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1) How good is Beer Lao, really?

2) Do the Kuang Si falls look as beautiful in person as they do in photographs?

3) Do you pronounce Vientiane in english, the same way the locals pronounce it? Viang/Wiang Chan?

4) How exactly do you use those squatting toilets with the bucket of water?

5) Is southern Laos difficult to travel?

6) How much KIP should one exchange at the border crossing before heading into Laos?

7) Are the long treks on slow boats extremely boring at times?

8) Do all wats/temples look the same after awhile?

9) Why should I go see the Plain of Jars?

10) I don't plan on learning anymore than "thank you", "hello" and "good bye" in the Lao. Is this considered rude and will I have a difficult time getting things done?

1. A lot better than anything else not available.
2. Have never really found too many things as good as pics
3. T for W and no last g emphasis for me (no sheep)
4. With difficulty exponential with age for the rusty
5. Everything is relative to how long you ride a hard bike
6. What Lao you want buy
7. Imagination and initiative can be wondrous
8. A little
9. To see them of course
10 More lingo you, much more fun with locals.

Why do you ask Joey? You going soon?

Hey Joey, I can't answer all of your questions, since there are some about parts of the country I didn't visit.

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Originally posted by Joey:
1) How good is Beer Lao, really?

I liked it quite a bit. Better than American and Canadian macrobrews, not as good as a decent microbrew.

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3) Do you pronounce Vientiane in english, the same way the locals pronounce it? Viang/Wiang Chan?

I always pronounced it sort of like Vian Chian, with a very soft V and a very soft T sound before the ch.

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4) How exactly do you use those squatting toilets with the bucket of water?

I won't even bother trying to be subtle or polite about this. If you have well formed stool that comes out easily, all you need to do is squat over the hole, then use your hand to splash a bit of water up on your anus.

If it's sticky and doesn't come out well, you actually do need to basically put some water in your hand and physically wipe your bottom with it. Just like with toilet paper, but without the paper.

A lot of people won't be comfortable doing this last, and either way having a wet bum when you're done takes some getting used to. These things don't really bug me, but if you think they might, always carry around at least a bit of TP.

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5) Is southern Laos difficult to travel?

I wouldn't say difficult... Not as easy as the Houay Xai-Luang Prabang-Vang Vieng-Vientiane circuit, but so long as you're in the large towns or places with tourist attractions you should be okay.

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6) How much KIP should one exchange at the border crossing before heading into Laos?

You don't need to do too much. All the areas frequented by tourists have currency exchanges, a LOT of places will take US dollars, many near the border will take Baht, and it's not an expensive country to begin with

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7) Are the long treks on slow boats extremely boring at times?

I took two slow boat trips:
Luang Prabang to Nong Khiaw and Luang Nam Tha to Houay Xai. Both were great, not at all boring and at worst slightly uncomfortable. From what I hear about the Houay Xai-LP trip it may be a different story though.

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8) Do all wats/temples look the same after awhile?

I have to admit many of them do. Kind of like churches in Europe, except for the fact that our western upbringing leaves us less prepared to appreciate subtle differences between them. That said, one of my favourite things about the temples were the people I met there, both monks and lay people, and those experiences were never the same twice.

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10) I don't plan on learning anymore than "thank you", "hello" and "good bye" in the Lao. Is this considered rude and will I have a difficult time getting things done?

Every word I spoke in Lao brought a smile to someone's face, but I don't think anyone will be actually upset if you don't go beyond the basics. In the touristed areas and in larger towns you shouldn't have major problems without speaking any more Lao. In small towns and out in the countryside things could be much more difficult.
On a couple of occaisions I found myself in places where there was only one person in town who spoke English, which was scarcely better than my Lao. In one other instance there was only one person in town I could communicate with, and that was in French.

One final bit of advice... If you have the time, DO get to the southern part of the country. Don Det is a super cool place to chill out. It didn't feel like a tourist area... more like a Lao village that just happened to have a lot of tourists there, and there are many other hidden jewels down there.

Also in the south, I took a great trip up to a town called Paksong, visiting the coffee farms and waterfalls, did a great trek that departed from Savanakhet, and spent a few days in Savanakhet itself, which was a good place to see a typical Lao city that hadn't been so impacted by tourism.

And finally, enjoy Laos. I'm soooo envious of you. I could (almost did!) live for a month on nothing but sticky rice (khao niaw) and papaya salad (tam mak hung).

Oh! And while you're in Luang Prabang make sure to eat in the food alley at the night market at least one (preferably most) nights. The vegetarian places at the end of the alley are super good and an amazing deal. When I was there it was 5000 kip (5o cents) for a plate piled as high as you liked with various veggie delights.

Thanks for the tips guys!

I'm planning a trip to SE Asia for 2007. I can't sit here and say i'm 100% definite but so far the saving is going well so the only thing stopping me... is myself.

