Tag Laos
My goal for the day was to reach Stung Treng in Cambodia, but it’s only about 100 kilometers from Don Det so I spent the (relatively) cool morning hours exploring the islands. Close to Don Det is a slightly bigger island called Don Khon which is famous for two things, waterfalls and river dolphins.
I like the way the boats are surrounded by islets 
View from the bridge, who builds a house on such a tiny little island?
I took the motorbike along the little path that counts for a road in Don Det, crossed the bridge and went out … Read the rest
The sign says “Dangerous Zone” (song playing in my mind: Danger Zone from Topgun) and I can see why, in front of me, massive amounts of muddy brown Mekong waters go cascading down the cliffs in a series of steps, smaller falls feeding into each other, building up to the big one just in front. The roar is almost deafening, it drowns out the sounds of the other tourists nearby. The sign has been put up because while there is a fence, it looks none too sturdy and the ground is uneven and strewn with rocks. Trip, and you could … Read the rest
Except for ziplines there are plenty of watetfalls on the Bolaven plateau and the area around Pakse. Normally I would want to visit all of them but the next stop on the way to Cambodia, Four Thousand Islands, had such an interesting name I wanted to go there earlier. The main island that travelers visit is Don Det which can be reached by a small ferry from Nakasong. When I reached the ferry terminal I was excited to see that the ferry was actually just a small catamaran built by two narrow boats connected by a wooden platform with a … Read the rest
I’m on what counts for a ferry in this part of the world, two narrow boats interconnected by a wooden platform, forming a kind of catamaran with a long tail outboard in the back. Me and my bike are the only passengers, the driver, sitting at a wheel of rebar and controlling the motor with his foot, is a middle aged man with sunburnt skin, wearing a stereotypical Asian conical rice hat. The river, wide and brown, flowing sluggishly by, is dotted by little green islets. Some are big enough for houses, others just a few feet across. Up above … Read the rest
When I got my eye infection some days ago I missed my booking at The Gibbon Experience where you zipline through the jungle and stay overnight in a treehouse. Here in Pakse there is a similar thing called Tree Top Explorer and when I read about it in my guidebook I decided I should do it as compensation for the one I missed. I Just came back to the city after doing it and I will say right away that it was great.
After picking up our group as well as a TV team from Thailand filming a travel show, … Read the rest
I am on a cliff face, my hands and feet on four metal brackets made from rebar, drilled into the rock. I’m on a sort of overhang, below my feet is a straight drop of several meters down to sharp looking rocks, if I fell I would likely die or at least break several bones. Balancing in what feels like a precarious way I unhook one of the safety ropes and move it forward to the next anchor point…… Read the rest
I’m right in the canopy, the top branches of the trees just inches from my feet. I’m on a sort of bridge consisting of two horizontal metal wires for your hands with wire loops hanging down about a step width apart for your feet. With the harness and double safety lines I know I’m safe but there is still a feeling of apprehension when looking down and I keep a steady grip with both hands.… Read the rest
I’m really high up now, zooming along a wire spanning the breadth of the valley. Down below the canopy of the jungle rushing by beneath my feet. To the right the mountain rises steeply to the booming waterfall and to the left, the view opens up to the valley beyond.… Read the rest
I’ve woken up and can’t go back to sleep, so I stand at the railing looking out into the night. Despite not having any lights I can see shapes in the darkness, the silhouettes of the trees, jet black against the charcoal grey of the night sky. Beyond that, stars, more of them than I have ever seen before, twinkling all over the sky. I take in the scene for a few moments before the night chill forces me back under the covers.… Read the rest
I’m lying in my bed listening to music before going to sleep. I can feel the chill of the night air on my bare skin and hear, over the sounds of the music, the whoosh of the waterfall in the background and the occasional frup frup of a moth hitting the protective cocoon of the mosquito net surrounding my bed. It is pitch black like it only gets in really remote areas, far from any kind of civilization, the only light is the tiny amount spilling out around the edges of my phone where it lies face down on the … Read the rest