Tues 6 - waterfall day

Money tight 'hippy Chris' recommnended we hire a couple of bikes and cycle out to the waterfall.

Most sane people took taxis to the waterfalls (tuk-tuks) so as we cycled out of the town we were quite an attraction. People smiled and shouted 'sabidee' (hello) and kids wanted to 'high 5' us as we cycled past. The road outside the town was awful - we choked on dust. Realised that outside the tourist centres, Laos is a very poor nation - mostly villages made out of bamboo huts - despite what the Communists may claim their revolution has not led to a successful economy. We kept seeing projects funded by charities and other countries, the country is heavily reliant on foreign aid.

Ian said this was the hardest cycle he has ever done, 35k through the heat and dust, only four of his gears worked, and it was uphill towards the waterfall. It was ok in the end because the sensation of plunging into the aqua pool in the jungle was the biggest 'ahhhh' ever. Especially since we had it to ourselves. Walked past a number of other pools to reach the big waterfall, where Karen fell asleep on a bench. Saw some rescued bears and a tiger on the way out.

On the way back home we entered into a bike race with some school boys for about 45 minutes and a troop of four little girls blew Ian kisses.

In the end the enticement of a tuk-tuk past the roadworks into town was just too much. Karen had a Laos massage in the evening which was like having your body egg whisked.