Good day,

Not so long ago, while I was busy not “having a boring life”, aka before I fractured my face. I was in Luang Prabang. It’s actually very similar to Hoi An, only in Luang Prabang, Laos, you have monks, here you have tailors. Luang Prabang is also home of some tasty Snake Cobra Whiskey, indeed it is. I also spent a long time there. I really like these wonderfully weird places where you feel like you’re in a Dr. Who episode.

Chum or Tom, not sure how you pronounce his name, makes some MEAN Mekong moonshine. Very mean, very intense and very strong like the sign suggests. After I drank it, I threw a mini-cooper into the Mekong, sadly my camera battery died. If you’re into strangely strong drinks and don’t mind risking your life drinking a plethora of poisonous things you’d never want to encounter in the wilderness, I suggest you visit him and “give it a shot”. It has cobra, other snakes, scorpions, weird centipedes, all sorts of creepy crawlers. Basically anything that is poisonous, he finds and crams into these jugs and lets them ferment, hmmm…

Describing the drink as “intense” is an understatement and tastes like nothing you’ve ever had before. (duh!!) I had this a few more times with various different people, it really burns. I suggest you sip it slowly instead of just down it. Then again, that would be kinda boring and painful so there we are. There was this dutch dude who was like 50 who says he has one every night, I give him a formal hat tip where I actually take the hat off, a sign of true respect and admiration.

As for today, I did nothing except drink sugarcane, water and visit my “lunch lady” and sleep, snore.

Ahh, Luang Prabang is a great place, I highly recommend you visit there if you’re in Northern Thailand and thinking of going into Laos, that or if you’re in Laos, make the trip, it’s a time warp. Looking through my external hard drive of video and photos, when I return home this summer and DON’T BLOG about how I’m fishing and golfing, I’ll have daily photos / videos and other things you will probably find interesting.

I am aware I said Thailand Whiskey when it’s Laos Whiskey, whatever.

Tips Hat,

P.S: I sure have ingested a lot of Cobra on this trip, I kinda feel like “Cobra Commander”. Truth be told, he was always my favorite G.I Joe character and G.I Joe’s were always my favorite toys. What is with the new toys that don’t have bending knee and elbow joints, you can’t have good “wars” without it, man Mattel needs a shot of Mekong Moonshine, STAT!

That’s a good tasting steak right there, covered in mushrooms and gravy, price? Not so bad, 30,000Kip ($1US = 8,400K). Slurp, that’s also a delicious coke. Why the $^%^ am I making a deal out of what I’m eating? Try I’ve had food poisoining last few days. I’m a mind over matter kinda guy so I just kept on my usual routine but this time, paid the consequences.

6 hours in a packed minivan and being scared to eat anything, you get to a place like this and you look down and say “stomach, love it or make me relive it, suck it up, this is going down”. Delicious.

I digress.

Woke up early well not really woke up, more like was woken up with the worst stomach I’ve had in 4 months in Asia all night. What a horrible night last night was.

I digress, once more.

Aight, so I’m in Vang Vieng or something like that, it’s about ~200KM from Luang Prabang but takes you ~6hours + to get there, it’s all up and over some of the sickest mountains I’ve ever seen, besides the Rockies of course. This was different though and we went through many small villages.

I want to take a minute to say that anyone back home or anywhere in the West who says “FML, my life sucks”, get a grip, quit being a total over-dramatic loser. You have it soo good, I have it sooo good, we all have it soo good. If I could have it my way, we’d cut some of those mooches off welfare but apart from that, I’m cool with the way things are run.

Here? It’s a different way of life and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. You see kids running around the streets on the tops of mountains carrying sticks and buckets full of water in front of straw huts. Even if kid “A” wanted to be something, how? What opportunities? It’s odd how so many people from the more developed world make these ficticious barriers saying oh if only x, I could have y, why? My nurse friend who works in one of these villages said most people are actually very sick compared to North America. Worms, mumps, fleas and that’s the start of it.

