Luang Prabang

Monks leaving a temple

After breakfast in one of the French colonial buildings on the main street we headed to one of the many temples in Luang Prabang. Me and Ali were joined by James (who we met on the boat on the way here) and Steve & Pyper (from jungle trekking in Chiang Mai who we also happened to meet on the boat). It was nice to be with a larger group for a change and we all got on really well. James is from Coventry and Steve and Pyper are from London. As usual, Ali went missing within 10 minutes of us entering the monastery. I later found her standing in front a small shed talking to a couple of monks. She was asking them all kinds of questions until I dragged her away so that we could start the long climb up to the top of the hill. A set of stairs lead us up to a viewing balcony which offered great views of the town and beyond. We walked even further up the hill until we had climbed to the very top where there was a another place of worship. The views of Luang Prabang were even more incredible from this height and we could see how the town has nestled itself between two large rivers.

Tall palm trees lined the road leading to the former royal residence which is now a museum. We wandered around the grounds of the palace and visited yet another temple. As we walked along the road, coconuts kept falling from the trees and children that were close by quickly ran over to claim them. After more aimless walking we stumbled upon a night market. As usual the people sold the exact same things. The same patterned fabric, t-shirts, lamps, cushion covers and hand carved chess sets were on display. I promised that if I saw someone selling something different I would truly reward their initiative by purchasing that item. Even though I wasn't shopping it was still nice to wander around.


The royal temple


A random picture of a junction which I quite liked

Along the Mekong

One of the locals pushing our boat out

Ali is eating her tuna baguette and the Lao boy in front of us is feasting on a handful of sticky rice and scraps of meat. Today is the last day of our 2-day boat trip from the Thai border to Luang Prabang in Laos. Like yesterday, we have been traveling along the majestic Mekong river for most of the day. The scenery hasn't changed much but I'm still not bored of it yet. At both sides of the wide muddy Mekong there are small mountains coated in lush green palms and trees. Misty clouds roll in between the peaks which is a constant reminder of how high we are. Occasionally we stop by a riverside village to pick up or drop-off a passenger which offers a glimpse of local life. Young dark skinned girls carry babies and hurry down the muddy banks with all the other kids in the village to watch our boat pull in. Our boat is extremely long, narrow with squared off ends and has a roof which provides us with protection against the rain (of which there is a lot of). Parts of the mountains look like they have been shaved by clippers where there is only grass instead of dense jungle. The trees hang over the water with twining vines draped over them. Our seats are wooden planks. And they hurt. The murky brown water sporadically swirls and seems to be flowing in all directions as waves collide. One moment the surface is rippled then the next it's smooth and mirror-like. My bum is seriously numb.


One of the villages we stopped off at


The view just before we reached Luang Prabang

Chiang Mai - Jungle Trekking

The jungle we walked through

Stopping to wipe the sweat from my eyes, I remembered for a brief moment how I used to spend my weekends in Chicago. Brunch with friends at the diner. Shopping on Michigan Avenue. A visit to the art Institute. Or even a stroll through Lincoln Park. I had just reminded myself that this weekend was far from ordinary. We had walked deep into the jungle and I was soaked to the bone. My arms glistened with perspiration. I had mud on my face and from a distance it looked like I was wearing camouflage stockings. It would become obvious however, with closer inspection, that I was in fact covered in large patches of mud and foliage. I was far from caring. I was way too busy admiring the interesting situation ahead of us. The small muddy trail we had been so cautiously following had now come to an end. It continued on the other side of a river which seemed impossible to cross. Our guide Mr. 'T' told us that normally it's possible to walk across it quite easily by stepping on the stones but it had rained so much over the past few days that the river was now dangerously deep and flowing fast. I pulled at a large bamboo tree that had fallen implying to Mr. 'T' that maybe we could use it as a bridge but when I looked back, he was already waist-deep in the water helping others wade through. I reluctantly followed realizing we had no other choice. All 13 people in our group managed to cross safely except for the Italian girl... She was tall and thin like a giant stick insect and seemed to approach the challenge with confidence. Her long strides and swift movements soon ended in misery. She seriously underestimated the power of the water as it swept her lean legs away from beneath her. She started floating on her back down the river desperately waving and splashing her arms around until Mr. 'T' finally caught her in his arms. Once the girl got out of the water she was okay but a little shaken to say the least. I curiously watched the Italian remove all her wet clothes except for a black bikini and covered herself with a bright orange poncho. Not exactly the most suitable attire for a trek through the jungle but apparently she was comfortable.


Surprisingly I made it across without any problems

This adventure was even better than I hoped it would be. The trekking was difficult but extremely rewarding. We trekked up and down through rain drenched palm plants, tropical foliage and huge trees with hanging twines and twisted vines. Bamboo trees mysteriously bent almost back into the ground with their not so heavy laden of leaves where as others shot high up towards the sky growing in all kinds of strange directions. It was all too much to take in. It was perfect!


The group making their way through the jungle

On Friday we started our trip with a 7 kilometer hike through the jungle to a camp 1300 Ft above sea level where we slept our first night. We were quite literally in the clouds. You could see the mist floating through an opening in the roof of our sleeping hut. It rained constantly that night and never stopped for most of the following two days. We trekked even further on Saturday and after several more wet river crossings I was well adjusted to life in the jungle and even started to entertain such ideas as swinging on twines like Tarzan and taking mud slide short cuts down the hill side. It wasn't long however before my attention was shifted to wildlife. Jambo (our 2nd guide) tugged my arm and put his finger to his mouth. "Shhh" he said and motioned for me to follow him quietly back to a tree. He pointed to a hole and told me to take a look. I bent over his arm which kept me back and peeked inside. To my surprise I saw two poisonous snakes curled up within. I couldn't believe it. No one else in the group saw them because they were all up ahead. Mr 'T' lead the way and Jambo stayed behind the last person so that nobody could go missing. I liked being either the first or last person so that I could ask the guide questions as and when I liked. From that point on I was much more alert and sensitive as to what might be slithering towards me in the bushes below or curling around branches on the trees above. I wondered what reptile or animal I might see next. Jambo shared my enthusiasm for wildlife but in a much different way. He enjoyed using his sling shot to kill birds and found great pleasure in torturing insects. He was a strange character to say the least and liked to sing the occasional verse of a Thai pop song repeatedly again and again or make animal sounds with leaves. I would often ask him a question just to make him stop.


