Si Pha Don
We made our way from Pakxe down the Route 13 to Ban Nakasang from where we caught a little boat to drop us off at Don Khon island.
Don Khon is part of the Si Pha Don or 4000 Islands, so called because in the south of Laos, the Mekong River divides into little rivulets exposing many sandbanks and islands during the dry season.
Once there, the place is pretty amazing. You only have electricity for about 3 hours a day. Accommodation are bamboo huts and you can have a cold shower there. Everything comes straight from the Mekong river - the shower water, the sink and everything goes straight back into the Mekong as well! We made sure we didn't use the water for brushing teeth or washing our faces and stayed well away from any kind of raw food to avoid a bad stomach!
The people there are very friendly and the place is so chilled out - everyone kind of hangs about most of the day, though they do lots of fishing and rice farming. Everyting they can't produce themselves, they have to cart over by boat from the main land.
We rented some bikes and had a good look around the island, which is famous for its dolphins (we didn't see any) and two waterfalls. It was also used as a transport hub by the French during colonial times, so you can still view the old pier and the only railway line they built during the occupation. It connects Don Khon with Don Det and is about 60 metres long. Basically, it's a bit crap. It's also not in use anymore, because everyone uses their boats to get to the other side or just walks over the track.
We also managed to find the big waterfall, Khon Pa Soi, which is SE Asias biggest waterfall by volume. It doesn't look like your typical waterfall, but it's still very nice and you can climb all around it and at the bottom too. You can also go and watch the fishermen there balancing on some logs to get over the tricky bits. Phil walked across some of them and he had to crawl across, but the fishermen were just walking normally and balancing on them while pulling in fish!
There are only dirt tracks around the island and they are in a pretty bad state, so it was funny being on a bike, my hands hurt and my bum really hurts! They only have some really basic bikes, no gears, no brakes and really what you would want is a proper mountain bike! Mind you, it all adds to the fun. Don Det island is a bit more developed in that there are more guesthouses and restaurants there but the pace is still the same. More people stay there than on Don Khon, which we didn't really understand, because you don't go there for the party scene, but for the quietness and Don Khon is much more prettier and relaxing. But hey, we don't mind, it just meant more space for us!
The food on the islands was pretty interesting, too. Because everything has to be brought across from the mainland, the selection on offer can be eclectic and everything takes a very long time to prepare, because everything is cooked on charcoal and of course there is no refrigeration either. This morning, we ordered bread and eggs for breakfast and the eggs weren't a problem, but they sent one girl off on her bike to get some bread from God knows where. Then they realised that we had ordered two, so she had to get on her bike again to fetch another one!
Also got to watch some pretty amazing sunsets and spent the evenings lying in the hammock on our little porch. Very relaxing! We could have easily spent more time there, but we came back to Pakxe after two nights there in order to be able to go to the Bolaven Plateau before flying out to Siem Reap.
We're excited about Cambodia, but also a bit sad to be leaving Laos behind... can't believe it's almost Christmas! Merry Christmas everybody!
Don Khon is part of the Si Pha Don or 4000 Islands, so called because in the south of Laos, the Mekong River divides into little rivulets exposing many sandbanks and islands during the dry season.
Once there, the place is pretty amazing. You only have electricity for about 3 hours a day. Accommodation are bamboo huts and you can have a cold shower there. Everything comes straight from the Mekong river - the shower water, the sink and everything goes straight back into the Mekong as well! We made sure we didn't use the water for brushing teeth or washing our faces and stayed well away from any kind of raw food to avoid a bad stomach!
The people there are very friendly and the place is so chilled out - everyone kind of hangs about most of the day, though they do lots of fishing and rice farming. Everyting they can't produce themselves, they have to cart over by boat from the main land.
We rented some bikes and had a good look around the island, which is famous for its dolphins (we didn't see any) and two waterfalls. It was also used as a transport hub by the French during colonial times, so you can still view the old pier and the only railway line they built during the occupation. It connects Don Khon with Don Det and is about 60 metres long. Basically, it's a bit crap. It's also not in use anymore, because everyone uses their boats to get to the other side or just walks over the track.
We also managed to find the big waterfall, Khon Pa Soi, which is SE Asias biggest waterfall by volume. It doesn't look like your typical waterfall, but it's still very nice and you can climb all around it and at the bottom too. You can also go and watch the fishermen there balancing on some logs to get over the tricky bits. Phil walked across some of them and he had to crawl across, but the fishermen were just walking normally and balancing on them while pulling in fish!
There are only dirt tracks around the island and they are in a pretty bad state, so it was funny being on a bike, my hands hurt and my bum really hurts! They only have some really basic bikes, no gears, no brakes and really what you would want is a proper mountain bike! Mind you, it all adds to the fun. Don Det island is a bit more developed in that there are more guesthouses and restaurants there but the pace is still the same. More people stay there than on Don Khon, which we didn't really understand, because you don't go there for the party scene, but for the quietness and Don Khon is much more prettier and relaxing. But hey, we don't mind, it just meant more space for us!
The food on the islands was pretty interesting, too. Because everything has to be brought across from the mainland, the selection on offer can be eclectic and everything takes a very long time to prepare, because everything is cooked on charcoal and of course there is no refrigeration either. This morning, we ordered bread and eggs for breakfast and the eggs weren't a problem, but they sent one girl off on her bike to get some bread from God knows where. Then they realised that we had ordered two, so she had to get on her bike again to fetch another one!
Also got to watch some pretty amazing sunsets and spent the evenings lying in the hammock on our little porch. Very relaxing! We could have easily spent more time there, but we came back to Pakxe after two nights there in order to be able to go to the Bolaven Plateau before flying out to Siem Reap.
We're excited about Cambodia, but also a bit sad to be leaving Laos behind... can't believe it's almost Christmas! Merry Christmas everybody!
posted by Phil and Tanja @ 3:22 AM
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