Laos never seems to disappoint. Today, we headed to the town of Luang Prabang by bus - again with a hotel pickup. Unlike in Vientiene, a van arrived at the scheduled pickup time. What was unexpected was that the bus stop seemed to be a very fair distance from town as we had driven for about 15 minutes!
We started to wonder if this pickup was indeed different and if hotel pickup in this case meant that this van was the bus! Upon asking the driver if he was driving us to Luang Prabang he simply replied "Yes".
Monday, 28 February 2011
Sunday, 27 February 2011
The hotel pickup that wasn't
I'm now in the small town of Vang Vieng in Laos. It's a very tourist orientated town with pretty much the entire town dedicated towards tourism in some way. We're only here as a rest stop on our way to Luang Prabang which is still another 7 hours or so bus ride away (it took about 4 hours to get here from Vientiene). The place does have nice scenery. The photo below is one I took at sunset from the balcony of our guest house. The rock formations are something I am expecting to see in Hạ Long Bay rather than here.
The funniest thing though happened this morning. Over here, when you buy a bus ticket, they generally include a hotel pickup. This usually involves a tuk-tuk going around picking up passengers to take them to the bus station. This time wasn't quite the case! A guy did come over but just walked off once he got our attention. We followed him thinking we would eventually reach a van or tuk-tuk but this never occurred. It was dawning on us the further we walked that this wasn't really the pickup we thought it would be and that Laos really was different to the rest of South East Asia!
The funniest thing though happened this morning. Over here, when you buy a bus ticket, they generally include a hotel pickup. This usually involves a tuk-tuk going around picking up passengers to take them to the bus station. This time wasn't quite the case! A guy did come over but just walked off once he got our attention. We followed him thinking we would eventually reach a van or tuk-tuk but this never occurred. It was dawning on us the further we walked that this wasn't really the pickup we thought it would be and that Laos really was different to the rest of South East Asia!
The city Asia forgot
Vientiene, the capital of Laos is nothing I expected of a capital city. The place is so quiet and devoid of life! We arrived in the afternoon in the supposed heart of town, only to find that the place was quiet as a mouse. There was the occasional scooter passing by, and a few backpackers here and there in search of food. But apart from that, the place was quiet.
Mind you, it was hot at the time, and I am guessing everyone was doing as this tuk-tuk driver was doing and having a siesta! The funny thing is he has setup his tuk-tuk perfectly for it!
We eventually did find life the next evening however it did take some time to find the people!
Mind you, it was hot at the time, and I am guessing everyone was doing as this tuk-tuk driver was doing and having a siesta! The funny thing is he has setup his tuk-tuk perfectly for it!
We eventually did find life the next evening however it did take some time to find the people!
Only in Asia
It's funny how when you really need the impossible, Asia has a way of delivering!
We were walking back to our guest house late on our last night in Siem Reap. We had an early morning flight to Vientiane, Laos the next morning. On our way home, I remembered that we still needed to get a passport photo made for Gwen so she could get her Laos visa. It was about 9:30pm at the time and most shops were well and truly closed for the night.
Whilst we were figuring out our options we managed to stumble upon one shop that was still open (for reasons still unknown to me) and the staff agreed they would do the photos (after checking their watches). They directed us to the back of the store, where I assumed there would be an area to do the shot. There was instead the staircase up. Confused we climbed up 2 stories and into a full blown photo studio!
In there, with all the lighting we both had some photos done. And what was even funnier was the staff later proceeded to photoshop the images to ensure we appeared at our very best!
We were walking back to our guest house late on our last night in Siem Reap. We had an early morning flight to Vientiane, Laos the next morning. On our way home, I remembered that we still needed to get a passport photo made for Gwen so she could get her Laos visa. It was about 9:30pm at the time and most shops were well and truly closed for the night.
Whilst we were figuring out our options we managed to stumble upon one shop that was still open (for reasons still unknown to me) and the staff agreed they would do the photos (after checking their watches). They directed us to the back of the store, where I assumed there would be an area to do the shot. There was instead the staircase up. Confused we climbed up 2 stories and into a full blown photo studio!
In there, with all the lighting we both had some photos done. And what was even funnier was the staff later proceeded to photoshop the images to ensure we appeared at our very best!
Friday, 25 February 2011
What to do with a drunken sailor
We went to Tonle Sap (the biggest lake in Cambodia) to check out a floating village. Our ride to the village proved to be much more interesting than the village itself!
