes. Their mission was top secret. They wore no uniform and carried no identification. They accepted the murderous casualty rates in return for a life of unrestricted flying and fighting.’ (The Ravens) But even though no one was supposed to know about it didn’t mean that Laos was any less devastated!
But the Laos people are lovely – so very friendly and their life motto to live by is to be happy.
I loved Laos and had a fab time. It’s really easy to travel as the route is pretty straight forward and easily connected. It has a real backpacker vibe and community and I would say if you ever want to experience Asia and you have just one country to pick – from my choice of what I have done, I’d say Laos. Especially for the non travelling types as it’s less rough than elsewhere. A beautiful country with beautiful people. Just beware of bloody Vang Vieng!!
xxx
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Bad Karma in Laos :0(
So the bus arrived pretty much on time which is strange for Laos and I’m not sure what happened but our bad luck started as soon as we got off the bus. The bus itself was really cool – a sleeper and unlike the ones in Vietnam it was actually a bed! A fully flat bed with a mattress, pillows and a blanket and it was very comfy, albeit a little on the small side for the 2 of us and very bumpy but luxurious compared to some buses.
Anyway we arrived at 6am and it’s always disorientating when all of a sudden everyone’s moving and getting up and the lights come on and you have to get all your stuff together and off the bus. We always do a check check double check and thought we had everything but as we were headed out into town on the tuk tuk I suddenly realized I didn’t have my cowboy hat! It’d had been left on the rack above the bed which was annoying as Tymon had checked and got my jumper which had been up there as well, but it was too late to go back so I lost it! :0( (Although if I’m honest I’m surprised it hasn’t happened sooner!) As we drive through the streets it was quite nice to be surrounded by the trappings of a big city again. We picked a central point in town and got off next to a street stall and sat down to have breakfast before looking around for a hostel. We had chicken noodle soup which is the local breakfast all over Asia and usually I have to stick to a ‘normalish’ kind of breakfast for my first meal of the day like baguette with cheese or omelet, but seeing as we didn’t have dinner the night before on the bus it went down rather well.
After settling into our startlingly expensive hotel (the price for one night would have got us 5 nights in 4000 islands and Bolaven) we chilled for a while trying to get the internet sorted (one of the reasons we had paid so much as it had Wifi) which of course then crashed, before walking into town and hiring a bike to have a look around. Our first task was going to the embassy to get our Thai visa, so off we went. It was very hot in Vientiane and what can I say – it doesn’t really have a great deal to offer sights wise. Although some of the streets are quaint with nice restaurants and shops. We followed the map we’d been given to the Consulate only to have the gate shut in our face by the security guard who told us rather sharply to go the NEW consulate! When Tymon tried to cross the gate line to ask him another question I thought he was going to attack him! Haha. So we headed to the NEW consulate and locked up our bikes before coming face to face with the sign at the gate which said ‘Closed’! We were 1.5 hours too late for visa applications and as it was Friday we would have to wait until Monday! Damn this whole ‘enjoying life so much you don’t know what day it is!’ Sometimes for stuff like this it helps to know what day you are living! We definitely didn’t want to be in Vientiane for 5 days as we would have to wait 2 days while the visa was processed so after some cursing that we had sat in our hotel room all morning and then gone for lunch before going to the Consulate we decided to leave the next day for Vang Vieng – the tubing capital of Laos. We would spend 3 or 4 days there and then get the bus back down to Vientiane to get our visa. It would be a complete pain in the ass as it meant doubling back on ourselves but it still beat hanging around doing nothing in the expensive city! Bad luck number 2 – complete!
So Vang Vieng. Geologically it’s a beautiful place sitting next to the Nam Song river surrounded by limestone cliffs creating a really dramatic landscape. But Vang Vieng is like the Magalluff of Majorca. Absolutely choca with tourists – mainly from the UK, aged from about 21-28. Most have ended up staying for about 5 weeks ‘working’ for the bars on the tubing river. The town is absolute madness, and oozes cheesiness and drunks and druggies and western bars with TV screens playing constant episodes of Friends or Family Guy or The Simpsons with everyone monged out in front of them. Its main attraction is the tubing which has become a bit of an institution in Laos and is on-route on a busy main road connecting Vientiane with Northern Laos. We knew before going that it was basically all about the tubing and getting drunk which is fine – we’re not that old yet! We arrived just after dark so found a hostel – again with supposed wifi as we were desperately trying to update videos and photos and spent our first day just chilling around town and getting our bearings. It actually seemed really quiet, even in the evenings and not the onslaught I thought it was going to be. However, as we found out over the next few days we were simply not going to the right place.
