Whiskey Village

There was actually another stop: “Whiskey” - Xanghay Village, where they produce rice whiskey.

We had a wee tasting. I kept asking for just a tiny bit in my shot glass - and while I did get less than the others, it was still way too much for my taste. 😁 While I could drink the first one, the second and third remained almost untouched. Also because the alcohol content rapidly increased with each one. From 15% for the red/black one to 35% to 50%.

I kinda felt immediately drunk. 😁

They also showcased other whiskey - bottles filled with, apart from the whiskey, animals. Mainly snakes, centipedes, and scorpions. Apparently, they use geckos too, occasionally.
The purpose of that, as we were told, is to use venomous animals mainly, and that these whiskies are drunk by middle-aged men (50+) to increase their virility. They apparently take a shot daily. Nyok, I guess (“bottoms up“)?

We were free to walk about the village for a few minutes. This time, thankfully, there was no begging.

Back in the boat, we cruised back to Luang Prabang - really, really slowly. It could have taken one hour, but they stretched it over 2.5 hours so we could see the sunset.

At the hostel, I wanted to sort through my luggage and noticed that two items - the exact ones I would have needed at that moment - were missing: my beloved pocket knife and my luggage scale.

When I was in Chiang Mai, I had put my big backpack into storage, and after getting it back, I noticed it was open. I immediately flagged that and was told to check my belongings. At the time, all seemed to be there, but of course, I didn’t know what to look for specifically.

Now I think back to that moment and, while I don’t have proof, I’m pretty sure that was when my stuff was stolen.

I was rather unhappy and grumpy that night.

I went on a hunt for another luggage scale, at least, because I needed that somewhat urgently.

I actually found one. It’s absolute crap, but at least it works.

When I bought it, I couldn’t tell whether the batteries were included. So I asked at the counter. The lady, however, didn’t speak English, so I opted for Google Translate.

While she now knew what I wanted to ask, she just remained clueless and at a loss as to what to say. She was visibly incredibly uncomfortable and seemingly just wanted me to leave. So I just bought the extra batteries, just in case.

This keeps happening, that people react this way. Language barrier - yes - but there’s more to it, especially since technology takes the language barrier away. It seems like genuine cluelessness. I find that truly unnerving.Read more