Escape to Laos.

Our day going from Stung Treng in Cambodia and up the Mekong into Laos was totally awesome. Once we'd had lunch, we hoisted our luggage into some narrow longboats and proceeded to race up the Mekong at about 50km an hour... hmmm, safe. For the whole hour we saw just one or two people on the river banks, and a few buffalo. The border which straddles Cambodia and Laos is not an official one, so it doesn't get much traffic.

We got to the border town (not before Quentin had to change boats and took one step too many, stepping into the water up to his waist with his passport in his pocket. Thankfully he showed impressive gymnastic ability and it barely got wet) to get our Cambodian exit stamps, and it seemed so low key I almost felt like we were sneaking across the border. Then, about five mins up a dirt road in no-mans-land we found a wooden outdoor shack which was apparently the Laos entry point. Our passports were stamped by two blokes in shorts and t-shirts, with no shoes on. Probably the most casual border I've ever been across.

A short hop by van from there and another small boat crossing, and we reached Don Det.