There are 3 main options for getting from Luang Prabang to Huay Xai, where the Gibbon Experience is located. You can taken a bus, the fast boat, or the slow boat. I had been traveling almost exclusively by bus for the better part of two months, including all of my transport in Laos. Fast boats take just 6 hours and are known to have accidents, while slow boats take 2 days and cost half of the price of the fast boats. I had given myself a enough of a buffer where I could take the slow boat and make it to Huay Xai in time for my date with the gibbons, so I went for it.
The slow boat leaves Luang Prabang at 8:30 am daily and tickets can be purchased at the dock for $7.50. I checked several travel forums online and read horror stories of overpacked boats and very uncomfortable wooden seats. It is generally less busy going north as I did rather than south as the vast majority of travelers do and July is not high season. My boat had comfortable seats taken from either busses or minivans and there was plenty of room to lay down and nap. The ride itself was scenic and relaxing.
We reached the halfway point, Pakbeng a little after 6 pm. The boat docked and we spent the night there. Pakbeng is a small town consisting of one main street lined with restaurants and guesthouses. Most people stay for just one night like I did. The electricity is spotty and there were a few hours of blackout in the short time I was there. I had some cheap, decent Indian food and stayed at an inexpensive guesthouse that was fine for my needs. People in town try to sell you drugs constantly, especially if you have long hair and a beard. The town shuts down entirely by 10pm, which is unfortunate as I was having a wonderful time with a group of Germans that were headed south and alternated calling me Jesus or Leonidas. There is a big sandwich industry in Pakbeng because of the boats. Travelers need to take food with them for the 9 hour plus boat ride and baguette sandwiches are the most popular item.
The boat from Pakbeng to Huay Xai was also $7.50, left at 8:30 am, and arrived a little after 5 pm. I really enjoyed my time on the boats. It gave me time to relax and reflect on what an incredible trip this has been. I’m very happy I chose to take the slow boat and think it’s the best option for traveling between Luang Prabang and Huay Xai.
open mind, empty stomach
travel, food, and fun
about
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I’d heard that Vang Vieng was like Sihanoukville, only with tubing instead of a beach and I planned to avoid it. An Aussie in Luang Prabang told me how amazingly beautiful Vang Vieng was with great outdoor adventure opportunities and to just avoid the tourist area. I’m not sure why I listened to him, but I shouldn’t have. I left my favorite place on the trip thus far, Don Khon to go to the only place in Laos I didn’t care for.
Vang Vieng is a case study on the wrong way to develop a community. The town has decided to target a very specific type of tourist. The restaurants, which all have identical menus, play either Family Guy or Friends DVDs all day and all night. Most have “happy menus” that offer everything from tea to pizza with weed, opium, or mushrooms. The price for anything happy is very high at 100 kip ($12.50), which is enough to buy 3 meals, 3 nights at a guesthouse or 10 Beer Laos. The drinks section of menus have headers like “it’s time to get fucked up!” and buckets (a mix of whiskey, soda, juice, and sugar) are very popular.
The big draw is tubing, where you rent a tube and float down the river for 1-3 hours, depending on how many bars you stop at along the way. People come back from tubing very drunk, covered in paint (no idea what the deal with the paint is), and party until late at night. I planned on going tubing on my last day in Vang Vieng, but I woke up to an e-mail from the Gibbon Experience saying they had an opening for me in a few days. The Experience is in Houay Xai, northwest Laos near the Thai border, a few days travel from VV. I decided to leave immediately to give myself time to make it there and had to pass on tubing.
Everyone I’ve talked to that went tubing said it was really cool and I’m sure it is. The town focusing its development solely on getting college aged people drunk and stoned is not cool. I’m all about having a good time, but don’t think it’s good for a community to turn itself into a partying mecca. I checked online and with travel agencies in town and found nothing close to what I was looking for in terms of activities in VV. All they offered was day trips to visit caves and kayak. I avoid organized day tours because you get rushed and end up spending a lot of the time on transport.
