Slow Boat to Laos

As soon as the bus pulled into Chiang Khong, Thailand, it was a mad rush, like the amazing race, to find a Tuk Tuk to the river where we checked out of Thailand.






*Goodbye Thailand! We shall meet again!*





You then cross the Mekong River into Laos where there is another mad rush to get your passport through the immigration window!





Once you do, you just wait on them to hold yours up, pay them in US dollars and you're good!

One of the most popular ways to enter Laos is via a slow boat down the Mekong that takes 2 days to complete with a stop over in Pakbeng to sleep. So, of course, that is what we did!






The boat only leaves once per day and we heard times ranging from 9:30 am to noon. This is why we took the 6 am bus out of Chiang Rai! So, we got our tickets and some snacks and went to stake our territory on the boat. The only seats left when we got the were in the back by the motor and so notoriously, very loud for 8 straight hours. Lucky for us, 4 chicks from South Africa had each had their stuff in 4 separate 2 person seats, so they offered to give us and some Dutch guys their extra seats. Very nice of them since the seats were probably the best on the boat!

I would guess that we got on the boat around 10am and the boat ended up leaving a little after noon, but you never know when it's going to leave, so you don't want to get off for any reason! Again, lucky for us, we had bought some rum and coke so we got the party started early.

The whole day consisted of talking to our neighbors, admiring the awesome views and Julian getting into political and ethical debates with one of the Dutch guys which provided entertainment for the front half of the boat :)
The partying was all good until some English kid had a few too many and fell off the boat into the river. Luckily, this happened on our sister boat, so it didn't delay us too much. And yes, they did turn around to pick him up.






When we pulled into Pakbeng, it was dark and we had some trouble finding a room (I won't bore you with the story) so we ended up taking a local up on their offer to sleep above their bar! Not the most luxurious accommodations, but it was a semi-clean room with a bed... It reminded me of where we slept on the trek, just above a bar instead of in the jungle!











The next day we were back on the boat, same old same old! The views the whole trip were amazing. Julian really enjoyed all of the cool rock formations. And who knew the Mekong has sandy white beaches?
















































Finally, around 6 pm or so we landed in Luang Prabang.





- Mattie and Julian

Location:Mekong River