Some photos from our grueling trip to Laos. We booked a slow boat, which is apparently so slow you have to pit stop in a crummy town where everyone wants to sell you opium before waking up at the butt crack of dawn and getting in another, somehow smaller, boat for the second day’s journey. It was awful when it wasn’t gorgeous.

Our border run was a success, but unfortunately we didn’t dig the touristy vibe enough to stick around for more than a few nights. We are once again hanging out in Bangkok before makin our next move to Krabi.

As inevitable as it was, I’m still sad to have left Chiang Mai. I will never forget the $1 bowls of Kao Soi or the cute waitress at Black Canyon Coffee that once ran down half a block to give us back our change when Chris unknowingly paid with a 1000 baht note instead of 100.

Being on vacation is always loads of fun, but the actual act of traveling never outlives the novelty of being “on the road,” so to speak. The journey to Laos was certainly no exception: we rode a minivan for some hours to Chiang Khong, which is on the Thailand-side of the border, and stayed at an all right guesthouse with a fabulous view of the river that divides the two countries.

In the morning we took a boat across the river and went through the Hell of immigration. We each were fined 500 baht ($15) for overstaying our Thai welcome for 1 day. Oops.

Getting our visas was the real nightmare. Picture this: a tiny foyer, totally cluttered with travelers, all speaking different languages, no one knowing exactly what’s going on or what line to get in, or if you’re even in line, reaching over and around each other to throw their passports at the first official looking Laotian they see. Ahhhh– a true Kodak moment. Wish you were here!

After that mess we jumped in a cramped slow boat– 6 hours to Pakbeng, a crummy port town. Next morning, another smaller slow boat (but with all the same people) for 8 hours to the final destination: Luang Prabang.

We both got awfully sick during our night in Pakbeng from our guesthouse’s food. Chris took this utterly gorgeous photo of me just seconds before I ducked my head over the edge of the boat and barfed. Thanks, Chris! In his defense, he had no idea I was on the verge, and when he snapped it I was actually in the middle of saying “Can I sit there?” as he had the coveted seat next to the open “doorway.” Puking into the Mekhong River ought to win me some bragging points in backpacker circles… Now I just have to make friends with some backpackers.

After a hot shower, Wayne’s World 1 & 2 on cable TV and a lot of water and bananas, we both felt better and ready to tackle Laos.

Our time in Luang Prabang was overshadowed by the fact that neither of us were feeling very well, but we still managed to have some fun and see some sights. The town is really laid-back and cute, with a touch of France due to Laos having been a French colony not so long ago.

We climbed the local mountain-temple on our last day in Laos. You can do the math.

Halfway up there’s a bodhi tree and shrine.

From the top, the whole city is visible at every direction.

On the way down there were lots of golden Buddhas, marked by the day of the week. I asked Chris what it was meant for, but he didn’t know exactly. Having just graduated with a degree in Religious Studies, he was later able to redeem himself when he explained to me– in great length– the story and symbolism of Ganesha over ice cream.

We decided to save ourselves from more unnecessary pain and booked a flight straight from Luang Prabang to Bangkok. Otherwise we would’ve had to ride a 10 hour bus to Vientiane (capital of Laos), pay more $$$ for a Thailand 30-day visa, then ride another bus for who knows how long to Bangkok. Instead, we spent 1 1/2 hours on a plane for $160 each and got to Bangkok at 10 in the morning, and our immigration problems were sorted due to coming in on an international flight. Good deal.

As an aside, if we had flown Bangkok Airways it would’ve been almost $100 more per ticket, so we rode with Lao Airlines instead. This was my first time on such a small plane, and not nearly as scary as I’d've imagined. The plane seated about 64.

This weekend we have been staying at the A-One Inn, being mallrats at MBK, though yesterday we got out of the guesthouse and rode the skytrain to Mo Chit to witness the weekend market madness.

We got lost multiple times, despite having two different maps of the area, and I got sunburned beyond belief and spent much of our time sulking in Chatuchak Park about how hot it was.

After giving in to the air-con heaven of JJ Mall, we found a nice Japanese restaurant for lunch. I had avocado-wrapped salmon and cucumber rolls. You’d think we’d never had sushi before because all we managed to talk about was how good our food was. In retrospect it really was good– we had sushi for lunch again today at Sukishi in MBK and it was only so-so.

We’ve been visiting the movie theater a lot this weekend, too and have become very familiar with the Thai commercials and tributes to the King that precede each viewing.

We saw 3 movies in 2 days and returned last night for the last remaining English speaking film, which was aired in the VIP theater– the theater is much smaller and more intimate, and the seats are bigger, comfier and connected only in pairs with lots of leg room in every direction. You also get a blanket to keep warm (theaters in Thailand are fuh-reeezing!) and a free drink in the lounge.

• Push (2/5: Enjoyable, but awful writing, casting, acting, ending, etc. Dakota Fanning was dreadful and Camilla Belle did not convince me as being old enough to even hold hands with her love interest)
• Valkyrie (3.5/5: I love Bryan Singer, but I couldn’t fully get into a movie about an attempted assassination I already knew the ending to)
• Underworld 3: Rise of the Lycans (3/5: Love Bill Nighy, can’t stand the girl from Boston Legal. I much prefer Kate, but this was a good prequel nonetheless)
• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (5/5: I thought it was going to be boring; it was everything but!)

Oh yes! I almost forgot– these last two photos are for my bro ‘n’ sis, Alan and Lindy. I don’t think you’ll have any trouble figuring out which photo is for whom.

We have seen these metal sculptures at two different shopping centers in lots of different forms: Boba Fett, Wall-E, and the hugest Darth Vader ever to name a few. We’e a little confused as to how much they cost, but Chris is in love and we may be coming home with a bite-sized version. If it doesn’t break the bank, we might’ve found the perfect souvenir for you– the dweeb who made me the dweeb I am today!

And this was spotted in Laos on our way to the mountain-temple. I haven’t got a clue what it’s about, but it stopped me dead in my tracks!

Well, that’s it for now! Next time you hear from me, I’ll be swimming in the emerald seas of Krabi and Phuket. Say hello to the winter for me, won’tcha ;)