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Laos from the South to the North, along the Mekong river
Lao border: A road ? But what is it for ? 😀
The co-driver bus asked to collect all our passports to establish the Lao visa with $35 in cash inside!
At the beginning we were only two to refuse to give our passports, but some people had some doubts also (bloody Frenchy) but the agency said it’s $20 ..!
Actually it was not a scam, the officers asked us $31 for the visa + $1 for the exit stamp + $2 for overtime (lol).
Moreover, I don’t really like to give my identity papers to someone I don’t really trust! Simple precaution.
Saturday 17 to Monday 19: Southern Laos
Don Khon (Si Phan Don, 4000 Islands) ♥♥♥♥
Saturday 17 morning: Convied to taste the Lao-lao at 9:00am!
Saturday 17 morning, awakened by the roosters, walked in the jungle meeting different animals: buffaloes, pigs, chickens, geeses and insects like caterpillars, butterflies, spiders and dragonflies!
I met some locals curious to see me walking in the mud with my camera. They asked me to take them in pictures and offered me some lao-lao (strong rice liquor)! Wahoo it waked me up!
I continued my walk in direction to the waterfall, so powerful! I went back to the guest house to have a lunch and went with Catherine, a German and Australian women to see the irrawaddy’s dolphins in the Mekong river.
Saturday 17 evening with friends!
Then soirée with Charlotte, Arthur and Matthias.
Sunday 18 11:30am
Direction Champasak (Boat 10k Kips, Bus 40k Kips, Boat 25k Kips) with its beautiful temple Wat Phu ♥♥♥♥
Welcomed by a nice guy speaking French, he suggested us to visit his guesthouse. Great accommodation near the Mekong river (30k/2 Kips) 🙂
The afternoon ~16h, visit of the impressive ruined Khmer temple ‘Wat Phu’.
Champasak is not interesting at all but the Wat Phu temple is huge and impressive, to visit if possible!
Sunday 18: So delicious dinner!
The dinner was so delicious: Mekong fish steamed in a banana leaf (15k Kips) with its sticky rice (3k Kips)! Yummy! and of course a beer Lao (10k Kips)
Monday 19
Monday 19: Breakfast!
Early wake up at 6:30am, banana pancake and a lao coffee as breakfast, unbelievable 🙂
Departure of the local bus –Song Taews– (20k Kips) at 7h30, arrival one hour later to Pakse.
Pakse ♥ & Motor bike trip around ♥♥♥
Pakse is not so interesting but I really liked to rent a motorbike and visit neighbouring cities.
I tasted a delicious iced coffee with a croissant 🙂 The Bolaven plateau close to Pakse is known for its coffee plantations.
Then I booked a 100cc Honda motorbike (40k + 10k gas Kips) to visit places around the city.
I went east and tried to go in small roads to get the Mekong. I found some small villages with pétanque players, children laughing to see a western guy with a motorbike, flooded roads, Buddha sculptors and welcomed by a monk to visit his temple, he shown me some paints made by a French guy and this is here where I took a pic of the nun.
The evening we took a sleeping bus (170k Kips) with real beds!! but we had to share the same tiny bed, amazingly small :/ Not really slept… The road was also really bad.
Next: Northern Laos ♥♥♥