Wednesday 7th april

We get up & start packing, not really knowing what we were going to do. Grant suggested to ask the hotels info desk of how we get to laos. She offered us a package which turned out to be reallyt cheap! So we leave Thursday at noon! We’re on theb us for 5 hours, stop to see the white temple, get to the boarder, stay a night, then they next day sort out visas and we set off on a slow boat for 2 days! Stay in pak bang, then the next day get to luang probang! Then we are on our own!!!

We had to get money out to pay for the trip so we went to walk to the centre. We stopped to find out how much package would cost for that wood piece grant wanted to buy, but it worked out to be 50 pounds!!!so we carried on looking! Whilst looking around town, grant spotted a cheap place to get his hair cut, then came across a thai fish spa. We decided to try it out. It was crazy – we got a video to show you all, hopefully we will be able to post it onto the blog! I don’t like fish and grant doesn’t like his feet being touched so between us both it was histerical. Grant couldn’t stop giggling.it as the most weird feeling ever. Like pins and needles / like a vibrating massage! The fish suck on your dead skin and eat it…they had a feast. It’s apparently the in thing to do in thailand. After the foot spa, we stopped in an internet café where we spoke to mary for the 1st time, using skype, we saw her on the camera, it was exciting! Played some pool, got some grub, then spoke to the mamma on skype! Wrote out some postcards!

On the slow boat to Laos! Friday 9th april 2010, 11.30am
On our minibus journey up to chaing rai, we stopped at a little market where we bought our wooden elephant plack for the wall. We thought it’d fit in our backpacks…but we thought wrong so had to carry it in a plastic bag! We then stopped at the white temple. It was georgous, very unique! It literatly was covered in in jewells – every inch! There were statues of very unusual things everywhere. Back on the minibus and we are heading for chaing khong. We stayed at our minibus drivers’ mums guesthouse, who was right moddy cow! It was because we didn’t want to pay her 100 baht to get things done quicker at the visa office at the boarder! We refused, she didn’t like it at all. She handed us a key and didn’t even show us how to get to our room.

We dumped our bags and headed out to play pool (grant spotted the pool as we were arriving) it was free as the owners were relatives of the moody cow! Even the internet was free too! We had an evening meal then went straight back to make use of the free stuff – with a couple john and claire, who shared the minibus jounrye with us!had a good nights sleep then got breakfast which was a freid egg…filling!!?? Finaly made it down to the docks where we walked straight up to the visa office to get stamped out, took two seconds and was on a boat to cross over to the other side- where it took another 2 seconds to get our visas…no que! No so long after we were on the boat ready to set off…we had an extremly long day ahead of us…sat on a bench for 8 hours…fun fun fun!

Saturday 10th april 2010 – luang probang!
We arrived in pak beng, a little village, everyone wanted to talk to us. We checked into our room where the bedroom was lovely but the watre was dirty. Then headed out for a meal with a french couple – lowe and luke, claire and john – from england. We had free fried seawedd! It was tastey. Grant tried buffalow and sticky rice and I tried chicken yup; a lemony tasting laos dish. Got back to the room where the electricty kepy flickering. So we turned the lights off and sat with our head tourches on! Finally got some sleep, woke up a couple of times as it was sooo hot and stuffy! Couldn’t stop sweating my ass off! Got a banana pancake for breaky and bought a roll for lunch. Headed for a seat on the boat where we waited from 8.30am – 9.30 for everyone to board!the benches were worse than the ones we were sat on the day before. It was a nightmare, they were all stacked infront of each other so close, there was no leg room, we had to sit sideways on them! The boat was also smaller so most people had to sit on the floor! PLUS! We were on the boat for longer too, everyone got on both our nerves. They all seemed to be posers. The lad with face mask on??? The blonde girl who posed when using her laptop and the way she used her camera!we had a thai man playing out loud his classical music??? An american girl who spoke highly of herself out loud so everyone could hear! And a deaf guy who thought he was the coolest guy. Another guy who put on an american accent who thought he could play it smooth with the ladies by telling them that he was going to play them some songs on his guitar?!? We were losing the plot – grant said he’d rather go back to work for bryn meadows for the rest of his life than sit on the boat for one more minute…and I wanted to chuck myself off the side with an ankor wrapped around my ankles! Our bums were killing, there was no air apart from the hot breeze, which was not nice at all! There were people smoking and we were both hungry, restless and bored!
