sabquai - dji laos

hello all, thought i better write up the last few days and update you on some crazy happenings.

10th june - i went to visit a snake farm and then a monkey show in chaing mai. the snake farm was mental- three guys in a ring just messing about with deadly snakes and annoying them in order for them to react and so try to bite them. the guy got biten by a deadly snake on the arm but it just got his t-shirt and then his crotch aswell. there were also letting them wander into the stands where people were sitting it wasnt good but everyone made it out in one piece. the monkey show was less dangerous and just didnt feel right to me - although seeing a monkey riding a bike round a pool was funny but just wrong somehow.

11th june - i had a trip to visit longneck - those of you that have been reading this alot will know that this was cancelled the first time! it was a long day and on route we visited an orchid farm, butterfly farm and the chaing dau caves. the caves were really impressive and there were various routes yo could do. due to being stuck with a wingeing pair of massively overweight korean ladies and a pair of sick germans we had to stick to the shortest possible route which had electric overhead. i wanted to do the mile route by touch light but they werent having any of it. after this we stopped for lunch and then i thought i was back home in wonderful wales or that penley car sales had gone global as the bloody mini van broke down - in the middle of nowhere. we were stuck for about 3 hours before a replacement truck showed up. we got to the village and had a wander round and up into the hills to see the women. its a con though as there necks arent any bigger than normal people - its a traditional thing to protect the neck from getting bitten by a tiger. the only reason it looks longer is cause it goes down further on the chest. anyway got back really late and just went to bed - via an aussie pub for tea. at one point we were so far up north that you could see china!

if anyone is in chaing mai visit - richly guest house, heaven beach bar, the wall and the kafe.

12th june - left chaing mai but the first bus was full so had to wait untill midday. ended up watchin the tyson fight in a random little bar and then got on another mini bus for another 6 hours to reach the border. the bus was full of english and we all ended up staying at the same guest house - overlooking the river and laos on the otherside of the water. one of the lads lived on brudenell mount at the same time as me in leeds, small world. needless to say drink followed and a movie or 2 - sin city is so strange.

the next day i was told that i had to leave at 7 so got up again at stupid o'clock but didnt leave till 9. went through passport control and then got on a dodgy ferry to cross into laos. then met a british couple of travellers who were catching the same boat as me. ended up waiting around for somemore people to arrive and we didnt get onto the 'boat' till around 12ish. i say 'boat' - think tea tray with a 16v engine strapped to the back and 7-8 backpackers wearing the worst lifejackets and riot gear head wear and packed in with are feet around are ears. the noise was crazy and you got wet and it just hammered along for 6 hours at 45 mph. with the guy dodging rubbish, rocks and tree litter along the way. it was fun but dangerous. the worst thing being the wake of other boats. it was the kinda ride you would pay to do for 15 minutes on a purpose built course then get out and think shit that was stupid. on a two occasions we came close, very close to turning it over and we all thought that we were going swimming! as a result this morning my back is black and blue from the bumping around and my arms and legs are sunburnt, badly.

we were relieved to arrive - thats for sure and it felt like we had achieved something special! the problem is that two boats set off form the border and only one made it to luang prabang last night. basically there is a boat of 6 irish lads missing on route and we dnt know if they broke down or if they crashed.

i quote the lonely planet ' a ride in these boats is a major thrill. for others its like riding on a giant runaway chainsaw and a nightmare that cant end soon enough. speedboats as well as being deafingly loud, kill and injure several people every year, as they frequency tend to flip and disintegrate on contact with any solid floating debris, which is plentiful'

nice!

a few general things about thailand that i have gathered so far - if you have a whistle you are held in high esteem, bikes and volvos are everywhere (penley car sales southeast asia expansion i can see it now) people pack cars and vans so that they are mini-mobile skyscrappers and thai lasses have no concept of love - if you can support them financially they were stay with you!

not sure what my plans are from this point - my visa doesnt start for vietnam till the first of july so i have got just over 2 weeks here and there seems alot of things to do and see so i will let you know a route at some point.

take it easy and if in laos take the slow boat !