08.06.2014
I'm in a bus to Kratie from Stung Tren. That the public bus is the same price like a tourist van and the fact that I got a different bus, tells me about the way tourists get treated here. As we crossed the boarder from Lao to Cambodia yesterday we already had trouble with the agency, cause they lied about the journey. So for a 2 hour drive it took us from 9 am till 2 pm. As I arrived in Strung Tren I got some Dollars to be able to buy some things. The change you get back is given in Riel. In the town was a big market with a lot new food. For dinner I got an Cambodian Papayasalad at the Mekong riverside to watch the sunset. But with the monsoon time all I could see was some light between clouds and lightning. The first night in a room alone without my boys was weird again. But I was so tired that I just felt a sleep. After seeing the farmers life in Lao, the history of Cambodia's Red Khmer regime is fascinating me and I found a German book in my hostel 'Der weite Weg der Hoffnung' (First they killed my father) which I can't stop to read.
But of course you want to know what happened in between and especially the cave story... Well I know that you want to know. So here is how another plan of us just worked out perfectly:
The boys woke up around 10:30 am on the 4th. I have been awake for a while like usual and already collected the laundry we could wash the evening before in the washing machine of a very nice Vietnamese family, as there was no possibility to do laundry at all. We left for a breakfast but like most times we start talking and forget about the time. As we saw that it is already after midday we rushed to find a Tuk Tuk to the cave. As we heard from backpackers the day before, it should be easy: Just get a Tuk Tuk for 25.000 each. Well, no one told us that there is something like a lunch hour and no one was willing to drive us before 14 o'clock. As well the Tuk Tuks here are more like a public bus, so just driving to a certain time. So the guys tried to teach me Skat for another time and we had some cool drinks till a guy came and said 'cave!'. At the drive we had one of our heatedly discussions and thought about what the Lao people now think about us, screaming at each other in the hard sounding German language. After one hour we stopped in a little town. This have been the 82 km that Lucas knew as the distance to the cave. But now we had to take another Tuk Tuk taking us another 40 km between rice fields and little villages. We arrived at 4:30 pm. The cave tours stopped at 4pm. This was the last Tuk Tuk. So we had to decide what to do.
We didn't wanted that all the way was a waste and not to do the same trip the next morning again. Neither we didn't wanted to miss the cave, as it should be a big one and we have been already so close. So we let the Tuk Tuk go ad fast found a place to stay at the several home-stays in the village close to the Kong Lor cave. The older woman asked if dinner around 6 pm is OK and told us the way to the Nam Hinboun river, as we had one hour till the food will be ready. She gave me a traditional sarong, as I just had a bikini (at least that). As I went in the water without the sarong I could fast figure out, that she didn't just gave it for the way to the river but for the bath itself. All the little kids in the river started to stare at us, especially me. After a while I felt uncomfortable and put on the sarong. But as I walked to a deeper part of the river it went down around my legs and I couldn't stand nor swim. Luckily I had my boys to rescue me :) As we went back the river got empty and everyone followed us. A woman came to lift my sarong to see whats under and pressed in Lucas scooter wound. Back at our mommy for one night I helped cooking for a while and we went for a quick walk to see the village. The dinner was as usual some sticky rice, chicken with coriander and really yummy vegetables. A beer in front of some Thai television and we went to bed. Sadly Lucas had a bad night and in the morning he told us that he will go back to rest.
Lüder and I stayed for the omelette/sticky rice/vegetables breakfast and went to the cave. We had to pay a boat to take us through the 7 km long cave. First we just saw an entrance to a cave we had to walk in besides the river coming out of it. Inside it got dark fast and we followed a sandbank till the end, where the boat waited. Two guys skilfully guide us up the river till another sandbank appeared. I already marveled how high and wide the cave was. But as we left the boat to walk up a small hill and the guide turned on the light, I couldn't stop starring. On the right side the river flows and on the left have been stone formations like I've never seen before. Stalagmite as far as you could see. Not even that a lot have been growing together, some of them had the size of a huge, fat tree. The colored light made the place even more magical. After the walking path our boat waited and we drove a long time through a huge cave system with different air temperatures and even some fog on the water. A very mysterious place, where we asked our self's, what the persons felt to go in the first time. Quick stop in the warm day light and we made our way down river back through the cave. We wanted to get the Tuk Tuk at 11am to not leave Lucas too long alone and leave with a early bus. But there was no Tuk Tuk. Neither at 12. As we asked now again, some said 1 pm, some 2 pm. We decided to walk a bit more on the street and found a van with other cave visitors to take us directly. What a lucky coincidence!
Lucas felt better and after a quick noodle soup we left with a bus to find a town where we could find a boat down south the Mekong. We haven't been sure where to search for it, but decided against Pakse for Thakhek. In the bus we met Max, another German which should be the beginning of the end of our group :O First Lüder and on the next morning Lucas decided to drive the loop as with Max. As I came to Lao I wanted to do the loop as well. But after loosing another 2 days before and the fact that I now already have seen the cave at the end of the loop didn't allow myself to go with them. 4 more days in Lao would mean no time at all in Cambodia, So after a last night in a dorm room I let the guys leave at the morning of the 6th with a heavy heart. After a Lao massage I took the bus in the afternoon to the 4000 Islands. They didn't worked out well for me, as I arrived on Don Det at 7 am cause I figured out the only way to go to Cambodia that day is to leave the island at 8 am. I planned to spend the day there. But I couldn't spend the night as I didn't had enough money with me (no ATM). So I walked one hour over the island and left again to my bus to Cambodia.