The strange thing is that the tourist area is not very large at all. It took just 10 minutes walking from my centrally located guesthouse to reach the Vang Vieng where actual people lived. It resembled any other town in Laos with rice paddies, cows in the streets, children everywhere, and very modest homes. I watched some locals playing volleyball with their feet instead of hands and they were really good. I think the people of Vang Vieng deserve a better future than the one they are shaping and it’s sad to see them heading in this direction.
You can get “happy” and drunk allover se Asia. I prefer to spend time in places that have more to offer. I make an effort to spend money in places and at establishments that build and better communities rather than tear them apart. -
The Mekong river is at its widest in southern Laos in an area known as 4,000 Islands. The three major islands are Don Kong, Don Det, and Don Khon. In recent years Don Det has become a backpacker mecca, so I opted for the more laid back Don Khon. I got to spend my first couple days on island with the wonderful Colombian couple I had been traveling through Laos with. It was really sad parting ways with Carlos and Carolina and I hope to see them again at some point. We stayed at Souksan Guesthouse, which is just under 1 km from the bridge. A private riverfront bungalow with a hammock and bathroom was $5/night. The owner is a real character. He has two wives and countless children that run the guesthouse. He drinks Lao whiskey all day, has permanent hammock lines imprinted on his back, and laughs at everything you or he says. He takes guests on a 3 hour waterfall tour by boat for $8.50. The tour and the waterfalls were cool, but he stole the show. He brought a bottle of lao lao and we all took shots throughout the tour. When we were swimming in the river he slipped from a rope bridge and fell, but didn’t stop laughing. He used branches from a bush as q-tips and cleaned out his ears and used his finger as a toothbrush. The man is incredible and is officially my idol.
Like Kong Lo, all of the restaurants have identical menus. Mains range from $2-4 and big Beer Laos are $1.25. We randomly went to Done Khong restaurant the first night we were there and I ended up going back for at least one meal a day. It is a small place on the river and they are in the process of building a guesthouse. The chef/owner/hostess/etc was a really nice lady who can really cook. She makes the best spring rolls I’ve ever had. The food at my guesthouse was good too. There seemed to be a pork shortage on island. At least one restaurant I went to a day had run out of pork. On my first day alone, I rented a bicycle and drove to Don Det. It takes about 30 minutes and is a scenic ride on a wet and bumpy road. Lonely Planet said to go to Mr. P’s Guesthouse and have the pumpkin burger. Thin slices of pumpkin and onions are covered in batter and deep fried, then served on a bed of french fries; it was a monstrosity. Don Det wasn’t as crazy as I thought it would be, but it was definitely more backpackerish and touristy than Don Khon.
I went to see the rare Irrawaddy dolphins ($6.50 for boat and permission from Cambodian government) and it was so awesome that I went back again. They are supposed to be hard to see and July is not considered the season, but I saw lots of dolphins on both trips and it was amazing. I’m a huge hammock enthusiast and spent several hours each day relaxing on a hammock that faced the river, sipping ice cold Beer Lao and was very content. So far, I only have two regrets on this trip: not getting the 8 Hands Massage in Siem Reap and not staying longer in Don Khon. -
Kong Lo is located in central Laos and is known for its 7km long cave. Carlos, Carolina, Graeme and I took the overnight VIP Bus from Luang Prabang to Kong Lo. It turns out that VIP stands for Very Inaccurately Portrayed; it was a nightmare, but got us where we needed to go. We stayed at the Chantha guesthouse, which was the biggest and cleanest looking guesthouse in town. Double rooms were $7.50, which seemed to be the standard rate in Kong Lo. All of the guesthouses had identical menus and we tried Chantha and 2 others. The food was good, but not life altering. Chantha had the best pork laap I’ve had so far. The cave is a 1km walk from the guesthouse. Boats cost $15 roundtrip and can fit up to three people. The cave itself was huge and very impressive. There was an area inside, where you get off of the boat and walk around a lit area. After passing through the cave, we docked at an abandoned village. There is an un-abandoned village that has homestays and restaurants within walking distance, but the boat drivers were not willing to wait for us. It took a little over an hour to do the cave cruise, which was a lot quicker than I thought it would be. The entire operation seems to be run as more of a ferry service rather than an ecotourism attraction, but it was still very nice and I’m glad I did it. Kong Lo town was very small and full of charm. The street that leads to the cave has a handful of guesthouses/restaurants on it and everything else is rice paddies. There is no internet and everything is done at a very leisurely pace. Simply being in Kong Lo was as nice as passing through the cave that drew me there. It’s worth a visit if you have time, but nothing to build an itinerary around.