For some reason, our boat driver was driving incredibly slow (to a point that our guide kept telling him to speed up). The problem then became clear when the driver hunched over the steering wheel and spewed all over his own feet!
We did manage to get to the village (and damage the boat while mooring). However the driver was in no condition to continue onwards.
 |
| Our driver passed out |
I have to say that I do feel for him - I've tried the local rice wine that they drink here, and it gives you one hell of a hangover!
Here's an interesting photo from the floating village. It was quite touristy and the below girls were trying to get money for posed photos with their snakes.
 |
| Girls with snakes |
Wednesday, 23 February 2011
Angkor
We went to see the various temples of Angkor over a couple of days. Here are some pics I took while I was there.
 |
| Even the monks were taking photos! |
 |
| Ta Prohm Temples |
Tuesday, 22 February 2011
Oh, What a Feeling! ... Phnom Penh
We're now traveling through Cambodia and although the country is as I expected, I was quite taken back on my arrival to the capital Phnom Penh.
We came by ferry from Vietnam and as expected, were met by a barrage of tuk-tuk drivers vying for our business.
What I didn't expect and was astonished to see was a classic red ferrari sitting right outside the pier!
I had been reading in my guidebook about the poverty of this country and was expecting little motorbikes whizzing around chaotically like in Vietnam. However, the reality seemed to be different with Toyota and Lexus cars and SUVs everywhere! To top things off - I even saw a good ole American RAM 450 (the truck/ute with 6 wheels) and a Hummer!
Weird!
We came by ferry from Vietnam and as expected, were met by a barrage of tuk-tuk drivers vying for our business.
What I didn't expect and was astonished to see was a classic red ferrari sitting right outside the pier!
I had been reading in my guidebook about the poverty of this country and was expecting little motorbikes whizzing around chaotically like in Vietnam. However, the reality seemed to be different with Toyota and Lexus cars and SUVs everywhere! To top things off - I even saw a good ole American RAM 450 (the truck/ute with 6 wheels) and a Hummer!
Weird!
Friday, 18 February 2011
Tout got served
Heading towards Cambodia, we stopped for 2 nights in a little town called Châu Đốc. The town was quite refreshing as it seemed that the locals didn't see you as just a bag of money. Plus, there was quite an abundance of vegetarian food!
One activity in the area is to climb a small mountain that lies 6kms outside of town. Sam mountain is only about 200 metres tall however it is the only bit of land with altitude in the region so at the top, you are able to see the land out for miles, including into neighbouring Cambodia.
We walked to the top to the shock of our scooter taxi drivers (or 'moto' drivers). It was a hard climb not from the hike but from avoiding all the motos taxiing people up and down.
At the top, there were some touts offering to take your picture with their SLRs. They immediately started to haggle Gwen once they saw her. Once I appeared, they started to do the same but upon seeing my SLR with the beast lens attached (70-200mm) they smiled and gave me a wink. They didn't bother us after that.
Here are some photos of the view.
One activity in the area is to climb a small mountain that lies 6kms outside of town. Sam mountain is only about 200 metres tall however it is the only bit of land with altitude in the region so at the top, you are able to see the land out for miles, including into neighbouring Cambodia.
We walked to the top to the shock of our scooter taxi drivers (or 'moto' drivers). It was a hard climb not from the hike but from avoiding all the motos taxiing people up and down.
At the top, there were some touts offering to take your picture with their SLRs. They immediately started to haggle Gwen once they saw her. Once I appeared, they started to do the same but upon seeing my SLR with the beast lens attached (70-200mm) they smiled and gave me a wink. They didn't bother us after that.
Here are some photos of the view.
 |
| Tout got some business |
 |
| Local couple enjoy the view |
An unexpected swim or Leica's death
We left Saigon via a guided tour of the Mekong Delta or the rice bowl of Vietnam. The region produces more rice than both Korea and Japan according to wiki!
The tour was "non-touristy" which meant group sizes were limited to 8 people and we did activities in locations that are off the beaten trail. One of these was a bike ride around a local village.
In theory this should be fun. In Gwen's case, her limited biking skills added even more amusement to the day - more for the local villagers and our Dutch companions than for us!
Upon turning off the main road and onto the bike track, Gwen lost control of her bike and ended up diving head first into the creek. She was completely submerged and came out browner than me!
Luckily, the bike did not fall into the water.
Unluckily, Gwen's camera did.
Here are a couple of shots taken a bit before the incident, and one taken after she had a shower in the nearby house.
The tour was "non-touristy" which meant group sizes were limited to 8 people and we did activities in locations that are off the beaten trail. One of these was a bike ride around a local village.