I'm in a bus to Kratie from Stung Tren. That the public bus is the same price like a tourist van and the fact that I got a different bus, tells me about the way tourists get treated here. As we crossed the boarder from Lao to Cambodia yesterday we already had trouble with the agency, cause they lied about the journey. So for a 2 hour drive it took us from 9 am till 2 pm. As I arrived in Strung Tren I got some Dollars to be able to buy some things. The change you get back is given in Riel. In the town was a big market with a lot new food. For dinner I got an Cambodian Papayasalad at the Mekong riverside to watch the sunset. But with the monsoon time all I could see was some light between clouds and lightning. The first night in a room alone without my boys was weird again. But I was so tired that I just felt a sleep. After seeing the farmers life in Lao, the history of Cambodia's Red Khmer regime is fascinating me and I found a German book in my hostel 'Der weite Weg der Hoffnung' (First they killed my father) which I can't stop to read.
But of course you want to know what happened in between and especially the cave story... Well I know that you want to know. So here is how another plan of us just worked out perfectly:
The boys woke up around 10:30 am on the 4th. I have been awake for a while like usual and already collected the laundry we could wash the evening before in the washing machine of a very nice Vietnamese family, as there was no possibility to do laundry at all. We left for a breakfast but like most times we start talking and forget about the time. As we saw that it is already after midday we rushed to find a Tuk Tuk to the cave. As we heard from backpackers the day before, it should be easy: Just get a Tuk Tuk for 25.000 each. Well, no one told us that there is something like a lunch hour and no one was willing to drive us before 14 o'clock. As well the Tuk Tuks here are more like a public bus, so just driving to a certain time. So the guys tried to teach me Skat for another time and we had some cool drinks till a guy came and said 'cave!'. At the drive we had one of our heatedly discussions and thought about what the Lao people now think about us, screaming at each other in the hard sounding German language. After one hour we stopped in a little town. This have been the 82 km that Lucas knew as the distance to the cave. But now we had to take another Tuk Tuk taking us another 40 km between rice fields and little villages. We arrived at 4:30 pm. The cave tours stopped at 4pm. This was the last Tuk Tuk. So we had to decide what to do.
We didn't wanted that all the way was a waste and not to do the same trip the next morning again. Neither we didn't wanted to miss the cave, as it should be a big one and we have been already so close. So we let the Tuk Tuk go ad fast found a place to stay at the several home-stays in the village close to the Kong Lor cave. The older woman asked if dinner around 6 pm is OK and told us the way to the Nam Hinboun river, as we had one hour till the food will be ready. She gave me a traditional sarong, as I just had a bikini (at least that). As I went in the water without the sarong I could fast figure out, that she didn't just gave it for the way to the river but for the bath itself. All the little kids in the river started to stare at us, especially me. After a while I felt uncomfortable and put on the sarong. But as I walked to a deeper part of the river it went down around my legs and I couldn't stand nor swim. Luckily I had my boys to rescue me :) As we went back the river got empty and everyone followed us. A woman came to lift my sarong to see whats under and pressed in Lucas scooter wound. Back at our mommy for one night I helped cooking for a while and we went for a quick walk to see the village. The dinner was as usual some sticky rice, chicken with coriander and really yummy vegetables. A beer in front of some Thai television and we went to bed. Sadly Lucas had a bad night and in the morning he told us that he will go back to rest.
Lüder and I stayed for the omelette/sticky rice/vegetables breakfast and went to the cave. We had to pay a boat to take us through the 7 km long cave. First we just saw an entrance to a cave we had to walk in besides the river coming out of it. Inside it got dark fast and we followed a sandbank till the end, where the boat waited. Two guys skilfully guide us up the river till another sandbank appeared. I already marveled how high and wide the cave was. But as we left the boat to walk up a small hill and the guide turned on the light, I couldn't stop starring. On the right side the river flows and on the left have been stone formations like I've never seen before. Stalagmite as far as you could see. Not even that a lot have been growing together, some of them had the size of a huge, fat tree. The colored light made the place even more magical. After the walking path our boat waited and we drove a long time through a huge cave system with different air temperatures and even some fog on the water. A very mysterious place, where we asked our self's, what the persons felt to go in the first time. Quick stop in the warm day light and we made our way down river back through the cave. We wanted to get the Tuk Tuk at 11am to not leave Lucas too long alone and leave with a early bus. But there was no Tuk Tuk. Neither at 12. As we asked now again, some said 1 pm, some 2 pm. We decided to walk a bit more on the street and found a van with other cave visitors to take us directly. What a lucky coincidence!
Lucas felt better and after a quick noodle soup we left with a bus to find a town where we could find a boat down south the Mekong. We haven't been sure where to search for it, but decided against Pakse for Thakhek. In the bus we met Max, another German which should be the beginning of the end of our group :O First Lüder and on the next morning Lucas decided to drive the loop as with Max. As I came to Lao I wanted to do the loop as well. But after loosing another 2 days before and the fact that I now already have seen the cave at the end of the loop didn't allow myself to go with them. 4 more days in Lao would mean no time at all in Cambodia, So after a last night in a dorm room I let the guys leave at the morning of the 6th with a heavy heart. After a Lao massage I took the bus in the afternoon to the 4000 Islands. They didn't worked out well for me, as I arrived on Don Det at 7 am cause I figured out the only way to go to Cambodia that day is to leave the island at 8 am. I planned to spend the day there. But I couldn't spend the night as I didn't had enough money with me (no ATM). So I walked one hour over the island and left again to my bus to Cambodia.
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