So the day came for us to go tubing. Most people were saying that as it’s dry season and the water levels are so low it’s not worth the EUR 5 to hire a tube (which is actually a lot of money in Laos considering you can get 2 nights accommodation for that money!) But we wanted to get them so we headed out to the river in a tuk tuk. When we arrived however we find out that you get the tubes back in town!! Bugger! So we went without in the end anyway. When you arrive you can hear the music blaring coming from about 4 different bars. When I say bars I mean make shift platforms on the side of the river. There are 4 bars all within 100 metres of each other in the first section of the river and basically not many people make it past there. That day we made it to bar number 3! We met up with these 2 lovely and crazy Australian girls and started drinking buckets with them. Did you know that in Laos a bottle of Whiskey (local obviously) is cheaper than a bottle of water!!? The buckets were lethal and let’s just say that by the end of the day as the sun went down we were feeling a little worse for wear! But it was also at this point that our bad karma and bad luck number 3 incident comes in. Tymon went to the toilet and when he came back we piled into the tuk tuk ready to stumble back into town for some food and dare I say it more drinks. However, as we set off we started looking for the money that we had brought out with us and realized that the money pouch was gone – as was our camera!! We were too far to go back and too full in the tuk tuk so we basically had to come to terms with the fact that we had lost the camera. And that was basically night over. I was devastated – crying and annoyed at Tymon who had had the bag the whole time. It was a water tight clip bag and I just had no idea how someone could have gotten into it. Anyway we had a big hoo har, I was crying and of course it was all made 10 times worse cos of the drink but it was a really BAD night! I couldn’t believe we had lost the camera and to make matters even worse - I hadn’t backed up since we had arrived in Laos so we lost everything! 4000 Islands and Paddy’s Day (all Tymon’s amazing artwork!) and him playing with the local kids, the Bolaven Plateau and our bike trip and of course the antics of the day itself at the river with us zip lining into the water and going off massive swings and drunken shenanigans. Oh still I want to kill someone – I mean take the camera, ask me for money if that’s what you want but come on!! Gutted – soooo sooooo gutted!! The next morning as we came to Tymon seemed to remember the only logical time it could have happened which was just at the last minute as he went to the toilet before we left. It was dark by then and you had to climb up some wooden stairs and he remembers being helped up the stairs by some locals. We think it was at this point that they pick pocketed the bag and took the money and the camera. There was just no other time it could have happened. I had had the camera around me most of the day and now of course all I can think is - why didn’t I just keep the camera on me! So we reckon it was locals that did it and I wanted to seriously hurt someone! But the worse was yet to come!
Later that day once we felt a little human we went to the tourist police to report it stolen as we needed that for our insurance and guess what? They wouldn’t write the report! They basically turned around and said it was our own fault, we were drunk and stupid and they didn’t believe us. But they could have nearly had me on murder charges I was sooooooo FUMING!! I mean how bloody dare they! It’s not like they have to pay for it! And they were sooooo rude. They are a complete joke being there as they don’t do ANYTHING apart from sit on their asses all day and sleep. (We actually had to come back once because they were fast asleep undressed!) Arrrgggh even now I’m gritting my teeth and getting pissed off again! They told us we had to go back to Vientiane which we just didn’t want to do in the end as it was so far to double back on ourselves and we had decided to get out Thai visa at the border (which has led to a whole another debacle – it’s just gone on and on like dominoes!)
So we had to let it go and try and enjoy our time in Vang Vieng hoping that the insurance will work itself out. We reckon that it was because we said it was locals and they don’t want a bad image arising of the locals – B*stards – the lot of them!
