On the Road

I'm posting from Laos, where the Internet is shoddy and expensive, so here's a quick rundown of where I've been since I left Phnom Penh.

Wednesday: Took the bus from Phnom Penh to Battambang where I hung out with some Cambodians who I had met back in the capital. They showed me true Cambodian hospitality and fed me well and put me up for the night.

Thursday: Woke up early and explored the beautiful French colonial architecture and quaint riverside scene in Battambang by moto. Rode the bamboo train with my Khmer friends in Battambang. A quick description can't do it justice, but the bamboo train is basically just a platform of bamboo propelled at unsafe speeds along the train tracks by a moto motor, and whenever an oncoming train approaches the guy in the back grinds his foot into the rail to slow down and everyone piles off and lifts the train off the tracks. Quite an experience to say the least. At noon I took the bus to the Cambodia-Thailand border at Poipet/Aranyaprathet where I got stamped out of Cambodia, walked across the bridge separating the countries, and hopped on a bus to Bangkok. Arrived at Bangkok in the evening and explored on foot until my buddy Matt Hoffman arrived.

Friday: Hoffman and I explored Bangkok on foot, taking in the numerous temples, riding the ultra-modern Sky Train, and breathing in the urban atmosphere. After meeting a Duke grad for dinner, we caught a tuk-tuk to the train station, and hopped on the overnight train.

Saturday: Arrived in Nong Khai, headed over the Thailand/Laos border, and got stamped into Laos at Thanaleng. We took a bus into town and checked into a guesthouse in the middle of the tiny capital city of Vientiane. Thoroughly explored the entire city on foot in one afternoon, taking breaks to sample the delicious French cuisine left behind as a result of Laos' status as a former French colony, and enjoyed our first authentic Lao meal for dinner.

Sunday: Caught the bus to Vang Vieng, Laos where we took in the beautiful scenery all afternoon. Enjoyed more delicious Lao food and stayed the night in a simple bungalow on the banks of the Nam Song river.

Monday: Rented bikes and pedaled through villages and rice paddies to a cave which we explored for a while. We swam and took advantage of the rope swing in a swelling river before taking a wicked hike to a viewpoint overlooking all of Vang Vieng and the surrounding landscape. Marveling at the limestone karsts swathed in mist and anchored by verdant terrace rice paddies, I decided that Laos is easily the most naturally beautiful place I have ever been in my entire life.

Signing off from Vang Vieng, Laos.