The door is already open for you, but you’re getting held up on the doorman not greeting you with a smile!? Who the #!#$ do you think you are? Who cares, just go to the party. These people, they aren’t even near the door, it’s not open and there is no one that would give them a lift even if they had the coin. It’s like this almost all over the world, the more you see it, the more you realize it, the weirder it feels.

Ok, I’m in Vang Vieng  aka the “Tubing on the River”. This place is situated in this massive valley with some of the dopest backdrops ever. If i was some crazed and eccentric writer, I’d move here and go into the hills with 3 mules carrying supplies from Tom’s Whisky shop and fist fulls of deet, or something like that.

So far this place kinda feels like Koh Phangan, too many people that want to party. With too many partiers, too many flies. Not sure if that makes sense to you but it should, got it? Good. It’s like besides going to get loaded in a river in Loas, there is no point to be here. I’m glad I rolled the dice and stayed as long as I did in Luang Prabang, what a place!!

Tomorrow, I’ll do that tubing bs, even if it’s just so if someone is like oh you went to Laos, did you go tubing???! I’ll be like yeah, it was ok.

A good friend of mine on this trip used to work here, he said forget the tubes, just show up at the top bar with a bathing suit and a smile. Then swim to the other bars as they are a stone throw away. There are zip lines, swing ropes, everything you need to get mangled in a developing country. I’ve seen lots of dudes with arm braces etc. Also heard some larger horror stories. Also tubes cost like $10US and everyone just “borrows” everyone elses, if you don’t get back by 6PM you lose your “deposit”. It’s still chump change but if you can get a room like I just did for ~$4.75US with private bahtroom and hot shower… Yeah you’re getting where I’m going.

Right now I’ve let this computer charge enough, I’m off to that internet cafe to see if that lovely lady from London I met is still there. She gave me a hat tip on the free wifi and looks nice for a chat and a smoke type thing.

First thoughts, I’m glad I stayed as long as I did in Luang Prabang. LP is like a TIME WARP. You’re like what year are we, where are we? Are we in 1950, 1850, 2000? Are we in Asia, France? What the!? I was sad to leave Luang Prabang, one of my favorite stops. It’s a world heritage site because it used to be a city of monks. I didn’t do it justice, I was so lazy, crap bloggeries, boo. I also have many photos that I’ll do something with, one day, maybe? Suffice to say, Luang Prabang, a city I didn’t even know existed until I got to the Laos border has become one of my favorite stops on this trip. It’s like no where I’d ever been before.

Tips hat,

P.S: I prepared some photos and like a sucker, the FTP sucks here. As a result, no photos, which sucks because the ride through the mountains as awesome. Am I getting old? Saying rides through places are great due to breath taking scenery and stuff!? What have I become, sigh.

P.P.S: Speaking of Koh Phangan, this lady I’m now talking with from London, she got bottled on New years, some guy threw a bottle in the air, hit her in the face, lip stitches and had to fix some teeth. I’m just going to say it, I have no love for Koh Phangan and the full moon party was crazy but over hyped.

P.P.P.S: Some tourists are so cheap and rude I want to scream at them. This lady is arguing with a guy over the price of a coke. She says she can buy elsewhere for 5000kip or 50 cents, he wants 6,000k but she has failed to realize this is a restaurant. I can’t imagine being in any type of relationship even as friends with someone THAT CHEAP. If you come to a developing country don’t be that person, just don’t.

I don’t really want to leave, whenever I go back into my room, I just want to pass out or enjoy it. The room reminds me of a room back home, it’s really nice. Hardwood everywhere, great mattresses, fun people around. I’m off to catch a bus from Luang Prabang to Vang Vieng.

At night the dogs here can be creeps, this m angy mutt started stepping to me last night, I took out my 2L water bottle and swung for the fences, a true warning shot. The dog went back then started stalking me with a friend, it came closer and I almost connected with it’s face. This is a dog that looks like it’s left leg got ran over and was always fighting other dogs. I figure it’s a sign to leave, look what happened last time in Bangkok.

