Bumpin'

Alas, the day arrived when it was time to bid adieu to Vang Vieng. I have to admit that I was a little sad to go. I would have enjoyed a day of tubing, and despite the fact I kept running into obnoxious Americans who make it hard for me to travel because they give others such a bad impression, there were plenty of fun, tame people as well.

We booked the VIP bus to Luang Prabang the night before after toying with the idea of taking the night bus. The guy from the tour office seemed to think the day bus was better, and the Scot was keen to see the countryside. So, just before 10am, the van came to pick us up. Twenty people crammed in and two Israeli girls held up the whole van because they wanted to get baguettes (and apparently one wanted extra time with the love of her life that she had just met at the river).

We finally got to the bus and were the last load of people, leaving some terrible seating options. The Scot and I ended up having to sit in the very back of the bus, squashed next to two of the Israeli girls. As we pulled out, it became immediately apparent that the air-con wasn’t much more than a weak fan, lightly blowing hot air. Then after two minutes of serious driving, the bus stopped. One of the Israeli girls ran back, frantically shouting at her friends. She ran off the bus. No one knew what was happening. All five girls were on and off the bus. Then the girl sitting next to us told us that her friend left her passport at the guesthouse. The English guys in front of us asked, “Is that the same girl that held us up before?”

The answer? YES.

Ugh.

A tuk-tuk came and took them away. Their friend said that they were going to get on the bus tomorrow, but our bus never moved. It just stayed there…for forty-five minutes until they came back. The bus ride was already too long, and we had only driven two kilometers.

Over the next seven hours, the bus bumped, rattled, and swayed through the mountains. I clung to the handle on the seat in front of me the entire ride because we were bumped out of our seats so much. I even had to close my eyes numerous times to avoid seeing how close we came to the edge of the narrow road as we passed large trucks on the curves.

The Scot questioned our choice to take the day bus because it was so terribly uncomfortable and unbelievably hot. I, on the other hand, believe that daylight made it the better choice. I’m not sure I’d want to be on that bus at night with the narrow road and the sharp turns…and the lack of light.

After what felt like an eternity, we made it to Luang Prabang. Everyone was relieved. We piled out of the bus faster than any bus load of kids I’ve ever witnessed (and I make them race off of my bus). It was such a relief to be somewhere NOT on that bus…and that’s when our housing adventure began.