I feel hopeless': Living in Laos on the brink

[hotandsticky]

1 minute ago, Prubangboy said:

It's been a decade, but Pakse is mostly a stopover en route to the deeply hippy 4,000 islands. I watched a YouTube recently, not much new.

 

Not even a one day town. You can prob still grab cab out to an Animist village where all the tree's have back strings on them.

 

Ylang Ylang is available in the market for low $$$'s. Coffee from The Bolivan Plateau is some of the best I ever drank.

 

I found enough to do on a 3 day stay. ....including a temple visit, lunch on the river, a visit to an ethnic village and the Bolaven Plateau.

[hotandsticky]

Just now, transam said:

You found that out in one night, wow..............

Stop jumping to conclusions without having all the facts - it can make you look stupid.

 

 

My experience of Ubon girls is not in Ubon; they don't all live there you know......

[transam]

1 minute ago, hotandsticky said:

Stop jumping to conclusions without having all the facts - it can make you look stupid.

 

 

My experience of Ubon girls is not in Ubon; they don't all live there you know......

????.....Well your post didn't say that, but thanks for the explanation....????

[bignok]

12 minutes ago, hotandsticky said:

Stop jumping to conclusions without having all the facts - it can make you look stupid.

 

 

My experience of Ubon girls is not in Ubon; they don't all live there you know......

Only guys in Ubon now. Why Trans is there.

[Prubangboy]

8 minutes ago, hotandsticky said:

 

I found enough to do on a 3 day stay. ....including a temple visit, lunch on the river, a visit to an ethnic village and the Bolaven Plateau.

Next to the 4000 Islands, that little island in the Mekong town near Champasak, or a resort stay in the Bolivan Plateau, Pakse comes up a little short. S. Laos is pretty, but on average, less interesting than Issan.

 

Since BigNok likes a bike trip, S. Laos could occupy 2 very thrifty weeks. I enjoyed such a trip, but wouldn't run back to do it again. From an archeological standpoint, it's still very untouched/dug up. People have been there thousands of years.

[StayinThailand2much]

50 minutes ago, RanongCat said:

But of  course those recipient countries who sold their assets to the  IMF  are doing  just peachy  yeah ?

Are you, by any chance, Xi Jinping's cat/social media propagandist?

[Prubangboy]

14 minutes ago, hotandsticky said:

My experience of Ubon girls is not in Ubon; they don't all live there you know......

My friend was looking for a hot date in Albania.

 

He was told: Try Frankfurt. 

 

Prob more Ubon dating opportunities on Soi Diana than in downtown Ubon.

 

[StayinThailand2much]

1 hour ago, scubascuba3 said:

People used to like it because it was backward, sounds like it still is, as the article says, good for travel not to live

Whenever I travelled to Laos, I loved it, esp. the friendly people. But when one bought something, it was likely to be from Thailand, at unreasonable (for the locals) prices...

[RanongCat]

4 minutes ago, StayinThailand2much said:

Are you, by any chance, Xi Jinping's cat/social media propagandist?

Are you by chance a devotee of ignorance?

[transam]

9 minutes ago, bignok said:

Only guys in Ubon know. That's why Trans is there.

I corrected it for you......????

[StayinThailand2much]

1 minute ago, RanongCat said:

Are you by chance a devotee of ignorance?

No, I'm fully aware of those CCP sponsored demagogues.

[Prubangboy]

Laos is a kleptocratic basket case. It accepts aid from N. Korea. How broke do you have to be to do that?

 

They have a mutual defense treaty too. Attack North Korea and feel the wrath of soldiers who get the uniform but no money.

[RanongCat]

Just now, StayinThailand2much said:

No, I'm fully aware of those CCP sponsored demagogues.

Really?  So you can name  names and stuff ? Or will you have to ask somebody who claims they  know ?

[proton]

1 hour ago, scubascuba3 said:

Worth a read this article. I haven't been to Laos for 25 years, maybe another trip next year

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-66924300

Went new year 2006 looking forward to the music scene, there did not appear to be one and everything was mostly shut by 9PM

[bob smith]

Vang Vieng is where it's at.

 

That poppy latex kicks different up there 

Edited October 10, 2023 by bob smith

[bignok]

Think Id rather go to Nan actually. Cheaper, no visa.

[hotandsticky]

35 minutes ago, transam said:

????.....Well your post didn't say that, but thanks for the explanation....????

 

To be fair..........................I can't really give you all my life history (or at least where Ubon girls are concerned) in one post about Pakse!  ????????

[hotandsticky]

23 minutes ago, Prubangboy said:

 

 

Prob more Ubon dating opportunities on Soi Diana than in downtown Ubon.

 

Correct......????

[atpeace]

57 minutes ago, hotandsticky said:

I quite liked Pakse - and in easy striking distance of Ubon.

I'm 15 minute away.  What did you like about Pakse?  i find it a boring dirty place.  Paksong - just 50k away from Pakse is incredibly beautiful.

[simon43]

I live in Luang Prabang, have done so for the last 5 years, with the occasional teaching stint in Myanmar.  Although tourism is down, local industry seems to be doing fine - it's always busy in my part of town and the fresh markets are very busy. No power cuts, fast internet for my online teaching, cheap annual visa etc.  Certainly the inflation rate is high, but that doesn't  affect me since I'm paid in USD.

 

Most citizens in this region are (like most of Laos) working the land which at least means that they can put food on the table.

 

I'm not sure about tourist prices.  I eat every day at a small restaurant near the Mekong - 25,000 kip (45 baht) for a freshly-made Luang Prabang salad.  At the weekend I'll go and eat at one of the swanky restaurants on the main street, 150 baht for eggs, sausages, salad, toast, orange juice, cappucino and fresh fruit salad - hardly going to break the bank ????