I've been wanting to do a long trip for awhile and have just kind of settled into my job and taken 2 week vacations. This time i'm serious about quitting my job and traveling for atleast 6 months.

Laos just happens to have intrigued me so much and I have uncovered a lot of things about it that have excited me. So, yea, these were some pressing questions that came to mind, some I already knew the answer to but wanted to hear what my friends here at BNA thought and some were genuine.


Oswiu: Thank for the honest and blunt description of the toilets. I was fully prepared to use them in Morocco because a lot of things I read told me that I might find them there. I ended up never seeing one but after reading about Laos it seems that it will be unavoidable and I just wanted to make sure that what I thought was correct, and you confirmed that

1) How good is Beer Lao, really?

I prefer microbeers with a little body but Beer Lao is exactly what you need when you're traveling in a really hot climate - a lighter beer that comes in huge bottles for 50-80 cents each.

2) Do the Kuang Si falls look as beautiful in person as they do in photographs?

Almost - and I'm a waterfall snob from Oregon. They would be nicer without the crowds, though.

3) Do you pronounce Vientiane in english, the same way the locals pronounce it? Viang/Wiang Chan?

No idea I'm ashamed to say.

4) How exactly do you use those squatting toilets with the bucket of water?

Oswiu's explanation is good.

5) Is southern Laos difficult to travel?

It's not as easy as Thailand or even northern Laos but it's still a road well traveled.

6) How much KIP should one exchange at the border crossing before heading into Laos?

None. Bring small denominations of baht and/or dollars and change them in Laos as you go. A lot of guesthouses will quote prices in dollars, some in baht and a few in kip. If you want to fill up your daypack you could change US $100 and become a millionaire.

7) Are the long treks on slow boats extremely boring at times?

So I've heard. I almost went crazy packed onto a boat for the 1 hour trip from LP to Pak Ou caves so I can't imagine spending 2 days on a boat.

8) Do all wats/temples look the same after awhile?

Yep.

9) Why should I go see the Plain of Jars?

You'll get more history there than you will anywhere else and you'll learn some new things about your own country. If you stay at Kong Keo you'll also get more than an earful from the owner about the current state of affairs in Laos. The rooms are a little expensive for what you get there but it's worth it to talk to the owner. If he's not in jail that is.

10) I don't plan on learning anymore than "thank you", "hello" and "good bye" in the Lao. Is this considered rude and will I have a difficult time getting things done?

It's not necessary - those few words will go far but any additional ones you learn will help. If you travel in the south you will probably learn more Lao since English is less well known there but you'll have no problems getting what you need without it. We used our Laotian in Thailand too - the numbers are almost the same and a lot of expressions are similar or identical so you'd be getting two languages for the price of one.

#9 Plain of Jars

I'd have to say, very average. It's also a royal pain in the bum to get there but if time, go for it.

PC

quote:

Originally posted by Joey:
7) Are the long treks on slow boats extremely boring at times?

We climbed on the roof to escape the crowded boat. On top it was sunny, airy, and the view was fantastic.

Don't worry about getting bored, you'll just become really good friends with everyone else in the boat. Very good for solo travelers.

1) Beer Lao - i think it's ok. but i still like Halida better in Hanoi

2) Kuang Si falls - not there, but Vang Vieng is more and more like Samui Island now

3) Wiang Chan is what local people pronounce but Vientiane is also well understood that this how it is in English

4) Toilet - hm..i saw only longjohn. maybe i was only in tourist environment

5) Is southern Laos difficult to travel? - not there

6) How much KIP - well..there is a money exchange booth in Vientiane close to Namphu (fountain)

7) Are the long treks on slow boats extremely boring at times? - dunno

8) Do all wats/temples look the same after awhile? - i guess so. i visited only Wat Si Muang and Pha That Luang in Vientiane

9) Why should I go see the Plain of Jars? - once in a life time and you are in Laos, why not?

10)to have more fun with local people, learn some

Joey-
You are going to to a distant third world country where almost no one speaks English, and where the locals respond VERY positively to anyone trying communicate--on even a small basis--in their own language. And yet, with a year to go until the trip, you intend to only learn THREE simple words.

WHY? In answer to your qustion, that does strike me as rude, and American/arrogant to boot.

salmo99: your response is really bitter. I would recommend a pint of empathy with a sympathy chaser. Some of us are just do not have the linguistic stomach to drink up more than those basic three words in a tonal language…especially on a short trip. I make the effort on those three words and everything else is head on my beer. Save your burning retort (as in homemade ricewine) for those who refuse to learn anything.

And, technically, Joey's learning four: he asked how to pronounce the capital!

beer lao: I am very fond of it. glad they don't import Chang or whatever instead.

<<Some of us are just do not have the linguistic stomach to drink up more than those basic three words in a tonal language…especially on a short trip.>.

How pathetic. And I would not characterize my response as a "burning retort." A question was posed and I answered it.

Well, I guess that's settled.

Topic closed.