Ten years ago, Laos was completely inaccessible by car. These days, there are more options, but I opted to enter the country via the Slow Boat, a two-day boat ride down the Mekong river, starting at the border of Thailand and ending in the city of Luang Prabang. There were a few reasons for this decision: 1) I had more time at my disposal since I had taken a week off work (meaning I didn’t have to fly), and 2) all of my friends who had taken the slow boat said it was absolutely incredible. Now that I’ve had this experience, I would like to add 3) to the list of reasons to take the Slow Boat: the fellow passengers, most of whom were backpackers my age. When you’re travelling on a plane or bus for an extended period, you may perhaps chat with your neighbors, but in my experience, most people either sleep, read, or zone out to music or a movie. But on the slow boat, we had three days together (including the drive to the border), and since we could move around rather easily (and we needed to, because the seats weren’t so comfortable), conversations naturally occurred. And though most of us had ipods, it seemed that people used them only as a last resort.
So there we were, passing through seemingly untouched areas of Laos, dreamily gazing at emerald-colored mountains and waving at the occasional children on the shores. (Check out the photo page for more.) The views were incredible– soft, lush, and, after a total of 17+ hours… enough. Which is why the backpackers were so fantastic. I mostly hung out with a group of English guys, and we swapped stories of our travels and played the ever-classic card games of Rummy, Bullshit, and, my personal favorite, Go Fish, which I had the delight of teaching to one of the English guys (who loved it, I will point out). Day 1 (a seven- hour trip) ended with an overnight in a Laos town called Pak Beng, and then after a very long (but beautiful) Day 2 (a 10-hour trip), we arrived in Luang Prabang, happy, gross, and ready to explore.
On my first day in Laos, after eating a breakfast of mango pancakes, I converted my money to kip, which was fantastic because I became a millionaire. ($1 = 8,500-ish kip.) Never have i spent so much money so fast. But it’s okay, i kept telling myself– I’m supporting the Laos economy. I spent the day biking with a wonderful American girl from the Slow Boat, exploring postcard-esque scenes of villages and farms, and ended with an extremely late lunch of a tuna and veggie baguette. Since Laos was a French colony, their influence shows itself in a number of ways: 1) architecture 2) extreme draw for French tourists and, my personal favorite 3) French-influenced food, which was strikingly similar to what I ate in Senegal. This means baguettes, Vache Qui Rit (Laughing Cow) cheese, and really rich desserts.
The next day, I kayaked with three girls down the Nam Kahn river (which intersects with the Mekong in Luang Prabang), and visited a Khmu and Hmong village. Though the people we met there didn’t speak Lao (which is similar to Thai, which helps me a lot), we goofed around with the kids and our guide translated for us. Some villages in Laos get lots of tourists, but this one didn’t, which meant that the kids treated us like funny aliens/celebrities– we were a little scary to them, but still interesting enough to show off in front of. The kayaking was easy enough that I didn’t anticipate incridible soreness the next day, but it was challenging enough that I didn’t feel like a total wimp, either. A good blend indeed. Mid-way, we stopped for lunch, and had my favorite experience in Laos.
As we sat on the rocks to eat our lunch, a few nine or ten-year old girls who were hanging out at the river came over to check us out. They were on their lunch break from school, and after they wandered over, their guy friends who were tubing in the river did too. Soon we had maybe 12 Thai-Leu kids who were all nine or ten years old hovering around us. We weren’t sure if it was because we were farang (westerners), or if it was because we had food and they wanted some… but they were staring at us, and it was certainly… different. We gave them fruit and some other food, and I noticed that one boy was looking at us with his arms folded and his brow furrowed. So then I did the same thing. He saw me doing this, smiled, and quickly changed his position. I did that, too, again imitating him. He laughed and made another movie that I also copied. Another boy joined in and soon we were making fantastically goofy faces back and forth at each other, each trying to make the grander and more grotesque face. Not that long afterwards, this expanded into movements, with extensive swinging of hips and wiggling. And then…. just because it came to mind… I taught them the “Apache” dance by the Sugar Hill Gang. The kids loved it and we were all cracking up from the extreme silliness of the situation. (And yes, they all said “jump on it” as best they could as they spun around.) I took a video of it, along with pictures, and I’ll post it as soon as I figure out how. Eventually, we had to get back on the kayaks, and the kids and I blew kisses to each other as we separated. My heart nearly exploded with happiness as we paddled away.
During my time in Southeast Asia, I think I’ve taken mostly scenic pictures, but in Laos, it was reversed, and for that, I am so grateful. Since Luang Prabang is a small town, I ran into people from the boat all the time, and wound up with far more new friends than I ever imagined. So, to summarize my experience: Had a million, spent it all, danced like crazy with kids, and fell in love with a country for its pace, people, and beauty.
Tongue Thai'ed 