Bungling in the Jungle, Laos, 2018.

[katie23]

You're spamming us with Spam, fishy. thnx for the pics! BTW, did you play the guitar for any group this time around?

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The temples of Sirius.
Just kidding. Vat Phou,Laos.

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2112 is alway a head scratcher. Surprisingly these kids can play. I'd post but It ain’t my style.

No Will Discovitch or a Case of Nisant. Just..



fish

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We did this same trip in 2010.
We looked like rock stars posing on these same steps back then.

[lom]

We did this same trip in 2010.
We looked like rock stars posing on these same steps back then.

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Those were the days. The freshness of it all.

A roadside fruit market somewhere in southern Laos. Circa 2018.

Well I wasn't at Woodstock. Or Vietnam for that matter. Good tunes though.

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The bridge over the Don river, Pakse Laos. Taken the day we toured the abandoned mansion. Taken from the second floor overlooking the river.

[OhOh]

A roadside fruit market somewhere in southern Laos. Circa 2018

Available today in every Thai village and town.

I have noticed that many Thais do eat a great deal of virgin unprocessed foods. From field/garden to family table, fruits,nuts, vegetables, meat and of course insects, on a daily basis.

[fishlocker]

^ They do have that luxury of fresh fruits and vegetables. Better that than some of the fish and animals that I saw. I've always wondered what kind of assurance one has of the quality/ healthiness of the meats and fish that were at the local wet markets that I had visited.

We drove past a few huge animal farms that had concrete walls ten feet tall. The stench was terrible, I can't imagine what the conditions were inside but I can imagine. Other animals like cows, chickens goats ect all looked a bit thin to me, almost sickly. Well, yes, sickly. But hey, they are probably less toxic than farmed salmon.

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Back to some pic. A still from the DJI at the Four Thousand Island area in southern Laos.

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DJI still at Vat Phu, Champasack Laos. Looking down on the old city from the elevation the main Temple is on.

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About midway from Pakse to Se Pan Don I had to stop and fly over this mountain.

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Random river view.

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Another DJI still. One day I'll set up a time laps from the river bank. That would be cool.

[Bettyboo]

Great thread.

[NamPikToot]

Just looked up Vat Phu, Champasack Laos. Handily its just south of Pakse - was thinking a road trip Ubon, Pakse etc so will add that site, it looks stunning. Thanks Fish

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Thanks for the positive feedback. I'm finally uploading a short clip from the gopro. I'll post it up tomorrow, it's late here and the miss is pulling my leg, that's right, leg to get to bed.

As for Wat Phu it's a bit off the beaten path but you're on the west side of the river so a piece of cake. Look up a place called The View around Champasack. Rooms were 200,000 kip and the food was real good.

The Temple and grounds are not that big so a day trip does it. Make sure you explore to the north once at the Temple. I missed the alligator stone the first time there years ago so we had to go back.

You could spend alot of time trecking the area if you were really into that. There are other sights I'd like to see in the earea like a waterfall ect. Do some research before you go if so inclined.

I'll dig up some more pics tomorrow as time permits.

Cheers, the fishes.

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Here are a few nuggets leading up to Vat Phu. Years ago you had to walk from the museum area/parking lot past the ponds but now there are shuttles that take you just west of them.That's all I have from the GoPro. Understand I'm not trying to build the place up. It is a pretty subdued place, in fact everyone that lived there is long gone. On the plus side you will have room to roam about freely if you choose. I plan to go back some day and really get into the mountain trails. I've got to see the waterfall on the mountain. It wasn't in any of the guide books I've read, and I've read a few.

One day I hope to hit the Island between there and Tomo. Not too long ago some divers found some really cool artifacts under water there. Also some carvings on the rocks are exposed in the dry season when the river is low. Interesting thing is that bil and I bought a rice farm together years ago. I had no idea then that it was a 20 minute walk straight south to Tomo. Some prime land along the river with a natural spring was not far off that he and his wife sublet to local farmers. See the In and Around Laos thread if you want to see picks of that land. Sils mom has to be 104 or more by now, I forgot exactly but I was lucky enough to tour her place a few years ago. Kinda cool.

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I just ran across this clip. This was shot on location at the top of Tad Fane a couple of years ago on Laos highest waterfall. We were near the edge doing a hike through the jungle that was just awesome. The nephew took us to this spot after a 45min hike from the tourist place.He wanted me to go to the other portion of the river but believe it or not the fish was chicken. I got about to the peak and said I'd had enough. We were a few meters from the edge and it was damp and a bit slick in places. A voice in the back of my mind looped a Clint Eastwood line, dying ain't much of a living boy. I've regretted it ever since.

I didn't make it back there last round either. I guess I'll keep it on the back burner until next time. I did do the zipline so that was cool. Here is a minute or two of that old trip.

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So we headed up from Si Pan Don on route 13. We ventured through a few small villages along the way until we came to a larger town that acts as a sort of rest stop for travelers. It didn't take me long to figure that out because as soon as we slowed down folks came running from all directions to try and sell us some food. Politely declining we opted, well miss fish and bil, for a table at one of the road side eateries.

I wasn't having none of that except that I did purchase a very nicely done papaya in a little bag with a small packet of spices and salt from a local girl as I stepped off the sidecar.

While they ate the local fare I broke out a packet of tuna I had brought from home just for this type of occasion. Lets just say I've been down this road before.

It wasn't too long after we started eating that another vehicle came through town and stopped off a ways down the road. What I witnessed next I can only describe as Lao fast food. Yes, these gals were fast. They would grab the chicken on a stick, the liver on a stick, the tube of rice or whatever they were peddling at the time and run on down the road to make that sale.

I watched this go on for awhile and when I finished my tuna I thought I'd get another bag of mango from the same gal as before and hang out with these folks for a bit.

What you'll see next is as close as I can get you into a day in these folks lives. The video is shot in real time though It does seem like it was sped up a bit in the beginning as we race to the next sale.

Whoa, what a day that it was. I tried to let the tourist know that the mango wouldn't kill him. I'd stay away from the chicken though unless you have an iron gullet.

Hope you get a kick out of this video, I could tell some of the first timers were a bit bewildered with the process. As for the locals and of course the drivers, they've been down this road before. Enjoy.....
the fish

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Golden Buddha Temple. Just across the bridge in Pakse. A nice spot to check out if in the area.

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Looking toward Pakse you can see the casino that was halted mid way through construction for whatever reason. Below is the Golden Buddha Temple, Pakse.Tad Lo, Paksong Lao.

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Remember, No jumping. Step back from the edge and think about it for a second.

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Sil Helping the Englishman we met days earlier in Pakse at an ATM to cross the bridge at Tad Lo with his packs while he pushed his bike. It's a small world after all. The guy made remarkable time I'd say. So yea, people biking all around Laos. Not easy I would suspect, or should I say you have to want to.

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I went off alone upstream while the group took a break near the tourist spot. This falls was cool so yea, I had to check it out.