Vietnam-- first impressions

I crossed the border from Laos into Vietnam yesterday morning. Very fast processing, stamp here, drive 4km in the bus, stamp there: Welcome to Vietnam! 

I arrived in Dien Bien Phu around noon. Time for my first Pho! 

Then I had to wait for 5hrs to get a sleeper bus to Hanoi. Well, I was in for a surprise! 

In South America we have pretty comfortable sleeper buses, but the Vietnamese took this to another level. 

There are bunk beds in the entire bus! Comfortable, completely flat, bunk beds, complete with pillow and blanket! 

(I slept through the night!)

The bus driver also had a sense of humor. We stopped (at the side of the road) for a bathroom break, and I was the last one out. When he saw me coming, he started driving away, just to make me run. I did, then he stopped, gave me his hand and we all laughed. :)

A little later we stopped for dinner. There were only another couple of foreigners on the bus, and they stayed on the bus. I got out because I was hungry. What isn't my surprise, when I see that everybody sits at long tables and shares the same food! Dinner with locals? Check! It was pretty tasty too! 

Arrived this morning at 5am, got a taxi to the hotel, but had to wait until someone checked out to get a room. So I went to walk around and have some food. 

(Someone reading by the lake)

At 11am I came back and got my room. 

Those are rose petals on the bed folks! 

As you can tell, my first impressions of Vietnam are extremely positive! :)

More to come!!

Wanna learn how to cook?

It's easy, here is what you do: 

1- find a small restaurant* with fantastic food.

2- go there a few times in a row, be nice, and compliment the chef repeatedly.

3- at breakfast one day, ask the chef if she'd teach you how to make your favorite dish. Tell her you just want to watch her cook, and cross your fingers. 

4- if she says yes, you're in luck! Don't press the subject, thank her and let a few hours pass.

5- come back between meal times, when the restaurant is empty and she has time to dedicate to you. Ask her again, and wait until she invites you into the kitchen! 

6- watch her every move, take pictures, smell and taste everything she touches. Write everything down.

7- thank her profusely, and eat the deliciousness she just prepared in front of you! :) 

This is how I learned to make Lao Mok Paa, something incredibly delicious and indescribable. If you're lucky, maybe I'll make it for you one day. :) 

*This probably won't work in a restaurant in your home town, simply because they'll want you to keep coming and not teach you their secrets!! Better to try it when traveling to faraway lands with exotic cuisines... 

The richest poor country in the world

I have been in love with Thailand for 10 years. Everybody who has heard me speak about Thailand (or even just from reading this blog) you can tell that I love Thailand, which is why I end up never leaving. I'm glad I did though, Laos is amazing!! 

However, I keep talking to people who mention how the people are dirt poor. They mention that the majority of the population live in rural areas and in a global scale, are considered below the poverty level because they don't earn so-many-dollars per capita per year.

Honestly, I don't see it. 

They live in little villages by the river, and subsist on some combination of sticky rice plus what they plant, the animals they keep (chickens, pigs, buffalo) and the fish they catch. 

You see fathers carrying babies, and mothers tickling toddlers who giggle adorably. They have plenty of food and water. They live in their own houses. The food is great. The weather is wonderful, and when it gets too hot, they jump in the river! The scenery is breath-taking and beautiful. There's no polution, no stress, no noise. They have schools and free health-care. I even walked into a hospital and it was squicky clean and empty (no crowds of patients waiting). The people are nice, helpful, happy. 

But don't take my word for it: here are some pictures:

(Friends and chickens)

(Drying rice)

(Typical houses) 

(Cooling off)

(Going out to fish)

(Big sister and chubby baby!)

(Sunset over the mountains)

(Silly foreigners -me- spinning around and making adorable little girls giggle)

Where is the poverty? Sure, they don't have any money... but they have no use for it. They have everything they need -- things that money can't buy... 

I guess I have a different definition of what it means to be rich or poor. To me, these people are the richest people I've ever met... 

The other side of the Mekong

I mentioned that I was forcing myself to leave Thailand and go to Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia, right?

Well, a few days ago I crossed the Mekong river from Thailand into Laos. It's beautiful here. The people are just as friendly as in Thailand, the food is similar (though not *quite* as good!), it's actually cheaper, and there are absolutely breathtaking places. 

(Sunset over the Mekong, looking onto Thailand on the other side)

Why didn't I come here sooner!? :) 

From the border town of Houay Xai, I took a local bus to Luang Namtha, a place close to a beautiful National Park of 96% protected forest. 

I met some people on the way, Sam from Spain and Pauline from France. We all wanted to do some trekking, so we decided to look for something and book together. 

The first day, after we booked our 3-day trip, we rented motorbikes and went out exploring. We were riding on this tiny road going up the mountains and passing by lots of little villages. 

Our lunch spot, by a little creek, high up in the mountains... 

Then back to town, shower and dinner. 

The next day, we started our tour at 9am. The first day was kayaking down the Namtha river.

(Sam and I on the kayak)

At first it was a little slow going, we had to paddle a lot and I was tired... Then we stopped for lunch and I got some more energy. 

In the afternoon the river was flowing faster, and we had quite a few rapids! It was a lot more fun, and a lot less work... :) 

Then we got to the village where we were going to spend the night and leave the kayaks. The people are cery friendly, and even though we can't really communicate with them, we tried to interact and somehow always understand each other... 

I was pretty exhausted, hadn't slept much at all the night before, so I went to bed early. 

The next day, the trekking was pretty tough. It was uphill most of the way, and I mean straight up, through the tropical jungle. But we made it, and the view from the top was incredible!! 

(Arriving at the top!!)

(Sunset panorama)

After sunset, Tanoi (our guide) cooked us dinner, and then we went back to the viewpoint to look at the stars for a while. Absolutely incredible!! I've been really lucky in this trip, with lots of opportunities to be in the middle of nowhere, with no light polution, no electricity, no internet, nothing. A chance to disconnect, look at the stars, and see the beauty of this world... 

On the third day we trekked back to the village, completely downhill, at knee-busting angles. Finished with a swim, and playing with the little kids from the village. 

(Namtha river)

(Adorable giggling girls spinning around)

Then back to Luang Nam Tha for a looong shower, dinner and bed!

My first 5 days in Laos have been amazing... :)