I had booked a mekong river cruise in Laos and decided to just use a driver from the tour operator to get there. A private car and we toured a few places along the way.
First stop was a bathroom break in the way to Chiang Rai. There is a hot spring there and I toil time to do my tires in the warm water while munching on gooseberries. They have the bite like a tomato but slightly sweet and does not taste like a tomato at all.
Yummy!
Here is the location of the springs. Wat Suwannarum Patong.
From there we traveled to the white temple. It is beautiful. According to the internet: “Wat Rong Kun, perhaps better known to foreigners as the White Temple, is a contemporary, unconventional, privately-owned art exhibit in the style of a Buddhist temple in Chiang Rai Province.”
The gate of heaven are the two pillars in front of the temple.
This stands for the worldly temptations Buddha’s teachings encourages us to resist.
A wishing fountain.
Even the bathrooms are a work of art.
Other images. This area is for reflection and prayer.
Across the road are rice paddies.
I grabbed some lunch to eat on the way. Then it was off to Dpi Tung and the Mae Fah Luang garden.
From there we traveled to the Hall of Opium. A project of the royal family to educate and change the opium trade and addiction in the north.
Finally we went to the Golden triangle. Here is where Myanmar (the triangle piece) , Thailand (where I am standing) , and Laos (on the right) meet.
I ate a mekong river fish dish. Spicy! Also, I find with an Irish family. They are traveling the world for a year with their young kids. They were such fun.
This morning I woke to sunrise on the mekong. Off to the cruise!
