4,000 islands

Here we go again... currently en route to Cambodia! Although if we make it there or not is debatable... Ill get to that but let me update you on the last few days. We left Vang Vieng February 8th. I don't think We could have survived there much longer... The whisky buckets were kicking my arse! That afternoon we arrived in Don Det, Laos. It is one of the islands in the area called the 4,000 Islands in the deep south of Laos. If you are thinking white sand beaches and crystal clear water... Not even close! They are jungle Like islands on the Mekong river with only one or two roads. When we got dropped off early in the afternoon we ran around looking for a place to stay... Everything was full! Finally our luck turned around and we got a tiny little bungalow on the water. It was very small with just a bed, Bug net, and two hammocks on the little front porch. It had shared bathrooms with the other two bungalows. There were spaces between the wood keeping it together so the little bugs could join us. We thought of it as upgraded camping.. It was perfect for a few nights. The sunsets were amazing... Which we watched every night from the hammocks. Shortly after we got our bungalow a family of five was sitting on the porch of the bungalow next to ours. they sat there all afternoon. The rest of the day we spent exploring the island. Late that night we got back to our bungalow and saw the mom and dad sleeping on the small porch under their hammocks and three middle school aged kids were sleeping on the bed inside. Something didnt go as planned for them....Griswald family vacation! Our first full day we booked a kayak tour. We kayakeD around some of the islands and then arrived at a waterfall. They transPorted our kayaks past the waterfall and we got in them after a small hike around the waterfall. When we got back in the kayaks there was definitely a current from the waterfall. We hit a few rapids several times which was awesome and spark was good at working the water current so we didn't fall in like some of the others. We kayaked Into CamboDia to see the irrawady dolphins. They are incredibly rare... Only one hundred of them left. They are stuck in this area because there is a waterfall on one side and Neither of us caN remember why they can't get out on the other side... But just take my word they Can't Leave. So it was very cool to see them. Then we had a groovy lunch an kayaked some more. We (the kayaks and all the people on the tour) fit into the back of the truck where we went to see the largest waterfall in southeast asia. its not tall, it just has the largest water capacity. We kayaked back to our island right before the sunset.. a great day! the next day we rented bikes and biked around the island and the island nearest to us. A unique experience to see outside the touristy area. Every town we have visited in Laos the people live in shacks.. no windows or doors. Some on stilts depending on the location. some will even be missing a side so you can see inside. I imagine its because of the heat...incredibly humid in Laos and all of southeast asia. they live very simply.. beds, bug nets, and thats about it. every now and then you will see some with a tv. The kids run around in the dirt streets and carry their baby sibling in slings on their back. The culture is unlike any westernized cultures. Anyway on our bike ride we stopped off and went for a swim in the river. It was a good day and eye opening into the Lao culture. So this brings us today where we are on a bus from Laos to Siem Reap, Cambodia. If you have read previous entries you know transportation around this neck of the woods is well... interesting. The drivers are incredibly laid back, they love breaks. In order to travel here you must adapt to their culture and be patient and expect that just about anything can happen. We call it Lao time, Inevitably you will run around trying to find the bus going to your destination because they tell you nothing, ever. Your bus will leave at least an hour or two later then it says. The driver will stop every hour or so to drop off packages for his friends in the villages along the way... pick up village pple drop them off at the next village. He will stop the bus at a bus station and leave without saying anything... most likely u have to run around the station to find your transfer bus. After an hour of waiting the bus leaves and eventually hours later then when you were suppose to you arrive in a field where they turn off the bus and tell you you have arrived at the "bus station" a few kms from town no doubt. thats the way it is here and you just accept it. Well today the bus was so over packed there was like 20 people standing in the isle... the driver assured them it was okay since the first stop was only an hour away... sure enough they stood the whole way. The first stop came and about ten people got off so the remaining ten were given a childs stool to sit on in the isle for the next 9 hours. An older french woman was irrate and sat in the drivers seat refusing to get up until they got another bus or even van. The driver basically looked at everyone on the bus and said figure it out. He had all the time in the world he was on the clock. eventually someone gave their seat to her and now we are back on the road... lets hope we make it.... over and out!