Laos 1 – On the Mekhong

If you are interested, there is practical information about this trip at the end of this post.

Our first sight of Laos was from across the Mekhong in Chiang Khong after a two hour bus ride from Chiang Rai where we spent the night.

On the Laos side of the river, the town is called Huay Xai.  We immediately discover that the ‘burning’ season is at full swing as the smog is quite thick (Photoshop was not able to recover much, I am afraid).  This is a very busy crossing for people and for goods coming from China. 

The landing spot for the ferries is not very impressive – it has had to be improvised as the river is much lower than usual.

The Ferry Terminal, where we completed the transaction to exit Thailand is a long way up the hill once we get to the river.

The passenger ferries are not very fancy – fortunately, the crossing does not take very long.

I cannot say that our first glimpse of Huay Xai is very impressive – and we would not spend more time there than strictly required to go through emigration and get a little cash – the line to exchange money was actually longer than that to clear emigration as that needed more paperwork.  I should have gone to the ATM up the street – that was a lot quicker.

The first two days in Laos would be spent on a ‘slow’ boat going down the Mekhong towards Luang Prabang.  It is quite a nice way to start a holiday as it forces you to relax and rest.  There is not a whole lot to do on a boat going down a river, except getting to know the people I was travelling with, and taking a lot of (usually really poor) photos.  Our home for the next two days (or so we thought) would be one of these.

It is quite comfortable for only nine passengers – eight in our group plus our tour leader.  For two days, we watched what life was along the Mekhong River.  There were many fishermen, using a simple contraption made of bamboo to raise and lower huge fishing nets.

Whenever the valley opened up a little, it was clear that visibility is very poor – unfortunate for the photos, and probably for the lungs even though I did not feel any ill effect.  During the dry season, farmers everywhere burn the fields and the rests of last year’s crop to make them ready for the next wet season and the next season of growing.  It seems that in order to travel in Laos you have to choose between rain and clear air or dry and smoggy – it is difficult to have dry and clear and I do not think that Clearasil would work on this scale…

As I had meintined earlier, the Mehkong is unusually low this year.  There were many rock exposed which would have normally been underwater and the shoreline is free of any vegetation, which is a clear sign of low level.  This does bring some benefits to the local people.  The people in this photo are panning for gold.  We saw quite a few groups like this one, and if they keep looking, it must mean that occasionally they must find something.

In order to break the journey, and stretch our legs, we stopped along the way for just a few minutes, long enough to see the ‘local’ ferry.  Here the Mekhong is entirely in Laos and so there are no administrative impediments to crossing it.

On the shore, we saw jars which were empty.  We were told that they are used to make fish stew – fresh fish is put in these and left in the sun for several days with herbs and spices.  Sounds yummy!

Along the way, we also changed boat for a smaller model, but still very comfortable.  The river is so low that our boat is too wide to go all the way to Luang Prabang and so we need something narrower.  As I said, we took the ‘slow’ boat.  Others could not wait and took the ‘fast’ service – hardly first class service, but you shake a rattle for only 4 hours, if you get there at all.  The safety records of these “surf boards on hormones” as my guide describes them is not stellar.

The helmet is optional and usually only the driver wore one.

Regularly along the way, we would see a small village with fields and wooden huts

As the sun started to come down, I passed the time by playing with the water and sunlight, trying to get interesting effects in combining the two.

Trying to get the right background is not easy either.  The wake of the boat provided a constantly changing mirror for the sun.

I took three of these in quick succession.  On the first the sun in totally hidden, this is the second and on the third, the sun is too visible.  All three photos were taken in less than one second – without auto-winder (or whatever you call this now that there is no film to wind) and a fast camera, it would be impossible to get this just right.

I believe that there is an additional range of mountains in the background of this photo, just too faint to be seen on the picture even though it was there by the naked eye.

People started to come to the river for theis evening bath.  We saw many people like these, at the foot of a small village, washing in the water, fully clothed.

Others decided it was a good time to relax at the end of the day and enjoy the sunset just like us.

We stopped for the night in Pak Beng, the only sizable settlement between Huay Xai and Luang Prabang.  Basic accommodations, but we found a reasonable restaurant with a great host and fantastic cook (his wife) – we were almost the only guests and they had to get food from neighbouring establishments as they ran out of food – not easy to plan when you can get 1 or 10 people any evening. 

As always in this part of the world, there are temples everywhere, with the typical roof design that is so common here.

I get a different view of the river, since I am not right on top of it, in the morning sunrise.

Back on the river, with the same boat we had yesterday, we continue our journey, encountering more fishermen using a different approach this time.

We stopped at a small village.  This appears to be the local yacht club …

Local people were quick to gather to see the ‘foreigners’.  They seem to be well prepared for us though, as the market was in full swing as soon as we arrived.  The welcoming committee seemed more puzzled than welcoming…

They teach sales techniques very early in these parts – only one year old and he already knows that ‘white’ people bring money.

The village itself is not very fancy – the houses are basic but provide good shelter.  People do not have a whole lot, but do not seem to be miserable or unhappy.  Life is probably not very comfortable, but also not harsh for this village.

The view, if they have time to enjoy it, is quite spectacular

Just before arriving at Luang Prabang, we stopped at a ‘retirement home” for Buddha statues.  Called the Pak Ou caves, they are full of Buddha statues of all styles which have been ‘discarded’ by local temples.

 

As a result of the water being so low, the roots of this tree are completely visible.  It must usually sit in several meters of water.  We saw several like this one along the way.

We arrived in Luang Prabang in late afternoon, in time to have dinner and than a quick walk around the evening market that sets up in front of the Royal Palace.  More on Luang Prabang, and Laos next time…

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

There are six posts on my trip to Laos – 5 in Laos and one in Thailand

The trip was organised by Peregrine Adventures – I have taken several trips with them and enjoyed all very much.  this particulare trip is called “Laos Unveiled” – trip code ‘PALU’.

Laos is not a country where independent travel is easy to do.  The infrastructure is still developing – therefore it is nice to have an organisation taking care of all the logistics while still traveling in a small group – and that is what Peregrine Adventures offers.

I took Thai Air from Vientiane back to Bangkok.  Lao Airlines also has flights, but the schedule did not match well with my flight to Singapore.  I asked Peregrine how much they would charge for this flight, and found that with a little work I could get a ticket on-line for about the same cost if not less (different currencies, so it really depends when you look).

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