Nong Khiew seems a million miles away from the rest of the world as we sit here gazing up at tree covered limestone peaks, and watch the boats go past on the river. The town sits on the Nam Ou river, lifeblood for the local people, and a body of water soon to be dammed, or should it be dammed, by the Chinese whose presence here is increasingly noticeable. Northern Laos isn't far from the Chinese and Myanmar borders and Chinese business interests have started spreading over the borders. Rumour has it that Chinese citizens are being offered large sums of money to relocate and set up lifestyles here, as China struggle for space for their expanding population. In return China have invested money into resurfacing the cinder roads (or older toads as the predictive text added) and the area now has large sections of good quality road surface to take you around the winding roads. The only downside, yes I know there has to be one, is the slash and burning which is currently taking place across Laos and northern Thailand. It creates a dull haze masking the beautiful scenery, and depositing flecks of ash across the town. Fortunately the effect seems to be transient depending on prevailing wind, and yesterday after some overnight rain we woke to pristine views. We had booked to join a trip upstream, with our new travel buddies Ann and Ellen from America, so we were even more thankful for the beautiful start. The wooden boat took our party of 11 adults and three children effortlessly across the water of the Nam Ou, heading upstream to our first stop. The water was like velvet, and shone like glass. The surface occasionally rippling as other craft passed by. The early morning sun over the tops of the limestone peaks cast the most amazing reflections onto the water. As we moved closer to the bank we could see convoys of white butterflies, flying in a line like an undulating daisy chain, toward the bank. On the sandy bank were hoards of earlier arrivals clustered together taking nutrition from the surface before joining another chain and flying to the next stop. It was certainly food for the soul, as we both soaked it all in, and reminded ourselves what the natural world is all about. Our first chance to touch land was at the weaving village. Many of the women displayed woven goods produced from the looms under their stilt houses, mostly scarves and table runners which provided sound testament to the skills of the villagers. After leaving there and settling ourselves back in the boat we headed off to the waterfall. A short trek from the boat took us across dry paddy fields, and wooded valleys until an hour later we came upon the waterfall and a small area deep enough for swimming. Walking in the heat of the day here, which at the time of the trek was high 30s, is tiring so John and I took advantage of the chance to cool down in the waterfall before we all set off back to the boat. Five of us had opted to kayak part of the way back down river so we were provided with the necessary equipment and sent on our way. We were supplied with a rescue vessel which would be there in case we needed to surrender, although thankfully it managed to stay too far out of sight to hear John shouting for help. This was John's first attempt at kayaking, and he found it a bit disconcerting as the water kept coming in over the side and settling in the bottom of the boat. Sitting in front I kept hearing cries of "you paddle, I'll bail, you didn't tell me it was a submarine". Thankfully many hours on the kayak machine at Daventry gym , although some years ago, haven't been wasted and like riding a bike the whole thing came flooding back. Literally in some ways as by the time we reached shore we were sitting mid thigh in water. We were well chuffed with our achievement when we safely reached land, having navigated at least a mile of the river without to many hitches, or fallen overboard. This weekend is New Year here in Laos and the town are celebrating with a street market and a day of boat races. For the last few days we've seen teams practicing on the river so we are expecting quite a spectacle. We have managed to secure a front row balcony seat for the event, by booking our last couple of nights in a place on the riverbank, so are looking forward to a day of noise, beer and excitement.