Travel Blog Chapter 20: Back to Luang Prabang and off to 4000 Islands

Getting back to Luang Prabang felt like a tiresome affair as there didn't seem much to do after leaving from there previously. I showed my Dutch friend around a little. She had previously gone through the Gibbon experience which was a personalized expedition in the far north of Laos. It seemed a little horrendous from what she shared with people falling sick, getting food poisoning to the verge of needing to be hospitalized and the guides making unreasonable demands on them to push on. I was making plans to go to 4000 islands that day, Don Khon and Don Det which was a group of islands and islets in the deep south. I was not in the most strategic position to get there from Luang Prabang as I was in the northern part of Laos at that point in time. Eventually I managed to find a bargained deal which will required me to take a bus to Vang Vieng, then Vientiane and from there to Parkse and thereafter a boat ride to the islands. There were a lot of transits and was going to be very long journey. That night we met up with the Swiss doctor after our dinner and we went to hang out at a quaint little bar, supposedly one of the main attractions in Luang Prabang. We were introduced to someone he had met along the way, an American who had actually lived in Singapore for many years before going back to the states. We ended the night early as we were all quite tired after the traveling.

Docking at Don Det

I left for my destination the next day and it was the longest ride ever. By the time we reached Vientiane, it was evening. I had been on the bus since morning. We switched to a sleeper bus which was more comfortable. They even had snacks for us on board. I shared my sleeping area with a Laotian. He was on a business trip and I found out that he was working for a charity initiative to encourage educational progress in Laos. We finally arrived at Parkse in the morning at round 7am. I transited to another minibus where I was grouped together with a couple of Dutch, a British and a Polish. The Dutch travelers had been on an exchange programme in Malaysia and was taking time to travel during the end of the semester. Eventually when we were taking our boat ride to Don Det, they realized they have left their camera back at the mainland and they had to go back for it. I finally reached Don Det in the late morning. I checked into a pretty nice looking guesthouse and met up with an Italian for a short afternoon drink.

4000 islands are made up of very small islets and islands clustered together in the southern part of Laos. It is near Cambodia and there were people who arrived in 4000 islands as their first stop from Cambodia. The way I have traveled up till now, I have basically covered the major sites of visit and for people who want to travel in Laos, you should definitely visit Parkse if you have the time. In between Vientiane and 4000 islands you can also travel to Savannakhet for more sight seeing. From Pakse, you need to travel for around 3 more hours to a jetty point. The boat ride will bring you to Don Det which was a small island connected to Don Khon via a bridge. Don Det is basically a tourist hub with guesthouses and cafes for backpackers to hang out. Don Det/Don Khon is a backpacker hangout and if you want to experience the "real" Laos, this may not be the best place to go to. I spent the first day reading my book, just enjoying the very slow pace of island life. The boat would come in from the mainland at 9am and 11am every morning carrying more travelers and transporting backpackers who were leaving the island. On the first night I met up with other travelers to drink and hang out at a small cafe. There were Germans, Israelis and Spanish with a very friendly guy from Sikkim and we had a hilarious night just talking about anything and everything under the sun.

Starting the bike journey

Old French Locomotive (Laos used to be a colony)

Another angle

The hidden beach

No one seemed to be around

Tat Somphamit Waterfall

I spent my time exploring the islands during my stay there. I rented a bike and rode across the bridge to Don Khon and headed for Tat Somphamit Waterfall. I had to pay an island entry fee to cross the bridge. The waterfall was spectacular but you could not get too close as there are fences for safety reasons. While I was there, I met a korean lady who I had seen along the way. I found out that she would be traveling for 3 months on her own. She had quitted her job and wanted to start her writing career using this trip as her inspiration. It had been a very eventful trip for her as she had lost her camera and her credit card in Thailand and at one point she almost wanted to just wrapped up her trip and go back to Korea. We had lunch at a small eatery near the waterfall and after that we went our separate ways. I have heard that there was a secret beach somewhere on Don Khon that was hidden away from sight. There were signs along the way pointing to a beach but it seemed unbelievable that it actually exist. The roar of waters grew louder the deeper I was in the forest and I came eventually to a clearing and saw the beach. It was not a beach in the strictest sense of the word as it was fresh water because Laos is landlocked. There were huge boulders and I climbed onto them to get my bearings. The Korean lady arrived a few moments later and we helped each other take photos. The weather was very hot that day and soaking your feet in the water was very refreshing.

The wild look

Sunburnt island life

Beautiful sunset

Photo taken from a hammock in the afternoon

Another sunset

Backpackers arriving on the island

I continued my ride to a particular place where you were able to see fresh water dolphins. I arrived there eventually and met 2 European girls who were intending to go out into the region on a boat to catch those magnificent creatures. I had to return my bike soon and it would be impossible for me to go out on the boat ride and be back in time so I gave it a pass evaluating the probability also from what I was told that you would need to be rather lucky to catch sight of the dolphins. I spent the rest of my time in Don Det hanging out with the Koreans; another Korean we met later, and a Spanish guy. We had a "special" arrival in Laos from a French couple who had rode their bicycles all the way from France, across Europe to Southeast Asia. That was amazing and inspirational. We drank, watched sunsets and basically just talk about life. After a few days on the island it was time to go. The Koreans had left previously with the Spanish and we had arranged to see if we could see each other in Vientiane again as that was where we would be heading to. I left on the same boat with the Dutch and the Italian who had arrived on the island with me. The Italian was a retired school teacher and it was interesting hearing from his life experiences. He was be heading back to Italy, likely to Venice to enjoy the beaches. Overall Don Det and Don Khon were not really exceptional. I think sometimes we overly romanticize island life. It was the people I have met that made that made this trip special.

More sunsets....

Very serene and peaceful

It was going to be another long ride back to Vientiane, Laos Capital. There were many instances on the trip where I had considered detouring for instance; when I was in Luang Prabang I considered going up to Kunming, China, and instead of 4000 islands I had wanted to go to Bangkok but I had booked a plane ticket from Vientiane to Kuala Lumpur beforehand so it would be a waste of money to do otherwise. So one of the lessons I learnt was that with a long trip like that, it would be better to book your return ticket later on in the trip. I met some Australians during my ride back to Vientiane and on the way from Parkse we had to wait to transit to another bus where we had a few hours to spare at the bus station. I took the time to explore the market life in Parkse and I felt that was the most authentic local life I have seen without any foreigners around and basically Laotians selling their everyday commodities. Eventually night came and we boarded the bus that would take us back to Vientiane.