Anyway - the next day we hired a bike and went out and about to the caves and lagoons that surround the area. All the guide books talk about the Blue Lagoon and caves which had pools in where you can swim, as the first one advertised so in we went to the gate where a couple of people were sitting charging to go further to the cave and walk through the land. It was quite a lot as well considering it’s not like they built the damn thing or even owned it! So Tymon made a comment about that and they seemed to just look at us and not understand what we were saying. So we went in anyway. What a waste of time – the walk was nice enough and then we had to climb up some rocks rather vicariously to the top and then walk in about 50 metres into this ‘cave’. It was a joke. So we climbed back down to head on the next. As we were back on the main dirt track Tymon all of a sudden slowed down saying that our petrol had gone. We had just filled up to a full tank before we left and we were now missing half a tank at least! We got off and checked the bike to see if it could be a leak but there was no trace or track of it being that. When it dawned on us. The b*stards at the cave siphoned out our petrol. No wonder there were all smiley and looking at us as we left! We realized that the seat to the bike was pretty much lift upable so you could easily get to the cap. God it was like another blow and things were just going form bad to worse. And the day did get even worse! We finally, after going to 3 other supposed Blue Lagoons and paying for each big fat disappointment, found the right one. We’d met on the road some Dutchies who were also trying to find it so we were riding with them as they were really nice and it was actually really lovely. The water was an electric blue – even if it wasn’t in the cave but outside at the bottom and it was really refreshing. So after some frolicking we decided to climb up to the top of the cave and go and have a look at the sleeping Buddha. It was a really steep climb up and we were quite away away from the Buddha as it was on the other side of the cave. I was looking around and decided to try and get to the Buddha and there didn’t seem to be any obvious path to get there so I climb up onto this big rock and started sliding down it on my bum which would bring me to a plateau where there then seemed to be a route to get to the Buddha. As I was nearing the bottom it all went pear shaped! All of a sudden I lost my footing and stumbled forward and the next thing I know I am falling down a hole. I screamed and tried to grab onto some rocks infront of me but down I went. The only thing that went through my mind along with my heart in my mouth was ‘how far am I going to fall?’ I swear it was the worst seconds of my life and thankfully by the time that thought had gone through my mind I had hit the bottom. I must have only fallen 2 metres or so but it was pitch black and I just had no idea how deep the hole was. I was lucky also that I hit a flat bottom and there wasn’t any rocks protruding otherwise I could have landed and easily have broken something. I sat at the bottom of this hole for a few seconds and I could hear the guys shouting my name and Tymon calling me. I responded and saw the light (haha) from another hole so crawled along to get out of the hole. Tymon was clambering down to me and I was shaking so much. He helped me up and I looked at my fingers which really hurt with the torch and could see they were all cut open and the skin had come off. We poured some water over them and wrapped some tissue around them so I could climb out easier. The whole thing was a mess and I was sooooo lucky – it could have been a lot worse. I mean we climbed up a steep hill to get to the cave for about 10 minutes and if the hole had been to the bottom that would have been the end of me (just to sound even more dramatic) and infact when Tymon went back down to go to the Buddha he said that right next to where I fell was another hole down a crevice which was about 5 metres deep and if I had fallen down there who knows what would have happened! So I slowly and shakily climbed all the way back down to the bottom before heading home to sort out my wounds.
Now I am a big baby when it comes to pain and cuts, I really am and if you want proof just ask Tymon how bad I was. I was crying and wouldn’t let him touch the cuts and he brought some iodine and got out the first aid kit and wrapped them up in gauze but I was petrified, especially of the iodine as I thought it was going to sting like hell, but actually it didn’t! There was a lot of dirt in them as well and over the next few days Tymon brought some alcohol and made me run a cotton swap over and through the cuts with the alcohol. Again more crying and hysterics – I wouldn’t let him do it and when he did one time I was sobbing! Haha. Drama drama drama! I was sure they were going to get infected and was really worried as we had booked to do the Gibbon Experience in a weeks time which was zip lining and I was worried I wouldn’t be able to do it but you know what I was amazed at how quickly my fingertips healed. Within a week they scabbed up and dried up & I cut away all the dead skin and dirt with the nail clippers and by the time we got to the Gibbon they were fine. No infections no nothing – just a lot of whinging!! :0)
So all in Vang Vieng was a complete nightmare for us! We did have a good time as we met some great people but it had a big cloud over it and after 5 days we were more than ready to get the hell out of there! The people and atmosphere is only tolerable for that long max!
