Northern Laos and into the Jungle

We ended up staying three nights in Luang NamTha. Laos because we liked it so much (and because we'd found a very cosy little guesthouse called Zuela that we liked). Its a quiet sleepy little town set deep within a mountain range next to a river. Nobody really cares that you're a tourist, nobody is trying to thrust objects into your hands and you can just go about your tourist business the way you want to. Somebody really needs to do something about neutering the local dogs though. At one time i counted almost 15 trotting down the middle of the road towards us like they'd had enough of the humans and had come to liberate Luang NamTha armed with fleas, sharp teeth and large doses of rabies.

On the second day we hired a scooter and explored the surrounding areas. A couple of very large gold temples had been built at the top of long staircases framed by stone dragons and reptiles. We headed further afield out of the town and started riding through miles and miles of flat rice paddy fields with small little shacks dotted throughout. We stopped for a beer at one of the restaurants on the way back which was right in the middle of the rice fields. It didnt last long though as the heavens opened and we headed for home on the bike and without a poncho. Arrived very wet at our hotel room 30 minutes later.

The rainfall made for an interesting scooter ride down the mudtrack to the waterfall in the afternoon. I pretty much almost squashed both of us a few times with the bike as the back wheel slid out and we got covered from the waist down in a nice reddish mud. Got to the waterfall in one piece though and hiked the rest of the way in t-shirt, shorts and flip flops. The locals had a good laugh at the stupid white tourists. Was worth it though and the sun even came out when we got to the top.

The photo below is of the car wash that i had to take the scooter to in fear of losing my deposit because of all the mud that was caked to it:

Took a kayaking trip down the NamTha river through the rainforest with a guide the next day. Great experience and definitely saw things that we wouldnt have seen without being on the river for a few hours. 22 rapid sections as well which made the journey even more fun. The ever reliable CJ and NB team managing to avoid capsizing this time (which was good because we had all the food on our boat). The guide was good and told us lots of useful information about the villages and Laos in general. At one point, we saw a big white bird soaring across the river in front of us. Tash asked the guide 'what was that?'. He replied 'a bird' and continued to paddle down the river with an air of 'where do they find these tourists?'. He cooked us a great lunch of barbecued fresh fish we picked up from the market in the morning though with lots of sticky rice, omelette and beans. We didnt ask what the fish was and just ate it quietly (its a fish you idiot).

And so onto Huay Xai and what many tourists come Laos to do...The Gibbon Experience.

Dreadful organisation from the tour company (missed emails, no receipts, office closed during opening times etc) but they dont really need to be any good, they know they have a product which you cant find anywhere else. After kitting ourselves out with all the stuff they recommended (hiking boots, torches, bug spray, lot of socks etc...about $10 all in) we set off out to Bokeo where the trail started. From there we picked up our guide and set off hiking through the jungle with six other tourists (German and American) that we'd spend the next two days with. After two hours we got to the first zip line: almost 800 metres across a deep valley with running water at the bottom, as you took off across the valley you looked down on the clouds and the miles and miles of rainforest. An amazing experience and one that British Health and Safety would have an absolute field day with...a 30 minute video on how to attach yourself to the zip line and a guide who looked at me blankly when i asked him if he wanted to check my harness. As we continued the climb to the treehouse where we'd spend the first night, we probably had another 10 or 11 zip lines at various lengths and different speeds, all though with incredible views cutting through the jungle.

The last zip line took us to the doorstep of the treehouse where we would spend the night. Soft beds, fresh duvets, clean sheets, toilets and mosquito nets....and the best bit: a shower with running water which looked out across the valley (definitely someone out there with a pair of binoculars having a lot of fun). Stayed up till at least 9pm getting drunk (yep they even had red wine) and talking with the other gibbons. The incredible noise of a jungle at night wasnt even enough to keep us awake after all that walking, fresh air and red wine. Our treehouse below:

Up at 7am the next day to do some more zip lining around the area before breakfast. We then made our way back down the mountain stopping for tea, coffee and lunch by one of the many running streams. Didnt get to see any gibbons in the end and the guide just laughed at me when i asked him when theyd come swinging through the trees (how about renaming your tour then mate).

Took the slow boat (2 days) down to Luang Prabang yesterday and planning to stay here for a few days before heading south to Vang Vieng and then the Laos capital of Vientiane.

Books: Just finished The Sorrow of War, a story set during the Vietnam war. Pretty heavy reading but extremely well written and gives a much different perspective on the war than the one you usually get from the yanks.

Most annoying tourists: Spanish (i thought the British were renowned for their moaning)

Food proving most dangerous to the health of Chris and Tash (Get me to a toilet....NOW):