Another day, another new country

Trip Start Sep 18, 2006
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Trip End Mar 19, 2008


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Flag of Lao Peoples Dem Rep  ,
Thursday, February 8, 2007

Leading up to our entrance into Laos, we were unsure as to what to expect from its immigration system as there seemed to be no consensus of opinion from travel agents or travellers in Thailand as to how long visas were issued for. This was of somewhat concern for us as for various reasons, we need 30 days. A new law was recently passed stating that 30-day visas would indeed be issued to most passport holders upon entry at land borders, and this was confirmed by a phone call to their embassy in Bangkok. The most likely information we received (along the fairly reliable backpacker grapevine) was that this was the case, but that they have a quota on how many they issue each day, and if you arrive later you're likely to get 15 days. With this in mind, we decided to cross the border as early as possible from Chiang Kong. Of course, it turned out to be a lot simpler than rumour suggested and we were soon happily stamped in and on our way to our first destination, Luang Prabang.
This meant a two day river trip in very cramped conditions which was more than compensated for by breathtaking scenery. Laos is an unbeleivably beautiful country, with awe-inspiring mountains, hills, valleys and plains, as yet largely unspoilt by agriculture. The trip involved a one night stopover in the village of Pak Beng, made relatively rich by the river trips back and forth. Selecting a restaurant for a place to eat and while away a couple of hours, we spent a bit of time chatting with the owner who soon felt comfortable enough to divulge his life story: from 10 of his childhood years being spent as a monk; to the fact that the promise he showed during schooling led to him being sponsored to go to language college; to two of his siblings being given up for adoption to hill tribespeople and his, as of yet, unsuccessful attempts to locate them; to the male Swiss backpacker who tried to seduce him into bed; and to the tragedy of the recent death of his first child when only a couple of days old. And all by the age of 27. It rather left us with the abvious impression that Laotians are fairly open people.
Arriving into Luang Prabang and, whilst it may have been a backpacker's mecca a few years ago, it is now over-run. This doesn't detract from it being a delightful place and it is possible to get away from the crowds. We spent one day visiting a nearby waterfall, another cycling around visiting wats. We also took a two day hiking trip involving a night in a village. The walking was good - again fantastic scenery - though with the hill tribes, its somewhat the case that 'seen one, seen them all'. Most of the second day was spent kayaking; the minor rapids proving too much for Mani and I and we flipped our kayak on one of the more challenging parts. We also spent a good few days here doing very little apart from taking in the ambience and friendliness of the locals. Laos could well turn out to be my favourite destination so far.
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