We've been having a pretty relaxed week in Laos. We departed Nong Khiaw Thursday morning to head west towards Luang NamTha. To reach our destination, we took a 1 hour bus ride to a tiny village of Pak Mong, where we changed to another bus that would take us the rest of the way. We met a French traveller, Tim, who was taking the same route, and spent the bus ride and the 2 hour layover in Pak Mong chatting with him and hearing about his extraordinary experien...

We are still in Laos, and still so happy to be here. Our last couple of days in Luang Prabang were great - the night of Tuesday, the 6th of March, we met up with Chris and Marleen at the Hive Bar in town. We had been informed about some good entertainment there every night, and were not disappointed. At 7pm, local students put on a fashion show displaying outfits/costumes of the numerous hilltribes that live in the area. The costumes took over a year to co...

As I write this blog, I am sitting on a bamboo balcony overlooking the Nam Khan River in Luang Prabang, Laos. In the distance, I can hear the echoing rumble of a big drum from the nearest Buddhist temple. It is 4pm and it is the signal for evening meditation and chanting. Everything about this place is magical - from the smiling friendly locals, to the colourful monks parading around the city. But let me back up a minute. What a journey it was to get here....

The past 2 days on Cat Ba in Ha Long Bay has easily been our favourite part of our time in Viet Nam. It is peaceful, beautiful and relaxed. We were a bit dissapointed when we woke up Thursday morning to a cool, misty day and decided not to take the day tour cruising around the bay. Instead, we bundled up with all our rain gear and headed out for a walk. As soon as we were out and moving around, the air didn't seem so cold and the light misty rain didn't see...

Leaving the warm, beachy Nha Trang, it was a bit of a shock to get off the bus the next afternoon in Hue into cool, cloudy weather. The overnight sleeper-bus itself was great; Mark and I surprised ourselves by sleeping almost the entire ride. Taking the bus saved us a ton of cash over the sleeper train. We were a bit skeptical, but even though it was an older bus, the beds were quite comfortable. This double decker sized bus was all one level, and instead o...