I Walk The Line

I had a reasonable nights sleep, apart from the hangover yesterday I also had painful indigestion which I think apart from the beer, coffee and cigarettes had something to do with my system dealing with all the sticky rice I ate on the bike ride, don’t get me wrong I like it but it gave me indigestion each time I ate it and I think it all just caught up with me.  

So today I decided now that I have good thongs with arch support I should go for a long sweaty walk to clear my system out and explore more of Vang Vieng.  

I started with breakfast in the sun, fruit salad with yogurt and muesli, it’s not the same now, in Laung Prabang where I had breakfast it was granola, muesli is just disappointing after granola. 

Then I went walking out of the northern end of town along the main (dusty) roads stopping at a temple to thank “O beautiful one” along the way. I reached the bus station which is at least two kilometres from my guesthouse. I keep walking to find the river so I need to turn down any road towards the mountains, I select one and end up in some interesting back waters, thank goodness I bought a bottle of water before I left the main road, the sun is burning down and I’m at least another kilometre past the bus station. 

I reach a bridge and cross the river thinking maybe I can walk back on the other side of the river bank but there is I sign saying twenty thousand Kip ($2.50) to keep walking and a gang of little girls asking for the money. I wouldn’t mind but I don’t know where the track leads and unfortunately I can’t communicate to them I want to know where it goes. 

I turn around and head back towards the main road and somehow end up at some markets, I’ve seen plenty of them and I don’t need to go through them or take pictures but I love the smells that come from all the different spices, fruits, meats and various other “stuff”. 

I end up back on the main road and stop at the bus station café for a cold can of lemonade, I have been walking for about three hours now. Hunger is coming so I decide to just head back towards town.  

Walking along the main road I catch a glimpse down a side road of a Buddha so I wander down the dirt road and I’m finishing a cigarette outside the temple grounds when a novice monk calls me over. He grabs me by the hand and asks if I will come and meet his monk. We go into a room with about seven novices watching “Black Hawk Down” and the monk comes out to greet me. He is only about thirty and insists that I sit down with them while they get me a coffee. I end up speaking with them for about an hour, they appreciate the practice speaking with a native English speaker.

They must go to class so I leave and head back towards the main road and decide to take a side road towards the river to explore more, the hunger is not so bad yet. I find a beautiful spot on the river and I’m approached by a local who owns a restaurant near by who proceeds to give me the run down on how the local drug trade works. He offers to take me to the caves and I don’t like his vibe so I make my excuses and keep walking. 

I am desperate for a swim now and look for a quiet spot where I meet an older Dutch guy who likes to talk a lot. I ask if he would mind watching my things while I strip to my undies and dive in. I get him to take a couple of pictures of me and when he sees the iPhone he informs me he is a programmer and goes into a rant about computers that somehow goes through politics into global warming into……he likes to talk.  

After I dry off I head up into the main part of town and sit in a “Family Guy” bar and enjoy a shake and a hamburger.  

I wander back to my guesthouse, I must have walked ten kilometres and relax in some air-conditioning. I catch up on some emails then sit by the river listening to music and reading until sunset.

Above - my room, Below - the view from my window.

I finish the night with dinner in the "Family Guy" bar and dipping my toes in the river before bed.