On that topic, having a fixed date that you have to leave makes travel so less enjoyable. I mean, I should be in Bangkok for final shot, I don’t want to go, the whole trip is getting screwed. Here I am on a leisurely jaunt through Laos then could of gone to Cambodia. Now I”m upposed to be this ridiculous distance in the wrong direcction for a date.

I realize how lucky myself and others are on “no time frame trips”. Time frames put salt in your game so to speak. It feels like my trip ends on the 15th. Will I ever make it back to Laos? Who knows, it’s a shame as this place is great and the visa is the priciest around especially for Canadians.

Oh well, who knows what will come from a trip to Bangkok *I have a few ideas*. The bus to Vien Veng from Luang Prabang is ~4-5 hours and leaves at ~9AM for 110,000Kip or ~$15. I never bothered looking into local transport, I’ve just been relaxing here. Come to think of it, that sounds pricey.
Side note, beware of tom’s whisky. This stuff will turn your stomach from a mean guard dog to a small puppy and you”ll be hurting, trust me.

Tips hat,

Top of the morning, I’ve been in Luang Prabang about a week or so now, every day I tell them I’m leaving tomorrow and now they just smile. I’ve been lazing around all day, running into characters and having late nights, in this sleepy yet beautiful town of Luang Prabang, Laos.

Yesterday I ran into some New Yorkers and we hung out all day, hit up the market had some Laos Coffee. Laos Coffee is the best coffee I’ve ever tasted. It’s almost like hot chocolate but just really strong and sweet coffee. It was soooo good I thought to myself, this is the type of thing that would make going into work on a cold January day in Canada somewhat bearable. Then I forgot about the cold while wiping away some sweat from my brow.

It will cost you ~6-8,000 kip. It is so strong that unless it’s your first one of the day, a small will do. They know that hence jack the price. This stuff is serious. I have enough of that crude oil in my stomach to fuel a cargo tanker on a cross Atlantic voyage, or something like that. Mix that with Tom’s Whiskey and your stomach will not be loving you so much.

The pork here is insanely delicious, think massive chunks of back bacon, it’s “the goods”. Stopped by Tom’s Cobra Whisky again and had a shot, then an hour or so later, Tom had packed up shop. I figured we were friends now so I went into his cellar, helped him move a bike and he agreed to sell us more. Tom’s a character but do I REALLY have to qualify that? The guy sells cobra snake whiskey. He has these massive drums of super strong liquor that he rams full with any kind of poisonous creep crawler he can get his claws on.

Before the whiskey we went for a walk into the heart of the Mekong River. It’s low season so only part of the river is going and the rest is sandy / rocky beach. We went there for sunset and just hung out while enjoying a Laos Beer. Laos or Lao Beer is great and ~10,000Kip for a large one, indeed. Being on the Mekong in the middle of the river at sun set was something I”ll remember, one of those “stop thinking about anything and just absorb” type moments if you will.

Hit up the night market for some more pork and run into these Thai business men. Not sure how communication started but it went from pleasantries to us joining them, our liquor becoming theirs and theirs ours. Same for the food. We had so much meat on the table it would make  a vegan cry. They also had Johnny Walker and a host of other fine beverages. We indulged and exchanged contact info then went back to my new friends and just chilled before running into the guy who works at my guest house and hanging with him and one of his tuk tuk driver friends.

I am now proud to say I have a tuk tuk friend in Luang Prabang. Remember that it is important to have a tuk tuk friend. He’s your ride, treat him well and he’ll treat you well. Give you practical advice on numerous types of matters. These tuk tuk / cab drivers know the pulse of a city and will fill you in on what things actually cost etc etc…

Today, I woke up late again. To be frank, it’s not that I’m waking up late, it’s just I couldn’t find something on d ay 2 here so I emptied my entire back pack on the ground, now I’m much too lazy to ever re-pack it and each morning when I wake up I say “I’ll do it tonight” then that never happens type scenario.