In theory this should be fun. In Gwen's case, her limited biking skills added even more amusement to the day - more for the local villagers and our Dutch companions than for us!
Upon turning off the main road and onto the bike track, Gwen lost control of her bike and ended up diving head first into the creek. She was completely submerged and came out browner than me!
Luckily, the bike did not fall into the water.
Unluckily, Gwen's camera did.
Here are a couple of shots taken a bit before the incident, and one taken after she had a shower in the nearby house.
 |
| Before the incident - nice and dry |
 |
| After the incident - wet and embarrassed |
Saturday, 12 February 2011
Saigon Scam
Asia wouldn't be asia without some haggling and scams! I'm quite glad that I managed to get out of a scam on my first full day in Saigon (and still suffering from jet lag).
At the Ben Thanh market (tourist central), I was interested in buying a t-shirt from a very aggressive stall owner. Although she attempted to sell me her entire stock of t-shirts with the promise of giving me 'good price', I was only interested in the one t-shirt and eventually extracted the price out of her - 180,000 dong. Now this equates to only £7 however the indian in me refused to pay the full price!
I offered her 40,000 dong and stuck by my price even with all her ranting. After some to'ing and fro'ing, she reluctantly agreed, and I handed her a 100,000 dong note.
Whilst waiting for my change (which she instructed her son to fetch) she attempted in vain to bargain the price up again (or sell me more t-shirts). I held my ground and said I only wanted the one t-shirt which she had placed into a black plastic bag, tying the top so as to hide the contents inside. She continued to shove other t-shirts in my face causing a bit of a ruckus.
During all this, Gwen was being distracted by her newly found 'friend'. However there is only so much you can say about where you are from, marriage status, your family, etc. before the conversation runs dry. When she turned to see what was taking so long, she was just in time to see the women putting a singlet into another black bag and swapping it for the first.
At this point, Gwen took decisive action, yelling out 'no buy!'. I grabbed my 100,000 dong from the still confused son and marched out of the stall with the satisfaction that they didn't get a dong from me! :-)
Note, I've since seen the shirt sold elsewhere for only 50,000 dong!
At the Ben Thanh market (tourist central), I was interested in buying a t-shirt from a very aggressive stall owner. Although she attempted to sell me her entire stock of t-shirts with the promise of giving me 'good price', I was only interested in the one t-shirt and eventually extracted the price out of her - 180,000 dong. Now this equates to only £7 however the indian in me refused to pay the full price!
I offered her 40,000 dong and stuck by my price even with all her ranting. After some to'ing and fro'ing, she reluctantly agreed, and I handed her a 100,000 dong note.
Whilst waiting for my change (which she instructed her son to fetch) she attempted in vain to bargain the price up again (or sell me more t-shirts). I held my ground and said I only wanted the one t-shirt which she had placed into a black plastic bag, tying the top so as to hide the contents inside. She continued to shove other t-shirts in my face causing a bit of a ruckus.
During all this, Gwen was being distracted by her newly found 'friend'. However there is only so much you can say about where you are from, marriage status, your family, etc. before the conversation runs dry. When she turned to see what was taking so long, she was just in time to see the women putting a singlet into another black bag and swapping it for the first.
At this point, Gwen took decisive action, yelling out 'no buy!'. I grabbed my 100,000 dong from the still confused son and marched out of the stall with the satisfaction that they didn't get a dong from me! :-)
Note, I've since seen the shirt sold elsewhere for only 50,000 dong!
Rough Itinerary
I am now in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam, and it is probably a good idea to start thinking about an itinerary. The rough plan is to head up north as far as I can go along the Mekong travelling through Cambodia, Laos and the Yunan province of China. Once I hit the Himalayas, it's back down again through Vietnam, ending back at Ho Chi Minh City in the first week of April where I will be flying off to Japan.
View South East Asia in a larger map
View South East Asia in a larger map
Thursday, 10 February 2011
Blue is the new green
It seems that blue is the new green in Hong Kong. Taking a shower in the tiny little cupboard that was my shower/toilet and sink all in one was a bit of an ordeal. And to add to the fun, the hot water system delivered hot water for exactly 30 seconds.
To prolong the shower, I turned the tap down to just a trickle, claiming it's more green! Gwen going blue in the face proclaimed 'blue is the new green'.
To prolong the shower, I turned the tap down to just a trickle, claiming it's more green! Gwen going blue in the face proclaimed 'blue is the new green'.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)