The Slow Boat

It was interesting getting here, that's for sure. A rough first impression of what has turned out to be a truly wonderful country so far. We debated the method we should take to get into Laos and decided on the 'slow boat' over the faster bus option. The noat ride included our transport to the border from Chiang Rai, Thailand and two days on a boat along the Mekong, stopping for the night roughly half way through. . The pictures of the boat showed happy travelers, seated comfortably taking in the view of the river. We bit and shelled out about forty-five dollars each. The next morning the van came on time and we piled in along with seven others. The road was windy and I think a bit a bit dangerous. Nonetheless, we arrived at the border without incident. We were pushed through the border alongside many others and had our visas processed quickly. The weather was warm but not hot as we had clearly climbed along the road.

We were advised to buy food in the small town as it would be cheaper than on the boat so we grabbed a few sandwiches and moved along to meet up with rest of the group. We arrived at the small office to find a scene of mild chaos. True - almost verbatim - to the scam Uwey had read about the night before, the organizer, 'for our benefit', warned of horrors on the river. Due to the rainy season, two-day delays could be expected. Mosquitos would ravish our bodies and the boat may go down. According to the screaming man the bus was the best option and despite being the cheaper choice from Chiang Rai, we could board for a mere 500 baht or about 17 U.S. dollars more. He would not only pocket that fee but hold on to the difference in fare. Uwey, armed with her prior knowledge informed the group of the scam. In likely the most satisfying move of the trip, one after another of our counterparts either refused the bus or cancelled their booking. The angry, yelling man informed us that our fate was in our hands and stormed away in disgust.

We made our way to the pier, united and admittedly a bit rightious. What we found was the last departing boat full and roughly 20 of us on shore. Freshly banded we stood our ground. We were not getting on a packed boat to sit on the floor and that was that. We knew their game and we were on to them. We stood in an act of defiance, a powerful voice of foreigners with foreign money, a gesture about as worthless as the Lao Kip (about 8,000 to 1 U.S. Dollar). I believe that it truly was the last boat of the day and when faced with the prospect of spending the night in the town that had only offered deception and frustration, we boarded.

It was fortunate that we listened to the other advice we had found online and had purchased cushions for the long trip. Without them we would have spent eight hours sitting on the hard wooden floors of the boat. We took turns spreading out the pads and sleeping and we mercifully ariived in a small village around dusk. We secured a very cheap room and spent our evening at the only bar in town talking with new friends.

Uwey had doubted herself and had felt bad about warning of the scam when it's heeds had seemed to materialized but when we arrived at the dock the next morning we found a boat with comfortable seats to spare and we spent the next many hours in relative luxury. The previous day was just one of those times when passage through a third-world country lacks organization and the notion of Western fairness. The girl next to me of unknown European descent had said it perfectly as she turned to her partner, "We lost.".

Whatever we lost on our first day of travel in Laos we have made up for tenfold in this amazing town I am writing from. We are in Luang Prabang, a world heritage city with French colonial architecture bordering its lazy, winding streets. It is a narrow finger on the confluence of the Mekong and some other river and its easy, slow pace works perfectly with the countless orange-robed monks wandering its streets. A six to eight hour bus ride looms before the next town but for now we are happy to rent bikes for one to two dollars a day and explore this unexpected gem. A lightning storm has just passed by as I write and it is now time to meet Uwey and Danny at the hip-hop show across the tiny peninsula. You win some and you lose some.