Sitting in the back of a mini-bus; I got my friends, my shades and one ticket to Vang Vieng.
For those of us who had never been, we were warned of the party town that is Vang Vieng. Although it isn’t as crazy as it was 4 years ago, it had more than enough wacko to keep us laughing for ages. Drugs, alcohol and sun make for the craziest tourists that are sure to make you question humanity at least once.
We set out early on Saturday morning to Blue Lagoon and a cave to avoid swarms of tourists, and we were successful. The cave especially, was really beautiful. Tree branches over the water offer the chance to jump in, and that’s exactly what I did- along with so many Korean tourists. It’s a one by one sorta deal so there’s a full audience of people watching when you jump in. As soon as C and I got up there, cameras and phones were pointed at us…the attention we get as white people I tell ya… We were all shocked at how so many tourists who can’t swim were jumping in the water. Carolyn had to swim to rescue this Korean woman who had jumped and was basically drowning. No one on the side was doing anything either because they themselves don’t know how to swim. Good for them for trying but let’s not try by jumping off a tree with no way of reaching the shore ok?
After lunch we took another tuk tuk to the Kaeng Nyui waterfall. When we got out of the tuk tuk a little boy of about 2 years came running to us and was just the cutest thing of life, smiling and asking us to come play. I was so happy until I saw what he was pointing too…A group of kids sitting, hitting bamboo sticks to make music and asking you to come dance over the sticks with them. Plot twist: they want you to give money after. I recognized the behaviour and look on kids’ face immediately so didn’t take part in it. Breaks my heart.
The Kaeng Nuyi waterfall was absolutely beautiful. Is there anything better than swimming and climbing waterfalls? I was so excited and happy to be climbing and exploring around the smaller waterfall; I kept wishing Tori was with me. I had to hold on to branches, roots and rocks to maneuver through waterfalls, so fun.
We had a relaxing night by eating colossal amounts of food by the river and watching the tv show Friends in a restaurant. Vang Vieng has a bunch of laid-back restaurants with Friends playing which is like the most genius idea ever right? Love it.
The next morning we all rented bikes and set out for an Organic Farm we heard about. We got to explore a little bit of the farm, but hadn’t reserved anything ahead of time so we had to wing it!
There’s so much more I could share about this trip, but that’s all for now!
Shout out to my friend Phil who’s app game Mighty Fred kept me entertained during my bus ride! Still frustrated at my lack of skill but with time, I’ll get better. For those of you with an Android you should check it out! You can download it for free on Google Play or on your computer at http://www.custodiangames.ca!
Pictures below!
-Marielle
Red Wax Seals 