Through the mist covered mountains…, 26.12.2005, 139th day

The downside of cheap accommodation is normally that young budget travellers also frequent these places, creating noise and commotion. But surprisingly my sleep was not disturbed. In the morning I was woken by the sound of rain and it was then when I decided to catch the 10am bus to Luang Prabang, fleeing this black and wet hole. Goga and Alex agreed and at 10.30am the Hyundai bus left with us on board. I would love to tell you horrific stories of scary driving and near accidents but no, the almost eight hours to about 250km away Luang Prabang in the north was uneventful and straight-forward. In fact the scenery of dense jungle, lush green forests and mist covered mountains was quite extraordinary. We saw traditional Hmong houses right beside the road built on stilts and made out of wood and palm leaves mostly without electricity. We saw villagers constructing a new house and we even saw a friendly-looking army check-point with soldiers without arms on the top of one of the mountain. The road to Luang Prabang is named Road 13 and has seen some rebel activity and bus attacks in the recent past. But luckily not today. The bus driver drove safely on the mostly empty road and we were spared any Thai in-bus TV entertainment, normally so popular in Asia. The bus even picked us up fully fuelled (normally they drive after picking up the passengers to a petrol station for refuelling). The road had some sharp bends and we drove up and down steep mountains. To our surprise most of the road was in very good condition with the exception of a few potholes. At 5pm we arrived in the former Laotian capital Luang Prabang which is located where the Mekong is joined by a smaller river. The town has retained its colonial French chic and it made for a very pleasant welcome compared to Vang Vieng the night before.