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The roads between Laos and Northern Vietnam are not the best and there had been heavy rains recently, so I decided to fly from Hanoi to Luang Prabang. This trip began with the overnight train from Sapa that arrived in Hanoi at 4:45 am, then a flight that left the airport at 6:30 in the evening. I met a really cool Colombian couple on the airport shuttle in Hanoi and would spend the next week or so traveling in Laos with them. The flight was about an hour and customs was a breeze at the airport. The guesthouse I stayed at was a 15 minute tuk tuk ride from the airport and a great home base for my time in LP. There was in-room wifi, a hot shower, and a big bed for $8/night. I absolutely loved Luang Prabang. It was beautiful, charming and full of wonderful people. The Lao food I had there was very good and there was a French bakery/cafe that made Parisian quality pastries as well as great breakfast and coffee. I did the standard touristy things for LP and they were enjoyable. I watched the feeding of the monks at 5:30 am, visited a few of the many temples in the city, watched the sunset from a hilltop temple, and went to the night market. I finally got to taste the much heralded Beer Lao and must say it’s the best beer I have had this trip. LP is the starting point for trekking and I did a 2 day/1 night trek/homestay. It was awesome; absolutely perfect. Luang Prabang was my first taste of Laos, and if it was any indicator, Laos could very well be my favorite country in SE Asia.
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Located in northern Vietnam, not far from the Chinese border, Sapa is best known for its ethnic minorities and terraced rice paddies. The Black Hmong and Red Zhao are the two largest minorities and you can tell them apart by the red headscarves worn by Zhao women. I didn’t take pictures of the locals in fear that they would think I was trying to capture their souls. My first encounter with the tribal people consisted of a hoard of them sprinting towards my transport as I arrived in Sapa town. They swarm visitors instantly upon arrival trying to sell handicrafts. These little (most are 5′ or less) women are not nearly as persistent/aggressive/annoying as vendors in other places and many will guide treks/homestays for a great price.
The town itself is not very big, offers beautiful views (on clear days), and is in walking distance to a number of minority villages. Due to the elevation, the climate is much more temperate than most of the country. In July, it was not humid and even got cold at night! Lodging was very reasonable for Vietnam, with dorm rooms starting at $3.50. I stayed at the Green Valley International Hotel. It was $7 for a single with hot water and in-room wifi. The hotel is run by a Vietnamese family and a very cool Aussie named Glenn. I really enjoyed my stay there and think it’s a great option when visiting Sapa. Glenn set me up with an excellent private trek/homestay.
Several people had told me of a Hmong lady named May that is supposed to provide the ultimate trek/homestay. Unfortunately, I did not get her number until the night before my trek would begin. Her phone only gets reception when she is near Sapa town and she had apparently gone home for the night. If you are in Sapa and want to give her a shot, her number is 01659483870. My homestay experience was May-less, but still a-may-zing. Glenn’s friend Olivier and his family hosted me. Olivier’s story is reminiscent of the Last Samurai. While he didn’t kill her husband in battle, he did marry a widower with children and has gone totally native. Originally from France, Olivier came to Sapa 6 years ago on vacation and never left. He speaks English, French, Hmong, Zhao, and a little Vietnamese. In addition to hosting homestays, he is also a trekking guide. Olivier and his wife were perfect hosts. Their home is a 2 hour (1 if you go at Parasco pace) hike up the mountain from Ta Phin. The top of the mountain is a relatively short, steep, very scenic hike from the house and definitely worth the effort. The family has 2 big pigs, 4 piglets, 2 chickens, and a garden. The dinner I had at Olivier’s house was, by far, the best food I had in Sapa. They prepared banana flowers with peanut and lemon, fried green chilies, pumpkin with soy sauce and sugar, french fries, and rice. The banana flower and chilies were really, really good. Everything was made from scratch using fresh, local ingredients (and a light sprinkling of MSG). I got to sample 3 different rice wines that were made by the family. They were strong and tasty. The strongest and darkest wine came from a bottle full of bees! Many homestays allow you to stay with an authentic Hmong/Zhao family, what I had at Oliver’s was that and more. If you go to Sapa, e-mail Olivier at tsen-ang@hotmail.com and experience it for yourself.
