Post RideForCambodia...SEA ride continues

[Digiamo]

This is the Blue Lagoon Spring just about 8 klicks out of Vang Vieng on a rock and dust road




These Young dudes scaled this 75 meter bamboo scaffolding to the cave entrance that is barely visable in the pic. Someone is running a bat pooh recovery/operation as it is apparently a great fertilizer. They came back covered in bat pooh dust.



Here they are triumphant after their climb. Mike from Colorado is the mad man riding with Joe and Cyrus is on with me.



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[motomano]

Hi Danny and Joe, thanks for the continuous sharing the pics and your trip experience, just one question: how old are those stone jars? looks very very old.

 

[Digiamo]

Estimates put the jars back to about 500 years BC. Unfortunately, some were destroyed during the Secret War as there are craters right in the middle of Jars fields.

 

[George]

Great stuff as always, Danny. Keep'em coming.

 

[Digiamo]

More moto adventure pics for those of you that are into that sort of thing.
Joe and I are riding back north to Luang Prabang from Vang Vieng when Joe suggests an alternative route. Knowing what the possibilities are when that term comes up, we powered on through some extremely scenic and rough riding conditions.








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[George]

More moto adventure pics for those of you that are into that sort of thing.
Joe and I are riding back north to Luang Prabang from Vang Vieng when Joe suggests an alternative route. Knowing what the possibilities are when that term comes up, we powered on through some extremely scenic and rough riding conditions.

(I usually quote only the last couple lines, but something in Danny's note prompts me to quote the whole poem. SEA seems to have affected me a little. )

The Road Not Taken

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
- - Robert Frost

 

[TipSTer]

Wow Joe/Danny, that's quit a scenic-views did you guys took back road from VangVieng southwest up to HW4 then to Luang Prabang looks fun! Korp Jai ly ly my falang friends

 

[motomano]

Nice road! It was an adventure on itself I am sure, cool pics Danny.
As for Robert Frost's poem is beautiful, thanks for sharing it George.

 

[olegeezer]

We are still in our guesthouse here in Luang Prabang. Danny has the bug and is sleeping it off at the moment. If you hear little from him it's cause he has fever, body aches, dyin-rear, and some fowl sounding belching going on. I thought he had the same thing I had, but now I'm not so sure??
It may take him a few days before he feels like touring again. Yall git out the prayer rug for him and I'll do my best nursin act in the meantime. Utterwize all is swell in beautiful downtown Luang Prabang.
We did a yoga class this morning at trendy bar called Utopia.Then after breakfast Danny started feeling bad and we've just been "chillin" (literally) since.

 

[George]

Ouch! Sorry to hear that. Take good care of him, Joe. Miss youse guys.

 

[olegeezer]

Ouch! Sorry to hear that. Take good care of him, Joe. Miss youse guys.

Thanks and same here George. We haven't had a good boat cooked meal since you left that big galley.
Maybe that's what's wrong with Danny, he just needs some good home cookin??

 

[Digiamo]

Yea, I was a candidate for "Full blown" monk robes last night. Guessin' it was ny turn to get the bug.
Better now but still diminished energy and a low grade fever. Thanks for the well wishes.

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[Digiamo]

Pictures of Luang Prabang


These next nine are at the Utopia bar/restaurant/Night Club/Yoga studio...all depends on the time of day.









Rachel poses at a Bombie delivery system currently being used as a BBQ


Pretty sure this is a Ural


These articles of war remain to be decor or reminders of the Secret War. They are here in a shop selling jewelry, art, antiques, and furniture. Makes sense?


I know, I know, another Pagoda. It's all I could work myself up for while recovering from this bug.



A game of Bacce Ball or P?tanque on the bank Makong River


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[Indian Express]

Just got caught back up with this thread. Great pictures! What is it with you guys always finding these young nice looking women to pose for you? Hope you get to feeling better soon Danny. If I was in India I'd invite you all to pass through and enjoy some of the Himalayan foothills. That may happen another day. Safe travels.

 

[olegeezer]

Cyrus, Mike and I explored a cave near the "blue lagoon". We explored until we ran into a "danger" sign, fearing black damp we turned around.

Danny proudly shows off his Zongshen 125cc monster on the way to Phonsavan.

 

[Digiamo]

Fali, India is one of my next countries to get food poisoning in. Sign me up, baby.

 

[motomano]

Sorry for your condition Danny, I am out of town, riding the Goldwing along with Lety, currently in Los Azufres, Michoac?n, the only way to get internet is via 3G from the iPhone in certain areas, so just learned about it, hope you are well by now.
Nice pics, and as for the use of the bombs as barbecue or anything else, IMO it shows the way these brave people step over a nightmare which btw I was not aware of.
Regards to you and Joe.

 

[Digiamo]

Thanks for the concern everyone, I think I'll live if I can just get my appetite back. I did get some of this meal down last night but it's all I ate basically since I got sick Wed. morning.

Micheal (French), Jeanette, Michelle, Both Aussie) Michael (San Francisco), Joe (West Virginia) and Rachel (Canada) celibate Rachel's birthday at The Mekong Fish restaurant on the river which would be a beautiful background in the daytime.

Plan is to rent two Chinese 125's and ride up to Nong Khiaw, north of Luang Prabang for at least an overnight. We hear it's a worthwhile trip. There is possibility to ferry the bikes down the Mekong back to LP which would be a very interesting round trip, but we need to get a current report if the river is high enough to make it past some sandbars. If not, the ferry needs to unload, get past the sandbars then reload. They use Tuk Tuks to shuttle folks to the reload point.

 

[Digiamo]

The more we stay around here the more we become part of the community. Last night, Joe and I are invited to observe an English class and are recruited to talk to the enthusiastic kids about our trip or anything else. It was a pretty cool experience and a few wanted to get our Email addresses to stay in touch.


Today we rode on two Chinese built Zongshen 125 bikes to Nong Khiaw, in the north, and it was wonderful. This is our seventh bike rental over three months in SEA and I can't imagine how it could get better. The scenery is spectacular here.



Laos kind of creeps into our hearts over the two weeks we've been here. My first impression was nothing compared to the magic I feel about this land now
This is Nong Khiaw, Laos on the Nam Ou River






We met these gals (Barb, Jan and Cindy) from California's bay area, shortly after entering this quiet mountain village, Then Chris (left) road in on his Baja 250 from Cambodia where he currently lives.
We enjoyed each others company and had some laughs about the power being out for over six hours and other comedy that occurs while traveling. Chris runs an NGO that helps kids with AIDS in Cambodia. I told him about our RideForCambodia charity. He had some scary statistics about broken families and kids being sold by their parents. There is a lot of much needed charity work being done by outsiders in SEA.


A GoPro video is uploading now...1496 minutes remaining Weak WiFi, what else is new.

Now, I know y'all may have questions so fire away.

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[TipSTer]

Cool pictures Danny/Joe, looks nice up northern Laos, beautiful mountains ranges and good companies. Zongshen looks cool. Thanks for posted your adventure picts/stories