The Land of a Million Elephants

Apologies for the radio silence - since I last wrote I have been very busy in the beautiful city of Luang Prabang in Laos (if anyone reading this has been there you will understand my reluctance to spend my time in internet cafes.), or else travelling through some very non-touristy areas where internet has been very hard to come by - i.e. non-existant. But i'm getting ahead of myself...

After leaving Chiang Mai I caught a local bus a couple of hours north to Chiang Rai. I arrived and walked through a torrential downpour to find a guesthouse, and so my first impressions of the town were made with a decidedly negative attitude. The next day i awoke in a better mood and set out to explore the town. After a bit of a struggle at the bus station (trying to find someone who wouldn't rip me off) I eventually boarded a bus for the trip out to see the magnificent White Temple. Constructed in 1998, it is a really cool and modern interpretation of life. The decorations are a bit macabre, with heads swinging from trees and hands reaching up to grab you as you cross the bridge to enter the temple. Very different to all the traditional temples of which I have seen so many. They are beautiful but all merge into one after a while...

Then I headed into the hills and stayed for 2 nights in an Akha village - one of the many indigenous tribes of northern Thailand. There I met some great people, and trekked through magnificent countryside. Once again, I got soaked through to the skin... the rains seem to have come early, just my luck!

Crossing the border into Laos was easy - you have to take a tiny little longtail boat which takes all of 2 minutes! There was no great discernible difference immediately apparent between the two countries. People say that Laos people are very friendly and less likely to rip you off, but I didn't feel particularly that that was the case in Thailand either.

From the border town of Huay Xai, I took a 2 day long trip on a slow boat down the Mekong river. Which sounds a heck of a lot more romantic than it was in reality!!! While the scenery was beautiful, the boat itself was very crowded. I was lucky enough to have a seat near the front and away from the noisy engine. But some people didn't even have seats - the boats should hold 70 but i'm sure there were over 100 people on board. At least the 6 hours on board allowed me to catch up on my reading and journal writing.

We stopped for the night in Pak Beng, a rather uninspiring town which has popped up just to service the passing boat trade. That said, I had an enjoyable evening there with new friends I had made on the boat. We left early the next morning and after 8 bum-numbing hours, we arrived at Luang Prabang, 'The Pearl of the Orient.'

I can attest to that. I checked into a nice hotel with air con and a TV (for all of 13 pounds per night) and luxuriated in being off that blooming boat! The night market here is amazing, so many wonderful crafts made by the hill tribe people; scarves, lanterns, carvings, jewellery, wall hanging, quilts, umbrellas, etc...

I have met some really great people in Luang Prabang - every time we meet up I seem to add another member to the group. Everyone laughs at me and says i'm too friendly :) I just like talking to people, and it's so easy when you're travelling. If you went up to someone in a bar, in a museum or on the street in London they would think you were a bit odd and be wary, but here it's the done thing. So with my group of international friends, i"ve spent this week exploring the town and surrounding area.

I've seen the National Museum (which is the old King's Palace), watched traditional dance at the Royal Theatre, been to some beautiful waterfalls, seen a million temples, and, best of all.... ridden an elephant!

I had been doing a lot of research into how ethical it was, and found a company called Elephant Village which is affiliated with a place in Thailand called Elephant Nature Park. It has an elephant hospital, and rescues ex-logging elephants. Satisfied that I wasn't causing them any harm or distress, I spent the day learning the be a 'Mahout.' We first of all rode the elephants with a saddle (don't know if there's another word for it) which was a bit scary - especially when going downhill! There was a hairy moment when they saw some piigs and started trumpeting and turning in rather quick and tight circles... Then we went solo and bareback! That was quite an adventure... especially as, of course, I had the naughty elephant who kept wanting to stop and eat the trees. 

I eventually (and relectantly) left Luang Prabang and made my way to northern Laos, and have since crossed the border into Vietnam. I'm currently in Hanoi - which is a real shock to the system after lazy laidback Laos. I will save that story for the next blog installment...