Wat Pu temple in Champasak

We ended up finding ourselves from the buzzling streets on Bangkok sooner than we were planning at the first place. This is the best thing in traveling without too many plans or exact dates.

Until around 16th of May we were strongly planning to go to Cambodia next, as we were already in the southern Laos, in the area called 4000 islands. In total we spent two weeks in relaxing Laos, enjoying the really friendly people with a real smile on their faces, happy children sending kisses and saying sabadee, enjoying the atmosphere or not being in a hurry at all.

I really felt good in Laos. I think Thailand used to be like Laos luckily still is. I hope they will never start rushing or paying more attention to tourists.

The only thing the french built in Laos, this bridge!

So, where was I? Yea, so we had come from Vientiane, the capital of Laos by our favourite way of traveling, a night bus. We skipped Savannakhet which was supposed to be 'extra friendly' by Lonely Planet, as i took only 12 hours to get straight to Pakse, which is more like our place which we found out with the Indian restaurant on its main street! : ) In Pakse we spent few days, nerding around for the school project (I'm NOT just on a holiday mum and dad, you see?!) and then left to our last Laos-destination, 4000 islands in the south. First we visited Champasak, which used to be a capital of Laos during the Khmer times. We cycled to this temple which is older than the one in Angkor Wat, Cambodia. Don Daeng   was a small island just next to Champasak and because of the tip we got from a local tourist office, we ended up going to this island. It is an island with a nice small local village and they get their living from rice as well as fishing. We wanted to support their project of this community lodge, which the villagers have built by themselves for the tourists to visit and see the real island life. Back to the basics, there we were with Laura, washing ourselves in the muddy Mekong river, eating dinner in the candle light watching out not eating the flying things at the same bite with the fish and sticky rice, trying to communicate with real basic english with maybe 5 understandable words. Cute it was, thats for sure, the locals being so proud of their lodge and having their own Village Guide and bicycle rental and all. Next morning we woke up at 6, as we didnt know that was the time for breakfast in Laos when we mentioned that the night before. The morning was full of mud as we decided to go cycling around the island after raining the whole night! Cycling ended up being pushing the bicycle in the mud, bare feet, me and the bike taking turn getting stuck to the muddy 'road', me losing my nerved on Laura who was losing her nerves and us both running out of water! Yea, one of the best adventures! ;)

Don Daeng as we arrived

Villagers with whom we didnt really have a common language but it didnt matter!

At this point we were not even desperate yet, and still all clean as well!

Me and my friend, having a little chat in Finnish

One of the cute children in Laos, he had such an adorable smile and laugh!!

My favourite piggy in Don Det! Such a cool pig he was. ;)

From Don Daeng we went to actual 4000 island, Don Det. Pretty place, relaxing days, me staying in bed for one of them, the cheapest accommodation so far (1dollar each!), good chocolate-banana pancake and chilling at the hammock.

This is from where we get to the point when we realised we were running out of money! So, instead of traveling for 5kilometers to the border of Cambodia we took a bus back to Pakse and another bus to the border of Thailand, the land of ATM's! We met this real nice New Zealander couple, with whom we got this best idea ever, to take a 12hours local night train with 3rd class to get to Bangkok by next morning. The picture tells it all! (Except the smell and the stickyness + the bugs and staring people and stinky toilet and aching neck and shoulders!).

The trip ahead of us!I'm adjusting..

Laura, Greg and Paula sleeping on our luxorius 3rd class seats! (03.00)

So, as a result, we got to Bangkok and rewarded ourselves with this almost a hotel kind of a place!! With own bathroom, hot water, electricity for the whole time and clean sheets and towels!! So so good! :)

This is so so so NICE!!! Note the lamp! ;)

Bangkok is cool, nice living atmosphere here, though i thought i wouldnt like the place with business, pollution and cheeky tuk tuk drivers! I was wrong and now we have been staying here for the last five days. Shopping mostly and just feeling the city life again. Tomorrow we'll take one more bus trip, to Cambodia, this time for 13hours, hopefully, i they wont leave us to the border as we are not willing to pay extra 20dollars for them to stamp the visas for us! We'll see. So, Siam Reap and Angkor Wat, here we come!

....on the night drink in this street bar we decided strongly to enjoy of these last weeks with Laura! Take the joy out of every annoying moment as this wont last for long anymore!

See you soon!