We were sad to leave Luang Prabang for Vang Vieng. We were also a little scared. Just days before, we had seen a news story that busses were being shot at along our very route. The shooters were in opposition to Chinese businesses that were buying up land in the mountains without giving anything back to the people who lived there. A local friend assured us that we would be fine, but I couldn’t calm my nerves. Luckily, it was an easy and uneventful seven hour bus ride with a pretty fun group of Icelandic boys and a couple pit stops for instant noodles and beer. In Vang Vieng, we headed to the hotel we had booked while on the bus – Malany Villa 2. It is a dump, but its very cheap and right in the middle of things. Continue reading “Laos Part Deux – Vang Vieng and Vientiane”
We arrived in Luang Prabang, Laos after a harrowing 24+ hour journey from Vietnam. Our trip started with a relatively uneventful 9 hour night bus from Sapa. Next, we transferred at Dien Bien Phu in the middle of the night to the mini-bus that would take us over the Lao border. After a few hours parked at the station, sleeping on our new bus and getting to know the others, it was time to leave.
Continue reading “I Heart Luang Prabang”
Aren’t we all searching for inner peace? Cambodia seemed like a great place to find some, and from the moment I arrived, taking my first tuk-tuk ride through the thick, sage-scented heat, I knew I wouldn’t be let down. Each day was filled with exotic, low-priced delights and wonders I’d never experienced before: a manicure in the market in Phnom Penh; the crumbling Ta Prohm temple in Siem Reap; open-air beach bungalows serving curry on the edge of the jungle; warm, clear, turquoise water dotted with brightly colored fishing boats waiting to take me to places I’d only ever dreamed of every freezing Wisconsin winter. But it wasn’t only the incredible beauty and tropical luxury that helped me dig up that laid-back vibe deep within me — it was also the bit of ugliness that we found along the way that helped me find what I was looking for. Speaking of which, it all started with the pants.
Continue reading “Cambodia: Phnom Penh, Ta Prohm, Pants, and Paradise “