Due to booking the trip at the 11th hour, I had another guide take me to and from Olivier’s house. Sa May is a 28 year-old Red Zhao woman and an outstanding guide. Her English was very good, she could walk really fast, and taught me quite a bit about her home. People her age were among the last to have prearranged marriages; Zhao and Hmong can now choose their partner. They also get married in their early 20’s instead of early/middle teens and have 2 children instead of 10. This isn’t the only recent change.
Traditional dress has become a work uniform and is worn to sell handicrafts in town or when visitors come to the village. After work the women change into western clothes. Almost all of the men I saw were wearing western clothing. Sa May took me to visit her home. Her 86 year old grandmother, a man who looked to be in his 50s, and 4 children were watching Korean soaps dubbed in Vietnamese. Her house was made of wood and, with the exception of the television, looked as it may have a century ago. She also took me to her family’s rice paddies. They use pesticides and recently began using a type of rice and corn seed that Sa May thinks comes from China. These plants don’t produce seed crop, so they must purchase seeds annually. Seed prices have been steadily increasing. It costs $1/kg for pesticides and $100 for rice seed annually for her family’s large farm (which she explained as if it was a lot of money). I tried to ask if it was GMO, but was unable to explain the concept to her.
Everyone we passed asked her (in Zhao) if I bought a lot of handicrafts. The town center was full of locals waiting to sell their handicrafts to visitors. The local people may be hustling for dollars, but this is a plantation like atmosphere. The few restaurants and shops in the village are owned by Vietnamese, not Hmong or Zhao. They bought small pieces of land for absurdly low prices from unknowing locals and are the only ones with the startup capital for businesses. The Vietnamese government and private individuals have been aggressively pursuing more land in the villages around Sapa, but the locals have held their ground. Sadly, I think it is a matter of when not if they will find a selfish/shortsighted family in each village. Westernization/commercialism has definitely arrived in Sapa and it is only a matter of time until (what remains of) their traditional way of life is gone forever.
Despite the rapid growth of tourism in Sapa, it is still a truly wondrous place and I wish I could have spent more time there. The food scene is nothing to write home about and Sapa is still my favorite place in Vietnam (sorry Hoi An). This speaks volumes about how special of a place Sapa is. I have been fortunate enough to visit some truly beautiful places and Sapa ranks among the best. The landscape isn’t just breathtakingly beautiful, it gives you chicken skin. Words and pictures cannot begin to do Sapa justice. If you go to Vietnam, please visit Sapa before it’s too late!
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Big, busy cities are not my favorite places to visit in developing countries. Hanoi definitely falls into this category. It is the second largest city in Vietnam and is full of motorbikes (and motorbike drivers), people, and noise. Visitors tend to use Hanoi only as a base for going to Halong Bay and Sapa. Most of the backpackers/tourists stay in the Old Quarter. I spent my first couple days in the touristy part of town and things went as usual. I found some great, cheap local food and dealt with all of the hassle of the tourist zone.
It wasn’t until I took a long walk on a damp Sunday night that I found the real Hanoi. I kept traveling south until the foreign faces and motorbike drivers disappeared. The outskirts of Hanoi were full of small outdoor eateries jam packed with locals drinking, dining, and laughing together. Most people totally ignored me and I got some smiles and a few “what are you doing here?” looks. Now THIS was my kind of place. Instead of walking around with a scarlet “t” on my chest and a target on my wallet, I was invisible; just walking and observing. I get an incredible high when I’m able to go into stealth mode like this and witness everyday life in a foreign place. It is one of my favorite parts of traveling. What made Hanoi special was that it wasn’t special. Behind the hustle and bustle, beyond the tourist trap, there were normal people doing the same thing that they do everywhere. Before I knew it I was asked if I wanted a motorbike ride, then another, then I saw a non-Vietnamese face. My little departure from (or arrival to) reality had ended.
