After my trip to Bangkok I headed up to Chiang Mai about a week ago. This is a treasured city for the Thais which has the remnants city walls and a moat that still surrounds the old part of the city. You can see a night shot of the walls and the moat below...and also me. 
After Chiang Mai I tried to book a plane ticket to Luang Prabang, Laos, but all the tickets were booked. Therefore I opted for a two-day trip involving a bus to the border crossing,
and then a slow boat down the Mekong River. This was definitely an interesting experience that I'm glad I did once, but never want to do again. The boat was crowded, dirty, and loud. Plus, sitting for 6 hours on a boat is not my idea of a fun time.
But the funny thing is that it was one of the best experiences of the trip. I made friends with a Swiss couple and a Dutch couple on the boat, and we all traveled together up until yesterday. If I had just flown there I probably never would have met them. And the scenery from the boat was stunning. We saw small villages, boats, water buffalo, goats, and an elephant (possibly...I didn't see it).
And now I'm in Hanoi with my good friend: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/17/AR2006111700224.html
2 comments:
Looking good Mike. Is that guy behind you on the boat drinking a beer? Little six hour booze cruise? Are you going to teach your non-American friends about Thanksgiving and have a huge noodle dinner w/ cranberry sauce?
Things here are good. ...the Skins are still losing, but I see you got off the schneid in fantasy.
Booze Cruise, huh? I bet it wasnt as fun as our AWESOME rafting trip when everyone left me on the river to fend for myself. Dont worry, I walked a mile to a gas station and hitch-hiked in the back of a pick up truck in the middle of Thunder storms. It was sweet!
-Mikey
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