The 4000 Islands

After visiting the Vientiane, Lao, I headed farther south on an over night bus to Pakse. The bus ride was 14 hours long, thank god that I went to the pharmacy and got some sleeping pills because the 4 Englishmen that sat right behind me decided that downing a couple bottles of $1 whiskey and the more they drank the louder they got. I was starting to get very upset with them until the pills kicked in and I was out until the girl next to me had to wake me cause we had arrived.

The original plan was to stay the night in Pakse and move on to the island the following day. With the help of 20 or so Laotian tuk-tuk drivers and a couple bus drivers, that idea was laid to rest as I as on another bus to the islands. With a couple stops to pick up some locals and their chickens and tie a refrigerator to the roof we were there. I helped pass the time by talking to the parental units and my sister on the phone, it was thanksgiving day, and watching as the Laotian lady get off the bus a puke her brains out and come right back on and sit next to me. i was trying to think small and not make any contact with her. she got off the next stop.

After taking a short boat ride to Don Det, I found shelter and Mr. Phao's Sunset guest house. I lucked out because Mr. Phao is the man. His guest house is on the water and the restaurant that his wife runs is on a patio that extends over the Mekong River. The drinks are on the honor system and you don't pay for anything until you leave the island. The time was past with seeing a waterfall, which is more like a huge rapid that extends 14 km. across the Mekong, playing cards and chess with the other guests, drinking delicious beer Lao, whiskey, and a real ball buster called Lao Lao.

Lao Lao is made from rice and is not sold in stores because it is made by the locals. My encounter with Lao Lao was with 3 other tourist and 8 Laotian fisherman. For 50 cents a coke bottle, that they refill from the gas can that contains the Lao Lao, it is really easy to get stuck talking to a fisherman that has been drinking since he got up at sunrise that day. I also found some time to lay in the hammock on my porch and read a bit. There is no electricity on the island so generators run when it gets dark to about 10p.m. which is the curfew for the island. One night when curfew hit, Mr. Phao told us of a party on a neighbouring that was for a boat race the next day. Mr. Phao was kind enough to drive us to it opn his boat. We were a group of ten people that made up for half of the Falangs(tourists) at the party. There was about 700 Laotians and 20 tourists all together. Some of the most fun that I have ever had! It was a strenuous 8 days.