I did do some of the required touristy things (Temple of Literature, Presidential Palace, Unle Ho), but nothing stood out as amazing. I was fortunate enough to meet a Hanoian on a bus from Hoi An to Hue and she took me out for a great night of local dining. For my last meal in Hanoi, I was joined by James and Beth, the British couple I had met in several other cities this trip. In addition to wonderful company, I got to enjoy a couple truly tasty dishes involving crickets at a place called Highway 4. Unfortunately, they were out of the pig ear salad. 😦 Hanoi really grew on me and it’s definitely worth checking out. I got to try many of the culinary specialties and get a glimpse of an overlooked, yet wonderful, city. Vietnam’s capital has a lot to offer and it’s all what you make of it. Enjoy Hanoi!
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Halong Bay is one of the “must see” places in Vietnam, and for good reason. The place is truly majestic. It is a series of islands varying in size with towering limestone cliffs. I spent considerable time researching ways to do the bay. It seemed that a travel agency was the best route and that ODC Travel was the clear winner. In addition to receiving excellent reviews on all of the major travel sites, the company name is one letter off from the name of my favorite Wu Tang member. I paid $159 for a 3 day/2 night trip to Halong Bay and Lan Ha Bay with transportation and meals included. The budget places offer comparable trips from around $50. ODC gives you two payment options. You can pay with credit card and a 3% service charge that is from “your bank” but is included in the charge, or you can pay in dong at an exchange rate of 21000 dong/$1. The actual exchange rate is 20500/1. I should have called shenanigans and gone elsewhere, but I did not. The ATM machine near the agency was not working and I had to walk a couple minutes to find one that was functional. When I returned, the exchange rate was 20500/1. I’m not sure if it was because I’m devilishly handsome, or to compensate me for the trouble, but I’ll go with the former. Between the price and the reviews, I had high expectations. I have not gone on any of the budget trips, so I can’t say what they are like, but I’m trying to imagine getting an experience comparatively bad enough to justify paying 3x as much. The actual tour excluded several things from the itinerary that is posted both online and at the agency. The “cooking demonstration to learn how to prepare some Vietnamese dishes with our professional chefs” turned out to be the tour guide making a sloppy spring roll. The “free drink” that was given on the conclusion of the first day was cheap vodka with a squeeze of lemon and no ice. Not a single person finished it. The complimentary fruit that came with the beverage was apple that was cut with a knife that had been used to cut garlic. Water on the boat was 7.5x the price on the mainland. “Paddle from Luon Cave toward islets in shape of Man’s head island” ended up being a trip on the small boat to Pearl Tourist (trap) Center. In a country where people don’t tip, we were strongly pressured to tip on both the main boat we slept on and the smaller boat that took some of us to Lan Ha Bay. When I asked for my change back after paying for overly priced drinks on the small boat, the crew asked if I had a nice time today and tried to walk away. It took some serious negotiation just to get my change back. The third day was spent entirely on the boat, and for the last 2 hours we were anchored 30 meters from the dock. Instead of letting us deboat, we were trapped on board in the heat and repeatedly offered grossly overpriced drinks. Now that my rant is over, Halong Bay itself is amazing. It is absolutely gorgeous there, and despite ODC, it was still worthwhile just to visit these amazing places. The bay is in the running for being one of the 7 natural wonders of the world and deserves to make the final cut. There are a LOT of tourists and 700 tourist boats there, but that is not enough to detract from the natural beauty. My suggestion would be to go through a budget/budgetish place and roll the dice. I would definitely not recommend going through ODC.
