Other travelers are a great source of accurate and up-to-date information, but be careful taking any advice you get at face value. I've gone out of my way to visit places lauded by backpacker after backpacker only to end up disappointed; I've also visited places despite steady advice to avoid them and ended up having a great time. This disconnect between reputation and reality … [Read more...]
Forget Vang Vieng—Go Tubing in the Mekong at Si Phan Don
For many backpackers, Laos is synonymous with tubing. The majority largely ignore my favorite country in Southeast Asia, apart from a small loop through the northeastern corner and the highlight of that loop is Vang Vieng. For years backpackers have been flocking to this little village of bars and guesthouses amidst hundreds of limestone peaks to spend a day tubing on the Song … [Read more...]
Don’t Eat Cow Pies Despite the Name
I want to make this clear right off the bat and state that there is no actual consuming of cow pies in this post. Not voluntarily anyway. I only mention that, since I know most of you sick bastards followed the title here expecting……who knows what you were expecting? And who wants to know? Certainly not I. Furthermore, you will not find any disgusting pictures of cow pies or … [Read more...]
Buddhist Monk in Vientiane Doing Some Grooming
This Buddhist monk was sitting outside a temple in Vientiane, Laos and checking himself out in his little mirror for a good half hour. After a few minor adjustments, he seemed happy with what he saw. Who can blame him? … [Read more...]
Would You Get a Haircut at this Vang Vieng Barbershop?
I found this place on the northern end of the main street in Vang Vieng, Laos. I guess when you're opening a business in a tourist town where restaurants have menus for drugs—in addition to the standard food and drinks menus—and the majority of visitors are sober for a few hours a day at most, you don't really need to worry about extras like customer service or walls. See my … [Read more...]