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  • Claire and Karsten

South-East Asia

A 182-day adventure by Claire Read more
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  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler

    Siem Reap

    November 29, 2014 in Cambodia ⋅ ☁️ -1 °C

    On the way to Siem Reap we came through a village along the shore of the Tonle Sap river. While on the right side of the road everything appeared to be normal - houses, shops, beautiful temples - all those buildings on the left side of te road were built on stilts. To cover the distance of the slope leading from the road to the significantly lower left side they built small, wooden, not at all trustworthy looking bridges.

    Our luxurious bus - playing captain America 2 which we couldn't watch cause our speakers didn't work - drove on a dusty road in mostly bad condition. The traffic on that road led to everything along it being covered in a thick layer of red sand.

    The city Siem Reap itself is a mixed bag, really. The city center is a subdued version of Kuta. The pub street is so touristy that it is funny again. Food is expensive but beers can be had for 50 cents during happy hours...which last all day. Then there are residential areas further north which look pretty much like a Cambodian village. Then there are several beautiful Wats in Khmer style coloured mostly in yellow like in the kings palace. The area around the river is more a commercial center with lots of very nice small shops. If we only had a way of carrying all that nice stuff... ;).

    We made a cooking class on Sunday. It was impressive how the lady instructed 8 people to cook 8 different starters and main courses. But it was also 8 people cooking 8 different dishes so everything was a bit less hands on and less instructions. But the food still turned out great and it was fun.

    We had two great evenings with the british couple - the one we met at the border few days earlier. Yes, Cambodia seems to be a place where we actually have a social life! On the second evening we chose to drink our beers on a cute bridge close to the city center but it seems that this location is actually a meeting place for gays and ladyboys. So it has been sometimes awkward for the guys, having some people sitting very close to them and trying to start conversation.    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Angkor Wat

    December 2, 2014 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Today, after 4 days in Siem Reap, we finally visited the great temples of Angkor Wat. The most impressive things were a) the size of the structures, Angkor Wat itself is the largest religious building on earth, and b) just how many of those great temples there are on the site.

    So we did as lot's of other tourists do and got up at 4.30 in the morning to try and see yet another sunrise. But quite like Borobudur it was cloudy and it even rained a bit. So, no luck there. But the rising sun managed to push some of the clouds away, so we were able to come away with some nice shots.

    We left the sunrise viewing a bit early to get a head start on the tourist masses which turned out to be a good idea as we were able to see most temples in relative quiet. The first significant chunk of time we spent in Angkor Wat where not a single pillar in this massive structure is left without carvings and the bas-reliefs truly are magnificent. Here, a guide might have come in handy, but we were too scrooge to get one. We managed to get bits and pieces of information by eavesdropping on tours in English, French and German though ;).

    We won't talk you through all the temples we visited (name dropping: Angkor Wat, Phnom Bakheng, Bayon, elephant terrace, Phimenkas, Preah Palilay, Preah Khan, the gates of Angkor Thom, Ta Prohm, Banteay Keri, Pre Rup). But some highlights to be mentioned were the Bayon, Preah Khan and Ta Prohm.

    Claire's favorite was probably the Bayon which we were lucky enough to visit when the light fell perfectly upon the gargantuan faces of some God that were built to more than slightly resemble the king at that time, Jayavarman VII. Karsten's favourite was the Preah Khan (thanks for the tip, Jen and Alex!) which is in some parts covered by very peculiar trees! Ta Prohm was a highlight aswell with the Tomb Raider tree, but that was pretty much the only temple which a bit overrun by tourists in our presence. Really great to see are also the bridges leading up to Angkor Thom with gods and demons holding the handrails of either side. Just be aware that if you visit the temples, be prepared to climb some really steep stairs.

    All in all it we a great and exhausting day. Angkor Wat is absolutely worth the visit! So if you ever visit the area...

    We finished it off with a well deserved foot massage...which was mediocre at best ;).

