River

Si Phan Don is Lao for 4000 islands. The Me Kong river winds down from China and acts as most of the border between Thailand and Laos. At the southern most end of Laos, the river spreads wide and relatively shallow. Islands of all shapes and sizes with lush greenery dot the river. Many of them disappear as the river deepens during the rainy season.

Three islands take visitors. Don Khong, Don Det, and Don Khon. All of them right at the border to Cambodia.

I arrived in Don Det expecting a bit more civilization than I actually found. I have seen plenty of very basic, shanty and farm style living since I arrived in Thailand, but this island is nothing but rice farms, some bungalows for guests, and a few restaurants. The people here do not strike me as impoverished, but just living life as it has been lived here for... well forever.

Sharing the road mostly with half naked babies, chickens, and water buffalo, I hike around to the other side of the island (the sunset side) with my pack. Mainly to have great sunsets and also in hopes my bungalow will stay cooler in the morning. I find that almost all are taken, and continue my sweaty trudge down "the sunset strip" until I find a nice one that is available. The Sunset Peace & Love Bangalows". Yes, Bangalows.

It is clear that this island was once nothing but rice fields. The families here have likely been here for generations. Somewhere along the line, they realized they could make extra money in the dry season by building some bungalows and getting into the hospitality biz. The Peace & Love family seem to have been in the biz all of about two months. The three bungalows on their property seem quite new and there are others being built by other families on either side. But bungalows aren't their only business. Like everyone else on the island, they are also travel agents, boat tour guides, restauranteurs, and bicycle rental.

The family lives in their farm compound about ten feet behind where I sleep. This is great if you want something to eat at a moments notice. However, it's not so good for privacy nor for sleeping in in the morning. The whole family, kids, pigs, and roosters are up around 6 am and for some reason are at their very loudest, bathing, clanging pots and pans, and some game the kids have made up that rewards who can shreik the loudest.

I rent a bike and take a pleasant ride around the island. You can circle the whole thing in about thirty minutes. I also take a bridge to Don Kohn and find an impressive water fall. Impressive mainly because there are no mountains here. How is this possible? Somehow there is a spot where the ground drops about 100 feet and water rushes down through giant rocks. I also find some women weaving very nice tapestries with an old time loom. I am happy to buy one of their pieces. No sweatshops here.

Around sunset it's bathing time. The whole population of the island strips down (naked for kids, undies for men, and sarongs for women) and hops into the river with their basket of toiletries and scrubs down. It's also a great time for a river cruise since the hot afternoon sun has subsided. My family, of course, is more than happy to oblige.

Later in the evening, locals and visitors head down to the one and only beach for a bon fire. This is just about the only social occasion on the island.

After a couple of days of this, I have seen all there is to see and decide to head north toward Vientiene.