UPDATED 5/7/2019: The original blog post below was before I recovered my lost photos and I was still trying to forget the car accident. See the real story of my trip to Laos here: www.jongraf.nyc/blog/2019/5/7/recovered-photos-my-trip-to-laos
I have a complicated relationship with Laos. On one hand, I was a guest of my friend Richard. He invited me to spend the entire week with him. We stayed in lovely places and had lovely meals. On the other hand, we went tubing in a dangerous river, I saw Richard almost get lost. Then my phone died from getting too wet (and I lost all of my photos from Luang Prabang and Vang Vieng). Later on we had a treacherous car ride from Vang Vieng to Vientiane and, well, it did not end well. We had a scary car accident and the car was totaled. No one was hurt, incredibly. I think that's why I've been hesitant to post for a while. I did not want to hide that this happened, at the same time I don't want to freak anyone out. Luckily we did not lose more.
Luang Prabang
Luang Prabang is a beautiful colonial city with a super chill river. The Buddhist temples there are magnificent. The restaurant scene is high end. The pastry shops are all French-inspired.
Kwang Si Falls, Luang Prabang
Vang Vieng is the opium (and opium-addict) capital of Laos. It's not a safe place to get to or out of. The roads are treacherous. The buses are consistently late. Drivers are reckless. The popular thing to do there is to go tubing on the river. The teenagers who run the operation are seemingly drunk or high. The tubing experience was fine until the end when the guide could not collect Richard. He went out on a motorboat to collect him. The tube continued to go downstream and he went to chase the tube while I was left alone floating in the river. When he came back to me, he was yelling at me to climb in to the boat with the motorblade dangerously close to my face. I ended up maneuvering to the bushes instead and walking uphill.
Our hotel in Vang Vieng
Later in the day, as the rain storm was in full force, our driver to Vientiane made a reckless driving move and played a game of chicken with an oncoming dump truck. I think he might have been high on opium. There were also energy drink containers all over the place. Richard and I escaped unscathed. It was nothing short of a miracle. Another driver along the road picked us up and we continued on our way, as the vehicle we were in was no longer usable.
Sofitel Hotel, Luang Prabang in the former colonial governor's compound
The temples of Vientiane, the capital, are also beautiful. At this point in Laos, I was so shaken from our experiences it was hard to enjoy it all. Richard and I went through a lot together and I was so grateful to be with him. I think we really took care of each other and I will never forget it.