Author: LMoulton

I know that there have been many people who have followed this blog over the past 17 days. I hope that you have been enjoying our adventure as much as we have!

To the parents of these amazing young adults, I am overwhelmingly grateful for the opportunity to be part of a very small yet memorable ” snapshot ” of their lives.  They have been inspiring! They have been free with their care, respect and happiness. The positive relationships that have been formed will no doubt serve well in the future. I look forward to sharing many of their stories with you all in the years to come. However, please accept with good grace that I look forward to gently placing them back into the palm of your hands.

Trips like this to Cambodia and Laos don’t just happen, they take a considered and coordinated effort from a number of dedicated people. The first of these I wish to thank is Jane Harrison. Her coordination of the Big Experience has been excellent. I thank her for her communication, patience and care. Your efforts have been much appreciated.

Jane has been ably assisted by Dorothy Forbes. Dorothy has been meticulous in her efforts. This being evident with the smooth running of this trip. Thank you Dorothy!

I also wish to thank our tour guide, Billy Penfold, for his efforts in keeping our trip running smoothly. Together with his team of local tour guides; Yousa, Valeak and Lucky (Cambodia) and  Parn and Pet (Laos), Billy made our trip most enjoyable. Thank you also to our two bus drivers (Naok and Twee) who were dedicated to keeping us safe during our travels.

Now to two absolutely amazing people – Teagan Collins and Lucy Moulton.

Teagan has been an amazing first aid officer. Her efforts in ensuring all of these young adults were looked after was unbelievably caring and thorough. She tended to every bump, scratch, ache and concern with the highest degree of dedication.  Teagan, thank you!

I know that for many of you this Blog has been the first thing you have looked at each day. I’m sure that you have all been absolutely spellbound by the effort, accuracy and colourfulness that has been on display. The words of our students went a long way to describing the magic that was Laos and Cambodia. However, it was also the tireless work of Lucy for which I am truly grateful. She was often up late at night to ensure that the Blog was posted. Lucy, thank you for your efforts!

Finally, I have a message for all of the students. Akun Jann and Khop Chai Lai Lai to you all. You have all been a pleasure to be with. I know that over the coming weeks, months and years we will always have many memories to share. Thank you for inspiring me every day. I really enjoyed your smiles and laughter. I will also never forget the tears of compassion that we shed together. I’m sure that you have now come to realise how blessed we are to lead the lives we lead. I now sincerely hope that you take some time to truly thank your parents for making this whole adventure possible.

Good luck to you all.

Rocco Toce

This morning we did the Great Race, where we completed tasks all around Luang Prabang. We were put into groups of 5 and given a list of instructions and tasks. The tasks included: visiting a market, a stadium and a pond, climbing a mountain, having a designated 5 minute break and seeing some beautiful temples. We got around Luang Prabang by foot and by tuk tuk, and it was good that we saw different parts of the city that we usually wouldn’t take the time to visit in a big group. The Great Race was a lot of fun and I think that we all enjoyed the designated rest after.

Once all of the groups had arrived at the temples (which was the last place we had to go) we split up into smaller groups to choose our restaurant and eat lunch.

After lunch we took a short boat ride across the Meekong river, and then a tuk tuk ride to a local school. At the school we met the principal and he told us information about the school. There are over 1,200 students attending the school and only 61 teachers working there. Many of the students board at the school because their families live in different provinces on the other side of the Meekong River.

We took a group photo with the principal and handed over our gifts to the teachers and students. They were all very grateful. Once all our gifts had been handed over we performed a rendition of Waltzing Matilda. Then we had the opportunity to play with the kids. Most of the kids didn’t speak much English but we managed basic conversations and played lots of games like volleyball and soccer. The kids were much better than us at both sports. After only an hour or so we were all sad to say goodbye to the students and the teachers at the school, but we were so happy we got to meet and interact with them. After saying our goodbyes we hopped back onto our tuk tuks and crossed back over the Meekong River.

 Before dinner we took part in a traditional Laotian ceremony, which included us being sung to and having white string tied around our wrists. The string is said to bring good luck and most of us had four or five tied around each wrist. The Lao people also performed dances that were related to different parts of Lao culture. We then all got flowers put in our hair before learning a traditional Lao dance, which included doing complicated hand movements and dancing in a circle. After we had finished dancing we sat down and had pizza for dinner. We can’t believe that tonight is our last night on the Big Experience and that we are flying back home tomorrow!

By Grace Perriam

Tomorrow morning, there will be time for some last minute shopping, before packing up and travelling to the airport for our first flight to Siam Reap at 2:15pm.

 

 

 

 

We commenced today with an early start to the Royal Palace in Luang Prabang. The palace was full of many gold and expensive items. It was interesting to see the history behind the royal family and palace.  The palace is no longer used,  so it has been turned into a museum for our enjoyment.

After the first palace, we jumped on board a boat and travelled down the Mekong river to see the Buddhist Caves which are known as the Pak Ou caves. On the way there we all played card games, listened to music, talked and relaxed. The cave was  beautiful and was full of many Buddha statues. The view from the cave lookout  clearly depicted the Laos scenery.

We jumped back onto the boat and headed to the centre of Luang Prabang for lunch, where we went off in small groups to choose our restaurant.
After lunch, we travelled to the Bear Protection Centre where they promoted and raised awareness for bear protection. The bears were cute, small and black. The bears were happily sleeping and climbing throughout their enclosure. It was good to see how people were actively trying to protect these beautiful animals because many people don’t treat them fairly. There are three main threats to these bears in Asia. They are: illegal poaching for bear parts, bear bile farming for Chinese medicines and the illegal pet trade. Bear bile is sold in parts of Asia as a traditional medicine to treat illnesses ranging from headaches to diseases of the heart and liver. In some countries across Asia thousands of bears are confined to tiny cages and endure lives of terrible pain and suffering as bile is extracted from their gall bladders. Bile is potentially harmful to humans and can be completely replaced by herbal and synthetic medicines. The alternatives to bile are cheaper, safer and more effective so there really is no need to cause such unbearable suffering to these beautiful creatures.