    Also, we have wayyyyy too many pictures to post them all or just one of every temple...Sorry.    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Angkor Wat

    December 2, 2014 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Angkor Wat at sunrise picture post

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Angkor Wat

    December 2, 2014 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Upon request some pictures of us. All of course taken in the temples

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler

    Siem Reap

    December 2, 2014 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Next to being touristy, Siem Reap has some treats to offer. More than anywhere else in Cambodia we were able to find a ton of fair trade and hipster shops exactly to our liking. A lot of them, as well as a good hand full of restaurants are in it for the good cause as they donate their profits to foundations and NGOs!

    Next to that, the city has a vibrant art scene. In one of the arty fair trade shops we found a flyer for the 10th Angkor photo festival. This was awesome as they held several vernissages on consecutive nights here. We were able to visit 2 of them. As they came with a fair share of free drinks even Karsten was happy to go there. Jen and Alex, those would have been the perfect thing to enjoy together!

    The first vernissage was for a cambodian photographer who exhibited the pictures he took as a memorial for the crimes committed under the Khmer Rouge regime. He took pictures of everyday objects that people had to get rid of during that time as they tried everything possible not to be noted and identified by the regime. For example passports and fotos were frantically buried in the ground as they gave away identity and therefore profession of the carrier. If that profession was associated with education it would have meant certain death if officials had found out.

    The second one was for an English photographer who made wildlife trade the center of his work. His photographs depict the cruel consequences of wildlife trade for purposes such as eating, showcasing as trophies and using for traditional medicine.

    If you are still looking for causes to donate to in order to increase your tax deductions, the childsafe network and wildlife alliance are probably worthy causes!    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Kratie

    December 4, 2014 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Our last day in Siem Reap was spent with looking at cute shops, eating, waiting for the rain to be over etc. In fact we were just killing time as we were waiting for the night bus to leave at 11 PM which we had decided to take to go back to Phnom Penh and then up the Mekong to Kratie. We also went to the "cinema" in Siem Reap and saw the second part of the Hobbits in preparation for the upcoming finale. In this place you can rent a room for 2 to 10 people and watch a movie you choose from a big folder. In your room there are big couches and a large screen. Fun!

    The nightbus had 2 storey of beds being a bit inclined as hospital beds and with security belt at the waist. Good that Karsten made a extended read about it so we were prepared against the cold air-con! The travel could have been comfortable if most of the drive haven't been on a bumpy dust road. Nevertheless, we managed to sleep and, for its purpose, it is definitely better than seats!

    Arriving in the early morning in Phnom Penh, we found a bus to Kratie 2h later. We were not sure how long it would take but hoped for 4h. We had just enough space for legs, which is already great but the air-con was quite weak (always complaining huh ;) So when the bus arrived in Kratie 8h later... we were quite happy to get out of it!

    We are now in a veeery nice hostel organising eco-tourism and being a training center for the local youth (when we can comfortably support good causes, we are always in ;). The shower is amazing, didn't had one like that in months!    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Kratie

    December 6, 2014 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Yesterday and today we basically spent on bikes. Yes bikes again! I'm telling you, Claire will be a Villo regular when we're back in Brussels!

    Yesterday we took the local ferry for 25 cents to cross the Mekong to the island of Koh Trong. Upon arrival we rented 2 bikes which were barely able to hold up on our trip all around the island. The trip is only 9 km but the bikes, the road and the cows standing on the latter turned it into somewhat of a challenge. The cows here were well fed, in comparison for example to those in Chi Phat. That is what the Mekong does, we guess. Cycling through the island village was nice and from one spot we could see a floating village on the Mekong.

    Today we rented better bikes as we had a trip of roughly 30 km ahead of us. We went up the river to a pool in the Mekong where about 40 Irrawadi dolphins are still living. This highly endangered species can only be found in certain spots in Cambodia and Lao. We rented a small boat and spent an hour watching a group of 3-6 dolphins play in the river. You might wanna do a Google image search on those as they look very peculiar. On the way back we treated ourselves to a coke and some sticky rice and spent the rest of the day planning our trip ahead and napping.

    We're now heading out to our last Cambodian sunset over the Mekong with a couple of Angkor beers. They are really worth it...the sunsets we mean of course.