9 hours later, we were pulling up to dock! We grabbed our bags, we’re in luang probang!!!!! For the 1st time we had to find our own accomodation! We walked around = found a place to stay but when I asked to stay for 2 nights she had no idea what I was saying, so up and off we left! Everywhere was so expensive, very nice places but out of our budget.a young lad found us, showed us a photo of a guesthouse…we were sold! We followed him for what seemed like hours, it was the longest we’d walked with our backpacks on! I was drenched in sweat and couldn’t wait to have a cold shower and a drink. We settled into our room – you know…used the bog, drunk the comp water, splashed our faces and used the towells, then grant decides to work out that we had been ripped off! The lad had confused us by using baht and kip when telling us how much the room was. So he wants to leave, which was embarassing! And guess who had to go up to the receptionist to say we were leaving….me! she said that as the room wouldn’t be able to be serviced we would have to stay – she discounted the rate for us, which was fab! I was happy!
Made it out for grub at a place called the hive, it was very plush, even got to watch a fashion show! Of all the different clothes that Laos people wore!we left straight after it’d finished! Then got back to the room and watched mall cop! Had the best nights sleep since we started travelling. Had to get breakfast then set off in the blistering heat with our backpacks on to find a room for the night. As it was the up-coming week of the new year, the guesthouses were charging stupid amounts. We decided we wanted to move on to the next location!but we then came across a huge hotel with a pool table, it was the cheapest, so checked in, dumped our bags and headed out to try and find someone to take us kayaking. It was too late to go, so we ended up booking a bus to go to Phonsavan to see the plain of jars! On our way back to our hotel, a tuktuk driver called us over to take us to the waterfall, he told us that he’d already got 2 people who wanted to go so if we went, it’d be cheaper! We had to go to get swimming stuff on, and there they all were – waiting! Off we went up into the mountains, bendy road, cliffs and a very fast and crazy driver who tried taking over on all the bends. Got to the waterfalls, the water was pure blue! It was perfect! We were soon in the water, it was freezing! Rather refreshing. We got back to the tuktuk where we waited for Anuke and Magarite (from holland) Anuke looked the image of reese witherspoon! On the way back we got drenched by the local village kids who were celebrating the new year – early! Got back splayed some pool, then headed out to the night market! Spoke to mam and dad on skype, which was lush – hearing mums reation when she first saw us on the camera! Bless!!! We weren’t daring enough to try out some grub or drink in a plastic bag so got back to the hotel for a nice meal. We sat outside in the gadren front, with the night market right outside. I ended up going out and buying the matching pillow cases to a bed throw we’d got the other day! The woman didn’t have the style I wanted there at the stall so insisted on making them from scratch and getting them to us the next morning before we were due to leave!
Monday 12th april.
We woke at 7am to make sure we were on time for the little old lady. 15 dollars later I had my pillow cases, they were perfect! Exactly what I wanted! We then started to walk to our pick up point, passed a load of monks and loads of kids on their way to school! It was the earliest we had been out and about! We made it outisde the pick up point at 7.50am, the guy came outisde and informed us that we weren’t being picked up intil 9.30??? we sat across from the agency to get breaky, grant didn’t want anything, which was stupid as he’d just taken his malaria tablet! By the time id eaten my fruit he was ill! Got on the bus for a 6 hour journey. It wasn’t fun. Most of the group on the minibus fell ill so we had to keep stopping! 6-7 hours of up and down, being thrown side to side of the bus on every mountain imaginable. Round every bend we got chucked about in the back, down every ditch we went! We were nearly thrown off every cliff edge possible, the speed the driver was hitting was gobsmacking! We were once again, taking over people on corners, sharp ones I’ll add! The guy nearly knocked over a couple of kids, dogs, chickens and cows! We’d had enough, we all said we’d have prefured to have donw the slow boat twice again! We finally made it to our destination! Pulled up in a bus station where all the local lads surrounded the bus trying to get us to stay at their guesthouses! Walked two seconds down the road and got to a huge guesthouse! It was rather cheap and had movie channels! It was just what we needed!