We walked up a bit further and encountered a majestic waterfall full of pristine blue water. The waterfall was very peaceful and the sound of the water cascading down was calming.  It was disappointing that we weren’t able to swim in the water, but it was still amazing to look at.  We were all taking artistic pictures from all sorts of weird angles.

After dinner, we were able to explore the night markets for an hour.  We bargained and negotiated with the local market stalls, aiming to score the best price possible. Many people bought gifts for their families and friends, which  always picks up everyone’s mood. The night markets have a great atmosphere and are always heaps of fun to shop at.  We think everyone has turned into shopaholics!

By Kayla Elliott & Adalmiina Pelli

Today we started our unusually cold day with a quick breakfast before heading off for a 7km bike ride to begin our first day in Luang Prabang. We got our bikes and headed off through the city before reaching the rocky terrain of Laos. We passed local businesses and saw what the living conditions were like for the people of Luang Prabang. We observed amazing views whilst experiencing busy traffic through the city streets.

We swapped our bikes for mini vans once we reached a handicraft village. We watched the local women making paper by hand, saw the different stages of silk being made from silk worms and watched scarves being made by a loom machine. After a quick shopping trip to buy some beautiful hand made books and other treasures we made our way to lunch.

Our restaurant was situated along the mighty Mekong river where we got to experience a taste of the local cuisine of rice, curry and noodle soup. We then headed back on the very bumpy road towards the elephant camp where we saddled up for an hour trek along the banks of the river.

Whilst we sat on top of these amazing animals we also got the opportunity to ride bare back on the elephants. We observed some incredible scenic views whilst the elephants strolled through the water. We waited for all the groups to finish their hour ride and we got to see what the life of the elephants was like, before making our way back to the Sunway Hotel. We then got some time to relax before we head out for dinner.

Tonight, we are really looking forward to splitting up into our groups of four and choosing our own restaurant for dinner, and then taking a stroll down the 1km night market street.        

By Sophie Kas & Keely Gray

 

The photo above was taken of the beautiful view we had over breakfast from hotel this morning. We started off the day with an early wake up to prepare us for our lengthy six hour bus ride from Vang Vieng to the large city of Luang Prabang.  It was a change of scenery from the riverside villages of Vang Vieng to the bustling city of Luang Prabang, with the extensive mountain ranges between. The scenery along the way was spectacular, as we climbed through the mountain ranges along the picturesque windy roads.

We had a short stop in a local village for lunch, with the majority of us ordering fried rice or a noodle soup. Here you can see our lunch being freshly prepared.After the long bus ride of nearly six hours our bus went into a pothole and everyone on the bus heard a loud noise. It was sad to say our bus’ suspension had broken. Fortunately it broke down in the middle of a town and so we had a restaurant to relax in with a game of uno while we waited for the back up bus to come to collect us. We were amazed how quickly this happened and it wasn’t long before we were on our way again.

We arrived at our last hotel with the relaxing feeling of being able to settle in a hotel for more than two or less nights at a time. It is clear to see Luang Prabang’s strong French influence and rich colonial character. Restaurants and cafes line the laneways in the centre of the city. After settling down at our hotel we went out for dinner, being transported by three vans. Following dinner, we went to a busy night market filled with many handbags, assortments of cutlery, silverware and many, many, patterned genie pants. After an hour and fifteen minutes of endless bargaining we started our trip back to the hotel for a good night’s rest for tomorrow’s adventures.

By Nicholas Timson & Michelle Martin

 

Today was an action packed, exhilarating and fun day full of awesome activities and views. We started by jumping on our bikes early in the morning and riding along a short bumpy road that led us to some Caves not far from the hotel.

We parked our bikes and made our way up a series of steep stairs that were buried in the tropical, dense nature and wildlife.

After entering the cave we were surrounded by unique rock formations and above us the top was covered in stalactites that then connected to growing stalagmites from the bottom. As we progressed through the cave, entering different, uneven chambers, diamond rocks sparkled at us from all directions.

After the cave, we continued our biking journey around the beautiful town of Vang Vieng, riding through roads that cut through forests with an incredible view of the surrounding mountains. After a quick rest stop at the local market, we continued along the bumpy track to our lunch destination. We then jumped back on our bikes and rode to the next stop point. We parked our bikes and swapped them for kayaks.

In pairs we gracefully paddled down the Nam Song River, continuing to observe the stunning views of the mountains and wildlife, guided by instructors. After about an hour we stopped on the side of the river to rest our arms and have a bit of a splash around, then we jumped back on the kayaks.

The river pushed us along until we arrived at our final destination, not far from the hotel. After we got off we splashed and played in the water to make sure everyone was dripping wet, then walked back to the hotel. We got changed quickly and went to visit a school just down the road from the hotel and played with the kids for an hour. The kids were very excited to include us in their games and we had a great time.

After a long and tiring day, we all chilled and swam in the pool for a few hours and got ready to go out for dinner. Today was really fun and we are looking forward to our next adventure tomorrow, as we leave to go to our final destination, Luang Prabang, where we have loads of fun activities and adventures awaiting us. We can’t wait!

 By Emma Pearson & Olivia Iturmendi-Gamble