    After that we'll go to sleep for a last time in Cambodia for as long as the roosters next door let us. They clearly have no clue whatsoever when sunrise is.    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Cambodia wrap-up

    December 8, 2014 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 6 °C

    - when using transport in Cambodia steer clear of the minibuses. In a car with 10 seats at least 15 people "have space". But this sounds easier than it actually is. When travelling from Koh Kong we asked like 7 times if it we will get a big bus...aaaaaand we got a minibus. And there is just nothing you can do ;)

    - they theoretically drive on the right side but that is even more just a guideline than in the countries we visited before. Wanna turn left and you can't find a whole in the traffic to get to the right side of through road? No worries, just drive on the left side for a while until a hole opens up. Also, the rules for the right of way we technically the same as in non-UK Europe. But de facto it is the right of the stronger vehicle...or whoever makes it into the junction first.

    - wearing a full pyjama on the street for women in the morning and evening is something usual

    - karaoke-style videos in the bus is a thing. But nobody sings...

    - there is landscape to be seen on bus rides between cities! Whereas in other countries along the roads it looks like the whole country is "urban" sprawl, there are green areas with nothing else to be watched from the bus which makes the rides somewhat more enjoyable if it weren't for the stuff described above

    - having a wedding? Just put up a big tent on the street where you can seat your guests

    - grilled spiders and snakes are not so common, opposite to white larvae sold as peanuts

    - the whole covering up on motorbikes for women is not happening here

    - this is dragonfly country!!

    - overall impression: we really, really enjoyed our time here!    Read more

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    Don Det, 4000 islands

    December 10, 2014 in Laos ⋅ 🌙 11 °C

    Since Monday we are in Laos. We got on a bus in Kratie and made our way across the border where we only got ripped off for like 2 USD for the visa which is fine.

    Our first stop is Don Det, a small island within the 4000 islands in the Mekong. We stay at lovely mama piangs guesthouse. The food is great, the rooms are nice, the internet is unstable and mama is the best. We spend the days doing nothing and then usually head to the other side of the island to see the sunset with a couple of beers.

    It seems to be customary to meet people on the bus getting here and spend the days here together. We have done the same. Adding other acquaintances it makes for interesting combinations of nationalities at dinner. Yesterday there were Germans, a Norwegian with guitar, an Austrian girl, an Israeli, and a Swiss one, a brit, a French, a Polish, us 2 of course and Mama. Good fun!

    Been there, Don Det!    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Don Det

    December 12, 2014 in Laos ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    After 3 days of extreme relaxing we did the complete opposite on our last day on the 4000 islands and went for a full day kayaking trip. Boy, we do feel that in our arms and shoulders today. The trip took us through braided parts of the Mekong - which were really fun to navigate through - to 2 waterfalls and a pool where we spotted the back of another dolphin for like 2 seconds. But the waterfalls were nice and the second one was especially impressive as it is the largest in Southeast Asia volume wise.

    We also want to talk about Mama Piang here, the best guesthouse owner we encountered so far. Funny, loud and with a big heart, she really made our stay on Don Det worthwhile! Everybody loves her and that's why we were a pretty big group enjoying evenings together at Mama Piang.

    Now we are in Pakse, a sleepy yet big city a bit up north. It is pretty chilly here, only like 22 degrees at night. The Laotians are already sporting their longsleeves.    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Bolaven Plateau

    December 14, 2014 in Laos ⋅ 🌙 0 °C

    Since we still don't ride motorbikes ("just rent a motorbike!"), we decided to go on a one day tourist tour in a minivan in order to see the main attractions of the region east of Pakse. On yesterday's programme: waterfalls, coffee/tea plantation, villages. The two first were nice - especially the 120m one or the one in Tad Lo where we definitely understood why many backpackers choose to linger - and Claire loved the espresso she tried at the plantation! The village however was somehow quite disturbing. We had no guide, so the driver just told us to leave the van in two different villages (traditional for one thing or another) with no more explanation. So you have a bunch of tourists walking around the village, watching people living, taking pictures. We felt pretty uncomfortable as if we were in a human zoo...

