Farewell to Laos On my last night in Laos I sit in the southern island of Don Det, sweating in the humid sunset, Beerlao in hand, reflecting on the past 2 weeks in the country. It would be fair to say I had fairly high expectations for the country. Nearly every traveller I met who had 'done' SE Asia would say "oooh wait till you get to Laos!" "head to Laos!" "I loved Laos!" "It's so lovely and relaxing!" I'm still ...

To the Bat Cave! So, here I am in the middle of nowhere central Laos on an excursion to see Kong Lo, a limestone cave that involves hiring a boat to see it. This is about all I know about it, that and I have to take a sawngthaew (tuk tuk) for about 45 minutes to get there. My 'knowledgeable' host arranged for me to be picked up at 10am, so I hung around reading and awaiting my ride. At 9:45am she comes up to me and says "I think he forgot" Riiiight. ...

Do Travel Writers Go to Hell? After spending a week doing the 'usual' things a tourist does in Laos - Luang Prabang, Vang Vieng & Vientienne - I decided to head into the somewhat-less-travelled parts of central Laos. A place called Kong Lo had been recommended to me, and, without really reading much about it I geared myself up for a wee adventure. So I woke at 4am to catch a local bus from the southern bus station of Vientienne...a good 9 kilometers out...

Making up for all those Spring Breaks I never had due to attending a women's college... Vang Vieng is a seriously bizarre joint. Once upon a time, a few enterprising backpackers discovered the place - and it is beautiful, with a tranquil river meandering through huge limestone karsts, filled with caves and lagoons throughout. So it became the 'secret' backpacker destination in which to chill out and experience the 'real Laos'. More and more people find out abo...

Chilled out in Laos I arrived in Luang Prabang, Laos from Hanoi on a morning flight the 8th of February. (I whimped out on the 36 hour overland bus journey between Hanoi and LP on the basis that I'm starting to run out of time, and that 32 of those 36 hours could be better spent doing something else). The only things I knew about Laos were it's the most bombed country in history (the US dropped 2million tonnes of bombs in the 60s and 70s, and there is still...