Luang Prabang is either your cup of coffee (Laos Coffee is the bomb) or it’s not. Most people I have ran into have been like “wow this place is boring” when they first get here, make it a day or so and suddenly it’s heavenly. The thought of going to Cambodia on this leg is absurd. I also hate the time restriction of needing another shot. I’m happy out here and don’t want to leave, let alone take a grueling trip by bus and train to BKK or Chiang Mai or an expensive flight going away from where I want to be heading.

Just ran into my American friends walking by, I’m off to breakfast and don’t care to proof read this, so I won’t.

Tips hat,

I’ve been kinda lost in Laos time. Just relaxing, lounging about really. This place is pretty sleepy and as a result I’ve been sleeping lots. That and meeting random people and going out on adventures, quite nice really.

Met a nice Canadian nurse, I like nurses and not just Canadian nurses. I drank some Mekong Moonshine, hit up some massage parlors even checked out the Phosy Market. I will say that market put me off meat for about 1 minute and 35.7 seconds. Until I left the area, I have many photos from this most disturbing meat market, not so nice. I will share them at a later date. Think flies ingesting the inside stomach liners of pigs and every other random body part you can imagine, totally smothered in flies. The smell? Horrendous.

Last night a gang of nurses were going “out on the town”, I decided it would be a worthwhile endeavor to join them, it most certainly was. I will say that starting the evening off with some Laos snake / scorpion whiskey really “gets things going”.

If I plan on doing a few more cities in Laos then heading to Cambodia before Bangkok, I need to start moving, fast. That said, I doubt that I’ll leave tomorrow. The living here is just really simple and quite nice, what’s the rush?

I will say that not having a steady internet connection in my room and only having access to the worlds slowest internet cafe and a 10:30 curfew has put a monkey wrench in my updating style. I’m typically a night owl and there simply is almost nothing to do here at night. It’s also quite cold, like 15 degrees or so. That’s cold when your used to summer, -40 or whatever is just absurd. I’m also not sure how the curfew works, having been here a while now, that is something to be aware of.

Truth be told, I’d be gone to venture to the tubing area and other locations in Laos if the main bus didn’t leave at 8:30am, that’s simply too early for this gent. I much prefer traveling at night, the only times I manage to find the motivation to leave at such an ungodly hour is if my visa is expiring.

Supposedly there are SOS International Hospitals all across Asia that provide top medical care. Supposedly Cambodia also has one of these “fine establishments”. If that’s the case, going back to Bangkok may be redundant, I hope so. I like Bangkok but I don’t feel any particular need to revisit it, I am not a big fan of back tracking, when back packing across the world.

Tips hat,

P.S: Wrote this most uninspired post earlier today, got busy. Now I’m outside a guest house so the connection will work. There is a Laotian lady balling her eyes out on the street corner, I’m curious what it’s about but none of my business. Seriously, this place becomes a ghost town late at night, it’s very different then say Thailand.

Greetings,

I write this to you from a quaint guest house, about ~50 meters from the Mekong. A day or so ago I had the great pleasure of going fishing with some guys who live around here. The deal was this, I buy a 24 of beer and they take care of the rest. Sounded like a good deal to me, it most certainly was.

We left the guest house / tourist area and ventured off the beaten path. Picked up a 24 of beer, some fishing line. Went to a gents house and got some rods before going to the Mekong and digging our own worms. The crew was myself, a guy my age and one his friends.

After getting the worms, we went to this fish farm that is owned by a friend of one of the guys where most of the fish you buy in the market comes from. Granted fishing in a fish farm isn’t that tough but it’s fun. Especially when you eat them as you catch them. We eat about 2 kilos of fish and brought back another 2 kilos. Typically they sell 20,000kip for 1 fish, not bad!? When we came back one of the gents wives cooked us Tom Yum Fish or something like that, it was delicious.

The fish farm was a series of ponds with different types of fish. This was one of the more “off the beaten path” experiences I’ve had and arguably one of the best days of the trip. We just hung out for hours on this farm with the owners just chilling, chatting and enjoying life. The place had so many critters running around as well. Dogs, puppies, cats, kittens, chickens, chicks, ducks and more. Also had a “crazy” dog attached on a short chain. Supposedly the owner and his wife are the only people it won’t bite. They let it off the chain each night and it “runs game”. Nobody will try and steal fish because “Crazy Carl” will be there and he doesn’t bark, just goes in for it.

