Now the river front has two bars on it, and the atmosphere is relaxed at both places. Grant and I grabbed a few beers and hammocked the afternoon away at the Smile Beach Bar. We were rewarded with watching a few kayaks lose control right in front of us and nailing young tourists drinking in the river. It was pretty funny. We also saw an awesome sunset, so the overpriced beers were well worth it.

The next day we were determined to adventure around as much as possible. We woke up early, grabbed two mountain bikes, and hit the road before 8. Starting early is critical because the temperature rises quickly throughout the day.

We attempted to climb a mountain with a view, but the path was closed for whatever reason. Oh well. We moved on to Lusi cave which was only a gorgeous 1km hike away. The cave was fairly large, and we found a great view out of one of the openings looking into the valley.

Next, we biked over to the blue lagoon area for a potential swim and more cave exploring. The lagoon was over crowded with tourists, so we opted to just see the cave. Due to the slippery nature of the opening of the cave, not many tourists venture into the chambers inside. Thr cave was awesome. At one point, we found a wall with muddy handprints all over it. We found some mud and added our own to the mix. After, we enjoyed watching tourists jump into the lagoon from a tree growing right over the water.

On our bike trip back to the river, we found the best noodle soup place ever. The meat and broth were delicious and it was 50 cents for a bowl. Definitely worth the stop!

After, we cooled down at a river beach we found near our hostel. The current was much stronger than anticipated, but we found a slow pocket to laze around in. Kayakers and tubers floated past constantly, and they got a kick out of watching Grant swing into the shallow water from a tree vine.

All in all, we really enjoyed the beauty and activities offered in Vang Vieng. It is well worth the trip even if you are not looking to drink yourself silly each day.

See you in Phonsavan.

Danielle and Grant

The post Vang Vieng – Hammocking, Biking, and Caving appeared first on Quarter Life Excursion.

The next day, we woke up early and made the trek up a nearby mountain to watch the sunrise from a very tall peak. The view was spectacular and fog was rolling over the nearby peaks constantly. We waited around at the top for the fog to dissipate, but had no such luck. Oh well; it was beautiful anyway. Tock stole the phone for a stealthy selfie at one point.

The rest of the day was spent chatting and playing with an adorable hostel kitten. We were throwing a crumpled piece of paper for him and he was attacking it, then growing bored. At one point, he learned if he brought the paper back to Grant, it would get thrown again. Success, we taught him fetch!

The next day, it was time to hop back on a bus and head further north for more trekking in a new city.

Until the next post!

The post Nong Khiaw – Sunrises, Sunsets, and Smart Cats appeared first on Quarter Life Excursion.

Let's start with the good.

Phong Nha is a awesome park that has some of the largest caves on the planet hidden underneath it. It has an great hostel called Easy Tiger that has good live music and there are a few nice restaurants on the main drag. The town is nestled in a little canyon surrounded by shear cliffs and karsts on one side and river on the other.

Amusingly, Phong Nha has been finding a new biggest cave every couple years for the last 8 years, and now hosts the largest known cave on the planet. One of the ex-biggest caves, Paradise cave, has been rigged and lit by the park service and anyone can visit, no guide needed. It goes back over 7km, I think (The biggest goes back something like 35km). When we dropped by, it was nothing short of awesome, and our photos will do it little justice.

We also rode to a trail for Gio Waterfall and some monkey spotting. Success.

Despite the thin mist and light rain that I'm almost use to by now, our motor bike ride was gorgeous. We rode through farm land, over canyon bridges, amongst huge karsts and through cow herds.

What an awesome place.

Now, the bad, the worst accommodation I've ever had the displeasure of experiencing…

Remember that we were showing up to the national park sick with body ache and a cold. We were aiming for a private room and a days rest with pho and tea. The night we arrive, we quickly find a room, but we are next to a bar with karaoke and rest doesn't come easily. To boot, the next morning we are greeted to hammers and saws.

Fair enough, this is the life of travel, so we hiked down the road and found a place away from the noise. Unfortunately, we end up finding the worst accommodation cesspool in the history of accommodations.

The pain comes on slow. We show up and they take us to a room in the back corner of the hotel. It has one window that opens to a brick wall with a pile of trash beneath it. All good though, the bed looks clean and it's quiet. A place to recover.

But then we smelled cigarettes, and then we found cigarettes, and then the kids started yelling and stomping and crying, and then the hammers started, then the saws, and then we switched rooms and the staff are jaded and apathetic to our condition, and then Christmas music, then toddlers music, all at full volume, then random children were barging into our room and doors slamming…As it drew cold, I went down to ask for real blankets (apparently not included) and recieved nothing but glances from the staff/family as they ate dinner in the other room. I looked around and found both of our passports sitting out in the open, not in a safe, ready to be stolen, so I stole them back.

Eventually it dies down just in time for bed and we think our awful hard spring beds were the end of it… How wrong we were….

…I woke up at 3am covered in hives. HIVES. When was the last time these sheets were washed? I slipped into my silk liner for protection, and try to go back to sleep, but just to add insult to injury, at 4am, I'm greeted to Christmas carols on full blast from a loud speaker downstairs. (Who listens to Chistm- it doesn't matter.) We luckily didn't catch anything permanent from that cesspool, but Danielle came out with 40 bed bug bites and turned into an itchy mess for the next two days. Hammers, trash, bed bugs, hives, Christmas carols… I hope that place burns to the ground. I hate that hotel with passion.

Fin.

Phong Nha was still awesome and I still recommend it, just be careful where you stay.

See you in Hanoi!

Grant and Danielle

P.S. As a reminder, our full res photos are in Dropbox. Find the link through either of our Facebooks.

The post Phong Nha – The Highs and Lows appeared first on Quarter Life Excursion.