The group anticipating what might be our next challenge


Me and Ali on the second day of the trip


On Sunday, the third and final day, we were disappointed to hear that white water rafting had been canceled due to the dangerously high water levels. Like I said, it had rained constantly for two days and the river was fierce. I was upset at first but quickly got over it once I saw our next big experience walk by. It was huge. Surprisingly larger than I had even imagined. An elephant!!! I spent some quality time with it after breakfast and watched the others walk around the camp. I examined it's whole body with my eyes and couldn't stop. I touched it's skin and it was so thick and coarse. It looked like creased paper the way it folded and moved. It's trunk amazed me the most. I couldn't take my eyes of it. It was as if it had a mind of it's own the way it's long ribbed trunk moved and twisted in all directions as it sniffed me up and down. I stared into it's eyes and wondered what it was thinking.


Me and the big one

I did exactly as the instructor told me to. I stood on it's head and sat in the chair on top of the elephant. I don't even think it felt the weight of me. Ali and I looked down at the ground which was about 2 meters below us (and we had the smallest of the 7) and then at the guide who was pulling at the elephant's ear to make it walk. We started moving away from the camp towards the jungle in a painfully slow fashion. I wondered what was taking it so long but then I realised he weighs about 570 stones! I was upset that we didn't get one of the other elephants that were bigger but was happy nonetheless. I think our elephant knew what I was thinking because it kept lifting it's trunk and blowing dirt all over us. All the other people in the group found this very amusing and commented on how 'baby like' our mammal was. Apparently, our elephant had only been in school for 1 year and was much younger than all the others. We had an hour with the elephants before making our way on foot to the next camp where we had lunch. After a group photo we piled onto the truck and returned to the city just in time for a very long hot shower at our hotel. I'm curious as to how clean our clothes will be when we get them back from the cleaners. I have a feeling I may need to go shopping again in Bangkok.


They posed for this one

Bangkok - Resistance is Futile

A parked tuk tuk outside our hotel

My eyes watered at the streets littered with opportunities to spend money. Money that I don't have! The inevitable situation is now nearing and I'm feverishly trying to limit what I spend so that I have enough money to help me find my feet in Australia. We wandered around the central shopping district today and I was startled by the sight of huge western-style shopping malls and Starbuck's alike. Bangkok even has a few Boots stores (UK drug store) scattered here and there which Ali was more than happy to explore. I found myself desperately trying to restrain from indulging at every turn. Memories of a similar situation from Hong Kong came flooding back to me. It's days like today when I realise this 'Big Adventure' of mine is more about self-deprivation than anything else at times. I'm not ashamed of this and will openly admit that I like luxury and all things material. Ali spent half the day in the IT Center, a huge 5-floor mall dedicated to electronics and dodgy DVD's. After about an hour the initial interest and intrigue wore off and I realised that every floor had the same shops selling the same stuff. So I continued to follow Ali around like an unenthusiastic child does with his mother in the Marks & Spencer's hosiery department. Ali was checking out camera prices so that she could eventually replace the stolen one. The tides turned however in the second half of the day when Ali followed me around every single department store in the area searching for Kiehl's shaving foam. I'm running dangerously low and nothing else will substitute. Unfortunately Kiehl's doesn't seem to have much presence in Southeast Asia.

Just before nightfall we arrived at the Suan Lum Night Bazaar, a staggering complex of markets. This area was so big that we got lost several times and had to check the area map. You can buy everything from crafts, clothing, furnishings and antiques. There's even a beer garden which must be the largest of it's kind in the world although I'm not quite sure if 'Garden' is the right word to describe it. 'Beer Hanger' would be more appropriate I think. We spent over three hours walking around touching and feeling everything that looked appealing until we realised we had only seen about one fifth of the market and instantly lost motivation to carry on!!!

We negotiated 150 Baht with the tuk tuk driver and jumped in. He accelerated at such a speed I thought we were about to die. The three-wheeled vehicle raced off with an almighty screech and almost tipped over as the driver turned onto the main road. Ali and I looked at each other in shock and laughed out loud. We anticipated an interesting journey back home.

Arrival in Bangkok

The busy Khao San Road in Bangkok

10:30pm. After the longest, and roughest, journey from Siem Reap to Bangkok I was exhausted but after a short walk to our hotel and a quick shower I was eager to venture out and explore the feast of entertainment venues that I had witnessed upon my arrival. In the heart of Banglampoo our hotel is on Rambutri Sawasdeem, a road dedicated to budget travelers and offers all the usual must-have services; cheap guest houses, restaurants, book stores and of course, bars but with the special addition of VW cocktail vans! These retro vans have been converted into bars and offer cheap drinks to anyone who happens to be walking by. It was a short walk to the highly acclaimed Khao San Road where we discovered hundreds more food vendors, bars, t-shirt stalls, restaurants and even massage parlors. The atmosphere reminded me of an 18/30's holiday in Magaluff (sex, fun, alcohol...) except it was created by an unusual mix of visitors - trendy besotted Brits met with backpackers from all around the world and the occasional family looking out of place here and there. We walked a little further before finally giving in to our tiredness.