Breakfast this morning was eggs and bread. That’s it; just eggs and bread. We were all very excited for the 15km bike ride with a stop at a limestone cave. The caves themselves contained odd beauties such as long dark tunnels and stunning views of the other side of the mountain, but all of this was protected by a 240-step climb. Cooper and Lucas decided to get the most out of this climb by sprinting up them. They’ll have sore quads tomorrow! We continued our bike ride along rocky, freshly tarred roads. The heat was today’s main enemy with this physical activity making it feel 10 degrees hotter. Exhausted, we stopped by the Nam Song River for a well-deserved lunch break. We had front row seats to some locals swimming in the river. Everyone was dying to jump in and join them but the currents were pretty strong, forcing us to remain dry.
The locals sorted us into groups of 2s and 3s for the kayaking, dividing friendship groups. With little confidence, we hopped into the kayaks and paddled along the river with the strong currents. With large goofy helmets and puffy life jackets that looked like traffic cones, we really stood out. Along the river, we spotted many locals who were fishing, swimming and bathing in the river. We even saw a few water buffalos. The riverbanks were lined with bars and restaurants filled with other tourists taking photos and waving as we paddled by. Max and Jake thought it would be a good idea to start splashing everyone and this turned into an all out war of who could stay the driest.
And then it began to rain!!!!
This was the first time anyone had been cold on the trip. As we came to the end of our 2-hour journey, everyone was completely drenched and couldn’t wait to get back to the hotel and have a warm shower. Everyone was depressed at the thought of having to walk back to the hotel, but we were all saved from the storm when Hong pulled up with the tuk-tuk trucks. The buzz in the back of the truck was unreal and everyone felt lit up. Of course, it was Choi who started singing and everyone joined in until the whole truck was booming.
After a well-deserved shower and rest everyone concluded that this was the best day so far and that they needed food. Luckily, we headed out for another delicious dinner of Laotian cuisine and another stop to pick up snacks for the long bus ride tomorrow to Luang Prabang
Blog by Cooper Green-Sheil and Nina Coghill