I made a video compilation in that “new style” I’m trying to that I’ll mashup and upload when I’m in a major city. The internet connection here is sketchy at best and frankly, I have better things to do.

The other night I hit up basically the whole club area and MORE. The night clubs here are out of this world regarding setting / style, just not that packed.  The bowling alley is the only place that serves liquor late night so most travelers end up there at some point. I went, it was fun, won’t be back though.

Luang Prabang is very relaxed and the majority of the travelers here are French. You can also really see the French influence on the builings and cuisine here. This place also has some out of this world restaurants on the Mekong. I’m talking places you’d pay ~$100US for a meal for two but you can get it for ~$8-$16. Also a plethora of selections at the night market.

The people here are very nice and unfortunately this place is quite poor. You hear horror stories of mainly French and British travelers staying 3-5 nights then leaving at 4am, leaving the staff to carry the bill. That bill is usually more than half their monthly salary and they work 24 hours a day 7 days a week. They go to bed last and wake up first sleeping near the door in case a traveler comes home late, past curfew.

I did my best to give them an idea of how business is done in the west and made them promise me that they’d make people pay daily, if they want 3-5 days + at a discount, fine but have them pay up front. It’s also often long haired hippies and shockingly middle aged couples(mainly French) that are the biggest culprits. They told me they have never heard of a Canadian doing something like this, of course not, it’s shameful and down right pathetic. Also if you are at a really nice restaurant, leave a small tip. I did and the guy came up to me afterward shaking my hand and thanking me, I didn’t know why then he said the money with a smile.

What is most unique about Laos is the scenery, it’s breath taking really. The endless unspoiled terrain is something I’ve never seen before. Also, I would recommend this town to retirees looking for a great experience. Since there is a curfew and many other laws, it’s quite safe here. Also Luang Prabang is the most touristy area in all of Laos, plenty to do, places to eat and places to stay for all budgets. You can get a dorm room for ~30,000kip a night and a single or double room for ~70,000-130,000 kip. Also hotels that are ~300,000kip+. I will note, that my 70,000kip a night room has a bed like back home, it’s quite nice.

Today, I will hang out, sample some local cuisine and I plan on leaving tomorrow, perhaps. Then again this is me we’re talking about so who knows really?

Tips hat,

WOW,

Laos is totally out of this world. You realize that Thailand is like the west but in the East. Laos is a communist country above it that is very different but totally remarkable.

Tomorrow, I will send a big update with photos, maybe even a video blog compilation as I have made one. Suffice to say I woke up early after going to bed late and breaking curfew, ooops.

Laos is great, it’s totally undiscovered and guided tours are for geeks. Be the man / woman you were destined to be when you travel. Voyage with the spirit of an explorer, finding your own way, doing your own thing. Avoid all tourist attractions and befriend good people in foreign lands and you will enrich your life. If you just go take photos of things that there are already 10000000X copies on flikr, what’s the point?

Needless to say, every decision you ever make, leads to new junctions in the road. Had I took slow boat, I’d be with a bunch of  planned tour wusses talking about nothing… Instead I went fast boat, got here, alone. Met some awesome people and had the best day of my trip.

Raises glass….

Tips hat,

Good day,

I write this to you from the city of Luang Prabang in Laos. I took the fast boat from Chiang Khong, Thailand in a most egregious fashion, it’s true.

The border crossing is odd, I have plenty of videos I will share with you later. The fast boat is 1600 baht, the slow boat 1000 baht. The fast boat was a trip, let me tell you.

Tip: Bring $US to pay your visa, you need a photo, but you don’t. I didn’t have one. They charge you 40baht as a peanlty.

If you take the fast boat this will probably be the series of stages you go through on your most interesting journey. The fast boat just seemed like a fun once in a life time experience, it most certainly was. It’s exhilarating and you truly feel alive. It’s one of the top handful of moments on this trip I’ll probably never forget.

