Welcome to the Jungle

China was starting to get very cold by mid-November so I decided that it was time to warm up on the beaches of Thailand. I just had to make my way across the little country of Laos to get there. The Chinese official at the border carefully scrutinized my passport and looked up several times to see that my photo and face matched to his satisfaction. He then gave me an expressionless "OK" and handed over my passport. I then proceeded over to the Laos side of the border. Once there I had to find someone to wake up the guy who could sell me a visa. I filled out the paperwork and the slightly groggy but very friendly border official eventually processed my visa and wished me well. I had just had my first introduction to the most laid-back country I have ever visited. A few more fun and interesting days later I had put off my plans for Thailand and ended up staying in Laos for over a month.

In China I had met locals who made me feel like the only westerner they had ever seen. In Laos I was about to enter the world of classic backpacking culture: flip-flops, dreadlocks and comfortable loose-fitting pants. Everywhere I looked there were girlfriends toting around obliging boyfriends and groups of guys ready to find some thrills. My first stop was the town of Muang Sing near the Chinese border. I met up with a group of travelers who were as new to Laos as I was. Together we discovered the wonders of Lao Lao (a very strong alcoholic drink that gives you a terrible hangover) and the small-town clubbing scene. Somehow we got invited the next night to a pig roast at the house of a man named Mr. Deth. It was a night of great food, lots of singing and large quantities of Beer Lao (the national beer).

My next adventure with the same group of travelers was hiking in the mountainous jungle near Luang Namtha. We decided on a three-day journey through uninhabited jungle. I had to struggle to hike up and down the steep hills but our local guides breezed through the trail in flip-flops while smoking cigarettes. The jungle was strangely silent and we didn't see any wildlife except insects and what we thought might have been a bird. But if you count leeches we saw tons of wildlife. The first day was a constant battle against the painful little suckers but the situation got better as the trail got more elevated.


For food on the trek I was introduced to local food and traditions. Sticky rice is the staple food. It is eaten with the hands and dipped or scooped into other dishes that are eaten communally. We ate off a banana leaf and I soon found out that banana leaves have many uses besides tablecloths. They are used as a very environmentally friendly packaging for food. Though often the leaf-wrapped food gets put into plastic bags anyway. I was also impressed at the skills our guides had with bamboo and a machetes. They carve up a cup for drinking in a matter of minutes.


Back in civilization after trekking through jungle it was sad to notice the scale of forest destruction taking place. Slash-and-burn farming is commonplace. Jungle gets replaced with rice farms and immense rubber tree plantations. And it's not as if all the environmental and social issues in Laos result just from the people living there. It's hard to believe that the smiling, gentle Laos people live in the most bombed country on Earth. And who do you think bombed them? That's right, I had stumbled onto yet another country that I didn't know had been bombed by the United States. But to my credit it is known as "the secret war". The U.S. tried to bomb the Vietnamese troops that moved through Laos during the Vietnam war and dropped more bombs than during the whole of the second world war. Many failed to detonate and still continue to kill or injure lots of people today.


I stopped in Luang Prabang to do some scenic strolling through the streets and see a few temples and waterfalls. Then it was on to a very interesting destinations in Laos: Vang Vieng. The bus ride there was slow, bumpy and uncomfortable but went through some of the most amazing scenery in the country. The mist-covered mountains reminded me of pictures I've seen of the landscape surrounding Machu Picchu in Peru.

When I arrived in Vang Vieng I had to do a double-take when I saw tourists just lying around in the restaurants. All the restaurants in this backpacking town seemed to have the same business model: cushions for reclining while you eat and a continuous loop of bootlegged Friends episodes playing loudly on the television.

(Mom, if you're reading this you can skip this paragraph.) But the strangest thing about this town was that it was common to see many of the tourists limping or bandaged up as they moved about on the streets. This is because the main activity for backpackers in Vang Vieng is tubing. There were all kinds of rumors about deaths and paralyzation and it is easy to see why. Take a few backpackers, put them in inner tubes on the river, give them lots of alcohol (plus a free shot of Lao Lao with every drink) at the bars along the way, throw in a few gigantic rope swings, slides and mud pits and you have a recipe for a lot of dangerous but very thrilling lawsuit-free fun!


Onward to the most laid-back capital city on the planet with the French name of Vientiane. Happily for us travelers we were thrilled to find that the French had left behind a few wine and cheese shops, French cafes and baguettes at every corner street cart. There are also some stunning temples and buildings to visit. The tuk-tuk (a tuk-tuk is a sort of small pick-up truck that makes a sound like "tuk-tuk-tuk" and is used as a taxi) drivers in the city are hilarious because they all have hammocks in the back. Occasionally it's necessary to wake someone up if you need a ride. I was also surprised to see so many Soviet flags displayed. When I asked someone about it I discovered that many Laos people are just big fans of communism.


Next it was time for an adventure. We went to a village where there was a river that flowed under a mountain. It was possible to take a boat ride through the cave to the other side so that's what we did. It was a little scary but still lots of fun. There were no hotels so we did a homestay in the village and were introduced to village life in Laos. The family actually spent the evening watching television together. I felt right at home.

Savanahket is pretty sleepy town and I was there for only a day or two. So the only thing I really remember about that place is that we were there on a Friday night and were wandering down the street and stumbled upon a celebration. It was insisted that we join in the revelry. We still have no idea what what being celebrated because nobody spoke English but it was lots of fun and even grandma ended up drinking a little too much. In exchange for the good times and some booze we taught them the Hokey Pokey.

After stopping along the way to take in a few more waterfalls and coffee farms I ended up in Don Det which is in a region called the Four-Thousand Islands. Yes, even though Laos is a landlocked country they really do have lots of islands. The islands are located on the mighty Mekong River. And what better place to celebrate Christmas than on an island in the sun? Time to party! Again! I celebrated with a big group of travelers which even included a Dutch girl that I had originally met while in Ethiopia. We started out talking about different traditions and how each of us celebrated Christmas back home but ended up deciding that the Swedes had it best. Everyone got up and danced and sang around a palm tree. The Swedes insisted that they really do dance and sing in a circle around the Christmas tree back home and that they really weren't making this up. (It made a lot more sense after lots of Beer Lao.)

Laos was lots of fun but eventually it was time to move on. Next stop: Vietnam.