Welcome to LAOS. So far what we have seen has been very beautiful, but we had one hell of a time getting here! We left the 'comfort' of our guest house in Chiang Rai, and caught a bus part way up the remainder of Northern Thailand. Where the bus stopped we had to catch a Tuk-Tuk to the border crossing, in order to get on our boat. Well, little did we know that it was the annual 'Song Kran' festival, a festival that involves extreme amounts of water throwing!! ON EVERYONE!! So loaded up with backpacks, armed with nothing, we got absolutely soaked ... the tuk-tuks are not renowned for their fully enclosed compartments that will guarantee you stay dry!! We get to the border soaking wet ... black bra white singlet not a good option in this case!! Our boat ride the next morning was a rocky experience also. 2 entire days spent 'perching' on a wooden seat that measured about 1/2 metre long by 10cm wide .... Steve being over 6 foot found this less than desirable! We stayed overnight halfway, got offered numerous amounts and types of drugs!! I was so tired I fell asleep at 9pm, best sleep in ages ... but woke up the next day knowing that I had to endure the second half of the arduous boat journey!! We made it to Laos though and we find ourselves in Luang Prabang. We will more than likely stay here for a few days. There are a lot of tourists around here which is actually quite nice. From what I have seen of Laos so far, it is a really friendly place and the people welcomed us with open arms.