I have lots of footage, a full vlog to come.

These are the stages on the fast boat:

Hour 1: WOW! This thing is sick, WOOOHOOO “So LONG SUCKERS” as you blaze past numerous slow boats.

Hour 2: This place is beautiful, I’m not so comfy.

Hour 3: When are we stopping for lunch, my knees are throbbing.

Stop for Lunch: You get to the place where the slow boat stops, you’re like ok, this place is cool for about 30 minutes.

Hour 4: My knees are killing me, really killing.

Hour 5: FML!!! As you move around trying to get comfortable, but to no avail.

Hour 6: Wow, This is going to be over soon, I surrender to the pain, ignore ignore. The sun is setting, wow this place is beautiful. I’m glad it’s over but that was a fun ride. I will never forget my drag race down the Mekong.

Hour 7: Ahhh I’m in Luang Prabang, now what am I going to do!?

Tip: GET YOUR HUSTLE ON! Make sure you sit in the front, you can extend your legs.

You see, those are the stages you go through on the most epic adventure that is the fast boat to Laos. Do I regret it? NO WAY. I figure that I will have plenty of opporunities to take slow boats in the future. Furthermore, whenever I go on a long road trip, I am always in the fast lane, occasionally maxing out all that my kompressor can do, to be in the slow lane would be like going on a trip to visit grandma when I was a kid. I will note, a friend ofm ine who is a linebacker said it was h3llish, I can imagine. This guy is 6’3… I’m only 5’10 and it was still really tight. I can’t imagine how he did it, I salute him.

I will note that our “fast boat” broke down, I told the captain that if the slow boat passed us, I’d have an aneurysm, it did pass us, horrible. We made up the time quickly though. It’s NOT as crazy as everyone says. The fast boat is crazy because it’s a long boat with a car motor on the back, ha. Therefor it’s just like a big open canoe kinda. Also if you did hit a rock you’d be screwed but it’s not like “joe driver” has that in mind, he is “one with the river” or wahtever… Going through the rapids was exhilirating. I feel like I got from point a-b, went to a theme park, broke my knees all over again and went white water rafting all in one day. Also lots of fishing going on, the Mekong has the world’s largest catfish, I’d love to pull in one of those lunkers and have a “shore lunch” that could feed a small city.

The slow boat was actually quite empty, I’d be a liar and not true to the “Stop Having a Boring Life” manifesto that I haven’t written yet if I didn’t say there were times that I looked at the slow boat and fantasized about being in it. That said, the grass is always greener, had I been in the slow boat, I’d of been like man, this boat sucks I wish I was in the fast boat. Supposedly however, day 2 they send way less slow boats so it’s crowded to all h3ll, who knows though? I have no clue how many KM the trip is but it goes on forever and ever and ever.

My boat was 2 Israeli guys who looked like they were going to die in the first half, these 2 Swedes who I have concluded are a couple, despite one of them having grey hair and the other being younger than myself and some guy from the Netherlands.

I took a tuk tuk with my boat to the city center after the gents managed to haggle the driver down a full 60%, I will say I respect how he got the price lower but what he had to go through was nuts, it was also really awkward to watch / be involved in. Having said that, I now realize that I typically cave in way too fast, then again for $0.50 I typically just don’t care… I like helping stimulate local economies via over-priced tuk tuks, significant numbers of skewers, shakes and anything else that whet’s my appetite. It kinda makes me a quasi-philantropist, ok I’m reaching here.

We arrived and one of the Swedes pulled out a lonely planet, I went and asked these hippies where the good places are. They told me, I walked back and told the crew “Over here near the bakery is where all the good / cheap places are” they ignored me and all crowded around a guide book, snore. I just kept walking as I told them, didn’t even really break my step to be honest.

My guest house is nice, really nice, really really nice for 70,000Kip(sp?) a night. That’s ~$9US, no wifi though. Being here, you realize how Thailand is actually VERY modernized. Thailand is the BOMB, it’s like the perfect blend. Singapore is more modern than back home and the price shows that. Thailand has everything that you want AND MORE at a huge discount compared to the Western World.

