Laos.

We headed on the A/C 2nd class bus to Chang kong where the women next to us was puking her brains out for the first half of the trip, making many of us naucious...but we held it and then she slept the second half. Most of these bus rides have a point where everyone gets out, can buy snacks, pay to use the toilet (or hole in the ground) and then get back on for the rest of the journey.

Ethan at the Laos/Thai border "Gateway to Indochina"

We had opted to cross the border and spend the night in Laos, which we now realize was the more relaxed laid back country town. Most travelers stayed in Chang Kong and then headed over (sometimes on a package lodging/boat across/Mekong 2-day slow boat package) which was a better deal than piecemealing it like we did. Ah...the boat ride down the Mekong river. I can't post pictures until we get to Thailand...but it was like 70 people (only a few Lao - mostly foreigners) in a long boat with benches deep enough to fit half a cheek and only wide enough to fit two adults sitting straight forward. We boarded the boat at 10:30AM after a speech from the customs man (well, he checked us into Laos the day before). He scared us into pre-booking a room in Pak beng, told us there would be No electricity in pak beng, no food available on the boat, and that we would arrive at 7PM, after all the tourists traveling the other way arrived making guest houses sparce and food unavailable. After a 3PM arrival, we decided we weren't too upset about pre-booking, but if you (the reader) are planning this trip, you'll get a hostel for about 1/2 the $300Baht we paid, if you just go. Then again, we were tired and very happy not to have to deal with the stress when we arrived. Pak Beng does have sporadic opwer, but we were lucky to have it all night when we were there. the boat did stop and these kids sold chips, water and beer half way through the day. It was town set into a hill with mudslides and one main street that totally benefited and catered to the passing boat traffic.

The boats for the two day journey, down the Mekong...


First day on the boat...


Second day was WAY more relaxed.


A view of a small village along the Mekong.

Laos food is like Thai food but with less flavor and less vegetables and more oil. The guest house in Pak Beng was fine and the mosquitos weren't that bad. The next day, we reboarded the boat at the requested time of 8:30AM yet we didn't leave until 10:30AM. The second day boat ride was way better, more relaxed and much more socializing. We met some new friends. A fellow RPCV (from Phillipines) and his British girlfriend as well as this other couple (British) who had put there lives on hold for a full year RTW. We didn't plan to all stay at the same guest house, but we did. Actually, all of us have done everything in Luang Prabang together. There is discount in numbers and we hired a mini-bus for the trip down to VangVieng tomorrow. It is also nice because us girls are shopping together tonight and the boys can wait for us at the pub for bit. Jaylia's Guest House (at $6US) a night for both of us, has been the best night sleep I have had since leaving Samoa, maybe even since my mothers house last December. All of us agreed the next day that the sleep was fantastic and the mattresses nice, sheets included!

Night one in Luang Prabang: Dinner with our boat crew. We made a plan to hire a tuktuk for a ride up to the waterfalls. It was beautiful and we'll tell you all about it if you read on.