We had to go out to find somewhere that sold tours for the jars, so we met our group and booked a private tour and got the guide to get up extra early to get us out first! We all then went out for food. As we were all sat there full as pigs this young kid started picking at the grub left over on the next table to ours! We insisted he sat down next to us, but he didn’t understand, he just opened up a plastic bag, started pushing the left over food into it and walked off, he looked a bit scared that he’d get caught by the owners! The owner came over to us and told us that his parents are lazy that’s why he’s poor, his parents smoke opium and don’t earn any money to buy food! The owner said he was visiting family and that he was from Vientiane! He sat down, got the waitress to bring us over some free tea and started telling us stories of how his father fought in the war, he was vietmese and fought against them! Not so long after we were in bed, grant wasn’t feeling too good!
Tuesday 13th april – found out today that the road trip we were on to Phonsavan had 8000 bends in the road! And that Phonsavan was 1150 meters high up in the mountains!
Woke up at 6am made it for breaky. Grant really fancied a chicken roll, but out came an omlette??? We pointed out on the menu what he’d ordered! Then, out came a beef roll! He also ordered an orange shake but he got a mango shake, it was funny! Robert – the swiss/german guy, was waiting, and before he had something to say, we rushed our shakes (got brain freeze) then headed over to get into the mini van where we met our guide Pomme! He was lovely! We got to sight 3 and walked up to the jars! I was the first one out of our group to touch one, it was an amazing feeling! They were more than what id expected them to be! Seeing them on a photo doenst mean anything until you actually see them in the real! We got to hear everyones beliefs of what they think the jars were for. I think they are made by the guys of the villages who were trying to become a man! To impress the ladies! Chris from our group thinks his idea is as good as anyones…and that smurfs made them?!?! Our guide thinks that they are made for burial purposes! It’s still a mystery after 2000 years! We got to see the biggest jar ever found over all the sights! It was gigantic! As you can see in the photo where we are hugging it! We saw a Buddha that was broken in the war, it was hit by a bomb! We stopped by a house that was made out of bomb cases! Incredible. We also stopped by a little old ladies hut, where she made Laos Laos (whiskey) – and also got to taste it! By god it was strong! It burnt my throat. It takes her 10 days to make it from scratch – you can see in the photo the tub of rice, that had been there for 2 days! She makes one litre of it and sells it for one pound! Bless! Our guide told us many of stories about the war, which I never thought id be interested in, but got to talk to him alone. I didn’t really want to ask questions in front of the group just incase they thought I was stupid, but I was proud of what I found out. I found out that one place where we were standing looking at a jar was in 2004 a location where they found live bomb! I found out how the bombs detonate! and also found out that the guides uncle was in the war and has never been seen since! Found out also that the old man at the ticket entrance was in the war when he was 15! I found it very interesting – the day was full of amazing stories and facts!
On our way back – on the extremely rocky road, grant spotted adventure golf! So we made our way there in a tuk tuk! Got dropped off in what was the middle of no where! Dessert looking in fact! There might as well have been tumble weed blowing past us to set the scene of how alone we were! No one was to be seen apart from a couple of guys playing in the far distance! No shop to rent out clubs, and oh I forgot it wasn’t mini golf it was proper golf but with only 5 holes!?we wanted to leave – and fast, but when we needed a tuktuk there wasn’t one in sight!we walked for what seemed like miles, then got to the main road, but still no tuktuks! We were alone in the local villages in the heat! It was a nightmare! But on the other hand we got to see how the locals lived, we walked past kids playing in their gardens, young teenage girls dancing in the fronts of their houses, young children carrying babies on there backs whilst out playing! This was pure Laos living! shop owners sleeping waiting for their first customer in what could have been months! We said to one another – we’re finally seeing how the rest of the world lives. Then a little kid comes up to grant and asks what his name was, we don’t even say hello in their language let alone this kid pulling off a whole sentence. Finally a tuktuk pulls up, we flag him down and get on it straight away – we’re happy!
Thursday 15th /Friday 16th (who knows – everyone keeps telling us the wrong day).
