After suffering through the long trip from Luang Namtha to Nong Kiaw I didn't feel like doing anything for a day or two. I figured I have my own bungalow for 15,000 kip, I have a veranda and a book - what else do I need? So, I didn't go up to Mong Njoy as almost everyone else I was travelling with did, but stayed in Nong Kiaw instead.

And it was really alright! I mean, there isn't much to do or anything: but it was cool to chill for a bit. The scenery around Nong Kiaw is pretty impressive, too: I mean, you have these massive limestone-mountains that simply rise vertically out of the ground! On the photos you'll see what I mean. A few people here did climb onto these mountains, but I simply couldn't be bothered.

The only "productive" thing I did was visit a nearby cave: Apparently this cave had been used by rebels in the 60s and you can still sortof imagine where and how they lived there. The cave itself was obviously formed by an underground river, so it's more like a long and very,very narrow tunnel then a big, spacious cave. I actually had to go sideways most of the time, that's how narrow this tunnel was! And of course this is not a cave like you'd see it in Europe, i.e. no tour guide, no artifical light, no form of "tourist infrastucture". So the though of losing your flashlight or running out of batteries was not a pleasant one. And I wouldn't have gotten into the cave on my own, either. I went with a girl from the States and a guy from Colombia. Wow - this was already the second Columbian I had met in Asia!

The only thing that really pissed me off about Nong Kiaw was that I couldn't find a boat that would take me down to Luang Prabang. I mean, there are boats going up every day. But if you want to go down, you actually have to hire the whole fucking boat - which costs between 60 and 90 USD, depending on your bargaining skills! So theyt rather go back empty then sell you a seat on the boat that has to return to Luang Prabang anyhow. How much sense does that make? I tried to get enough people together to share a boat but ultimately I failed. Damn :-(.