5/24-5/28: Nong Khiow and Muong Ngoi Neua

The first bus out of Muang Sing was at 8AM, but then I would miss the 9AM bus to Nong Khiow. So I decided to hitch hike at 6AM, and pretty quickly caught a ride, getting into to Nam Tha by 7:45AM. It took about six hours to get to Nong Khiow . Besides the torture of bad roads and uncomfortable conditions, I really like the travel days, for I see so much of the beautiful Laos country side.

Iguanas, or monitor lizards for sale at a restaurant on the bus ride to Nong Khiow

Nong Khiow (well, some of it)

View of the Namou River

My guest house, right on the river - my bungalow is the bottom middle one

Nong Khiow town, on the other side of the river from where I stayed

I met two nice couples, one from France and the other from England, who were heading up river the next day, so I decided to join them . We took a boat for one and a half hours up the Namou River to the village of Muang Ngoi Neua.

Water buffalo on the river

Often things don't turn out to be as expected, but the boat trip scenery surpassed my expectations. The scenery was breath taking. It wasn't just the mountains and river, but life along the river - fishermen, villages, cows and water buffalo.

View going up river

Boat landing at Muang Ngoi Neua. I ended up spending a lot of time in the river, swimming across the river a couple of times a day to cool down.

There is not much to the village of Muang Ngoi Neua - a bunch of bungalows over looking the river, and this one-lane town above . There are no cars here - the only way here is by river. There is electrical power from 6 to 10PM only. I walked this lane at sunset, and it seemed like the entire village was out, sitting on their steps while the kids ran up and down the lane.

Grand mother and baby

A boy holding a gutted big lizard

Louisa and Joe from England, Anna Laura and John Philip from France

The two couples left after two nights, and I stayed another day

Pig to market

I went an a walk for about an hour east to the village of Ban Na. It was a beautiful butterflied lined path through the forest and rice fields.

Bridge over a small river near the cave

rice terrace laundry

View on the walk

Ban Na village laundry

Ban Na village child

Three girls making faces

View on the way back

Vanessa from France - we met on the bus ride back to Luang Prabang.

Butterflies and boy (my favorite photo)

There are so many butterflies along the river. They hang out on the river bank. The kids run through them.

I am starting to feel the time pressure that going to Turkey has put on my customary slow pace. I will head south now, stopping in Vang Vieng and Vientiane, before continuing to Cambodia.