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After the bus journey from Vang Viang we got a songthaew into town with a few girls who were travelling together. One from England the other two from Sweden. I had seen a really nice looking place in the rough guide so we got dropped off there, luckily they had rooms which were really nice, we were sharing a bathroom but it was right outside our door so felt almost like our own anyway. We went into town and took a walk around. It was really pretty! Not in a natural picturesque way like Vang Viang but in a quaint prettily lit way which was refreshing. There was a night market where they sold trinkets, slippers, lanterns, bedsheets and fabric etc.. all locally made. You could easily get caught up buying lots of stuff there, it was SO cheap. I bought two hand made fabric love hearts for under a pound and that was without knocking them down. Caz got a cheese and ham crepe from a stall which she loved but I opted for a restaurant nearby, it was the only one still serving food, everything in Laos shuts very early (11-12ish) and then noone is out. I got home made fettucini carbonara, it was amazing! so yummy! Altho when I had hardly eaten any the waitress came over and asked what was wrong, we just explained that I hadn't been well and couldn't eat too much but she thought I didn't like it! bless.
On our first full day in LP we slept alot :oS took a walk around town for a bit and then took a sunset boat ride along the Mekong river with a mad american OT and a nice Canadian french couple. It was truly beautiful and we got some lovely pictures, we also got to see the locals bathing and washing their clothes in the Mekong. I wouldn't even eat fish out of it, let alone bathe in it but here it's seen as the norm.
The next day we got a songthaew to Kouang Si Waterfalls. As soon as we arrived there was a bear sanctuary where they save bears that were being illegally poached. They looked so happy and healthy, they weren't chained up and had lots of land to run around and play in, they loved to play! They also had one tiger, seperate from the bears of course, she had also been saved from poaching and was in a terrible way when they rescued her. She was truly beautiful. We clambered up to the waterfall with 4 irish girls that had been on the Songthaew with us. 3 of them were OTs too and they were all lovely girls. The waterfall was stunning, really nice, there was a place to swim too, I was a bit wary getting in as a girl we spoke to the day before got a leech on her foot as soon as she got in the water but once I was in I didnt want to get out! There was a rope swing and waterfalls pouring into the area we could swim. I put my head under the waterfall and jumped in off the rocks. The whole time I was sure I could feel leeches sucking my legs so I kept wiping them but I couldnt see anything when I got out. We headed back to near our accomodation and arranged to meet the irish girls later for dinner. We booked a bus the next day to go all the way back to Vientiane (10hrs) and then from there to go into Vietnam (24hrs). There was no other easy way of doing it (apart from flying, but it was too expensive for our budget and you dont get to see as much) we used the same company that got our visas and they said they would pick us up at 6am the next morning to take us to the bus station. We went back to the room quickly to put more clothes on, the north was certainly colder than the south! I wore leggings, a dress, a hoody and my scarf and was still quite cold but I know compared to London it's not cold. We had a lovely meal and chatted with the girls, then at the end of the night we went back and packed to get ready to move on yet again.
We checked out just before 6 (You have to walk through the Laos lady who owns the guesthouse's living room where she sleeps in a bed with her daughters) and the taxi took us to the station. On the way the streets were lines with orange robe clad monks who went round collecting money and gifts such as food from the town's occupants who sat out on the streets waiting for them to come. It was FREEZING! We got to the station and as per usual waited around for ages for the bus to leave.
We got to Vientiane after about 10hrs and then got on another bus to go to Vietnam.
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