Adventures in South East Asia

38 ~ Kayaks and Bikes

Nong Khiaw, Laos

In the morning, our tour number was down to two since the other woman had gotten sick. Anna and I boarded the tourist longboat and we took off to a nearby village. Our guide was Mele, the same man we had spoken with yesterday. The ride was never scenic as the river cut through more limestone mountains and even featured some islands. Cows and water buffalo grazed along the banks of the river, hardly bothered by our boat's roaring motor. We made it to a village to visit.

In the center of the village stood four yellow posts and a large bell. Mele explained that in the past, people used to test the land in the village to make sure it was safe to set up there. They would leave four seeds on the ground and come back later. If the seeds were still there, it meant that the area was safe from animals and insects who would harm their crops.

We walked through the village, waving to the cute children along the way. Past the village was the path to the waterfalls. We crossed a few farms, seeing more animals including pigs.

The hike was an average length, maybe thirty or forty-five minutes to the top. I had to take off my shoes partway there to scale a large rock. Flip flops hadn't been an ideal choice, but my gladiators had bit the dust after Songkran. It made the feat a bit slipperier when we went through many small streams, but I managed.

The waterfall itself was underwhelming after the ones I had seen outside Luang Prabang. It was a different sort of experience though. This waterfall was secluded and our own, despite having the one tier and dropping into a small pool. The other had been more populated and a recreational attraction. I still hopped in the pool of this one with all my clothes and let the water cascade through my hair and over my head. The cold water was refreshing and fun.

I was thrilled to see Mele had remembered to bring a vegetarian friendly lunch with pumpkin, sticky rice and veggies. We ate out of banana leaves, an eco-practise I was quite enjoying seeing more and more. We headed back down when another tour group reached the falls and made our way to the kayak. Anna and I were sharing the two person while Mele had his own. For the most part, the ride was calm and just required some paddling.

Mele warned us about a section with class one white water and we paddled hard through there. Once it was finished, we stopped to congratulate each other on a job well down. Mele hollered out to us, but our kayak chose that moment to flip right over. That must have been what he meant by keep paddling, ooups. I kept holding onto the paddle and rope on the side of the kayak until we flipped it back over. After, I swam to get the other paddle and a rogue water bottle that had gone overboard as well.

We were both laughing, and the wet clothes proved to be refreshing for the rest of the journey. My arms were sore by the end, like most times I engaged in paddle sports, but overall it was a nice day. I spent the rest of the day getting well acquainted with my hammock, reading, sketching, and watching the sunset over one of my favourite views in all of Southeast Asia.

The following day, I got to have dessert for breakfast, mango sticky rice! It had been a Thai favourite of mine and was just as good here. I thought it would be fun to rent a bike for the day. The mountain bikes were quite expensive, same price as my hotel room just to rent -- not that I was staying in a palace or anything. The city bikes with one gear were not so pricey, so I thought to myself, how bad could that be?

I attempted the other mystery road I found perpendicular to the main one near my guesthouse. I chose it as it followed the path of the river on the mountainside. The uphill portions were pretty killer without additional gears and I walked at every single incline and some of the steep downhill ones with curves as well. A few motorbikes and trucks came by, but I was mainly tackling this on my own. I passed farms and even a section of crops and trees that had been burned. At first, I could see the river, but it soon disappeared. My energy took the same course, so I headed back.

I decided to take the main road to these other supposed waterfalls. It hadn't seemed so steep when I walked it the other day, but maybe every incline just felt that way on the useless bike. I passed an area where they were mining some kind of rock, two very friendly villages, and a river before I gave up and took the path back. The waterfalls just weren't coming. The neat part was coming across a bunch of cows on the road, just hanging out. I got off my bike and approached them slowly so I could get a few pictures.

On the way back, I found those falls, in one of the villages where all the children were playing and swimming. Not wanting to intrude on their fun, I kept going after reciprocating their waves, 'Sabaidee' greetings and smiles.

The afternoon was pretty relaxing. I sat down to talk to one of the tour guides about shuttles out and ended up getting the whole history on the town. If I sat there and asked enough questions on a slow day, there was no end to how much two lonely people could share.

Nong Khiaw had one guesthouse eighteen years ago, when he was very young, and nothing more. About five years ago, people and tourists started coming into the restaurant where he worked and asked if they would give them a tour of the area since it was so beautiful. He thought they were a bit crazy. It was just a small town and farms around, but took them anyways. From there, he hung up a little sign that said tours and people would wait under it for him.

He began to work for a tour company, but left in the past year as they refused to promote him further. He decided to start his own business instead since he knew the industry well enough and had been at it for eight months. With the exception of the current slow season, he said business was good enough. I hoped it actually was and that he wasn't just saving face.

He talked me into booking a massage at his parents' parlour. That required little effort as I was always happy to book a massage, especially after a morning of biking and the hike/kayak yesterday. The massage had great shoulder work and they helped stretch out my lower back with upper legs stretches. Most regular massages I had experienced in Southeast Asia were done without oil, unless you requested it. The thick cotton garment softened the, at times, yoga-like acts.

Nong Khiaw, a friendly little town that tourism seemed to just find, was the gem I needed to redeem my Laos experience. The rocky arrival and scams hadn't gained my approval, but this certainly did. That little hammock would always be a nice symbol of serenity.