Our initial aim was to cross the Northern part of Laos by bus, stopping along the way in Luang Nam Tha, Phongsali and Muang Sing. Time however caught up with us (we blame beer Lao and water fights) and we had to make our way to the 'Gibbon Experience' on the Thai border ASAP or forfeit our reservation made months before. We did have a couple of days to relax in between the lonnnnng 15 hour bus trips though. I used my tried and tested technique of asking a like minded traveller in Luang Prabang where her favourite place was in Laos. She told me about a small village one hour by boat from Nong Khiaw called Muang Ngoi Neua. She painted it as an hippie backpacker hangout, perfect for winding yourself up in a hammock for hours and reading with an unspoilt view of the river. That'll be it then!

Views from the bus

We boarded our bus in Sam Neua and at first it looked like we would have the luxury of excess space. This was certainly not to be. After about 5 hours every row was seating 6 people. It didn't affect us too much as we had proper seats and thankfully they didn't try to squeeze any more people on to those. But, the what should be aisle was cleverly converted into 2 extra seats using a portable, perfectly fitting, tailor made cushioned bench. Great. The views in Laos are utterly breathtaking though. If you're not prone to travel sickness from constant bends and hills and don't mind automatic rifles carried by 15 year olds sticking into your thigh then its a dream come true.

A bit of a packed boat too

Eventually........we arrived at Nong Khiaw which is not really somewhere you need to stay for long. After hiking in the dark because of the blow out to a rather expensive set of bungalows we eventfully went back on ourselves and checked into some nice little riverside huts... which we then moved out of half way through dinner when I realised the kitchen of the restaurant was directly behind our bed. Poor Jez, he really could have slept in the street at this stage.

Near total quiet

The next morning we took a boat to the most beautiful little village. It really was serene. It was isolated from all roads and the only noises were from geckos and the odd rooster. The children's favourite games were 'throw the flip flop' and boules which we lost dismally at every game! They spent their time drawing pictures in the sand alleys between houses and hours skipping. The guest houses were rustically basic and the generators were turned off at 10pm meaning we could actually get some much needed sleep. I wouldn't say this little gem was devoid of tourists as most of the income seems now to come from them but it hasn't destroyed the spirit or changed the people yet. Probably because the backpackers never leave their hammocks until the boat is ready to take them away.

We were lucky enough to find 8 other people who wanted to go to Luang Prabang by boat and this was a glorious journey. Instead of a bum breaking 4 hours by a glorified tuk tuk we laid back, stretched out watched the bathing water buffalos, passed almost hidden villages, had heated political debates with Isrealis and not even that spoiled our day. (Only joking David)

Back to Luang Prabang, the 5'000 kip buffet deal and the night market. YEAH!!!!! Only 2 days until we would be living with gibbons in tree houses.