Fare Thee Well
Like a scene from a Mark Twain novel, our pilot deftly maneuvered around the Mekong shallows while his first mate, using a 30’ bamboo pole, continuously sounded for the bottom by repeatedly plunging this pole into the river. Wouldn’t it be easier, if not less adventuresome, I wondered, to invest in a modern depth finder.
We had hooked up with a VIP 2 day cruise up the Mekong River from Luang Prabang back to the Thailand border on the Luangsay, a specially designed metal hulled ship, rather than take the trip on the sardine packed public boat. Although we spend our money wisely on this trip, now was not the time to be frugal. There were 34 fellow passengers on board, a good mix of international travelers, who, like us, sat back and watched the Mekong
scenery drift by.
Scattered villages with waving children, chilly mornings and bright sunny afternoons, bamboo poles jerry rigged between rocks with nets to ensnare unsuspecting fish, small local boats, loaded with produce and logs and other materials, plying up and down the river, beautiful sandbars and limestone cliffs, groves of teak, fields of rice, plantations of banana, water buffalo, a Buddhist cave with 4500+ statues, the scenery rolled by over the course of 2 days.
Curiously, although one of the longest rivers in the world, the Mekong, which originates in
the Tibetan highlands and flows 2500 miles into the South China Sea, due to turbulence and strong currents, has only two bridges, both in Laos. During our trip, the water level was very low, exposing many dangerous underlying limestone boulders, many with edges rising from the water, ready to slash into any boat not aware of the treacherous channels. We continued to be impressed with the skill of the pilot as boulders embedded in the river, just a few feet below the surface, flowed past on both sides of the boat. How did he ever see that one ?
Upon our arrival at the Thailand border, we gathered our gear, passed through Lao and
Thailand immigration and headed downtown to find accommodations for the night. The town of Chiang Khong sits across the Mekong from Laos, and is the border town used for a northern crossing into Laos. It’s an ok stopover and has potential – we had just gotten in
too late to take the 3 hour bus to Chiang Rai, our next stop on the trip.
It was a wonderful month spent in Laos, so many beautiful sites, charming towns, genuine people, great food, exciting travel options, and cooperative weather. We both enjoyed every minute of our time there and will always have fond memories for this captivating part of the
world. We had crossed the Mekong, but left something behind, and some day we’ll return. Until then, fare thee well…
We’re headed back to Northern Thailand for the next 3 weeks, concentrating on some of the smaller towns around Chiang Mai – hopefully, Chiang Rai, Mae Salong, Tha Ton, Fang, Pai, Soppong, Mae Hon Song. At the end of the month, we’ll cross through Cambodia, stopping at Angkor Wat for 4-5 days, before arriving in Saigon. Then begins our northward trek through the summer to Beijing. Stay tuned...
