Partying Lao Style, Free Food and Free (Very Strong) Booze
Huay Xai -> Luang Nam Tha, 19th April 2002
Groan! `I didn't realise my room was on a main road', I thought as
the traffic started roaring past at 6am. I fumbled around for my ear
plugs, put them in, tripped up in my bleary eye-idness, got back up
& fell asleep for another hour.
After getting up properly, I gathered all my stuff together &
wandered across the road to another guesthouse. Half the price, much
better. Admittedly the quality of the room was a million miles
apart, but it's easily bearable. Probably much better than that
Chinese guesthouse! However, there's no fan (of course no a/c),
that's a bit of joke. Seriously hot, sweaty nights (because of the
temperature, not because of bedroom antics, unfortunately) and no
fans aren't good. I think I'll try yet another place when I return
to Luang Nam Tha (I need to back track a little on my loop around
Northern Laos)
I started the day with a disappointing breakfast at a place the
Lonely Planet said served `the best breakfasts in town' (they'd run
out of baguettes at 8am, they gave me steamed rice instead of sticky
rice, they chicken soup only had chicken bone & skin in with a tiny
bit of meat). Another occasion where it's best to look for yourself.
Remember, guide books are great to get you started, but after that,
move on and live for yourself. It'll be much better. But that's
enough griping, the rest of the day was pretty interesting, a
whirlwind of activity!
I started by hiring a bike and pedalling off to the morning food
market. A fantastic place to watch the locals doing normal things.
These markets are interesting to western eyes with their mix of
strange, local food and more recognisable things.
After that, I took a long cycle round to That Phum Phuk, an
impressively large stupa (tower), built in the 1600s, that was
knocked down by a bomb blast in the Indochina war. After cycling
past the tiny domestic airport (a single runway & some shacks), a
few Lao villages and some rice fields I reached the hill. Clambering
up, I quickly found the stupa, and it does look quite impressive. It
lies on one side, looking miserably to the sky & trees now grow
entwined with its crumbling base. After a few photos, I moved on.
I stopped to look at the quite impressive Buddhist temple, again
staffed by some very young monks. Then I continued on to the Boat
Quay.
I parked my bike and sat down, looking out over the river. A pair of
boats sat waiting, while a man in the water carried out repairs on
one. Although muddy brown, the cool water looked very tempting in
the heat of the day. A group of young children had had that idea and
were playing around in the river with a huge black inflatable tube.
After a while, some of them climbed out & walked past me, staring at
the falang. `Sabai Dii', I said to them. Their faces lit up and they
cheerfully replied with the same words.
I turned away, then turned back, and the children had returned. 4 of
them stood around me, silently. They said a few words to each other,
then just stood, staring. The knew I couldn't speak their language,
and they couldn't speak mine, so they stood in silence. One of them
had a bamboo pole, at least 6 ft high, and he stood looking out over
the river, like some wise chief. We just looked intriguingly at each
other. Like a two sided zoo. After a while, one of them thought it
would be funny to kick up an ants nest near me. I jumped up and
mover away, then one of their friends accidentally walked through
the ants, so they all started laughing heartily.
Back on the road, I took my granny bike back to the market to do
some souvenir hunting. While parking my bike, two ladies sitting
eating sticky rice offered some to me. `Khawp Jai' (thank you), I
said to them. I like sticky rice, so I took a large handful. They
kept insisting that I have more, so after a few more handfuls of the
yummy stuff, I searched around the stalls, and with a few souvenirs
I returned to town.
Back at my guesthouse, I'd intended to drop my stuff off at my room
then grab some lunch. But I didn't plan for the, rather forceful,
hospitality of the Lao people.
When I got to my guesthouse, I found a large crowd of Lao people and
all the tables had been moved outside and were covered with food &
drink. Loud Thai pop music was blaring out of the speakers. As I
tried to pass through, a lady grabbed my arm and indicated for me to
sit down & help myself to the food. Well I won't say no to a free
feed, so I tucked into the variety of Lao dishes, most of them quite
delicious. Of course out came the Lao-Lao (whiskey) so I had a
couple of jiggers (shots). I don't like neat spirits at the best of
time, so I was very grateful when I was offered some beer.
I chatted with a Japanese backpacker who said he'd been pulled into
the celebrations in the morning & had been here since! All the Lao
people were dancing around to some Thai pop, then a few moments
later, we were both dragged up to join the dancing.
The next couple of hours were spent dancing away with the Lao
people, celebrating Pi Mai Lao (Lao New Year). It was good fun,
apart from when this middle aged guy kept trying to set me up with a
30-year-old Thai lady!
One lady was wandering around offering people, especially Farangs,
jiggers of Lao-Lao. I say `offer' but force is a better word! I
really don't like drinking lots of neat spirits, but she kept
insisting, and so I had to accept. Quickly following it with some
rice or beer to lose the flavour. One farang guy couldn't explain to
her that he'd been Tee-Total for 15 years, and he was forced into
taking a couple of jiggers! Still, it was all done in good fun, then
of course the water splashing came along, but not as bad as it was
in the streets Chiang Mai. After a while, the 20 minute unbroken
Thai pop songs began to have their toll, and the party quietened
down.
The clearing up soon began, and I decided to take a walk up a nearby
hill to get some good views of Luang Nam Tha from a popular
viewpoint. It's kinda funny, but since New Zealand, whenever I see a
hill or mountain I get a strong urge to climb it! I guess I just
love the feeling of accomplishment when I stand breathless at the
pinnacle.
I walked up, carefully sticking to the marked paths. Lao has a big
problem with UXO (Unexploded Ordnance) as it is the most bombed
nation in history. Subsequently there are countless unexploded land
mines & bombs. I don't know if there are any around here, but I'd
rather not risk it.
I reached the top and stood, breathless, looking at the superb view.
Only the sounds of nature, the wind blowing, insects clicking &
birds calling. Fresh, clean air filed my lungs. The beautiful town
of Luan Nam Tha surrounded by forests & mountains. Wow.
After today's activities, I had a quiet evening updating my diary &
just chilling. Tomorrow I move onwards again, this time to Muang
Sing. I had originally hoped to do a short 1 or 2 day trek (they're
amazingly cheap out here) but it's difficult organising it if you're
on your own. The minimum group size is 4 so I need to find a group
to join. Unfortunately, the treks for the next couple of days are
fully booked. Oh well, I can try again in another town.
Good night!
Next Diary Entry >>
|