Next stop Luang Prabang followed by Huay Xai and the Gibbon Experience before crossing over to Thailand. I’m going to put that in another blog as this is already quite long!!
Hugs and kisses from us both.
xxx
Anyway we arrived at 6am and it’s always disorientating when all of a sudden everyone’s moving and getting up and the lights come on and you have to get all your stuff together and off the bus. We always do a check check double check and thought we had everything but as we were headed out into town on the tuk tuk I suddenly realized I didn’t have my cowboy hat! It’d had been left on the rack above the bed which was annoying as Tymon had checked and got my jumper which had been up there as well, but it was too late to go back so I lost it! :0( (Although if I’m honest I’m surprised it hasn’t happened sooner!) As we drive through the streets it was quite nice to be surrounded by the trappings of a big city again. We picked a central point in town and got off next to a street stall and sat down to have breakfast before looking around for a hostel. We had chicken noodle soup which is the local breakfast all over Asia and usually I have to stick to a ‘normalish’ kind of breakfast for my first meal of the day like baguette with cheese or omelet, but seeing as we didn’t have dinner the night before on the bus it went down rather well.
After settling into our startlingly expensive hotel (the price for one night would have got us 5 nights in 4000 islands and Bolaven) we chilled for a while trying to get the internet sorted (one of the reasons we had paid so much as it had Wifi) which of course then crashed, before walking into town and hiring a bike to have a look around. Our first task was going to the embassy to get our Thai visa, so off we went. It was very hot in Vientiane and what can I say – it doesn’t really have a great deal to offer sights wise. Although some of the streets are quaint with nice restaurants and shops. We followed the map we’d been given to the Consulate only to have the gate shut in our face by the security guard who told us rather sharply to go the NEW consulate! When Tymon tried to cross the gate line to ask him another question I thought he was going to attack him! Haha. So we headed to the NEW consulate and locked up our bikes before coming face to face with the sign at the gate which said ‘Closed’! We were 1.5 hours too late for visa applications and as it was Friday we would have to wait until Monday! Damn this whole ‘enjoying life so much you don’t know what day it is!’ Sometimes for stuff like this it helps to know what day you are living! We definitely didn’t want to be in Vientiane for 5 days as we would have to wait 2 days while the visa was processed so after some cursing that we had sat in our hotel room all morning and then gone for lunch before going to the Consulate we decided to leave the next day for Vang Vieng – the tubing capital of Laos. We would spend 3 or 4 days there and then get the bus back down to Vientiane to get our visa. It would be a complete pain in the ass as it meant doubling back on ourselves but it still beat hanging around doing nothing in the expensive city! Bad luck number 2 – complete!
So Vang Vieng. Geologically it’s a beautiful place sitting next to the Nam Song river surrounded by limestone cliffs creating a really dramatic landscape. But Vang Vieng is like the Magalluff of Majorca. Absolutely choca with tourists – mainly from the UK, aged from about 21-28. Most have ended up staying for about 5 weeks ‘working’ for the bars on the tubing river. The town is absolute madness, and oozes cheesiness and drunks and druggies and western bars with TV screens playing constant episodes of Friends or Family Guy or The Simpsons with everyone monged out in front of them. Its main attraction is the tubing which has become a bit of an institution in Laos and is on-route on a busy main road connecting Vientiane with Northern Laos. We knew before going that it was basically all about the tubing and getting drunk which is fine – we’re not that old yet! We arrived just after dark so found a hostel – again with supposed wifi as we were desperately trying to update videos and photos and spent our first day just chilling around town and getting our bearings. It actually seemed really quiet, even in the evenings and not the onslaught I thought it was going to be. However, as we found out over the next few days we were simply not going to the right place.