    Today was a bus day. The local bus is stopping all the time for various reasons, as expected, but we were happy to find out that there is air-con, each passenger has his own seat and they played Transporter 1 & 2 between karaoke videos. Although the movies were synchronized in Lao, Karsten was happy enough, as the transporter still kicks ass!

    What we didn't expect were the 10 hours total it took, the stops for up to one hour for no apparent reason and tons of women swarming the bus with eggs of all sorts, fruits and half a chicken on sticks.    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler

    Kong Lor

    December 15, 2014 in Laos ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

    We had another travelday as we made our way further north to the small village of Kong Lor whose surrounding nature we'll go explore tomorrow.

    But today we didn't use a coach but travelled like the locals do - or at least almost. We took a songthaew from Tha Khek, for which we probably overpaid a little. That means of transport is basically an open pick-up taxi in form of a large tuktuk where you can hop on or off along the way. We were lucky cause our ride was unscheduled and probably unlicensed so we had the vehicle to ourselves for most of the way. Usually they are filled to the last spot.

    The best part of the trip were the landscapes through which we passed. Absolutely breathtaking and not only because we rode behind an ammonia truck for 10 minutes. Karst-shaped rock formations through which the beams of the setting Sun were falling, interesting vegetation and a mesa (=Tafelberg).

    We probably won't have too much time to explore much of it but it was already worth it just taking the ride here.    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler

    Kong Lor

    December 17, 2014 in Laos ⋅ ⛅ 6 °C

    We had planned on hiking extensively in this region but we had to cut our visit to central Lao short in order to get to Vientiane. There we are now, standing in line and waiting in halls cause Claire needs a Thai visa if she wants to enter by land and stay longer than 15 days - which she does.

    So we had only time to visit THE attraction in Lao, the Kong Lor Cave. You rent a boat with up to 3 people, put torches on your head - makes taking pictures difficult - and drive into the 7 km long cave through which the local river runs. After being awed by several giant rooms you get off the boat and can walk through an area where the stalakmites and -tites are illuminated. Then you get back into the boat and drive for another 40 minutes to get to the end if the cave. That thing is just gigantic! There are rapids in the cave through which your captain has to steer. At one point he headed full speed right towards a wall just to rip the boat into the right direction at last second. Like this he had enough speed to get the boat literally up a stoney step.

    The most beautiful thing is when you get out of the cave n the other side and get stunned by the landscape again. Definitely worth a visit, this cave!

    On the way to the capital a little girl in the bus was just constantly puking for like 7 hours. And then she just dangled a clear plastic bag full of barf from the hanger on her seat for everybody to see. Lovely!    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler

    Vientiane

    December 20, 2014 in Laos ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    As said before, we didn't have too much time visiting the capital of Lao PDR since we had a couple of appointments. But, quite frankly, there are more interesting cities in SE Asia. We saw a couple of Wats, the presidential palace and their version of the arc de triumph which they describe themselves on a plate inside as - and I quote - "from distance even less impressive". Besides that, there are tons of embassies, the biggest one being of Brunei, and pompous governmental buildings, as it befits a socialist dictatorship.

    However, there are a gazillion nice restaurants with great lunch offers - we had an AYCE buffet for 2,50 EUR each - and bakeries with decent croissants but no cinemas to see the Hobbit. Also, the traffic is nothing compared to other big cities. It is far less and far more orderly than in Phnom Penh or Saigon for example. Nice for a change!

    The second night here we went for street food - including a trip to the night market trying different bits here and there. Excellent sausage (on a stick ;) - with an Irish/French couple and we couldn't help but notice how differently you approach people while travelling. They had been at the tourist information the same time than us. Then we saw them again on the bus to Vientiane and that was clearly enough for both couples to strike up a conservation. Imagine that in Germany/Belgium. They would be more like "yeah, I'm gonna sit over there". But while on the road this is necessary of course or you wouldn't meet anybody. And it is quite nice that way!

