We left Luang Prabang on a 5 hour bus south for Vang Ving. This town is a popular stop on the backpacker circuit for tubing on the Sam Song river. Basically, you rent a tube and, after a short bus ride up river, float slowly down the river soaking in the sights. We met up with a group of people we’d previously met on the slow boat to Luang Prabang, and set off on our lazy day down the river.
This tubing experience was not exactly what you’d call “unspoiled” Laos… the shores of the river were lined with crowded bars (full of mostly white tourists) blasting western music and advertising ‘free scorpion whiskey shots’… it looked like spring break in Cancun. Each bar staffed a handful of locals throwing lines out from shore to literally reel you in from the river. There were plenty of rope swings and zip lines and other fun water toys to help pass the time on the river. Granted, it was a fun time and we met a lot of great people… and the mountain scenery was quite beautiful. But we both wanted to move on to less touristy country and would head to the capital of Vientiene the next day.
We didn’t bring our camera on the river (for obvious reasons) but hope to get some pictures from our friends who had a waterproof camera.
A few pictures of our time spent off the river in Vang Ving:
Landscape on our bus ride from Luang Prabang to Vang Ving
That night we ate dinner with about a dozen geckos… our entertainment for the evening was watching them eat insects that were circling the lamp.
