"Three weeks in Laos? But there's nothing else to do but visit Vientiane, Luang Prabang, and the Plain of Jars!", Debra's father commented before we left for Laos. Indeed, many do not venture beyond those 3 sites as there is little electricity, and unpredictable roads and lodging. Yet, we decided to take the road "less traveled" and headed from Luang Prabang into the northern regions of Laos.
As we arrived at the Luang Prabang "bus" station we quickly learned that when Lao people use the word "bus" they really mean "converted chinese pick-up truck with benches to make your butt really sore". But with no other means of transportation in our direction, we climbed aboard and set out with our fellow travellers--a dozen locals, several sacks of rice, and some birds in a small cage crammed into the rear or standing on the bumper--up towards the riverside village of Nong Khiaw, set amidst stunning limestone cliffs and narrow valleys. The fact that the road was only partially paved, featured plenty of king-sized pot holes, and had occasional large rocks for the driver to avoid, added to the adventure. We even had the unique opportunity to witness the national pastime--roadside automotive repair--when the put-put-puttering truck called it quits half way to our destination. Thirty minutes later we were on our way again, bumping along the dusty road sharing smiles and laughs with the locals. Clearly it was a typical day on the "bus" for them.
Further north of Nong Khiaw we were told that the
roads were worse than what we'd already experienced.
So, we caught a local boat going up the Nam Ou river
to Muang Khoa through more limestone cliff scenery for
a far less bumpy and peaceful journey upstream (though
wood benches in the boat made for a tender tush as
well). This time we were joined by a few locals, two
other travellers, and a pet monkey. The slowgoing
speed, droaning humm of the motor, and six hour
length of the trip lulled us all into a
semi-meditative state amongst the calm of the river
and its scenery--even the monkey curled up and took a
nap.
Then with a giant lurch the serenity came to a sudden
end. Debra saw wooden floorboards crack beneath her
feet and quickly found herself in six inches of water
which was continuing to rise. The captain was yelling
instructions that only the engine man could
understand. The engine quit and the boat came to a
rest before rolling softly to the right and off the
submerged rock that we had hit. We began floating
back down stream while continuing to sink. Kevin
grabbed everyone's bags and put them up on the roof.
The captain steered towards the shore and
reached out to grasp branches of trees to pull us in
further. The engine man bailed water as quickly as he
could with his 1 liter canister. Kevin tried to
clammer up to the roof of the boat only to be held
back by the monkey who had latched itself to his leg.
With another lunge, the monkey's leash broke free and
Kevin and monkey landed on the roof. The other
passengers helped grab ahold of more branches, with
the hull of the boat now nearly half submersed. The
boat listed to the right and one of our bags slipped
off the
flat roof, plunging into the river (Debra thought that
Kevin was trying to throw the bags 15 feet to the
shore!) The engineman
fetched the bag with a long bamboo pole before it was
swept downstream, then quicky returned to bail water.
Debra eyed the muddy water thinking through the best
swimming routes to shore as she stood on the benches
with the waters now covering her Tevas.
Everyone pulled branches, pushed poles, and paddled
with what they could find until we came to rest in a
foot of water along the shore.
Safe for the moment, our attention turned to the fact that the sun was going down, and we did not want to be marooned for the night. The crew set to work hammering bits of oily cloth and rope into the cracks in the floorboards. Several of us went a few yards upstream and luckily waved down a passing speed boat that graciously stopped to lend a hand. The crew worked hard to repair our boat, but ultimately sent us on our way with the speed boat to assure that we arrived before nightfall. We pulled into Muong Khoa as dusk fell on the village, hoping for the wellfare of the crew that sent us forward without them.
The next morning we decided that we'd had enough of the river, so we rejoined the road for two more days of "bus" travel (with the traditional hour-and-a-half road side repair stop in the middle of nowhere) to the Luang Namtha valley where we planned to spend Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving Day, we joined the proprietor's family in the nearby rice fields to help gather rice from the harvest. After a few hours of helping in the fields, we returned to the Boat Landing where the family had prepared a full Thanksgiving Dinner for the guests, the local United Nations volunteers, and the Luang Namtha Eco Tourism Project staff. And yes...they have turkey in Lao, though they are so skinny we thought they were chickens! And though the sweet potatoes, baked apples, garlic bread, string beans and green salad were all of different varities than we might find in the U.S., the meal was a great taste of home for the two of us who had presumed we'd be eating noodles on the 22nd of November. (We'd also like to give an extra special thanks to Bill who made our stay extra special with his friendly advice and giving nature.)
We wrapped up our adventues in Laos with a thirty-five minute thrill ride on Laos Air (thankfully no mid-air repairs to report here) to the border town of Houaxai where we crossed the Mekong River and returned to Thailand.
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More pictures from Laos...
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