The Journeyman's Diary

The best holiday in the entire world is Song Kran. It’s the Thai New Year. What started as a simple bathing of the elderly and bathing of the Buddha some how transformed into the largest water fight in the entire world. I’ve never had more childish fun in my life. For 3 straight days all of Thailand, Laos and parts of Cambodia have a water fight. No one is off limits. I was in Chaing Mai at the time, supposedly the best place to celebrate in all of Thailand.

Two day slow boat on the Mekong River through Laos and back into Thailand. You want culture. You got culture.

Luang Prabang has beautiful waterfalls too.

UNESCO World Heritage City? What the hell is that? After Vang Vieng I traveled another 8 heroeing hours in a small van through a country that seemed to be entirely on fire to find out what the buzz was all about. Luang PraBang is AWESOME! It’s like someone took a slice out of France and plopped it right down in Laos. It’s a quiet town on the banks of the historic Mekong River with culture that bulges at the seams. Take a look.

After Nong Khai I crossed over into Laos to Vientiene, after a short lunch I made my way 6 hours north to the small town of Vang Vieng. It’s difficult for me to describe this place without getting giddy and childish and as you read you’ll realize why. Now, imagine a small town on the crystal clear Nam Xong river in the mountains of Laos. It’s sunny and gorgeous every day. The entire town in filled with young back backers anywhere from 18 to 30 years old, and as back packers often are, everyone is there to party. From the time you wake up, hungover from the party the night before, until about noon or 2pm you sit on triangle pillows and snack on french baguettes and delicious Laos/ Western food and watch DVD’s of “Family Guy.” And these restaurants are everywhere, one after the other after the other of backpacker filled, triangle pillow dawned, Family Viewing ’cinemas.’ As if that wasn’t good enough for a relaxing time, at about 2pm the town evacuates 20 minutes to the north where you ‘tube.’ Actually no one tubes, really just drink and go on 30 foot high rope swings. So now picture being in the mountains of Laos on a crystal clear river on the most clear, sunny, warm day you can imagine with hundreds if not thousands of young back packers that are there only to have a good time, and there are 8 bars that all serve beers the size of 3 beers in America for $1.50 and BUCKETS of mixed drinks for $4. When the sun sets over the mountain and over the first bar, aptly named “Bar 1,” you cross the river to “Bar 2.” When the sun sets over that bar you go to bar three or four and dance until you can’t dance any more of someone decides it’s time to go back into town and party at the bars there. Really it is the most dangerous thing in the world having all these kids getting hammered and jumping into a river from a rope swing 30+ feet into the air, but VIVE LE LAOS! And that’s not to say that I didn’t see my fair share of injuries, but you get used to those sights after Full Moon Parties and things of the like. For me this place was like paradise. A beach vibe with friendly partiers in the mountains and high things to jump off of into water. PERFECT!