The morning of our boarding crossing into Laos immediately started well due to the amazing banana pancakes (what we would call crepes) that was served by the lady who ran the guesthouse we stayed at in Chiang Khong. After breakfast, we got in a van for a short drive down to the Mekong river. We then carefully got onto long boats that took across the Mekong (took like 5 min...). Once getting on the shore of Laos (where we were strictly forbidden to take pictures) we walked up the hill to get our passports stamped into Laos and also change our money into Kip. I thought the process would be a lot more militaristic as it is a really strict country, but it was not at all, the guy checking our passports was sitting at this fold out desk and barely glanced at the passports. I think what helped was that on the shore we were also met by our Laos guide- Viang (not sure on the spelling there). In all the countries that we go to, we are required by law to have a guide with us who is licensed by the government. This has been great for me, not just because they are really helpful for translation, especially when we go to places that are not major cities (which is a lot of the time) but also because it is so interesting to talk with them about their lives and their impressions of their home and where the country is heading.
After clearing the border we walked up the hill to the main road where we met our Tuk-Tuks that were taking us to the other side of to get on a big house boat that was to be our transportation for the next two days. The boat is in the picture above. It was a beautiful and relaxing boat ride. A great time to catch up on the journal, read and play cards. That evening, we arrived in Pakbeng. A SMALL Laos town, which the Rough Guide to Southeast Asia states, "for many Pakbeng is the first stop in Laos- Don't Panic!". This statement was definitely important to keep in mind. First of all, when we got there we were immediately swarmed by little boys who wanted to be our sherpas to carry our bags up the sand hill to our guest house. Even though it was pouring rain, the climb didn't appear difficult, so no one really wanted to use them. A few people ended up giving them their bags because they felt bad, but it was really sad to watch them because they were so small and clearly so desperate for any money.
That night we had dinner at a place that had electricity sporadically. The drinks were not refrigerated and the woman cooked by candle light. It was a good introduction to the true meaning of "Laos Time" as our dinner was served very slowly, one at a time. Thankfully, we had our guide with us to translate to the owner/waiter, but even that did not guarantee we got what we ordered. After dinner we walked back to the guesthouse, where the generator had been turned on, so this time we could see what we were doing in the bathroom! My roomate for the night (Leia) and I read until the generator turned off at 1015.
The next morning we woke up and got packed again, this time the boys surrounded the guesthouse about 30 min before we were even ready to leave. Again, the walk wasn't that bad, so no one really used them. We got on the long boat and headed down the Mekong for another relaxing day; this time we were headed for Luang Prabang.
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