I was wondering what was going on with the slow boat and how my French friend was doing while eating an oversized chicken skewer for ~$0.70. I saw these 2 gorgeous twins so I went over and made some ridiculous small talk. Then I realized they were French and loved that I spoke French. We eat dinner together etc… Knowing French is awesome, I’m glad I’m fluent.

Tips hat,

P.S: Jworthy – The book is “Revolutionary Wealth” it’s a good one. Typically I get shy around big books as they are intimidating, this one I wish was longer and you read a few pages then just think about it, digesting if you will.

YO!

What’s cracking? I sit here on the edge of the Mekong which separates Thailand and Laos in a small border town called  Chiang Khong in this quaint and dare I say “splendid” guest house. The dining room is filled with an international crowd and the beer is flowing almost as fast as the river itself. At my table there is a lady from France, another from Spain and a gent from the Czech Republic, indeed.

I feel like a guy who didn’t want to drink last night so he ended up drinking coke, then not being able to sleep until 6AM which was conveniently 2 hours before his alarm went off. I got my shots at this private hospital. Once again private hospitals make you wait and over charge, this was most expensive shot yet, 800 baht total, others were all ~400-440. At least they had rabipur, should of asked for clean syringes if I want to keep going north, whatever.

Took the local bus for ~210baht from Chiang Mai to Chiang Khong, it took 7 hours.

Get to the final destination, there is this lady with a flyer… I just got a double room, free ride to the border and free wifi for 130 baht a night, HA! As you can see I enjoy letting bygones be bygones, whatever that means. I mean just going with the flow and letting details take care of themselves. There is a big international crew just hanging out here now as most of us are similar travelers. There was a few dorks on the bus but they had already pre-booked like they were scared it was New Years in NYC and they wouldn’t get a room.

Slow boat or speed boat to Luang Prabang Laos!?

Slow: 1200 baht or so.

- 2 days, 7 hours each crammed like a sardine moving at a snails pace

- 1 nights stay out of your pocket in a place known for rats and thieves

- Boring people who want to read a book or something and watch the Mekong.

- Probably going to make me want to drown myself as it’s sitting on park benches and the guest house owner said it’s TIGHT as in they really pack you in.

- Leaves once a day at 11AM.

Fast Boat: ~1800 baht

- 6-7 hours speeding like mad men down the mekong

- crammed like sardines, even worse than fast boat

- more hardcore people who like adventure

- LP says it’s dangerous but the owner says it’s fine

- Sounds like an adventure and a good time.

It’s COLD like Ottawa in the fall here, 2 day and 1 night in a rat town sound pretty depressing to this gent. I know you don’t want to hear this, but this is the coldest I’ve been since last winter. All I can say is winter is for suckers, I woke up today and was cold, I didn’t want to get into my shower, I remembered via vivid techno colored flash backs of getting into a shower then freezing getting out before having my head turn to an ice block to do some job that was slowly stealing my individuality.

I’m reading a book called the wealth revolution, it’s not some cheesy self help book. It discusses the major revolutions in wealth creation that have affected mankind, first agriculture and the gents who controlled the output building palaces and other grandiose affairs, then the industrial revolution and finally, where we are today… The knowledge revolution of sorts.

If you want to get really primitive think the plow, the assembly line and now the computer.

This third revolution is JUST getting the party started, time and space mean different things and traditional work is going “out the door”. Just so you know, the nuclear family which is 1 dad who works, a mom who stays home and 2 kids represents something ridiculous like 20% of the population now, when it used to dominate.

Enough about this, I have some thinking to do. The only pro of the slow boat is I could maybe read this book while I go. That said in true “stop having a boring life” fashion, I will not even think of this whatsoever until it’s time to make a decision and then I will most likely take the fast boat, fast boat baby, ride or die. That said, this lady from France is trying to convince me to take the slow boat with her…

Supposedly Luang Prabang is expensive and really touristy, this guy next to me is “going out in the wild”, I may I join him.

Tips hat,