I have just about got the hang of uploading photos, so here's the snake we had in Luang Prabang. I'm in Vientiane, but we must return our story to just after the bikes had been hired... The group dynamic (if I can use a poncey phrase like that) has developed as we've all got to know each other a bit. When it comes to free time, we tend to gravitate into different mini-groups with a similar approach, although people drift freely from one mini-group to another. Veronique, Rachel, Jami and I were cycling - the bike was a bit of a struggle for me, since people around here tend not to have legs as long as mine. Still, the traffic moves very slowly, and the tuk-tuks here are so underpowered that you can easily overtake them by pedalling a little faster. We cycled down to the river in Luang Prabang, and a local boatman offered to take us across and wait for us while we visited the three temples, then take us back - all for 20 000 Kip (roughly US$2). Things went a little wrong when we didn't know where he was going to pick us up - there was some confusion about whether the cave we visited was the third temple, or if there was another one further on. Our guides (two giggling teenage boys) assured us there was another temple, so we carried on. Naturally, this was the fourth temple, meaning that we ended up sitting on a beach with no sign of transport. After sending one of our guides back to redirect our boat (and writing SOS in big letters on the beach, and having a paddle) we returned to cycle to the night market for food (as much as you want from one of the many stalls for under US$1) and drink (Beer Lao is particularly good, and it comes in huge bottles). After having had a few drinks and been joined by Doug, we returned to the bikes to move onto another bar. Only to find that Rachel's bike had vanished. (She's the dippiest person on this or any other planet, and it just had to be her bike that got stolen). Obviously there wasn't much that could be done about it at the time, we were supplied with chains to lock the bikes up, but they weren't particularly strong (and having known Rachel for a week, she probably forgot to lock it). After the stolen bike was paid for (US$55) we departed the guest house to go for our flight to Vientiane on a juddering propeller-driven plane nobody had heard of before. We're now in Vientiane, in a hotel with air conditioning (and an absence of frogs and geckos in the bathroom, although there are still a few ants on the third floor). I suppose I should be saying more about all the things that we're seeing (sunset over the Mekong in Luang Prabang, lots of temples) but at this stage of the trip it's more a case of getting to know the other people in the group. There have been no fights, although there might be some developing. It was suggested last night that this might be some elaborate reality TV stunt which we don't know about, and one of us is going to be voted off tonight. Sam (a.k.a. J.C., although quite a few people just call him Jesus) said last night that he loves this group, because it's a good mixture of people with different approaches to life. Of course there are some niggly little disagreements, and it'll be interesting to see who ends up hating each other's guts over the next few weeks. I have my theories, but I couldn't possibly put them on here, since they'll all read it at some point... Hey, that's what e-mail's for, drop me a line if you want the uncensored breakdown of everyone's personality defects! Out for a meal and drinks again tonight, then tomorrow we go for a homestay - basically it's six people to a room, in a local family's house. Right now I have to tuk-tuk over to the Vietnamese embassy to pick up my Visa. Despite it being a bit last minute and costing me extra, I'm still paying the same as the Americans did - for some reason Americans have to pay more for a Vietnamese Visa. Wonder why? Will update when I'm back in computer range next week, but in the meantime feel free to e-mail me with any news from your end. And any big news stories, I'm unlikely to hear about them for a while!