Slow boat to Luang Prabang

With fond memories of Myanmar behind me, Thailand was like stepping into the 22nd Century.
The concept of electricity 24hrs a day, internet facilities and men not wearing traditional clothing (ie.skirts) was almost alien to me. However, I soon adapted and soaked up the, western influenced, culture that Chang Mai had to offer.
After my unforseen delay in Myanmar, I was in a hurry to get to Laos, and found myself on the first minibus to the border.
The common theme for any journey around South East Asia, is that no seat is left empty, and the minibus to the border was no exception. In this case I was sat next to a 6'5'' German. It turned out that the German had a Britsh sense of humour, and we spent the following three hours trading sarcastic remarks and discussing the upcoming world cup.
After a night on the Thai border, we crossed the Mekong the next morning and entered Laos.
This process involved two tuk tuk rides, a ferry ride and a considerable walk, with the heaviest rucksack in the world.
We found the slow boat and were on our way by lunchtime. The term 'slow'boat is no exaggeration, and was probably the best way to fully appreciate the scenery on offer, as we chugged down the Mekong. Laos has some of the most spectacular scenery that I have seen to date on my trip, with huge jungle covered hills climbing either side of the Mekong valley.
The rest of the day was spent playing cards, chess and acquainting ourselves with the other passengers and a couple of beer laos.
So with a boatload of new friends I made my way for Luang Prabang. This journey was broken up with an overnight stay at a small town called Pakbeng, which had 'Deliverance' like qualities and, I think I speak for the entire boat when I say that, we were all glad to leave the next morning.
So another day on the water and I'd won several hands of a card game, whos name I can't recall, and been soundly thrashed at chess by a UK ranked chess master. With the chess lesson firmly at the back of my mind, we arrived in Luang Prabang and promptly set about locating accommodation.
for those who weren't aware, Laos is an old French colony and Luang Prabang is peppered with colonnial architecture, which is meticulously maintained. This gives the town an almost Disney style quality with its manicured streets and houses made out of sugar candy. Fairytales aside, it is very picturesque and one of the legacies left by the French are the hot baguettes served almost everywhere. Along with condensed milk in tea, no fresh milk, I see my waistline swell before my eyes.
After two days of rain, and a couple of nights on the Lao Lao at Mr.Hongs coffee shop, I, along with a small group acquired on the boat, head down to Vang Vieng. We take the'notorious'route 13, which is stage to armed hold ups over recent years, and brace ourselves for adventure. Despite passing a few bewildered looking men with rifles, our adventure comes in the form of a break down. About five or six breakdowns in fact. To compound our situation, it's raining and getting dark and we have to keep finding rocks to place behind the tyres to prevent the, handbrakeless, minibus from rolling back down some very steep hills.
After a few, big hammer, repair attempts the bus finally finds Vang Vieng and, through the rainstorm, we find sanctuary in a hotel in the centre of town.
The next morning I check out of the hotel in the centre of town, and check into a bamboo hut on the edge of town, where drunk people can't keep me awake all night and scooters can't wake me up in the morning.
This relocation is much more favourable and for the rest of my stay in Vang Vieng, I awake to the limestone hills that run parallel to the town, down the Nam Khong river, fresh air and peace and quite.
In stark contrast to such natural beauty, the town is full of restaurants that constantly play 'Friends', 'The Simpsons' and other TV shows on a lupe, all day long. It would seem that the whole place has been relocated for the booming tourist trade and each day a new building appears. It is, however, not long before I find myself sat in one of these bars, chuckling at the antics of Joey and Chandler.
On our second day, the weather clears and we all indulge in, what would appear to be a unique activity to Vang Vieng, 'tubing'. This involves, hiring a tractor inner tube and getting dropped off 3km up river, only to float back down it again. The floating, and this is the best bit, is broken up by a series of bars that serve, the much loved, beer lao and have varying combinations of ziplines and rope swings. Under blue skies, we spend the day launching ourselves off varying ropes and rocks, proving that the most basic of entertainment can be the most rewarding.
Time flies when you're having fun apparently, and having fun we were. So much so, that we didn't notice the storm blowing quickly in behind us. So in a mad dash, we left the waterside playground and paddled, in a most pathetic fashion, down the river towards home, and ultimately a couple of episodes of 'Friends'.
The next day was, funnily enough, spent doing exactly the same thing, including racing the storm at dusk again, although I believe we may have watched 'The Simpsons' that evening.