Vang Vieng, everything you need
Trip Start
Apr 14, 2008
1
6
85
Trip End
Nov 11, 2008
Vang Vieng,
Lao Peoples Dem Rep
Monday, May 5, 2008
2/5/08
You leave your life in the hands of the bus driver.....
The scenery was developing as we rode further North on the bus. Hugging mountains, passing through small villages. Suddenly karsts were trust upon us. Trees and plush greenery everywhere. I grabbed my camera and attempted to take pictures through the grimy window. The bus pulled to a stop, an opportunity to try and take a better shot. But as I did so the bus exhaled its passengers, we were here in VV.
The town was split by a run way strip. On the East side was were the locals mostly reside. On the West to the Nam Song river (part of the greater Mekong River) was the touristy area. The other side of the river were some local huts and the majority of the limestone-karsts. The scenery beyond the river was a fantastic Kodak moment. The population of the town was allegedly 30,000. However initial impression would have been no more than a few 1000 + tourists.
Next mission was to find suitable accommodation. The great thing with buddying up with someone is that you can save money or get better value for money. In this instance we negotiated both. For less than $4 each we got a spacious upper storey twin room with a/c & ensuite. Outside we had a balcony with 2 chairs & a table, sharing coffee making facilities & free bananas. Last year we could not even get a bunch of bananas in Oz for this price. That night we discovered how easy it was to meet other travelers here having a great time. No surprise we partied on quite late.
Day 19. Than Jang Cave
2/5/08
I motivated myself with a Spanish Omlette & mango juice. The adventure was to take me to Than Jang Cave. When I think of some of the caves in Western Australia this would seem bland in comparison. But one of its surprises to me was that it lied 20 to 30 meters above river/ground level deep in the core of the karst.
Within the cave you wade through puddles of water as the formations glitter in the artificial light, while the air leaves a tingle in the mouth. At breaks in the outer rock, loosely termed windows, unfolded beautiful views of the valley (see picture). You can see why the locals fled to this cave when armies advanced. Hidden by rock, but fantastic viewing post.
Day 20. Tham Phu Cave & Tubing
3/5/08
Ahh the morning, does the picture do it justice? Another adventure, the destination today was Tham Phu Cave. But this mission involved a mountain bike, a torch and, I didn't realize at the time, but wits. After a rocky 8km ride and a sore knee from bashing the handle bar when the chain slipped, I arrived. Alone. It must have been around 9am, no one was in sight. To get to the poorly marked cave entrance you had to walk through bush, then climb the rocks. This was made somewhat harder in thongs (flip-flops). Once inside I was surprised how dark it was, even with the torch on. In ere silence I moved forward with trepidation, my heart beating faster & faster. I took slow and meaningful steps after scouring around with the torch.
1,2,3,4,5 steps and in front developed a silhouette, eyes starring straight at me. Hang on, I was still wearing me sunglasses that were starting to steam up. On removal the vision was clearer. It was a statue of Buddha as tall as me. With my sunnies now off and my eyes adjusting to the darkness my heart beat slowed down a little.
The cave was a similar style to the day before, with few stalagmites and tights. However there were many cavities to explore and passage ways to take. I was starting to assess the cave from a safety prospective. What could go wrong! No spare batteries for the torch (no lights in the cave), poor footwear choice or if I injured myself how long would I wait for other visitors.
My ears were tunning in to the smallest sound. My nose was sensitive to the air difference as I got deeper and deeper into the cave. I turned into a tunnel, crouching slightly to fit. A spider was watching. Ignore it. What are the chances of it being a jumping poisonous variety? Continuing through the tunnel I came to a T junction. To the right was a big drop. To the left was what initially looked like a dead end. But on reaching the end there was a small 0.5m diameter hole to crawl through. The air changed significantly as I maneuvered myself into the large chamber. Perhaps 4 meters wide, 6 or more high. Air so strange.
Returning to the Buddha I choose a different route. Walking on 3 planks of wood over a small ravine. I delved deeper into the cave core moving forward slowly and silently. A SCOWL broke the tranquility. A cat, or monkey, the mind wondered, perhaps man-eating? I shat myself, retraced my steps and left the cave.
Time for the social feature of VV, 'Tubing'. It took a while to get my head round what tubing actually was. In its simplistic form a 'tube' is cylindrical. So how do you go down a river on a 'tube'. A large tire inner-tube of course. In England I would have called this a biscuit, ring or better still a donut. So when I write this I took to the web to find out if tubing was Ozzie slang. 'To ride or float on an inflated tube for recreation' was what I got. So English people, please add a comment.....did you know what tubing was or am I the donut?
Back to the story. We caught up again with Man-Bag Mike and crew for lunch. After the feed we all grabbed a 'tube' and headed 4kms up stream in a tuk-tuk. Being to wise I left my camera at home, it does not usually mix well with water. [So disclaimer here, I stole someone else's photos.] Within 200 meters on the stream a torpedo was fired at me creaming through the water. Ha ha I caught it. The torpedo was in fact a bamboo stick attached by rope. On the other end a guy standing on the bank would pull you in so you can stop at the bar. OK drinking commences. At this stop was a massive swing. You have to climb up wooden steps 15 meters above river level onto a wobbly platform. You hold onto the bar of the swing, hold tight and launch off the platform. After picking up speed in what felt like a 20 meter arc you let go. You were hurled and dropped some 10 meters into the river. Hopefully landing in good shape.
A beer or water at every stop. Different bars, music and fun. Played volleyball at one. Zip line (or Flying Fox for the Ozzies) at another. Lao Lao Whiskey shots were always on offer. The last stop had another massive swing. Probably similar to the first, but after 3+ hours drinking even more fun. Here the crew went for the happy shake. instead of beer. With only 20,000Kip left (no mortgage required, this is ~$3) I did not have enough to join them. However on the 2nd round they realised I was missing out and one was purchased surprisingly for me. Obviously a gesture like that should not be turned down. Umm, an interesting pineapple flavor, very herbaceous. The final half hour stretch was hilarious. I did not know toes could talk. When we hit the bank I was swaying, wet and in need of cash.
Returning to the room I showered and made my way back to the party. To get there I had to cross a 50 meter long bamboo bridge, 0.5 meters wide, with railing intermittently on one side. Normally the bridge wouldn't be to much of a challenge. But it was night fall and the circumstances were a little disorientating. I was doing OK until a scooter was coming at me. Without thinking instincts told me to go right. But as it approached I realised there was little space for the 2 of us and I choose the side with no railing. I took a last second maneuver, jumping over the front wheel and grabbed the railing. In the process freaking out the driver. At the time it felt like a life or death situation. The moped made it past and I got to the other side, found the crowd and fell asleep.
Day 21. Wetness
4/5/08
All I wanted to do was sleep and to that end I did. When I got up at midday to pay for the room the owners told me the room below was evacuated at around 10pm due to water coming through the ceiling. We could not see any sign of a problem from our room. But inside Roanna and I wondered how much of it, if not all of it, was our fault.
Day 22. Leave for Luang Prabang
5/5/08
I left by myself to LP on the day bus with my last remaining KIP in hand. The 280km distance took 7 hours as the bus meandered round the stunning mountain range.
