Life in Laos

So you've heard about my trip to the north and how I spent my birthday, but heres a rundown of what I got up to in the rest of the country.

THE NORTH
I started off in the north west border town of Houxai, a fairly basic introduction to the country with not much going for it except for a steady stream of tourists to make money out of. Because the Laos currency is slightly.... prone to fluctuation, not many people exchange their money outside of the country so I was revealed to find an ATM there. I sat with some new friends, overlooking the mighty Mekong river with a bottle of Beer Lao, something that at the time I didn't know was going to become very familiar.

I took the bus to Oudoxmai in the middle of the north of the country. The roads are terrible here and a journey takes twice as long as it should do just because of it. They are trying to mend them but its a bit like painting the forth road bridge, a never ending task. One important thing I found out about Laos is the concept of 'Laos time'. This is a state of mind where nothing is rushed. As soon as you try and fight the system to get somewhere fast, it fights back with its joker card, 'Laos time'. You simply have to give in and go with the flow other wise it becomes exhausting.

I had a great time in the north, and really felt off the beaten track and saw a lot of amazing things. The hills are just stunning and seem endless. The rivers used to be the lifeblood of the country and for many still are carving their way through almost every town. I spend many a day relaxing on a boat heading for another place somewhere down stream. The country is simple and there is little western influence, something ive only realised since I got into Phnom Penh. I think to many its communist vibe is what keeps them out.

Luang Prabang
Most people get a 2 day slow boat down the Mekong with 59 other 'Falang' (white people) from the border town where I entered, to Luang Prabang the ancient capital of Laos and home to an amazing array of temples. It was made a UNESCO world heritage sight in 1994 and you have to wonder what UNESCO was thinking before then, because its a precious place. Beautified with old colonial french architecture and still keeps a very Laos vibe with the many temples. I made the effort to rise at 5.15 one morning to see the monks do their monking and wonder the town for the giving alms ceremony that they do every morning. Its one of those things that if the tourists wernt there then maybe they wouldn't do it every day but it was great to see. Its one of those towns where you could spend a while watching the days go by. Its one of the few places where there seems alot of older tourists, maybe catering for them a bit more than the party town of Vang Vieng.

Vang Vieng & the SAELAO family
I was originally going to head over to Phonsavan home of the plain of jars, strange ceramic pots dotted among the countryside that nobody really knows much about, but I changed my mind on the morning of my bus. I instead headed to the Infamous town of Vang Vieng, home to many a drunk gap year tourist hell bent on being a dick. The main attraction is the tubing, the art of getting pissed on a river whilst sitting in a tractor tyre inner tube and the crazy slides which together have killed 8 people just this year. Although I was planning on joining the party I found something which was far better, the Saelao Project as reccomended by Jane who I did my trek in the north with. Run by Bob, a Lao born man with excellent grasp of English having spent 12 years in Canada, the SAELAO project sits 7 km out from the chaos of Vang Vieng a stones through from some incredible caves and Blue Lagoon. Its a beautiful place designed to set an example to the local community about sustainability. Thanks to the influx of falang the once small town of Vang Vieng has exploded in size having a new guesthouse built every 38 days! Bobs aim is to help educate the local people about how this isn't sustainable and learn about how to gather materials needed for expansion, without destroying the landscape. There's a restaurant which cooks meat from the village, uses rice from the fields using on a stove supplied by gas made from cow dung. It teaches English to locals and has a newly built community centre, the only problem being the lack of volunteers and money to keep the good work flowing constantly. Working on the project was one of the best things in Laos, I only spent 5 days there but would love to go back if I get the chance, its an amazing place to live.

Vientiane
Vientiane is quite unremarkable in almost every way. I was expecting more from the capital which just sprawls out like a large town more than a city. I did take a chance to visit the national museum which gives a bias outlook on the history of the war against the ''imperialist Americans'' who bombed Laos repeatedly during the Vietnam war, making Laos the most bombed country ever. This was the reason I took Rachel's advice and headed over to a place called Cope. Cope is a centre for amputees who have lost limbs thanks to the UXO (Unexploded ordinance) which still litter the Lao countryside. Many don't see them before they explode, and for others the high price for scrap metal makes rooting around a risk worth taking. It was really interesting, especially knowing that a custom made new limb can be made for only 30 pounds. I pride myself on being able to sleep almost anywhere, that was before I left Vientiane on the sleeper bus bound for Pakse, a truly headbanging experience.

Pakse & the Bolvean Plateau
Another unremarkable town but a base camp for trips out over the Bolvean plateau, a lush wetland teeming with waterfalls and other beautiful natural sights. I did this on a 2 day loop with 3 other europeans on motorbikes. Aware that if my Dad knew he would freak out I chose not to mention that before the trip. It was truly beautiful, and 2 burst tyres was not enough to flatten my spirits. Riding through dusk as the sun was going down, on roads lined with the most beautiful villages as all the kids waved as we went by was just amazing and another experience I was not going to forget. Almost at the end the end of my trip I headed down quickly to Don Det

4000 Islands
A backpackers paradise, the 4000 islands sit on top of the widest part of the Mekong river. There's not much to do except relax and enjoy with Don Det being the island of choice, although we did see an awesome waterfall and were lucky enough to see the rare Irawady dolphins from about 20m away. An amazing place to reflect on an truly unique, beautiful country.


So now I'm in Cambodia and start my orphanage project tomorrow for the next 2 weeks. I took the effort of reading the book "First they killed my father'', an important book written from a child's view about the genocide which happened in 1975. Learning about it has made me realise how screwed up the British History lessons are, because this is way more important than the colour of a romans tunic and yet something that most people (including myslef before I came) never get taught about.

Thats all for now, more to follow in a couple of weeks no doubt.