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There were two places in Vietnam I was told to skip or only visit briefly: Saigon and Hue. These were also the two cities in Vietnam that I had local friends of friends to show me around. I ended up having a great time in both. Hue is a relatively small city, with around 300,000 residents. There is a considerable amount of tourism as it was the imperial capital of Vietnam. I stayed in the Hue Backpackers’ Hostel, which was not my kind of place, but the price was right. It was mostly 19 year old British kids getting drunk. I love to party, but this is not my idea of a good time. My special lady friend taught English in Hue and had a couple of her Huean? friends show me around town. Her friend An took me to a popular pagoda that wasn’t far from the city center. It was a pagoda; nothing mind blowing, but nice and peaceful. I did get asked to pose with people for photographs, which made me feel special. The real fun started after the pagoda: food! An took me to a place on the way back to the city for some beef noodles. They were cheap and delicious. For dinner, we went to a small local joint near the citadel and had some really good clam noodles for only 5000 dong ($.25) each! For a sense of comparison, the naan I had at the Indian restaurant in the backpackers’ area the night before cost 20000 dong. The following day I toured the citadel on my own. It is the one touristy thing you have to do in Hue and it was totally worth it. The city within a city within a city was big, beautiful and really nice. After several hours of walking, I went a few blocks from the main gate and found a hole in the wall for lunch. I had pork noodles and it was delicious and cheap. For dinner An and another friend, Nhung, took me to a local eating establishment. We had pork that was grilled on lemon skewers then rolled with veggies in rice paper with sesame dipping sauce and some small crispy pancakes with shrimp and bean sprouts. I really enjoyed the pork skewers. They took me to the riverfront, which was all lit up and full of people on a Thursday night. The next morning Nhung escorted me to an emperor’s tomb that was about a 30 minute drive from the city. It was built on a mountain and really scenic. We had some delicious and cheap crab noodles for breakfast at a packed little restaurant. Hue was really nice and having such great guides made it that much nicer. I enjoyed the cheap, delicious local food and made two new friends.
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Hoi An is definitely a tourist town, but I LOVE it. Despite having an economy centered on visitors, there are a lot of local people here. It isn’t like Venice, with its Disney front and no one actual residents. Even the historic houses that you can tour have current occupants. There is an incredible balance between authentic life and commercial enterprise that is reminiscent of Kampot, Cambodia. In my opinion, things in Hoi An are even better with the French colonial architecture, amazing food scene, and rich history. Like Kampot, you can walk down the streets without being constantly harassed by motorbike drivers and vendors aren’t overly aggressive. Back to the food. Hoi An is the best food city I have encountered on this trip so far. You can get a delicious bowl of cao lau for under a dollar from a street vendor, have an upscale (and up-priced) modern Vietnamese meal from several restaurants along the river, or do anything in between. Being a foodie mecca, nearly every restaurant also offers cooking classes. The highlight of my time in Hoi An was the Morning Glory Cooking School. Morning Glory cooking school is located at the restaurant that shares it’s name. The instructor, chef and owner, Miss Vy also owns the Cargo Club and Mermaid restaurants. They are high end dining establishments and out of my price range, but CC also has a bakery that features amazing french pastries at affordable prices. I am not a fan of dessert and prefer savory over sweet, but found myself going to the CC bakery on a daily basis while in Hoi An and indulging in chocolatey decadence. Not only can you eat well for little money in Hoi An, you can also get your drink on at an incredibly low price. They have the cheapest beer I have ever come across. There are dozens of places along the river that have draft beer for a quarter; quarter beers on the riverside! If you walk a few blocks from the river, you can get a beer for 3000 dong, which is about 14 cents! At night the riverside is lit up and full of life until 10 pm. The only thing in Hoi An that is not cheap is lodging, it is the most expensive place to stay that I have come across this trip. Many of the low-end hotels are $20+ a night, but I was able to find a place with AC and wifi in a good location for $11/night. The name of the place is the Thanh Binh Hotel and it’s located on Le Loi Street.
Southeast Asia is notorious for ripoffs and locals taking advantage of tourists. I was having drinks with the lovely couple I spent my time in Can Tho with and they realized that they had lost their 32gb iPhone4. We determined that the phone must have been misplaced when we were enjoying dessert at the Cargo Club. We returned to the restaurant and walked towards where we had been sitting. The staff immediately approached us with a paper bag containing the missing electronic device. The phone is worth more than a month’s salary and in addition to returning it to the owner, the employees refused to accept a thank you tip. If you have any experience in SE Asia, you will appreciate the gravity of this gesture.
There are also beaches, mountains, and temples to explore near Hoi An. I spent four amazing days in this enchanting city and didn’t feel the need to venture far from the city center. Hoi An is full of charm and character and I consider it a must-visit for anyone traveling to Vietnam.
open mind, empty stomach 