My day was a quiet one, Got up early to feed and photograph the monks on the street, I thought because I was turning them into a show piece I should at least feed them to. Feeding the monks. So I got some banana’s and biscuits off one of the multitude of local women also taking advantage of the monk and waited by the side of the road. It’s nice to see but I felt like I was taking photos of something that I shouldn’t be. It’s like going to a zoo, you take photos of caged animals and there is not much they can do about it.
The monks all line up and walk down the road for arms, it’s pretty, all the bright monks in there orange robes wondering down the road, I had enough to feed about 15 out of the 60 or so monks that would go past, this gave me time to do some photo’s too. The lady who I had brought the monk food off came over and tried to make me force feed them so she could sell more food to me but I was not having it. So once I had feed a few it was time for photo’s.
Now I was one of maybe 40-50 foreigners snapping away, flashes firing in the early morning light. The monks seem to take it all in their stride, and on they go into another day of monking. After the photo shoot I was off back to bed for more sleep.
Later on after some breakfast at mid day I headed out to my last hope for a boat trip down the Mekong, the local barges sometimes run the river if there are things to move so there was a opportunity there. I talked to a couple of boat owners and they did say they were going but not all the way to Vientiane, so I would be on the boat for 2 days and then have a two day bike ride out. So I have given up on that idea and will do a boat trip down south.
I also ran into the English girl, Now she deserves to be named, Lashana, I have bumped into her a few times now on my rides, and she has had a really interesting time. We had bumped into each other during the day so we meet up later on.
Now I had meet up with Lashana early on the second day of the ride between Vang Vieng and Luang Phrabang, I headed away and had my big day, She had carried on up and down the hills as well, on the first of the big down hills she had got a blow out in her front tire, so for Lashana the rest of the day would be walking up the big climb. This carried on until dark when Lashana decided it was time to stop at one of the farmers little huts, from the sounds she was tired and wet from the rain earlier.
Just as she was getting ready for a night on a farmers shack the farmer came along and said there was a village a little further on, so off she went still walking up the hill, by the time she made it to the village it was well passed dark and she was really tired. Lashana stop at the first home to see if she could stay, now from the sounds of it she was by now suffering from hyperthermia. Lashana passed out, the next thing she knew she was by the fire in the middle of the house with blankets on her and the father feeding her sticky rice.
Needless to say Lashana stayed there the night, the next morning the father fixed her tire and by the time she got up the whole village had heard the story of the forrag who had passed out at their place. She was feed and watered by one of the local ladies and then after many thank yous she was off again towards Luang Phrabang, I cannot remember which but she had another blow out on the next downhill. The father from the night before came to see how she was doing and ended up carrying her bags down the hill while Lashana rode her bike with the now fixed tire down. Please correct me if I am wrong on this account Lashana. She finally made it to Luang Phrabang that afternoon.
It sounded a lot more exciting when she was telling it with all the little details. The next day I had decided to head back to Vientiane as my next which had been sore for a few days was not improving so I wanted to stop in and see a doctor.
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