Laos Round Up

LAOS Round Up

 

Laos had escaped us a couple of times, on our first trip to Vietnam and Cambodia a few years back we were very close to the border and again tantalisingly close to it when we were in Myanmar. So determined to not let the opportunity escape us again we decided to sacrifice some time in Thailand so that we could hop over the border and see what the country had to offer. That’s the great thing about traveling, the proximity of other exotic destinations which are a hop skip and a jump away (well, a bus and a boat ride)

10 days seems a healthy amount of time when you have your annual 25 day holiday allowance to work with but when you have been used to spending at least 3-4 weeks in any given country it feels quite tight!.  We opted to keep to a tight and well-trodden loop and this might be the reason why our impressions of Laos wasn’t quite as good as we thought they would be…

 

The people are not as friendly as their Thai neighbours, you feel like you are an inconvenience to them and just a means of making money. This could largely be due to the volume of Trustafarians who descend on Laos (and its well trodden tourist path) who have total disregard for their culture or values. We saw half naked drunk Trusta’s walking through town, despite several signs asking them to cover up and be respectful, sticking their camera’s under monks noses whist they are conducting their call to Alms and generally being a right pain in the arse!. It was also more expensive than we thought it would be too and the food isn’t all that!.

 

However when we did step off the tourist route to visit Phonsovan, we found the people warm, helpful , much more friendly and wanting to engage and make conversation with us. It was also a lot cheaper too!. We’ve since spoken to people that have travelled Laos extensively and fallen in love with it so perhaps 10 days wasn’t enough to really help us to get to know the country and its people.

 

Memorable moments include:

·         Playing agony aunt to the scorned lady when I tried to book an extra night in Luam Prabang. I wonder if she ever did marry him?

 

 

·         Stunning waterfalls in Luang Prabang and the climb to the top and the even scarier clamber back down! (Shel not Glenn)

 

·         The bus journeys, not for the faint hearted!,

·         Tubing in Vian Vieng, Mud volleyball and my lost shoe L

 

 

·         Partying with Danielle and Jacob

·         Partying with Ali and Ross

 

 

·         Partying!

·         Getting very lost in the Plane of Jars

 

 

·         2 day boat trip, not quite the romantic trip we expected!

·         Our ignorance over the secret war

·         Overnight sleeper bus to Van Vieng, make sure you don’t get a bunk near the loo!

Top tips

1.       Easy for women travellers

2.       Push your way to the mini bus and secure your seats first, else you will be sitting on wooden stools stuck in the isle for a 7-8 hour journey!

3.       Don’t engage in conversations with distraught looking receptionists!