Luang Prabang

I'm back online. I was going to go to the night market but I've spent SOOO much here on so little, the free internet was the cheaper option. For a country that is so poor, I seem to be spending an astronomical amount on nothing. Nevertheless, I think Luang Prabang is one of the loveliest places I've ever visited.

Luang Prabang is serene and romantic. As I strolled along a tree-lined street with houses dating back to the French Colonial era, I could feel my worries slowly melt away and my heart lighten. The prospect of a relaxing massage may have contributed to this change but I don't think it was just that. There's something intangible about this place. Something peaceful and zen-like. Luang Prabang is a perfect balm for the soul. My aromatherapy massage was divine. I'd never had a massage in my life until I started this trip. And today's was the third and most aromatic. I requested the "lemongrass-refreshing" scent. Firstly, because as you will recall from my last blog entry, lemongrass should apparently repel the mozzies. Secondly, I was feeling tired and needed a wake-up boost. I fell asleep twice during the massage. But now I feel refreshed. And marginally attractive. I haven't lately what with all these bites. I hope I'm not left with scars...... Ok, no more mention of insect bites.

Tomorrow we leave for the Thai border on a "boat". The trip should take 2 days. We're stopping over at villages for the nights. I need to remember to recharge my iPod and camera as most of the villages will have about 1 hour or less of electricity when we get there. Perfect for Light Grafitti photos I reckon as the villages will be near pitch black. I'm going to recruit Steve for this experiment. I also need to stock on snacks. Oreos maybe?

Joma I love you

"Can we go to Joma for lunch?" "Do they have a Joma in Luang Prabang?" Oh yes, how did we ever survive without Joma. Joma is officially our favourite hangout in Laos. It's like Starbucks of Laos. But a hundred times better. I've had their brownie, choc chip cookies, choc chip muffin, apple and bran oatmeal muffin, apple pie, lemonade, tuna foccacia sandwich........ Yeah..... Joma is good.

We went elephant trekking and bathing yesterday. Tristan and I got Orla Thai, a 19 year old beauty that we nicknamed Chubbs on account of her neverending snacking on greens. Steve got a renegade that often decided to do his/her own thang and named him/her Rambo 4x4. Adam and Sophie got the docile and sweet Humphrey. Slow Nelly was temporarily adopted by Mark and Christina. I skipped the elephant bathing and was the official photographer for the occasion. I'm being eaten alive by the mozzies (and some spiders), literally and did not fancy going into the river where I would inevitably become the next late afternoon snack for the water-dwelling beasties. I don't understand why? Why me!! No one else has been bitten as much as me. I've also started drinking lemongrass tea. Apparently lemongrass is a potent mozzy repellent. Pfftt!!!! Rubbish. Phil reckons that I have a high likelihood of being bitten by a malaria-carrying bug. You don't say? Thanks Uncle Philly. I've been taking my malarial pills and eating my 5 -a-day and praying to God. Hopefully they will provide sufficient protection. We also went to the waterfalls. Standing infront of the waterfalls, with the cool air blasting from the cascading water, I forgot about my lousy bites and remembered how much I loved it here and how much fun I've been having with the guys.

We went to a cool place for dinner last night where we had to bbq and cook our own dinner. It was hard and sweaty work, sitting there with the bbq set infront of us on the table. But it was delish. Later we went ten-pin bowling. Half of Luang Prabang was there. I was sh*t. I reckon the mozzies have sucked out more than just my pure healthy alcohol-caffiene-meat- free blood. They've sapped me of my bowling prowess. This blows. I hate losing.

I'm off to the spa for a massage. Later, sunset viewing from the top of a hill. Tomorrow, up the Mekong in a boat to Thailand. I could go on travelling forever.

We're in Laos

We went to the gym yesterday. A bunch of us were suffering from a serious lack-of-exercise-itis, so after we were done with harrassing monks in orange robes for photo ops and other usual touristy stuff in Vientiane, the capital of Laos, we headed to the local gym. It was invigorating. And then to finish it off I had a traditional Laos massage. Are you jealous?

So, Laos huh? It's totally chilled out and peaceful here and makes a nice change from the manically crazy Hanoi. People are a lot nicer. But a lot more complacent too. Don't expect to get your starter before your mains, and your rice with your curry. Actually, Vietnam was just as bad. Sometimes they even forgot our order. Customer satisfaction ain't a priority in this neck of the woods. The scenery here in Laos is more dramatic but just as sublime as Vietnam, with dangerous winding roads built into the side of the mountains, linking us between our destinations. If you suffer from motion sickness, best to find another way of getting between towns.

Today we're in Vang Vieng. Tomorrow we head to Luang Prabang. I can't wait. It feels like the main reason people come here is to get pissed and high (sorry if you're reading this travel buddies, just my opinion). I guess if that's your kinda thing then this is the perfect place to be. Thankfully the landscape and the outdoor activities that they have here (caving, kayaking etc) make up for it.

We've been having a lot of oreos on this trip. Is it possible to OD on oreos? The peanut butter and choc one is especially yummy. I still have some brownie left from earlier today. I think I should have the rest of it later.