We took a tuktuk the 11km South of Chaing Khong to the 4th friendship bridge to cross into Laos. Today is also the 4th of July!!
We got stamped out of Thailand & needed to pay to take another bus to cross into Laos. We changed some USD into Lao kip and loaded up on another bus. We rode 10 minutes to the Lao boarder.
We have one pen. Chris got our luggage while I started to fill out immigration paperwork. Thankfully there was an Australian tour group next to us with a guide so I knew what papers I needed to fill out. We had a visa form & an arrival form. $35 each & a passport photo. We waited about 25 minutes & we had Lao visas.
While waiting for our passports to be returned to us, a woman approached me inquiring about a tour. I told her we wanted a fast boat. She was happy-stating the boat needed 2 more people before it could leave & we would be the last two to fill it up. She said 450,000 kip ($55) each!! I said 400,000 ($50). She said she'd have to call. Chris was apprehensive. I just wanted to get on a boat & start our journey to Luang Prabang. If we didn't go with this lady, we'd have to take a tuktuk to the city, find a boat company, take a tuktuk to the boat and then leave. I was willing to pay for convenience.
When Chris learned we didn't pay until we arrived at the boat he was more agreeable-and we got the fast boat for 420,000 kip-$52. I did have to exchange more money to pay for the journey. The lady assured me they had helmets at the boat. And we were off!!
The traditional hallmark of backpacking this area is to take a slow boat down the Mekong into Luang Prabang. This is a 2 day journey that stops in a village along the way to spend the night. Chris has done slow boats in Brazil & he didn't think we needed to do it. Also, based on our flight out-we didn't have time to take a slow boat. Thus the fast boat.
Let me start with the guide book descriptions. Chris' book does not recommend it & there have been reported deaths. My guide book shares that information, but also mentions that "the vast majority of journeys are incident free." Trip Advisor reviews were negative. The guide books describes the fast boat journey as skimming across water at 60Km/hr, cramped. Life jackets & helmets provided-helmets more for noise.
We were dropped off well, on the side of the road & walked down a long set of steps with our packs to the boat. Our saving grace: another couple from our bus yesterday. Not sure why, but a familiar face made me feel better about this boat. We hadn't talked-but I felt better with other tourists onboard-maybe we weren't so crazy after all.
The guide book gave a pretty accurate description. This is Chris, in our seat-I sat in that little space next to him. There were 7 of us & the driver.
These are the excited faces of innocence. Although we'd read about the boat ride-we in no way knew what ere are in for. This is the pre-photo.
The boat took off-The wind whipping through our hair. I couldn't help but laugh. Where were our helmets? Where were our life jackets? Were we really going to sit up with our knees at our chests in a 2' x 3' rectangle with only a small cushion to sit on for the next 6 hours?
After the initial start with a bit of water splashing up onto us. We settled into a regular speed where the water parted into a wake that landed away from us. By regular speed I mean 30-45 mph. The wind whipped into our faces and I wondered if our sunglasses would get ripped off our faces if we turned either right or left. We zig-zagged a lot at first to avoid the rocks that jutted out of the water.
We've all been on a speedboat & know what it's like to go full throttle. Generally the ability to go full speed ahead is limited by either the confines of space or other boats. We had neither, thus it was that adrenaline-laced, full speed ahead, sucking in wind for the entire boat ride. Mer equated it to being in a CPAP machine, whatever that is. I liked her description of being on a motorcycle without a helmet-I'm not sure our descriptions will ever capture how CRAZY of a ride this was.
There was also a fair bit of debris: leaves, branches, whole logs, bottles, plastic bags, styrofoam, and more. Some of it we avoided, others we went right over. And we felt every piece as our wooden boat skimmed over rocks & branches. Mer said it was like a rock under a tent.
At one point, I thought about reaction time and what would happen if we hit rocks. I then leaned over to Mer and said, "If you see we are going to hit these rocks, you have to jump out away from the boat. If you lean over to tell me we both won't make it out." Those were the things I thought about. Mer said she was praying & preparing to meet Jesus.
Sometimes, the water was really smooth and easy. Then suddenly, we'd hit rapids or odd currents coming off the rocks and they'd shake us in the boat pounding our backs against the wooden backboard. If we passed another boat, that wake too would send us bouncing in our seats. We both have battle wounds-a sort spot about 3/4 down our backs where we leaned against the wooden planks. Eventually we learned to lean forward-but there were a couple of teeth rattling, unexpected bumps that caused yelps from the boat.
