Our minibus driver expertly navigated the mountain roads and the (seemingly normal) practice of overtaking on bends was made less terrifying by the reasoning that it was dark so any oncoming traffic would be visible by virtue of headlights.
After a couple of hours kip at a standard guesthouse on the Thai side of the Mekong river we were driven to the smallest passport control I have ever seen to receive our Thai exit stamps. We then took a taxi boat over the river to Laos. On disembarking we joined the queue for our Laos visas. And we waited. And waited. We were told he slow boat left at 10.30. This came and went. We waited some more before eventually shoving our passports through a window all at once and hoping for the best. Eventually about 4 hours after we arrived at the border we were officially allowed to enter Laos for the sum of 35 US dollars. Hooray we thought, time to get on the boat. But no. We went to the office to check in, once again had a passports removed from our grip and waited some more. After purchasing sustenance we the boarded a tuktuk to the dock... And waited some more. Eventually we boarded the boats with relief, out passports back in our possession and settled in for the 6 hour trip to the midway point.
Although it is a longer process than getting a bus to luang prabang I highly recommend the slow boat. The scenery is awesome and it is an excellent way to meet people. I spent the first day drinking beer Laos and playing cards with people I am still travelling with over a week later. I couldn't imagine a better introduction to Laos and I am looking forward to seeing more!
Next posts: luang prabang and vang vieng. Current location: Vientiane.
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