So the day came for us to go tubing. Most people were saying that as it’s dry season and the water levels are so low it’s not worth the EUR 5 to hire a tube (which is actually a lot of money in Laos considering you can get 2 nights accommodation for that money!) But we wanted to get them so we headed out to the river in a tuk tuk. When we arrived however we find out that you get the tubes back in town!! Bugger! So we went without in the end anyway. When you arrive you can hear the music blaring coming from about 4 different bars. When I say bars I mean make shift platforms on the side of the river. There are 4 bars all within 100 metres of each other in the first section of the river and basically not many people make it past there. That day we made it to bar number 3! We met up with these 2 lovely and crazy Australian girls and started drinking buckets with them. Did you know that in Laos a bottle of Whiskey (local obviously) is cheaper than a bottle of water!!? The buckets were lethal and let’s just say that by the end of the day as the sun went down we were feeling a little worse for wear! But it was also at this point that our bad karma and bad luck number 3 incident comes in. Tymon went to the toilet and when he came back we piled into the tuk tuk ready to stumble back into town for some food and dare I say it more drinks. However, as we set off we started looking for the money that we had brought out with us and realized that the money pouch was gone – as was our camera!! We were too far to go back and too full in the tuk tuk so we basically had to come to terms with the fact that we had lost the camera. And that was basically night over. I was devastated – crying and annoyed at Tymon who had had the bag the whole time. It was a water tight clip bag and I just had no idea how someone could have gotten into it. Anyway we had a big hoo har, I was crying and of course it was all made 10 times worse cos of the drink but it was a really BAD night! I couldn’t believe we had lost the camera and to make matters even worse - I hadn’t backed up since we had arrived in Laos so we lost everything! 4000 Islands and Paddy’s Day (all Tymon’s amazing artwork!) and him playing with the local kids, the Bolaven Plateau and our bike trip and of course the antics of the day itself at the river with us zip lining into the water and going off massive swings and drunken shenanigans. Oh still I want to kill someone – I mean take the camera, ask me for money if that’s what you want but come on!! Gutted – soooo sooooo gutted!! The next morning as we came to Tymon seemed to remember the only logical time it could have happened which was just at the last minute as he went to the toilet before we left. It was dark by then and you had to climb up some wooden stairs and he remembers being helped up the stairs by some locals. We think it was at this point that they pick pocketed the bag and took the money and the camera. There was just no other time it could have happened. I had had the camera around me most of the day and now of course all I can think is - why didn’t I just keep the camera on me! So we reckon it was locals that did it and I wanted to seriously hurt someone! But the worse was yet to come!
Later that day once we felt a little human we went to the tourist police to report it stolen as we needed that for our insurance and guess what? They wouldn’t write the report! They basically turned around and said it was our own fault, we were drunk and stupid and they didn’t believe us. But they could have nearly had me on murder charges I was sooooooo FUMING!! I mean how bloody dare they! It’s not like they have to pay for it! And they were sooooo rude. They are a complete joke being there as they don’t do ANYTHING apart from sit on their asses all day and sleep. (We actually had to come back once because they were fast asleep undressed!) Arrrgggh even now I’m gritting my teeth and getting pissed off again! They told us we had to go back to Vientiane which we just didn’t want to do in the end as it was so far to double back on ourselves and we had decided to get out Thai visa at the border (which has led to a whole another debacle – it’s just gone on and on like dominoes!)
So we had to let it go and try and enjoy our time in Vang Vieng hoping that the insurance will work itself out. We reckon that it was because we said it was locals and they don’t want a bad image arising of the locals – B*stards – the lot of them!
