Laos: From Waterfalls to Waterfights

Our buddy, Raffi, who we met at the Mirror Foundation joined us for our travels in Laos. The border crossing was the easiest so far - no cues, no waits, no questions. The border was on the edge of a cute little town where we spent a broiling afternoon waiting for our bus. We had heard rumors of the rugged terrain that left travel uncomfortable and slow, but we expected them to be exaggerations. They weren't.

After a grueling 17 hour journey on a bus that left even me (at 5'3") cramped like a pretzel from lack of leg room, we made it to Luang Prabang. It was well worth the wait. The town was so beautiful, still home to french-inspired architecture, and quaint cafes offering tasty baguettes and strong coffee. Thailand and Laos New Year is April 13-16th. The most obvious celebration is the throwing of water, where locals roam the streets, with buckets full of water hoping to drench mainly tourists, but also one another. The activites originated as a way to pay respect to elders - by pouring (a little bit of) water over the heads, it is supposed to cleanse and offer renewal. But these days, the tradition is used as an excuse to have country-wide waterfights. We learned the hard way that many kids cannot wait for the festivities to begin and start throwing water weeks early. Not only did we get splashed while walking the streets, we had full buckets thrown at us (the majority hitting only Raffi and me) numerous times while riding in the open air taxis!

Beyond doubt the highlight of our visit to Luang Prabang was Tat Kuang Si, a huge multi-tiered waterfall tumbling over limestone rocks, into a series of turquoise-green pools. The color of this water was even more unique than the beautiful waters we found in the islands! We made our way to the top of the falls, where we were able to swim and lean over the rocks to watch the water spill over and crash down to the pools below. As corny as it might sound, it is the first time nature has ever left me speechless.

Next stop, Spring Break 2010 in Vang Vieng! What a huge difference 6 hours of (uncomfortable) travel makes! Every restaurant played continuous episodes of Friends and offered cushions and pillows to lay back and relax on, to encourage the body to recover from its previous night's hangover and start all over again by 11am. Vang Vieng is a party town like no other, and most young backpackers come for 2 days and end up staying 2 weeks! The main attraction is tubing down the Mekong River. Along the river you'll find incredible views of of the raising and falling sun, limestone cliffs and local bamboo huts. Unfortunately many people do not make it far down the river, as the locals have set up strips of bars playing loud music, offering free shots, cheap buckets, and spray painting bodies with words like 'Slut' and 'I Love Tits.' In addition, the majority of bars offer a swing or slide that will send partyers propelling into the waters! Si and I certainly didnt last as long as the average 19 year old, but we did have fun and both braved the highest swing which sent us catapulting into the water! I, unfortunately, did the worlds biggest belly-flop that left my ears ringing for hours! The 3 of us ditched the parties early with the aim of completing the 3km tube ride down the river which would take us back to town. Although the views were incredible, the ride was slow and frustrating at times due to the extremely low water level (we're in the midst of the dry season), so we gave up halfway through and grabbed the nearest tuk-tuk back to town.

After two days in party city, Si and I had just about enough, left Raffi behind and headed to the capital, Vientiene. There wasn't much to do there, but we did visit the oldest temple in Vientiene, Wat Si Saket. It housed an astonishing 2000 small buddha images and 300 larger seated Buddhas. Many of the images date back to the 15th and 16th centuries! There was also the somewhat Arc de Triomphe replica that dominates the commercial district, a memorial for soldiers who have died in war. The Arc itself wasn't exactly spell-binding, but we did find it amusing that it was built using concrete the US donated for the construction of a new airport. The structure has been nicknamed the 'vertical runway'. We were there for only one day, which was plenty, while waiting for our fun sleeper bus adventure to Vietnam! :(