Vang Vieng

Hey all,

Miss me yet?  Of course you did, and if you didn't, shame on you.

I'm in a city called Luang Prabang right now, and I've finally found a place where I can get internet for cheap.  So its time for another update. 

After leaving Vientiane behind, I headed North to a small town called Vang Vieng.  Once upon a time this was just a sleepy little town that some people would go through and take in the scenery.  The countryside around the town is stunning, filled with karsts and small streams and rivers.  And on its own, that would still make the place great.  However, that was then, this is now.

Today, Vang Vieng is a backpackers mecca.  Its considered almost a rite of passage for backpackers doing Southeast Asia, or just Laos, to go to Vang Vieng and partake in the madness.  And yes, the place is mad as a hatter.  Drugs, booze, and lots of insanity was how one person put it, and he wasn't far off.

Luckily though, that's rare.  Most people are just there to enjoy their time and don't want to participate in the dangerous side of things.  Though admittedly, in one bar a beautiful Danish girl offered me mushrooms and weed.  She seemed really disappointed that I said no.

Anyway, despite the stigma there are a lot things to do in Vang Vieng that don't require drugs or alcohol to enjoy.  And on my first day I did just that.

I've been dying to do some kayaking ever since my friend Emma turned me on to it.  And aside from a memorable couple of hours in Halong Bay with Scott, Nikki, and Laura; I'd never had a chance.  Luckily, I found a cheap kayaking tour that was leaving the very next day.  I signed up and headed out.

We were driven about 20 km up the Nam Song River and dropped off.  Along the way we visited a few villages and went inside an underwater cave.  It wasn't completely under water, but since its the wet season it was pretty close.  We had to sit on inner tubes and hold on to a rope so we wouldn't get swept down stream.  The cave itself was a really tight fit, but we all made it.  At one point we had to crawl along a shaft covered in sand to get to the next opening.  I had fun with it but some of the others in my group hated it. 

After that, we spent the afternoon just lazily rowing down river.  The scenery was fantastic, but unfortunately I have no pictures of it.  I'll explain why later on.  Near the end of the day though, we ran smack into the seedy side of Vang Vieng; namely, the river-tubing.

I have no idea how it started, but tubing down the Nam Song River has turned into the highlight of any trip to Vang Vieng for a lot of backpackers.  Regardless of how it started, its become a ritual of Vang Vieng and nearly everyone does it.  Basically, people just get tanked out of their minds and sit in an inner tube as it floats downriver.  In one stretch of river there are about 10 bars over the span of maybe 1 mile.  Employees just throw a rope out to you and pull you in.  Each place has some kind of drink special, including free shots of Lao Whiskey.  Some of the bottles even come with their own insects inside.  My 2nd and 3rd days in Vang Vieng were spent tubing the river with some friends I'd met on the bus trip. 

Overall, the experience was fun, but my favorite part was the free slides and zip-lines.  Nearly each bar has at least one of these, and some have both.  They really just throw you into the water and when (if) you come up they throw you a line so you can come in and drink more. 

Sounds like a really terrible idea huh.  First you get tanked and then you jump into a fast-flowing river from about 20 meters in the air.  I saw at least one guy get really hurt, but I was surprised it didn't happen more often.

And on that note, I'll explain why I don't have pictures to go along with this update.

Remember my camera dilemma from a few weeks back, well its solved.  My mistress has run out on me and taken a chunk of my cash as well. 

In actuality, I was dumb enough to take my new camera out onto the river while I was tubing.  I had it nice and secure in my waterproof bag, and even in an extra ziploc bag to make sure it was dry.  Unfortunately, the bag tore while I was tubing.  My brand new camera, and about 30 dollars of local currency is currently at the bottom of the Nam Song River. 

Its completely dry in its ziploc bag though, hell, it might even still work.  But the only way to find it is with a metal detector and some scuba gear.  Just my luck huh?

On the bright side though, I still have my old camera, but I lost all my pictures from kayaking and tubing.  So for today, you'll have to form your own pictures in your minds.

Thats all folks, catch you next time.