Got back to our hotel, watched a film then went out for a meal! Sat next to a group of elderly group. Who were speaking down about the UK people. They were utterly loud and were swearing – they upset me! I was so mad, if that was 4 youngsters talking as loud and swearing, they’d have something to say straight away! As we finished the last bite we were paying the bill and leaving!
The next morning got breaky and headed to the bus station where we got on our next minivan with a driver from hell! The scariest minivan journey ever! He literatly nearly killed about 3 cows, 6 children, 1 man, 1 chicken and all of us in the van – by either driving into someone head on as he was driving constantly on the wrong side of the road or by taking over other vehicles on the corners of cliffs! At one point I looked out at how high up in the mountains we were, it was a long way down and we were driving right on the edges of the cliffs, he swerved as he nearly caught the other vehicle as he took over – I was that scrared I closed my eyes, saw my life flash before me and cried! We had to tell him to slow down, he was laughing and said im hungry – I shouted – we are hungry too, we would like to make it alive to get fed! Its not funny I screamed at him!i couldn’t wait to get out from there away from the evil driver! We some how made it!!! I wanted to kiss everyone! Jumped onto a tuktuk and asked him to take us to the guesthouses! He kept stopping right next to the locals who were waterfighting! We kept having to shout to him to keep on driving! We got drenched because of him! We walked up and down this one street trying to find a place to stay but everywhere was once again, really expensive! Got a room, dumped the bags and wondered into the main part where we found an internet café, spoke to mam and dad and jay on skype, showed them how crazy it was outside with the waterfights! We then sat across the road in a “friends” restaurant, where they played friends repeatedly! (you jealous kate?...then again, we got covered in flea bites, so maybe not) lol x
Got back to our room where the water wasn’t working, then the electricity switched off, then when just dropping off we were woke up by a young girl crying her eyes out! I thought shes been stabbed, grant thought she was being raped, the sound was disturbing! I got out of bed and ran down to the locals sat outside drinking (celebrating their new year) and asked if they knew who was in that room! We all heard a loud noise, and even louder screaming and crying, we ran up they opened the door and there was alad led next to the girl! The woman told us to go back to sleep! But we were tampin! We were going to pack and leave! But finally dropped off, was woke up again at midnight! But made it to morning! We woke up first thing and got the hell out of there! Got to our pick up point for our cave tubing! There was a huge group of thai people, it was nice to finally spend some time with people rather than Europeans or Americans! We walked to the cave, got our waterproof battery operated head torches on and picked out a rubber dingy each. We had to pull ourselves along a rope to get further into the cave, along the rocks we saw silk worm, it was amazing! We got so far into the cave where we had to get off and walk, which was histerical watching grant, he had to duck loads bless him as hes so tall! We then got a certain point where we had to get back to on the dingys and hook our feet onto the dingy of the person in front of you. We then had to start paddling with our arms further into the cave! It was actually quite scary – I led my head back and thought at any point the rocks above could crumbles and come down on us! I had to stop thinking horrible thought otherwise I thought id have a panic attack and rush on out from there and miss out! We passed through 500 meters of cave and got the dead end where our guide then tells us that when it’s the rainy season, the caves are full of water! I then started to get the feeling of drowning! Kepy thinking of how any minute a load of water could come pouring in, and kept looking for the highest part of the cave to get to just in case lol!?? We then started to make our way back, so hooked onto each others dingys again, I was the first to start paddling, and the fastest! Lol wanting to get out as fast as possible! I saw the light – I was so thrilled we’d made it out without drowning or getting caught under rocks! We got to the dinner table where lunch was waiting, we had rice portions wrapped up in little parcels of leaf! It was so cute! We had THREE kebabs which grant was chuffed about and loads of fruit! We strolled back after lunch to the “elephant cave” where thousands of people visit once a year to pour water over the Buddha statues and to wish for good luck and health, they then kneel and have a blessing from the old monk who sits at the front of the cave! Our guide explained that we could have a blessing, grant wasn’t fussed but I wanted to have one! I said there was no point as I wouldn’t have a clue what the monk was saying/blessing me with. But I did really want a free bracelet, but couldn’t go through with it in front of the group! Maybe another time??
