Don Khone
How wonderful it was to wake up and amble out onto the balcony of Pan’s Guesthouse. I took a look around “town”. It was a lovely day today not in the sense of beautiful sunny weather but in the sense of cool weather that made it easy and comfortable to pedal around the island. I headed out of the little village, pedalling slowly and enjoying the panorama. It was a rough road and on either side were banana trees, bamboo trees, frangipani trees, chickens, water buffalo, rice paddies, and all manner of thick tropical vegetation. It was gorgeous and tranquil: laid back Laos at its best. I first went to see the Li Phi waterfalls around which was a park and viewing station. I found it comical that they were in the process of constructing a rotunda which evidently was going to house cafes and maybe a souvenir shop but to access the waterfall viewing station there was only a narrow plank slapped down across a ditch. The Mekong was browner that I expected but, as it was the end of rainy season, the swollen river gushed frantically over the rocks. A path followed the river downstream for a bit. … Continue reading →