COUNTRY: Laos
PROGRAM: Expeditions
PROJECT: Leadership Expedition
WRITTEN BY: Penrhos College
The past three days have been huge and a massive experience. In the end our plans changed again which allowed us to have 2 days kayaking and 1 trekking.
The first day we trekked 8-10km. It was completely different to what everyone expected. We started by going up hill which hot, steep and sweaty. The thick jungle plants made life even more difficult as some people started to struggle. When we finally got to the top of the hill, everyone felt proud and like they achieved something. It then started to sprinkle and cool down. But it didn't stay that way for long. After walking on flat ground for a bit the rain started bucketing down just for the downhill section. As you could imagine, everyone was soaked and muddy after having many falls and slips. By the the time we stopped for lunch many of the low spirits had turned to positive thoughts even though we had to share our lunch with the leeches. The food was amazing and was just the pick up we needed. It was beautifuly laid out as we sat and ate off banana leaves. After lunch we had a few more up and downs as we trekked the final leg to the homestay. At the homestay we were all relieved and amazed at what we achieved that day. We had a great dinner and settled down to sleep in groups at the different local houses for a good nights sleep.
The second day, we made the decision to kayak. After a late start we left the village and went to prepare. The weather was a huge improvement compared to the day before. The sun shined down on us as we dried our clothes and enjoyed the view of the river. The kayaking involved a mix of fun, fast rapids and slower, relaxing paddling. The guides showed us a great time as they taught us heaps about Laos and the culture. After a few hours we stopped for lunch and went for a swim. We had fun running up stream and drifting back down with the current as the guides prepared us more delicious, local food. We carried on paddling after lunch and stopped by a local village on the way. Many of the people were welcoming as we looked around and explored. We continued kayaking as the sun started to set but we got to our next homestay before it got completely dark. This village was very different to the last as they had no electricity, different food and a new way of living. We enjoyed it just as much as the last village as we dried clothes around the fire and had a candle lit dinner. We all slept in one big room for a well deserved sleep.
Today we continued to kayak down the river but weather decided to take another turn as it was cold and wet. We woke up early morning to look around the village at the locals and their morning routines. After breakfast we had a quick start as we tried to get warm again. As we began so kyak it started to rain again but it was still much easier than trying to slide down slopes of mud. We kayaked down more rapids for about 3 hours before again stopping for lunch which was prepared by the previous village. We ate and ran around to keep ourselves warm before kayaking the last leg to where our bus was ready and waiting.
Finally we are all back at Luang Namtha enjoying the luxury of hot showers and dry clothes. Soon we will head to dinner and plan for tomorrow where we will head to Houy Xai for our 2 day boat trip down the Meekong River.
Love you all and will talk to you soon.
Lots of Love
The Turtles
xxx
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