Now, we made frequent stops at first, which oddly helped acclimate us. First, after only 15 minutes, it was to get a full cylinder of fuel (maybe propane). The next stop was only 30 minutes later to pick up a package. Then, another 30 minutes downriver, it was a stop for a snack (where a boatful of monks stopped too.)
All this early stopping allowed us to adjust ourselves into better positions. Mer and I could switch off who sat criss-cross. My back also began to hurt from hitting against the backboard at bumps in the river, so I found if I sat at an angle, the pressure was better.
As the time wore on, we relaxed a bit and stopped taking photos of ourselves in a dangerous situation, but of the beautiful scenery around us-think Jurassic park. People were working to gather fish in longboats. Cattle were bathing and drinking at the river's edge, hillsides were dotted with huts where communities lived. The lush, forested mountains rose to meet the misty, overcast sky. Once the fear of dying wore off, the amazing surroundings emerged. While the hum of the motor and the whooshing wind drowned out all sounds, the eyes had a feast.
Our longest stretch in the boat yet came to an end in Pak Beng, the halfway point. This is where the slow boat from the border overnights. We reached it in 2.5 hours, for lunch. Obviously, the town wasn't very active midday, saving their energy for the evening boat arrivals. Mer and I got off and climbed a ton of stairs to the road above the harbor. We tried two restaurants, fully set up with tables and chairs, but no one working there. Finally, we found a woman with a snack stall selling some baked croissant fold-overs. We got one chocolate and one banana.
We ate them plus some protein snacks in time for all 7 passengers and the driver to return to the boat … with an 8th passenger. Already, there were 2 local girls, an Uruguayan couple, a French guy, and Mer and I. They jostled one of the smaller girls to the front with the French guy to fit the new, local woman in back.
I also wondered at this point about my earplugs. I grabbed them from the top of my big bag and then plucked them in. As the boat took off again, it was great to have the engine and wind muted. Now that the fear had waned, I could now cut the sound and truly enjoy the scenery.
There were notably less stops on the second half of the journey. After our lunch stop, we zoomed for nearly an hour and a half straight. Also happening on this part was the rain. If we had been walking in the city, it would have been a light rain we barely took note of. But because we were rocketing down a river, each drop stung as it landed. Mer asked for the poncho for protection and warmth. It was a bit of a fool's errand trying to put on flapping plastic at 60 km/h, but we somehow managed it without it flying in the faces of the couple seated behind us. 
Only as we were within striking distance of Luang Prabang did we stop again, to let out our 8th passenger out at a pretty remote beach. We reshuffled seats so the French guy could have his small seat back.
We stopped one more time just before our final destination to trade in our fuel tank again.
Finally, after almost exactly 6 hours after our departure, we pulled into the Luang Prabang port.
Except, of course, that we were far outside the city. Fortuitously, there was a squadron of tuk tuk drivers just waiting (it's almost like they knew!)
We attempted our bargaining power of 5 to get a good deal for us and a healthy chunk to a driver, but to no avail. They wouldn't budge on their 20,000 kip per head price. Alas, we just wanted to get into town.
We noticed that our faces were both red and greasy. We weren't sure if the red was sunburn or windburn. Certainly, the greasiness was due to a constant air pressure blowing on it.
Mer and I were dropped off first at Kinnaly Place House. There we met our very energetic host. She got us coffee and tea with watermelon and bananas while she pulled out s map of the city and circled highlights and closing times. Then we got our room.
We quickly showered and had 30 minutes before our sites in Mount Phousi closed.
This mount is the tallest in Luang Prabang and, besides its many temples and stupas along the way, it provided excellent views of the whole city. We hustled our way up, developing a new layer of sweat along the way. We raced past a large Buddha statue and a Buddha footprint to make it before it closed (6 pm) and before nightfall. The sights lived up to the billing. 
We tried to cool down in the mountain breezes before our more relaxed descent. We went down a different way so I could find a wat that featured Airavata, a three-headed elephant from Hindu mythology. 
After descending from this wat, we found ourselves in the night market, specifically the food part. We quickly found one serving Lao food. 
It was at this stall we found the delicious Lao Larb with chicken. It was so good, we ordered a second one.
We then meandered through the night market en route to our hostel. I wanted to get to bed to be able to rise early to see the monks. I was told they start at 5:30. That's early for vacation.
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