Well, I made it into Laos. After a rather disorganized 8 hour journey by minibus, sangtheaw and rickety canoe, we finally got to the Cambodia-Lao border -- nothing more than two tiny bamboo shacks with Cambodian and Lao immigration officials extorting $1 each from the hordes of backpackers passing through. Oh well -- a dash of Cambodian-Lao corruption is part of the southeast Asian experience I guess!
As we passed over the imaginary line, the Lao countryside didn't seem all that different than the Cambodian - lots of brilliant green jungle, rice fields and the Mekong River snaking its way through. It was the attitude of the people, however, that was most striking. There is a saying about the people in the various southeast Asian countries:
In Vietnam, they grow the rice.
In Thailand, they sell the rice.
In Cambodia, they watch the rice grow.
In Laos, they listen to the rice grow.
Having spent the last few days in Laos, it's absolutely true! In Cambodia, as soon as you get off a bus, you are instantly surrounded by tuk-tuk drivers ("Tuk-tuk? Where you go?") and guesthouse touts ("You need guesthouse? Real cheap, come take a look!"). I step off the bus in southern Laos and the locals barely bat an eye at you!
Another example? The markets of Cambodia and Thailand can be quite crazy - shopkeepers beckoning to you, shoving various souvenirs and garments in front of you. In Lao, I wandered through one shopping centre and the proprieters were either asleep or too busy playing cards to glance at me when I wandered into their store.
But in my short time in Laos so far, I've fallen in love with both the people (adults and children waving, smiling and yelling "Sabaidy" as we walk by) and the countryside. I stayed for a few days on Don Det, a tiny island just across the border from Cambodia. Part of the 4000 Islands, it's surrounded by hundreds of tiny islets, a couple of impressive waterfalls -- best of all, despite the increasing number of travellers heading here and decades of wars, the locals have maintained their basic way of life for hundreds of years. On one memorable day, I rented a bike and toured the tiny paths, peddling slowly by postcard perfect views of the grand Mekong and waving to children as they ran to greet me.
As we passed over the imaginary line, the Lao countryside didn't seem all that different than the Cambodian - lots of brilliant green jungle, rice fields and the Mekong River snaking its way through. It was the attitude of the people, however, that was most striking. There is a saying about the people in the various southeast Asian countries:
In Vietnam, they grow the rice.
In Thailand, they sell the rice.
In Cambodia, they watch the rice grow.
In Laos, they listen to the rice grow.
Having spent the last few days in Laos, it's absolutely true! In Cambodia, as soon as you get off a bus, you are instantly surrounded by tuk-tuk drivers ("Tuk-tuk? Where you go?") and guesthouse touts ("You need guesthouse? Real cheap, come take a look!"). I step off the bus in southern Laos and the locals barely bat an eye at you!
Another example? The markets of Cambodia and Thailand can be quite crazy - shopkeepers beckoning to you, shoving various souvenirs and garments in front of you. In Lao, I wandered through one shopping centre and the proprieters were either asleep or too busy playing cards to glance at me when I wandered into their store.
But in my short time in Laos so far, I've fallen in love with both the people (adults and children waving, smiling and yelling "Sabaidy" as we walk by) and the countryside. I stayed for a few days on Don Det, a tiny island just across the border from Cambodia. Part of the 4000 Islands, it's surrounded by hundreds of tiny islets, a couple of impressive waterfalls -- best of all, despite the increasing number of travellers heading here and decades of wars, the locals have maintained their basic way of life for hundreds of years. On one memorable day, I rented a bike and toured the tiny paths, peddling slowly by postcard perfect views of the grand Mekong and waving to children as they ran to greet me.
2 comments:
Hi Naomi, Thanks for a glimps not only of southeast asia, but also of how you are bieng affected by the places and people.
Love ya,
Safe travels,
Dad
sounds beautiful, we were never in this part of Laos
Post a Comment