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In contrast to its dubious distinction as the most heavily bombed country in the world, (between 1964 and 1973 the U.S. dropped two million tons of bombs on Laos, roughly 30% of which failed to detonate and remain dangerous today), my experience of Laos was of a peaceful, extremely laidback and very beautiful place. Rugged limestone cliffs, emerald-green forests, pristine jungle waterfalls, friendly people, a relaxed atmosphere everywhere you go, and all to be enjoyed with what is probably South East Asia's best beer... What more can one ask for?

Kayaks, Caves & Waterfalls - A Week in Laos

Michael Meadows
2006-09-26 16:37:25

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the jagged wreckage, gleefully extricating the occasional intact bottle from the foamy shards. Much as I enjoy Beer Lao, I decided I could hold on until we reached Luang Prabang.

Walking home one night in Vientiane, I suddenly sank almost to my waist in some sort of roadworks-related quicksand.
Walking home one night in Vientiane, I suddenly sank almost to my waist in some sort of roadworks-related quicksand.
of Luang Prabang, simply because we saw so little of it. Checking into a comfortable guesthouse in the centre of town, we spent the rest of the first day wandering along the main street, trying some typical Lao cuisine, (such as jaew bawng, a thick dark sauce made from dried buffalo skin and chillies), exploring the small night market, and enjoying the town's relaxed pace. The next morning, we got a tuk-tuk out to the Kuang Si Falls, an amazingly beautiful waterfall south of Luang Prabang. We hiked around it for about an hour in search of an elusive swimming spot near the top, but eventually had to content ourselves with a refreshing dip in the large pools at the falls' base. Back in town, we organised a flight to Chiang Mai, (a trip that would have taken us a couple of days otherwise), and then enjoyed our last night in this undoubtedly beautiful and relaxed little town. I don't think I could fully endorse LP's praise just yet, but Luang Prabang's definitely worth a second visit to make sure, hopefully some day soon.

Chiang Mai
As I look back on our trip through Laos, I realise it sounds
Sharing some of the muddy quicksand goodness with a
fairly boring. Written up as a simple record of what we actually did, the trip would mostly be a repetitive listing of bus rides, accommodation searches, lazy meals, and so on. However, this was a trip that was all about the company, rather than what we actually got up to or where we went. We all got on so well that a whole afternoon spent just sitting around and chatting over a couple of Beer Lao's was an afternoon well spent.

Our time in Chiang Mai was much the same, although we did make a bit more of an effort to see a few of the sights - Wat Chedi Luang (housed the Emerald Buddha - which is now in Bangkok's famous Wat Phra Kaew - in 1475), Wat Phra Singh (apparently a good example of the local 'Lanna' architecture), the sprawling Night Bazaar, and Wat Phra That Doi Suthep (its hilltop location affords a great view out over the town).

As I said earlier, before this trip Jen & I had decided there was no point in starting anything and that we would try to remain just friends. But over the week we spent travelling together throughLaos, we got to know each other a lot better. And the more I got to know Jen, the more I liked her. Sweet, fun, adventurous, intelligent and opinionated (not to mention beautiful), Jen is a special girl. We returned to Rangsit a couple, not sure where it might lead, but content to just enjoy our time together and then deal with whatever came next. Of course, since I always seem to be so far behind in my blogs, all this took place almost two months ago. What's happened since then?! Find out more in the next installment... =P

(Happy Birthday for today Mum, and Dad for the 27th, hope you both have a great day!)