So, last update i was about to leave Chiang Mai, which was great fun and met some really cool people there. I then moved onto Pai. I'd only heard good things about this place so was looking forward to getting there. The 3 hour minivan, was interesting. The guy was driving like an absolute nutter, with a full bus of people. Tyres screeching, the lot. It was a beautiful ride up there though. Twisty roads through the mountains with amazing scenery. We thankfully all arrived in one piece and I headed for my hostel called SpicyPai. It was basically a few bamboo huts in the the middle of a few rice fields. There was a common area in the middle with some hammocks and cushions. Very chilled, very cool. I loved it., even if it was a bit cold at night in my treehouse style bed! Felt like a lost boy in the film Hook sleeping there.
First night there was a charity reggae gig on so we all piled down there, the band played The Specials, so i was happy. Pai itself is a small little town and it is so chilled out! They fucking love Reggae there as well, maybe to the point i was getting a bit sick of it by the end. I was only planning on staying for 2 days but ended up there for 4 as i loved it so much. I hired a moped for the duration of the stay. Those who know me well enough will know what i mean when i say i made sure i took it easy! All was fine, literally like riding a bike!I One day we went on a little loop of the town on the bikes, fed some Elephants and went to a beautiful canyon for sunset. Also spent a day swimming at some waterfalls and by a pool just chilling out really. Met some really cool people here and was sad to leave. But after 4 days me Ali, Suzie and Tayla started the 3 day, 2 night trip to Luang Prabang.
The journey started with a 9 hour minivan to Chang Kong, which is right on the border with Laos. We got there around midnight and were all knackered, we had to be up at 7 the next morning so it was straight to bed, we were randomly in the next room to Dan, who was the 1st person i met in Pai, so he joined the group which was a cool! My morning started interestingly. Woke up at about 6 for a drink of water. Next thing i knew i was throwing it up everywhere. No water for me then that morning. I felt like absolute bollocks and i'd say the Thailand to Laos border crossing is pretty horrific at the best of times. It invloved getting stamped out of Thailand, a boat acros to Laos, then about 3 more q's for visas and visa fees and then finally getting stamped in the country. Jokes. Needless to say by the time that was all over all i wanted to do was get on the boat so i could lie down and sleep! Luckily we got on the boat last and managed to sit up the front with some locals which meant i could lie down and didn't have to cram in at the back with 'the masses'! By now i managed to keep some water down so started to feel better throughout the day and take in some of the beautiful scenery, it was truly stunning! We got to our overnight stop off at around 6 and managed to find our hostel. Again we had to be up early the next morning, so it was a relatively quiet one that night, and with me feeling like i did earlier in the day i laid off it for a night! I think the place was called Pabang, but it was literally in the middle of nowhere. Had a really good nights sleep and felt so much better the next day. Again by getting on the boat last we somehow managed to bag the best seats on a quieter boat, result! The day started off pretty quietly and then we got a bit tipsy throughout the day. We met a few people on the boat. Nathan and Jack, both from England and then two Swedish guys, Simon & Ulf (I fucking love that name!). It was a good day!
We got to Luang Prabang around 5 and headed to SpicyLoas. Not to be linked with SpicyPai in anyway, nowhere near as good! But alright, we managed to get ourselves our own little sectioned off room of 3 which was cool. 1st night we didn't really get up to that much it was my b'day the next day so we went to some place called Utopia for food which was a really cool little hidden Gem. Then headed to Lao Lao, again really cool little place, We discovered that they gave away free shots everytime you asked for them of this stuff called Lao Lao, made from rice, Red in colour and totally leathal! It became known as our 'medicine' and the waiter was the doctor! Nice work Jack, funny shit.
The next day was my birthday! Started of bright and early, went and got food and then headed out the Kuang Si waterfall. It was totally breathtaking. A series of turquoise pools where you can swim and jump in from rope swings or off the top of the waterfall, i got sung happy birthday at the top on my own by the gang, nice touch. Perfect way to spend the day. We got back, washed up and headed out for some festivities. Went and had an amazing Steak at Utopia, then headed for some medicine at Lao Lao. Got a couple of little presents and a card , then it's a bit hazy. The weird thing about Luang Prabang is everything shuts down at 11:30 and the only place open that serves alcohol late is a bowling alley about 10 mins out of town by tuk tuk. So basically everyone piles down there bang on 11:30 to go bowling till the early hours. So weird. But obviously we obliged and proceeded to drink some Lion King whiskey and bowl, badly. It was a top birthday and i can't thank Dan, Ali, Suzie, Tayla, Jack & Nathan for helping me celebrate.
The only other thing of any significance i did in LP was to get up at 5:30am to go and give the monks some sweets. It was pretty boring, i was wish i'd stayed in bed. Oh yeah we also played football with some kids on a beach by the river. They were cool, much better thank English kids. The main thing i'll take away is Lao Lao, Where are all the monks going? Who's touching the monks!?
I'm now in Vang Vieng which i'll leave till next time as i've not been here long. It's pretty mental though i can assure you of that!
Till next time! X
P.s. I still haven't seen a drop of rain since i've been here! Bye! x
