Laos: slow-boating

As with all things Lao, transportation is slow. really slow. So it's fitting that I decided to work my way down from Houay Xai to Luang Prabang via the popular slow-boat route, a two-day journey down the Mekong River. I made my way to the ferry dock with my new American travel buddies who I bonded with during the Gibbon Experience adventure, and it felt great to be traveling in a pack again. As seems to be customary in Laos, we sat waiting for a good hour and a half until the operator returned with our passports and we were given the green light to board for Day 1 of our slow-boat journey. Our vessel was a simple wooden long-tail boat with two-seater wooden benches lining either side of the boat, and it filled up quickly with a horde of backpackers traveling in the same direction. We set up camp and spent the lazy seven hour boat ride reading, listening to our iPods and enjoying the passing beautiful green landscape as we float downriver. We stopped for the night in Pak Beng, a small town on the riverbank which seems to run solely on tourism and the business of travelers on the slow-boat route. The electricity for the entire town shuts off at 11pm, which is less than ideal timing when washing shampoo out of one's hair in a cold shower, but otherwise not much of a bother given the country-wide midnight curfew. Yes, the entire population of Laos has a curfew. Welcome to Laos, also known as my entire early high school experience.

Day two of slow-boating was more of the same -- gazing at the passing scenery, listening to music, and playing card games. Oh, except for the dead body. We caught sight of it passing just yards away from the boat, and our faces froze in abject horror as the lifeless form floated past us and out of sight down the river. Then it was gone, and we returned to our respective time-passing activities. It was dusk and beginning to rain as we arrived in Luang Prabang, a sophisticated and photogenic city perched on the banks of the Nam Khan and Mekong Rivers. As per usual, finding a place upon arrival in a new city is often a challenging if not daunting task, but I joined forces with another girl from Los Angeles and we managed to find a room, albeit one that smelled of mold and looked like it was furnished with items found on the side of the road. Moving tomorrow night for sure.

Tomorrow ... a proper exploration of Luang Prabang (warning: includes mishap with a kayak)