Day 117

Having booked our supposed VIP bus the day before, we headed to the bus station on our free pick-up. The bus was exactly the most glamorous, thus making for an interesting seven hour journey. The journey was long and winding and we both felt sick towards the end – not good.
We checked in at Jaliya Guesthouse and went to the Night Market, which was quite beautiful. We had dinner in an all your can eat veggie buffet (80p) – result.

Day 118

Exploring Luang Prabang was our mission for today. Starting off with Noodle soup for breakfast, we walked along the very dry Mekong River, it was still beautiful. We went to a Wat, which was the oldest one in Luang Prabang. It could have possible been the nicest one we’ve seen, with paintings and drawings along the walls. I got chatting to a Monk and asked a few questions about his daily routine. We then walked through the back streets to the other side of town and came across another river, which is where we saw Buddhists monks shaving their heads and messing around. I then walked up Chonsky Hill, which had beautiful views. Luang Prabang is so quiet and picturesque, with nice little streets and restaurants. Later we went back to the veggie place for dinner and then onto to see Chelsea vs Man City (wish I hadn’t bothered!!!).

Day 119

We got up and had a baguette for breakfast, then booked out trip to Kwang Si Waterfall. Rog needed a number 2, so we went back to our guesthouse. Our journey to the waterfall was lovely, with amazing landscapes and fascinating villages. The waterfall was beautiful in lush surroundings and in turquoise water, very cold though.
The big waterfall at the end was very impressive. On the way back we went to a village, with all the locals trying to sell us bracelets. The children were very cute and all only knew one sentence, which was “one five sooouuuussssaaand”, referring the bracelets they were trying to sell. They had very basic living conditions and was an eye opening experience. When we got back to town we booked our bus to Huay Xai, which is the Laos, Thailand border. Back to the veggie place again for dinner, unfortunately it seems to be less tasty each time. We also did a little shopping at the market for birthday pressies, etc.