[bignok]

Looks chilled

 

 

[Prubangboy]

13 minutes ago, bignok said:

Think Id rather go to Nan actually. Cheaper, no visa.

Northern Laos was the most wild-feeling place I ever went to. Devla Murphy had a good book about independent trekking there.

 

No place is both so remote and so tourist-friendly as N. Laos. I want to go back, but I know it will be more China-fied than I would like.

 

They are very implacable people. Communism tried to replace Buddhism; they shrugged it off. Actually, Buddhism tried to replace Animism and the largely shrugged that off too. It's the tribe, the moo ban, the family. Much more than here. The government barely touches most Lao people. Nothing does.

[oxo1947]

1 hour ago, bignok said:

Vientiane is a bit of a dive

If you didn't even bother to venture down the road to Vang Vieng---or even a little further to Luang Prabang Then you wasted your time going to Laos...(if indeed you even went, other then to do a visa run)

 

Vang Vieng in Laos -(Quote--"is probably one of the most beautiful places in Southeast Asia." ---in the opinion of Google (https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=what+is+in+vang+vieng)

 

Luang Prabang = wonderful--beautiful, unique  (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) see it while it still there---which in its present form may not be a lot longer. 

12% of Laos income is from selling electricity (guess who to) ---25 more Hydro dams planed for the very near future one which will alter Luang Prabang for ever.

 

Are the people dirt poor-- Yes...............after being on this site for a few years , I feel thats just what a lot of the posters here are looking for.

[hotandsticky]

2 minutes ago, atpeace said:

I'm 15 minute away.  What did you like about Pakse?  i find it a boring dirty place.  Paksong - just 50k away from Pakse is incredibly beautiful.

 

Went 2 or 3 times about 10/12 years ago.  I quite liked the feel of Pakse and I liked the French colonial feel of the old Champasak Grand (I think, stayed Champasak Palace on a later visit). Nothing special about the town and it did dingy areas (then so do several places in Cambodia).

 

As I said, we found enough to do for 3 days by traveling around the area. 

[WhatMeWorry]

1 hour ago, hotandsticky said:

Stop jumping to conclusions without having all the facts - it can make you look stupid.

 

 

My experience of Ubon girls is not in Ubon; they don't all live there you know......

So true, no one in their right mind lives in Ubon.

[gearbox]

2 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Worth a read this article. I haven't been to Laos for 25 years, maybe another trip next year

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-66924300

Right... probably they should listen to the British government propaganda outlet and engage the British to build a railway for them. The Chinese built the railway for 6 billion USD, the cost of the British HS2 so far is 106 billion pounds and counting....the railway to be finished in 7 or more years.

 

Or better engage the Aussies, the cost of the city to Parramatta metro ballooned from 6 billion to 30 billion AUD before they even started to work properly on it. That's a 18km metro line.

Edited October 10, 2023 by gearbox

[JimTripper]

2 hours ago, bignok said:

Gross

you actually get less ???? on you when you squat

 

the problem with squat toilets is there is not a lot of water in the bowl, there is no tank.

 

so you get less ???? on you, but you end up smelling and seeing it much more.

Edited October 10, 2023 by JimTripper

[simon43]

1 hour ago, oxo1947 said:

...

Vang Vieng in Laos -(Quote--"is probably one of the most beautiful places in Southeast Asia." ---in the opinion of Google (https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=what+is+in+vang+vieng)

...

I have to disagree with Google's opinion of Vang Vieng.  I stayed for a week about 2 months ago because I was considering relocating from Luang Prabang to live in VV.

 

While the view of the limestone karsks is great, IMHO that's about it!  The small town is bisected by the remains of the Air America runway, now full of muddy potholes, unlit and the hunting ground for packs of dogs (I know 'cos I had to cross the runway at night to get back to my hotel!).

 

Despite searching up and down many roads for several days by motorbike, I was unable to locate a single semi-decent house to rent long-term.  There were 'hovels' and there were short-term expensive tourist accommodations, but lacking facilities for long-term stayers.

 

No decent supermarket, just one rather small supermarket stocking tourist supplies.

 

So... I gave up relocating to VV for these various reasons.  Nice view, shame about the rest!

 

 

[bignok]

29 minutes ago, simon43 said:

I have to disagree with Google's opinion of Vang Vieng.  I stayed for a week about 2 months ago because I was considering relocating from Luang Prabang to live in VV.

 

While the view of the limestone karsks is great, IMHO that's about it!  The small town is bisected by the remains of the Air America runway, now full of muddy potholes, unlit and the hunting ground for packs of dogs (I know 'cos I had to cross the runway at night to get back to my hotel!).

 

Despite searching up and down many roads for several days by motorbike, I was unable to locate a single semi-decent house to rent long-term.  There were 'hovels' and there were short-term expensive tourist accommodations, but lacking facilities for long-term stayers.

 

No decent supermarket, just one rather small supermarket stocking tourist supplies.

 

So... I gave up relocating to VV for these various reasons.  Nice view, shame about the rest!

 

 

Ruined by backpackers i think.

[Bobthegimp]

4 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Luang Prabang was my clear favourite 25 years ago, I'd probably just go back there

Is that where the cheap dope and rub a dub places are?  I know young guys who went to some Apocalypse Now river tubing place. They hit the bong pretty hard and copulated with the Western girls of low virtue.  They had a good time, then some guys chose brides from the pack o tarts and haven't had a stress free day since then.