    In other news, it is almost winter here. Being only at 28℃ during the day, temperature drops to like 17 during the night. So COLD!    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Vang Vieng

    December 23, 2014 in Laos ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Now this town is something different. Absolutely packed with tourists and they don't come for the once again stunning landscape. To make perfectly clear to you what this town is about, as soon as you get out of the bus, there are people shoving a voucher for a free drink in your hand. And in the evening, when you go collect this free drink you realize that the bar across the street has free drinks from 9-10 PM. And a bit further down the road from 10-10.30 PM. And everywhere they have the equipment for beer pong or flip cup. Thus, there is a ton of party tourists here. And for the hangover induced lazy day the following morning there are a handful of bars showing endless reruns of Friends. Vang Vieng used to be famous for the drugs floating around - one was allegedly able to get pretty much anything - but government seemed to have successfully ended this. We weren't even asked if we wanted to buy anything,

    But if you look beyond the party stuff, the town has a lot to offer. After we collected a number of free drinks the first night, we slept in the first morning - Sunday - and decided to head to the blue lagoon and the nearby cave. To get there one could rent a car, tuktuk, bikes, quads and even go carts - so, naturally, we walked. 7 km at noon in the blazing sun. Smart move clairsten, smart move. But once we arrived we could hop into the lagoon with seriously cold water. Very refreshing. After that we explored the cave which was really nice and huge, but nothing compared to Kong Lor really. In the evenings we stilled our slight craving for Western food with a steak for 3 EUR. That should do it for the next 3 months again... ;).

    The last day we went for a hike to a waterfall through the mountainous area around the town. That was really fun cause the trip not only included walking up and down steep paths but also climbing over rocks, dipping into the waterfall basin, wading through a river a couple of times and walking through dense, 2m high grass. But another sign that most people aren't here for this kind of activity was the fact that we were the only ones to have booked said trek.

    More popular are kayaking and tubing, where you rent an inflated truck tyre and just float through the river. Seems to be quite relaxing but we chose to rather go hiking in the end, which was a good decision as the nature was absolutely beautiful!

    So, we really enjoyed our time in Vang Vieng and absolutely recommend it. Just get a guest house a little bit outside the city centre ;).    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Luang Prabang

    December 24, 2014 in Laos ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    Merry Christmas everyone! Hope you all had as a nice day as we had with a handicraft course, free tuktuk rides, a murderous massage and an excellent dinner!

    P.S. Dunja, we hope the pictures answer your question!

    P.P.S. this clearly should have been uploaded on the 24th but we did have some trouble with the internet ;).    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Nong Khiaw

    December 26, 2014 in Laos ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    We have been pretty lucky so far as our plans never really have been derailed by sicknesses. But now we are sitting in northern Lao and we both caught a heavy cold and are pretty much strapped to the bed. It has been bloody cold during the last couple of days (night temperature around 10℃, windy, and we don't have the comfort of a heating ;), so that probably didn't help. We hope to be in better shape tomorrow to be able to go even further north. The village we are trying to get to is said to have one of the most spectacular karst formations surrounding it. But if we don't make it, it is pretty darn nice here, too!Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler

    Muang Noi

    December 27, 2014 in Laos ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    Today we said "down with the sickness" (OK Nat, what band?) and took the boat to Muang Noi anyways. We knew we wouldn't be able to do the nice treks around the village, but we spent a lovely day watching the scenery in a cafe.
    The boat ride here was very scenic with mountains on each side of the river, water buffalos drinking and going for a swim, pigs wandering about, local fisherman taking care of their business and little boys doing the Gangam Style. Brilliant!

    Tomorrow it is already back to Nong Khiaw but not before we spend some more time in our hammocks and freezing half to death at night.    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler

    Luang Prabang

    January 3, 2015 in Laos ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    OK, we haven't been writing in a while so first of all, happy New year to everybody! We did recover from our colds in time to be able to celebrate new years properly! Great thing was that Nancy and Perinne from Brussels are on vacation in Thailand and Laos and made it to Luang Prabang for new years aswell, which was great!

