Pak Bang

Pak Bang is a tiny town by the Mekong where we stopped for the night. The towns only economy is the boat stopping and it's really strange to come across a place like this, packed with hotels and guesthouses in the middle of the jungle.

From Laos Photos

We got off the boat and looked for our guesthouse. Hundreds of touts were trying to pawn off guesthouses on the bank of the river ... and other things - "Weed, opium?" we were asked more than once. Incidentally, we heard a funny story the next morning - I had heard that this town was a bit of a cartel, since tourists have no choice but to pay the prices they're told for everything. I got talking to this guy the next morning who had bought weed the night before. He said, within minutes of sparking up the police had barged into his room threatening to arrest him if he didn't buy them off ... coincidence?

The town also had no electricity after 10 at night and not again until 6am. Things were definitely starting to look different in Laos. Not just the creature comforts, but the tourists were different too - everyone looked a lot more backpackery.

In the morning before we left we got a daylight view of where we were. Some stunning scenery from the bank of the river before we got back on the boat.

From Laos Photos

From Laos Photos