Got back to the van, where we then drove to the beginning point of our kayaking experience! We were supposed to have done 10k, but the water was low so we could only do 5k (thank god – my hands were blistered after 2k lol) it was funny – we were allowed to have 2 minutes practice. I got stressed as grant should have been stearing, but was crap!!!we were off, down the nam song river. Me – trying to stear which way the kayake went! It was hard work too! My legs, bum, stomach and arm muscles were killing me! The guides told us to follow his lead as the water was real shallow, but nooo – grant got us stuck on a huge rock, had to get off and get us unstuck! I was mortified! We made a stop – at what was thee most amazing place on the planet (grant says) it was crazy!!! Outrageously insane! The “rope swing water park”. There were kids and adults swinging off huge rope swings everywhere, bars all along the river, people in the water tubing, drinkin – even washing, people jumping off the sides into the river! We walked around, there was blasting music, mud volley ball, tug of war! IT WAS HEAVEN! We made our way up to the rope swing where I made grant go first, video recorded it – which we just found out we cant upload videos onto our blog and also on facebook! Sorry, the files are too big!
Grant gtot up to the swing and I didn’t stop laughing. He swam out got the camera off me and went to bottom to catch me on video! About 20 people (who I told to go before me as id let them all go before me as I was too petrified to do it)…I finally made it first in line! f*** – it was high! (sorry for my language dad) but I thought I was going to back out – I put one hand on the bar and started to shake! ( I thought to myself – yesterday I nearly died from the outrageous minivan drive here) so I knew there was nothing that would stop me! I leaped off the plank…screamed all the way down…about 9 times swinging back and forth I couldn’t bring myself to drop into the water, it was too high up! My arms were getting weak and my hands were killing me…I let go and was still shaking under the water, getting out of the water, walking up the steps and about an hour later!!!! But – I done it!
Got back to our guides, keo and on where they let us try their buckets, a whiskey drink! I challenged them to tug of war with grant! Got video footage of that too! Caught grant falling in the muddy water lol. Yeah that’s right – he lost to the guides! We had to make our way back down the river – so back on the kayakes – we had to try and get passed about a thousand people in the river, splashing water plus tons of kids trying to jump aboard! We finaly made it through the crazy crowds. Grant said he didn’t want the day to end! But it did, we were surrounded by amazing mountains of Laos, it was the perfect ending to a perfect day!
Headed out later on in the evening, after hiding in the hotel from the waterfights out in the streets! Made it out for what was the nicest meal – I had a curry (sorry dad, I ate it all, there was nothing left to send home to you). Watched some more friends then walked passed loads of shops where grant kept saying he wanted a tubing vest – so in we went and bought one! Woke up the next day yet again at 7am (no lie ins). Got a breaky (one that the sign says is the hugest and best breaky in town) but was the complete opposite! Half of it wasn’t on the plate – most of it as burnt and the eggs weren’t cooked! Got on our next minivan where we headed for Vientiane! But for the 1st hour we were driving back and forth of the bus station and a guesthouse – not knowing what the hell was going on! We thought we were finally on our way, but we were wrong – we made a stop where the driver got a wad of money off this guy then further down the road to get petrol?!?!? 4 hours later we pulled up in a car park – we have arrived in Vientiane! No where is open for us to get our visas and to book a bus out of there to get to Vietnam! So over the weekend we are stuck here! Not much to do, tried finding bowling, but when we got there – that was closed too! Everyone was celebrating – groups of roughly 10 people driving around in the back of a 4x4 soaking people with buckets of water! People partying out on the streets! Whistles blowing, music blasting! Its madness!
Saturday 17th April!
Celebrations are over, no one on the streets, we are dry for once! We got our washing done today – made it bowling, played some pool, and are now in one of the finest hotels in town! Free internet, free breaky, amazing room with view of the city as you can see in the photo and cable tv! Met the owner at lunch who asked why we were here – I thought I haven’t tried something out yet…the honeymoon story – told him we’re on our honeymoon, he was well chuffed we were staying at his hotel for this occasion so had complimentary beer sent over to us! Will be getting visas sorted out Monday hopefully! Then will be on our way to Vietnam on an overnight bus!
Love you all, thank you all so much for leaving messages! Please – get skype so we can call you! Missing you all! Having a fantastic time! Hope you love the photos and the blog, sorry its long! Was keeping it to type out where the internet is free! Lol!