Well, we are way behind on the blogging but that's the way it goes. Decent internet (and more importantly a keyboard without sticky keys) is hard to come by unless you're in a big city. We are actually in Siem Reap Cambodia now, but I'll do My best to get you guys caught up. The pictures will have to wait as finding the proper cord and modem is proving difficult as well.
The trip from Ba Na Hin to Tha Kaek was a pretty easy stretch. We have come down out of the mountains now and onto what is know as the lowlands, where it is kansas-flat and absolutely sweltering.Tha Kaek was a neat town right along the Mekong. I know Mark you really wanted to know how the people actually lived and I've been trying to figure out how to explain it. In the countryside the hosed are usually made of wood planks and sit about 10-12 feet off the ground on cement stilts. Most have no windows, only open spaces, and no running water. Cows, chickens, dogs, and the whole family hangs out under the house in the shade a lot of the day. We are in the beginning of the dry season so the rice was harvested probably about a month ago and it seems like most people have nothing better to do than to stay out of the heat. A few places that have access to irrigation have replanted rice. In towns people live in the back or above their shop which is made of cement over bricks.The buildings are usually built in blocks right along the road, so a lawn is completely out of the question. People sell all types of things from hardware, to clothes, to wicker baskets. Cell phones are also a big deal and are sold everywhere. Every young Lao person has one. They use pay-as-you-go sim cards and I think they are quite cheap. For the most part people are nothing but smiles. They are easily the friendliest group of people I've ever encountered. The language barrier is a bit of a hurdle sometimes. We all made an attempt to learn some Lao, but its a tonal language, which is about impossible for us. For the most part we can say hello and goodbye (luckily they are the same word haha) and thank you very much. I think I'm (Garrett) is the only one who has mastered counting to ten, although that is not particularly helpful as money amounts are often in the tens of thousands ($1 = 8000 Lao Kip).
While in Tha Kaek we met a group of 4 or 5 young Lao guys who invited us over to their thatched roof platform for drinks. The leader, who called himself Johnny Walker, invited us out to a Karaoke bar that night. Ashley opted to hang out in the room and rest, so Alex, Riley and I hit the town with Johnny and his crew, not knowing what to expect. Johnny spoke a tiny bit of broken English while the others could only say hello. Boy did it get interesting. Apparently Karaoke is a really, really big deal, and by the end of the night we had hit three separate bars and listened to far too many Lao's sing their heart out. We couldn't understand a thing. Johnny refused to let us by a drink. In Laos its a custom for one guy to pick up the whole tab. The catch is that he gets to set the pace for the night by announcing when you can drink, as well as how much you are supposed to drink at that time. By the end the three of us were ready to go home but Johnny had once last surprise left for us. He ended up taking us to what can only be described as a "boom-boom palace." At first it appeared to just be another bar, but once we figured out its more sinister nature we called it quits and headed home. What a strange, strange night.
Next on the itinerary was Pakse, a good sized city in the very south of Laos. We all really liked Pakse. It seemed to have some sort of garbage disposal program which made trash issue better. Here we rented mopeds and set off for the ancient ruins in Champasak. According to the lonley planet guide there was only one road to the ruins, which turned out to be a dusty, pot-holed mess that took us forever to navigate. We finally made it though. The ruins are built on this hillside and where really neat to see. In the essence of saving time here is a link to some info about them: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wat_Phu
While at the temple we learned they had just built a new road straight to Pakse. We elected to go back that way and it took only a quarter of the time and was the nicest road we've been on in Laos!
Next up was the Bolaven Plateau which is famed for its cooler climate, coffee, and waterfalls. At this point the guide books were a little confusing on how to actually get to the waterfalls and we ended up in the completely wrong town in the middle of the day when the local transport stops running. After lunch we elected to try and wave down a passing mini bus to see about getting headed in the right direction. A really nice young Laos couple stopped and although they didnt speak any English we managed to figure out they could take us about halfway, so we hopped on. The next bit of road to the waterfall was on a road less traveled, so it took us a while to arrange a ride. This time we ended up sitting on the top of 90 cases of Lao Cow in the back of a big flat-bed truck. Lao Cow is basically a government owned moonshine rice whiskey liquor. Locals brew there own (which is illegal) called Lao Lao. A 1 liter bottle usually runs about a $1.25. In the end it worked out great and we all had a fun time rolling down the road waving at all the local kids who love to wave at you and shout hello. We spent a couple days at the waterfalls swimming, hiking, and relaxing, then returned to Pakse.
Our last and final destination in Lao was Si Phan Don, a place more commonly known as as 4000 thousand islands. This area lies along the Lao-Cambodia border and includes a multitude of islands scattered along the Mekong. Its the dry season so the Mekong is at its lowest point, so sandbars and strange shrubs stick out of the river everywhere. Its a very strange site to see a big bush square in the middle of a huge river. The islands have basic accommodation and usually include a hammock or two for lounging. It was a stunningly beautiful place. We spent the next few days swimming, relaxing, and eating. At one of the swimming holes Alex was sitting in the water on the rivers edge and found about a 10 inch knife blade in the sand under the water. The handle was broken off, but why they had decided to throw it in the water is beyond me. Good thing we all have our Hep shots! That pretty much killed the swimming mood.
Well I didn't make it to Cambodia but I'm tired of typing and it has to be 90 degrees in here.
Until next time, Saba Dee.
Garrett
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