At the half way mark (Chiangmai) on my trip from Ubon to Northern Laos I met up with Steph again. Was great to swap stories and catch up. We both knew we would not be able to travel all of Laos together as our time frames where different, so we enjoyed the last of the time we had together. We arrived that evening in Chang khong a town on the Thai side of the boarder crossing and settled in for the night in a cozy and accommodating guesthouse. We woke the next morning and drove the short distance down the rode to the Mighty Mekong where we boarded onto a wooden boat and trotted across to Laos. I could not believe how simple and easy it was.



As any normal kid I have always wanted to fly. Somehow jumping of the pool wall back home pretending I was superwomen didn't quite satisfy my dream- "The Gibbon Experience" on the other hand came bloody close. Zip lining high off the ground for over 400 meters was such an overwhelming adrenalin rush yet at the time felt strangely natural and peaceful. Been able to zip line freely from tree to tree and live hundreds of meters off the ground in a tree house in the Laos forest is hard for many people to understand yet too this day the Gibbon Experience has been a highlight on my trip. That's not too say it was all fun and games. We did some serious trekking and where continually dodging 100's of insects and leeches. Now the leeches I began to feel OK with but having to swarm away the wasps whilst trying to use the bathroom 200 m above ground level ha that was a little harder for me to handle. Our group consisted of Myself, Steph, Marcus and Eliza (couple with a bit of Auz and English in them) and Jess and Niki (2 girls from California). We spent our evenings chatting and playing cards… If only there was Beerlao available in those treetops. Ah you can't win it all. I got to see 3 or 4 Gibbons whilst trekking, which is actually really lucky, as many people don't get to see them. What I came to love the most about the Gibbon Experience was been surrounded by pure nature with no cars, motorbikes, buildings or many people for that matter in walking distance. The sounds I heard whilst falling asleep of a night was pure magic. After 3 days we arrived back in HuayXai sore, smelly and smiley. After a long, and I mean LONG hot shower we celebrated with a much-deserved bottle of red wine- a sheer luxury in South East Asia.



The next couple of days where spent on a slow boat cruising down to Luang Prabang. The boat was such a wicked ride filled with continuous conversations to backpackers from all corners of the world. Scenery was picture perfect and the background music of chilled people jamming in the background was the cheery on top of the cake. Marcus and Eliza where lifesavers as they rose early both days to save us the best seats on board. The people I met on this boat ride continually popped up along my trip in Laos and we where once again able to party and chill together. Many people do the same route so there's never a chance of getting lonely in this country.



Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995, the town Luang Prabang was described by the global body as "an outstanding example of the fusion of traditional architecture and Lao urban structures with those built by the European colonial authorities in the 19th and 20th centuries. Its unique, remarkably well-preserved townscape illustrates a key stage in the blending of these two distinct cultural traditions."

I spent 5 days here during which I visited the many sites including temples, museums and a magnificent waterfall. On the first night the group I was traveling with and I decided to kick on partying at the local bowling alley. (The only place in town opened after 11pm). An unusual drinking experience and I soon discovered I am a much better bowler drunk than sober. Something to remember for the future. I fell in love with the vibe of the town and was sad to leave.

My next stop was VangVieng where I had initially planned to stay 4 days and over two weeks later was still there. My first thoughts of the town where average as the Bars lining the streets playing "Friends" episodes on repeat did not impress me. I was saddened to find a town so rich in beauty to be destroyed by tourism and westerners always wanting their home comforts in a foreign place. Yet I had to be realistic and admit to myself that I too am a young backpacker and as guilty as I felt been part of it all I deserved to enjoy my time here and not put such stress on my shoulders.

VangVieng is home to the world famous tubing… basically it is just an adult playground with zip lines and swings into the Mekong. Mix this with a pub-crawl along the river from bar to bar and you have yourself one hell of a day. It is A LOT of fun and all those back home who like a good party I know would love it. It is mostly young backpackers who flock to Vang Vieng and part of the reason I stayed longer than first planned was the people and craziness I was constantly surrounded by. All of them out to have a good time and Vang Vieng was THE place to party. So that is exactly what I did.

You cannot discard the magic scenery of lush mountains and hills and local villages that boarder the town. All these things along with my holiday fling that I won't bore you with details about contributed to the fact I stayed a whole lot longer. And I guess at the end of the day to have that freedom to stay longer in certain places is one of the best things about traveling. You can never plan your trip too much as I always have remembered I am not taking a trip around the world I am instead letting the trip take me.



My time in town did eventually come to an end so after all the goodbyes I once again had to say to people I will always remember me, Cam and Nina who I had met on my first night in Vang Vieng boarded the bus for a 21 hour trip down to the 4000 islands. Si Phan Don contains thousands of islands floating above the Mekong and what brings many people to them is that like the rest of Laos, if not a whole lot more this area is quiet, quaint, and the perfect place to chill out! I had five days on the islands much of which I spent living in a basic guesthouse relaxing and lazing with Cam and Nina in a hammock. My inner hippy was bought out, as this was the place to experiment with some things that aren't all good for you. On one day we did manage to leave the hammocks by the riverside and bike ride to Khone Falls an area which includes an impressive waterfall and is also surrounded by rapids, which rage at a far-fetched pace. I took in the tranquil atmosphere, as I knew India my next stop would not exactly be relaxing.


From that first boat ride crossing the boarder in Huay Xai I knew I was taking a step back in time. I entered Laos- a world, which runs at half the speed of surrounding countries and inhabits some of the most friendly, chilled people on earth. I once read "Laos is not a state of place, It is a state of mind." And this is all to true! It is often easy for one to describe the things they see and the people they meet whilst traveling to foreign places, however it becomes a lot more difficult to try and explain the state of mind you are in whilst roaming the world. Lets just say my mind was in a place I wish it could stay forever. This country made me let go of all the little issues in life and focus my mind on things of actual importance or for that matter on nothing at all. The relationships I formed whilst traveling in Laos I WILL always remember. From my holiday romance where I was swept off my feet by an exotic backpacker to the local Laotian mother who I communicated nightly with in Vang Vieng even though we spoke different languages and to top it off I was constantly surrounded by like-minded people who all greatly impacted me. All these people combined with beautiful, diverse surroundings and undamaged cultures formed the perfect ingredients for one very enjoyable month.