Patricia and Andre’s RTW Adventure

So happy to leave Vietnam and crossing the border at Lao Cai (Vietnam) and Hekou (China) seemed like it would be so easy!  And the crossing was easy, just walk across the bridge……a security guard even apologized to us when a mean guy butted in front of us in the customs line……I exclaimed  “wo bu ming bai” and he said he was sorry!  That is a first for sure – the apology I mean………this is not the first time people have jumped line on us and we know it won’t be the last! Read the rest of this entry »

Mui Ne beach in south Vietnam was amazing! Totally splurged there but still well under our budget, actually about 40% under our budget, so we can only feel so bad. Our days are spent by the pool reading and reading. I have learned how to dive and can swim the length of the pool underwater!! It was definitely time well spent and I think ANdre was very happy that I can play with him in the water!

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After only 6 days in Cambodia, we move into Vietnam. Our whole goal is to get to a place before the Vietnamese New Year. It supposedly crazy….like New Years and Birthdays and all celebrations rolled into one! If we don’t get there early, then we may be out of luck for any kind of accomodation. Our bus was supposed to take us all the way through to Saigon. It stops short of the border at this shit-hole of a restauarnt. At this point in our travels we’re getting REALLY tired of always being taken to the bus driver’s family owned restaurant on the way to a destination. We never eat at them……they’re little hole in the wall places, and we’ve had enough stomach bugs to know to avoid eating there. We’ve stopped looking in the “kitchen” area anywhere we eat. It would turn your stomach to see the supposed cleanliness of most of these places. We have realized however that the body can deal with some nastiness if eaten in moderation…….Plus we think alcohol kills a lot of things, so we take this under advisement everytime we eat! Read the rest of this entry »

Cambodia was easier travelling…….Siem Reap was filled with people all coming to see the famous Angkor Wat. It was so incredible to be here !!!!!! Some people on a bus ride earlier said that it was better than the Pyramids of Giza! Although we hadn’t made our way there yet, we were sure it couldn’t be true. As magnificent as Angkor Wat was, we both enjoyed the overgrown Tha Prohm area the most……Here, errie overgrown HUGE stone faces looked at you through a jungle of tree roots and vines. Even though there were a lot of people in the area, the surrounding brook and outside walls were places you could just sit and listen to birds, frogs and other wildlife. can you imagine walking through the forest and just coming across something like this???! It was magical…………. Read the rest of this entry »

We have moved on and on and on since the last entry and I apologize for that! Since leaving Laos we have experienced cramped buses that my little short 5″4 (almost) legs can’t fit into, we have been in cattle class at the back of the bus with bags of rice and boxes of noodles piled all around us – a 10 hours bus ride that was extremely uncomfortable. This is the same bus ride where we had our own guard who carried a AK-47 because the highway number 13 is known for run-ins with Hmong rebels. NICE! Read the rest of this entry »

So here we are in Luang Prabang, smack dab in the middle of northern Laos…….After our fun on New Years with our Laos friends, we entered the slow pace that Laos is known for…..Unfortunately,that means that travel is REALLY slow and getting in and out of certain areas just makes us want to pack up and get out! Our bus ride from the capital took 10 hours to arrive here in Luang Prabang which is why, in my earlier posts I mentioned how we broke up the trip in Vang Vieng along the way. Those 10 hours are spent driving only 300km! How could this be possible?! Well, the road is extremely twisty-turny, like being on a roller coaster at times since Andre had to hold himself into his seat and I think I have a permanent bruise on my arm from being pushed into the window rail……..average speed according to our GPS was 35km/h……yes, GPS….What else are we supposed to do to entertain ourselves on such an extreme ride?! And although we were fine and had no problems with motion sickness, 2 kids in the back of the bus barfed on their parents, the bus pulled over and they changed clothes….then Read the rest of this entry »

We decided to break up the 10 hour bus trek to Luang Prabang and stop in Vang Vieng for a couple of days. We took a minibus into Vang Vieng this morning……we should always go for the BIG bus as I can’t even fit in the mini bus seats. Luckily we were offered the front and although there weren’t any seat belts we were happy to have knee room!!! We were undecided as to whether we should take the infamous route 13 into Vang Vieng from Vientiane or try to take a round about way and much longer route. In the past, as recently as 2003, there have been incidents with Hmong rebels on route 13 and being the pessimist I am, well, I don’t really need any encouragement…..Happy to say that we got here with no problems…….the day bus is the way to go b/c at least you can see what’s up ahead!
Tomorrow we’re doing a kayaking day trip down the Nam Song river. The day after we will continue on route 13 to Luang Prabang where I can let my nerves settle a bit……
Tonight we just had pizza at one of the restaurants…….and we were given a Happy Menu……complete with a price list for opium!!!! $15/g……..And as we sat waiting for our pizza, people starting smoking it……we promtly left. Don’t want to have to write to you from inside a Laos prison. Who knows, guilty by association? We’re not taking any chances! Not in a foreign country but there are lots of people who do!!!

So since leaving Koh Chang and sadly saying goodbye to great family, we headed back to Bangkok. Since there weren’t any buses or trains available as they were booked until January 5, we decided that flying would have to do. Our visa would expire on January 1 and it would be better to already be somewhere on the holiday.
We flew with Laos airlines and was surprised to see a very regular aircraft – well, I guess I was surprised…Andre can fly in anything and nothing really seems to phase him. I am working on my stress level during this entire vacation….hopefully it will improve ALOT! Read the rest of this entry »

So after spending 2 weeks on Koh Samui we headed off to Koh Phangan. For $6, a 1.5 hour ferry ride gets you there. We headed to The High Life, not sure what we would be getting. When we arrived we were pleasantly surprised to see a bungalow overlooking Haad Yao beach only steps away from the water. The bungalow had only a fan, which was fine because there was an incredible breeze off the ocean and only cold water, which was also ok since it was always warm weather. And for $9/night, who’s complaining???!! Read the rest of this entry »

So after leaving Wanna’s Place in Ao Nang, Krabi we went back to The Andaman Inn. The swelling in Andre’s feet had subsided for the time being and we made our way back to the little bungalow that was beginning to grow on us. We had some supper, checked out the feet situation again and decided that as long as Andre stayed off his feet for the next little while, we should be ok. So we signed up for some kayaking in the mangrove forest and a little bit of elephant riding for the next day. Read the rest of this entry »