    So together we went in the evening to eat Lao style BBQ in the lovely Lao Lao garden who welcomed us with a free shot! After downing that one and a couple of beers, we continued to the utopia bar which is a great place to relax during the day. For the party they turned their volleyball field into a dance floor and had a giant burning man some time after midnight. So that was cool! At 3ish we decided that we wanted to go sleep now but where held up at a private party in a shop of like 20 people with the host being super excited to have so many guests! That was really fun and we ended up in bed around 4.30.

    So naturally, we didn't do much on the first!    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Luang Prabang

    January 3, 2015 in Laos ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C

    Now on to the other stuff that happened:

    Back from Muang Noi we stayed one more night in Nong Khiaw, in the same guesthouse where we left our luggage for the short trip up north. From there we took the local bus - read soengthaw - with 20 other people to Luang Prabang. Not a lot of space to stretch out in this one ;). After arrival we checked into our overpriced guesthouse. The city was just full. Almost all accommodations were fully booked.

    On the 30th we did some sightseeing and checked bars for new years eve. There we ran into a British girl we had met on Don Det who was with a bunch of great Australians with whom we spent that night and also new years.

    The highlight - sightseeingwise - came on the 31st when we headed with Nancy and Perinne to the Kuang Si waterfalls which are absolutely fantastic (we have started to watch the BBC documentary series "Last chance to see" about endangered species with Stephen Fry on YouTube, so imagine us saying fantastic with a thick British accent!). Pictures can't really capture the colour of the water which was a bright blue. Of course we went for a swim although the water was bloody cold. But it was so cool bathing in those waters!

    After recovering from our hangovers we finally had our cooking class in Lao cuisine! It took place outside which was really nice. We were 15 people with only 3 cooking stations but since we cooked 5 dishes everyone got to work with the wok in front of the watchful eyes of teacher and group. But we again learned a lot of great stuff but as always it remains to be seen what of it can be reproduced at home!

    And in the latest news: coming back to the hostel on the 30th after our unexpected evening with the Australians, we saw a mysterious mail from Claire's mother: "around 16h" - followed by the encyclopedic description of the name Finn. We directly skyped with Claire's parents to know all the details about our new born nephew, and it is then that we noticed that we were actually quite drunk ;) Claire is obsessed with the baby and tries hard not to watch his pics and pronounce his name more than 10 times a day. It is tough for her ;)    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler

    Road to Thailand

    January 3, 2015 in Laos ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C

    At the time of writing we are now officially on the way to leave Laos. But we are doing so the Lao way: slow and relaxed! We just embarked on the slow boat up the Mekong which will take us halfway to the Thai border on the first day and to the border on the second day but most probably too late to actually cross it. So we'll spend another night on this side of the border and will then have exercised all 28 days of our Lao visa.

    The landscape along the ride is again stunning and makes the time worthwhile as the boat slowly inches forward. We got baguettes, bananas, cookies and - already causing envy among our fellow travellers - a couple of Beerlao for the afternoon. We came prepared!

    But did we mention that it is pretty cold here in the morning in earlier posts? Boy, it's cold here in the morning!

    Edit: we are actually in Chiang Rai, Thailand right now. Findpenguins can't keep up with us!    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Lao Wrap-up

    January 3, 2015 in Laos ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    - have we mentioned the landscape? Lao is definitely one of the more beautiful countries when it comes to nature! Absolutely worth visiting!

    - however, the cities - with the notable exception of Luang Prabang - lack any charm.

    - everything in Lao is calmer and slower. Busses and boats leave when the driver can be bothered and not by the made up departure time on your ticket. Luckily, this also applies to the dogs! We hardly had any chasing or even just barking after us as it happened all the time in Cambodia.

    - the culture is all about sharing. Beers aren't drunk from the bottle but shared with glasses, food is served one dish after the other because you are expected to share them anyways, bikes don't have a carrier but an extra seat in the back so you can give someone a lift etc.

    - the Lao flag is displayed only in combination with the communist flag. Apparently this wasn't the case some years ago but we don't know what prompted the change.

