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Home » Destinations » Asia » Laos

Ferry Funny

Published: Oct 1, 2008 by Dave Lee |

Boarding

After two nights on Don Det, the 3 Parisians and I headed for Champasak. We took a small boat back to the mainland, keenly aware of the strong and swirling Mekong currents. Noy, a Lao-Canadian, was in the back of our boat, wearing a life-jacket because he didn't trust its ability to stay afloat. The rest of us were probably too naive about the 10-minute ride.

Corner of the ferry

After a short minibus ride north, we arrived back at the shores of the Mekong River, though this time we would be crossing it on a Frankenstein ferry. Noy had warned us about the ferry, and true to his word, it appeared to be a bunch of 2x4's slapped atop 3 boat hulls.

The skipper

Surprisingly, we survived the 15-minute river crossing aboard the makeshift ferry, of which there were many more lining the shores should there be a sudden rush of people and vehicles.

The view of Champasak

The scenery was beautiful though, as it felt good to be around cloud-covered mountains again. We took a tuk-tuk to a guest house along the river, and relaxed. Relaxing to the point of being comatose may very well be Laos' national pastime.

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About Dave Lee

Dave is the Founder and Editor in Chief of Go Backpacking and Feastio. He's been to 68 countries and lived in Colombia and Peru. Read the full story of how he became a travel blogger.

Dave at Ahu Ko Te Riku on Rapa Nui (Easter Island), Chile.

Hi, I'm Dave

Editor in Chief

I've been writing about adventure travel on Go Backpacking since 2007. I've visited 68 countries.

Read more about Dave.

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