Where In The World Is Evan?

After an uncomfortable bus ride through the mountains of northern Laos I finally arrived in Luang Prabang. The city itself is one of the most beautiful in South East Asia, with an intriguing mix of French and Buddhist architecture.

Having spent the whole day on the bus I managed to find a hostel before it got dark, dropped off my bag, and went for a walk to find dinner.

Due to the disaster of my last Indian meal I still had a craving for curry, so I decided to give it another go. At the Indian restaurant I ran into a few other travellers, including a Kiwi guy called Jessie.
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For those of you who’ve not spoken to me directly in the last month I have some big news… I’m finally going home!

After a two week visit to China that eventuated into 10 months, I have finally left. Presently I am in Luang Prabang, in the north of Laos, but I will be heading across the border into Thailand within a week, to fly home to Melbourne.

The last 10 months have been the happiest time of my life and I owe a great debt to all of those who helped me along the way.

For those of you who were with me from the beginning, were it not for the friendship and support that you all provided I would never have stayed in China and I would not be the person I am today. I cannot thank you all enough!
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Van Vieng is a tiny rural town, essentially comprised of two intersecting streets and an adjacent ‘highway’. Yet for those who have been there, it holds an almost mythical status. Secluded from the world, on the edge of a slow meandering river, at the foot of sheer limestone karsts, and surrounded by jungle, the setting could not be more perfect for the town’s two main attractions—tubing and drugs.

DAY 1

Arriving in town after sundown I checked into a random hotel that a guy on the bus, Scott, had recommended. He’d been staying in Van Vieng for several days, and after leaving in the morning to go to Vientiane had stayed for a total of four hours before heading straight back. As I was soon to learn, this town is hard to escape…

After dropping my stuff off in my room a group of us who’d met on the bus sat down for some dinner in a restaurant recommended by Scott. As he filled us all in on the great fun he’d been having here, the suggestion soon arose to relocate to the local drug café—where opium, marijuana and magic mushrooms are all on the menu.
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After somehow managing to get to Kunming in time for my international departure I arrived in Vientiane, the capital of the Laos PDR, a delirious and emotional mess. After changing some money at that airport I got a taxi into town and checked into the cheapest hostel in the Lonely Planet.

I’d been warned by several people that Vientiane was a boring place, but what I wasn’t prepared for was the crappiest capital city in the world. That’s not to say that Vientiane is polluted or crime riddled, but rather that there’s absolutely nothing at all to do or see.

When you walk around it seems as if not a single building in the city rises over three stories. Businesses open late and close early, with many also closing for a long lunch break. This makes the pace of life delightfully slow, however, it gets to be incredibly boring after a couple of days.

I’d not have stayed as long as I did, however, it took me five days of pot smoking and bed rest to recover from my sleep deprivation.

As soon as I felt up to travelling again I was on a bus, heading north, to Van Vieng…