    - the bombs dropped onto Lao during the Vietnam war are often now used as decoration

    - Lao was more expensive than we expected. The beer costs between 1 and 1,50 EUR, cheap accommodation between 5 in smaller villages and up to 17 in LP on New years and somehow they got the notion that every tuktuk ride should be 2 EUR per person which is grossly overpriced compared to other countries and due to the fact that they often have more than 2 passengers. Transportation was also more expensive than for example in Cambodia or Vietnam. It makes sense for a lot of products to be more expensive as Lao doesn't produce much themselves and has to import a lot processed goods from China or Thailand. But that doesn't apply for everything and especially not for tuktuk rides. There you just feel scammed every single time which takes a bit the fun out of it.

    - but they do know how to make good baguette sandwiches! And in some expensive bakeries you can even get damn good croissants.

    - street food is better than in Cambodia, but the cuisine overall is the least exciting so far. Which doesn't mean it is bad at all. It is still pretty good it just has to deal with fierce competition and the best is yet to come for us: Thailand    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Chiang Rai

    January 6, 2015 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Against all odds, the Lao-Thai border was still open when we arrived late with the slow boat in the border town of Houai Xai and once through - we got checked into Thailand by a guy dressed in full cycling gear ready to close shop - there was even a minibus waiting to take us straight to Chiang Rai for a decent price. So after 14 hours on the river/road plus one hour to find a place to stay we finally dropped into our first Thai bed.

    The city of Chiang Rai isn't a real beauty. But there was some sort of flower festival going on which was very nice. One of the major attractions however is definitely worth seeing: the white temple. It is just so WHITE! Built in 1998 it has all elements of a classic Buddhist temple. Yet it is filled with peculiarities like skulls on top of gates, statues of mystical and not so mystical creatures - like one statue of a predator as in alien vs. Predator - and inside apparently statues of superheroes. Unfortunately, the inside was closed to us due to the monthly staff meeting. Damn!

    We inquired a bit about treks up north but most of them included visiting local villages, something we are not too comfortable with. And customized tours get expensive real quick.    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler
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    Chiang Mai

    January 8, 2015 in Thailand ⋅ 🌧 24 °C

    After 2 nights we left Chiang Rai and headed to Chiang Mai, the place hundreds of expats made their home in Thailand. So did our friend Julian, whom we have first met in Warsaw and now so happens to be here. We obviously met up, explored the city a little, had some good food and took advantage of his scooter to finally go see the Hobbit.

    Yes, the 2 of us went behind the driver on a single scooter which is not really forbidden it seems. Maybe more of a legal gray area. But if we trust someone with riding a motorcycle it is Julian, who rode on a bike from Bremen to Cape Town.

    In the cinema the seats were really comfy with flexible backs. And before each movie the king's anthem is being played with a weird video of people worshipping him and at times even crying. Naturally, everybody has to stand while the anthem plays.

    Pic no. 3 shows the parking garage underneath the mall with the cinema.    Read more

  • Claire and KarstenSouth-East AsiaTraveler

    Pai

    January 8, 2015 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    After just one night, we left Chiang Mai for the time being and headed up north to the alleged hippie heaven that is Pai. And it truly is nice here. We would have liked to stay a little bit longer, but now that time has become a precious resource on our travel, it just isn't possible.

    Pai is embedded in beautiful mountain scenery and has lot's to offer. But the calm retreat that attracted many people years ago is no more. That doesn't necessarily mean it is a bad thing. Along with the tourists came a lot of nice cafes, bars and restaurants and Pai is still a very nice place with an arty vibe. It is just different, we guess. However, we pretty much had our best breakfast pancake in a garden cafe here!

    On the first day we explored the town and in the evening tried to show the folks here how to properly pub quiz. Not so easy though if you are the only team consisting of non-native speakers and only 2 people. Nonetheless we had to be cheated out of one point to finish 4th and not third and thus just shy of a bottle of locally burnt whisky. Damn them! On the other hand, we won't turn blind after drinking that stuff, so we got that going for us, which is nice.

    The second day here we just spent relaxing by the local pool, had some cake, relaxed in hammocks and capped off our stay with great dinner and couple of beers (which are quite expensive here). The weather wasn't so nice anymore and the day of our departure was a rainy on all the way to Chiang Mai.    Read more

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