Anyway - the next day we hired a bike and went out and about to the caves and lagoons that surround the area. All the guide books talk about the Blue Lagoon and caves which had pools in where you can swim, as the first one advertised so in we went to the gate where a couple of people were sitting charging to go further to the cave and walk through the land. It was quite a lot as well considering it’s not like they built the damn thing or even owned it! So Tymon made a comment about that and they seemed to just look at us and not understand what we were saying. So we went in anyway. What a waste of time – the walk was nice enough and then we had to climb up some rocks rather vicariously to the top and then walk in about 50 metres into this ‘cave’. It was a joke. So we climbed back down to head on the next. As we were back on the main dirt track Tymon all of a sudden slowed down saying that our petrol had gone. We had just filled up to a full tank before we left and we were now missing half a tank at least! We got off and checked the bike to see if it could be a leak but there was no trace or track of it being that. When it dawned on us. The b*stards at the cave siphoned out our petrol. No wonder there were all smiley and looking at us as we left! We realized that the seat to the bike was pretty much lift upable so you could easily get to the cap. God it was like another blow and things were just going form bad to worse. And the day did get even worse! We finally, after going to 3 other supposed Blue Lagoons and paying for each big fat disappointment, found the right one. We’d met on the road some Dutchies who were also trying to find it so we were riding with them as they were really nice and it was actually really lovely. The water was an electric blue – even if it wasn’t in the cave but outside at the bottom and it was really refreshing. So after some frolicking we decided to climb up to the top of the cave and go and have a look at the sleeping Buddha. It was a really steep climb up and we were quite away away from the Buddha as it was on the other side of the cave. I was looking around and decided to try and get to the Buddha and there didn’t seem to be any obvious path to get there so I climb up onto this big rock and started sliding down it on my bum which would bring me to a plateau where there then seemed to be a route to get to the Buddha. As I was nearing the bottom it all went pear shaped! All of a sudden I lost my footing and stumbled forward and the next thing I know I am falling down a hole. I screamed and tried to grab onto some rocks infront of me but down I went. The only thing that went through my mind along with my heart in my mouth was ‘how far am I going to fall?’ I swear it was the worst seconds of my life and thankfully by the time that thought had gone through my mind I had hit the bottom. I must have only fallen 2 metres or so but it was pitch black and I just had no idea how deep the hole was. I was lucky also that I hit a flat bottom and there wasn’t any rocks protruding otherwise I could have landed and easily have broken something. I sat at the bottom of this hole for a few seconds and I could hear the guys shouting my name and Tymon calling me. I responded and saw the light (haha) from another hole so crawled along to get out of the hole. Tymon was clambering down to me and I was shaking so much. He helped me up and I looked at my fingers which really hurt with the torch and could see they were all cut open and the skin had come off. We poured some water over them and wrapped some tissue around them so I could climb out easier. The whole thing was a mess and I was sooooo lucky – it could have been a lot worse. I mean we climbed up a steep hill to get to the cave for about 10 minutes and if the hole had been to the bottom that would have been the end of me (just to sound even more dramatic) and infact when Tymon went back down to go to the Buddha he said that right next to where I fell was another hole down a crevice which was about 5 metres deep and if I had fallen down there who knows what would have happened! So I slowly and shakily climbed all the way back down to the bottom before heading home to sort out my wounds.
Now I am a big baby when it comes to pain and cuts, I really am and if you want proof just ask Tymon how bad I was. I was crying and wouldn’t let him touch the cuts and he brought some iodine and got out the first aid kit and wrapped them up in gauze but I was petrified, especially of the iodine as I thought it was going to sting like hell, but actually it didn’t! There was a lot of dirt in them as well and over the next few days Tymon brought some alcohol and made me run a cotton swap over and through the cuts with the alcohol. Again more crying and hysterics – I wouldn’t let him do it and when he did one time I was sobbing! Haha. Drama drama drama! I was sure they were going to get infected and was really worried as we had booked to do the Gibbon Experience in a weeks time which was zip lining and I was worried I wouldn’t be able to do it but you know what I was amazed at how quickly my fingertips healed. Within a week they scabbed up and dried up & I cut away all the dead skin and dirt with the nail clippers and by the time we got to the Gibbon they were fine. No infections no nothing – just a lot of whinging!! :0)
So all in Vang Vieng was a complete nightmare for us! We did have a good time as we met some great people but it had a big cloud over it and after 5 days we were more than ready to get the hell out of there! The people and atmosphere is only tolerable for that long max!
Next stop Luang Prabang followed by Huay Xai and the Gibbon Experience before crossing over to Thailand. I’m going to put that in another blog as this is already quite long!!
Hugs and kisses from us both.
xxx
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