Luang Parbang, Laos

From heaven in Ha Long Bay to hell in a bus for 33 hours. Let the fun begin! Getting to the bus station was the fun part. I had a guy grab my bag from me, throw into a minivan, hitting a girl in the eye with the strap. Then he pushed meinside. There were no seats left. Everyone had to push up to give me a little bit of a seat. As you can imagine, it wasn't the most comfortable of journeys! After a horrible start, we eventually made it on to the bus. Let the 33 hours begin! Lucky for me, I had loads of leg room. The bus was really comfortable! Our only wish was that the driver would just drive the bus, but he kept on stopping to pick people and goods up. Whatever he picked up must have been illegal as we were stopped by the police who got the driver to drive the bus into the police station, where we were locked in for three hours with nowhere to go! Eventually, the bus was freed, and we were allowed to be on our way. The journey to Laos was really nice as we spent nearly the whole time going through the mountains, which were so picturesque. After another few hours travelling, we reached the border, high up in the mountains. It looked like something from an old western. I got the impression that it hadn't been used for years! The worst part of all was that we had to pay for our visa, and Kathrin got hers for free because she's Swiss! How fair is that? For whatever reason, it took a few hours to get it all sorted. But it wasn't as bad as the Cambodia border! After waiting ages for the bus to return to us, it suddenly appeared out of nowhere. What was really strange was that the drivers foot was covered in blood. I don't know what he was up to. Then customs comes over to check the bus, but the driver hands them a bribe on the side. Dodge city! Only in Asia! The good thing about the border was that it broke the journey in half for us, which made it a bit more bearable! After 33 hours travelling, we finally made it to our destination. Thank God! After travelling for that amount of time, I feel as though I can do anything! The only problem was we arrived early in the morning and all the guesthouses were all closed. While waiting, we had a guy come up to us selling drugs. Again, only in Asia! Luckily enough, we didn't have to wait too long. Jason checked out a few places, but they were all really expensive, eventually he found somewhere nice at a better price called 'Xayana Guesthouse.' the room was comfortable, with a nice, large balcony looking over the street. It's only up from the 'Mekong River,' which is really nice. The river is completely brown, so I wouldn't fancy swimming in it. You thought the Liffey was bad, take a look at the Mekong. The town is really nice, with lots of nice bars and restaurants. It reminds me of Chiang Mai and Hoi An combined, with lots of nice French style wooden architecture. There is a really nice atmosphere. Every evening, the main street turns into a market selling lots of nice things. If I wasn't backpacking, I would have a great time buying things! What's even better about the market is that no one hounds you to buy things. You can casually walk up and down simply soaking in the ambience. The only problem for me is that all the canopies are so low down that I kept banging my head into them. The joys of being tall! Walking through, we bumped into Shaun and Charlie from Sapa. We all decided to go for a drink together. Enjoying the banter, I began to feel unwell, which resulted in me spending most of the following day in bed. Don't worry, you will all be glad to know that I made a full recovery! The following day, we all decided to look for somewhere a little bit cheaper. We found a great place, 'Sengphet Guesthouse' and it was only next door, so we didn't have far to go. The room was nice and comfortable for us. With Laos being famous for its stunning waterfalls, it was only right that we visited one. And stunning is right! There was even a sanctuary filled with rescued bears who were all tortured and locked up in tiny cages. One of those cages was on display to show the world the cruelty that WE put these poor animals through! Back to the waterfall, as I'm sure you want to hear all about it. There are different levels with swimming pools filled with clear water and tiny little fishes that bite your feet. Its like a free fish spa! I was a bit freaked out by it but it was definitely worth the swim. Jason being daring climbed up to a big branch jutting out to the water! Further up there was another clear watered pool with the most amazing backdrop of the waterfall. It said no swimming but no one paid any attention to it. Thankfully they didn't! Out of all the different pools, this was the nicest. Beside the waterfall was a large rock which myself and Jason jumped off into the waterfall. It was incredible. The water was so cold, but really refreshing. It was definitely worth the visit. I can't wait to see all the other amazing waterfalls Laos has to offer! I think the highlight for Jason was being asked if he was a man or a woman! He wasn't one bit impressed, but it was still funny! There are lots of nice temples in Luang Parbang, and what better way to see them, than by bicycle. It was really nice being back to go on one again and it was such a great way to see more of this charming town. In one of the temples, a novice monk started talking to us and invited us to a ceremony where all the monks would sing to Buddha. It was an honour for us to be invited to the ceremony as very few people get the chance to attend something that special. Honestly, I have to say, this is one of the nicest places I have ever visited. Hopefully, someday, I will be able to return to the irresistible Luang Parbang!

By Andrew

#bus #waterfall