Cruise – Two Little Wanderers

Laos has been on our bucket list for a while, and we almost made a trip during our 2018 sabbatical. Ariana astutely observed that Laos is the first country on our summer adventure whose flag is not just red and white (like Canada, Japan, Indonesia and Singapore). We didn’t know what to expect from Laos, though were excited by the fact it is landlocked by 5 nations with strong cultures – Vietnam, Thailand, China, Myanmar and Cambodia. In fact, a lot of its economic future depends on its geography through tourism and transportation. We were also a bit nervous since we started our malaria pills since it’s still present in the rural areas during the monsoons.

We arrived in Vientiane, the capital of Laos, and checked into the Lao Poet hotel with its rooftop pool. Laos doesn’t have Uber or Grab, so we used the local equivalent called Loca or just grabbed a tuk-tuk that we all enjoyed. With just half a day in Vientiane, we ventured out driving by Patuxay, an India gate or Arc de Triomphe like structure (Laos was ruled by the French). Our first stop was the national monument of Pha That Luang, a massive Stupa with a large reclining Buddha next door. We loved that there was absolutely no one here since we were visiting during the off season. Ayaan was very excited when we were picked up in a BYD, Teslas biggest competitor, to take us 30 mins away to the Buddha Park. We were welcomed here with a downpour and bug bites, but still really enjoyed walking through the park with over 60 statues. The most memorable was a stupa that we could climb on top of and get a stunning view of the entire park. After a dip in the rooftop pool, we visited the night market where Anjali and Ariana bought a purse, and Ayaan bought a USB mobile fan! We ended the night with dinner at a local Laotian restaurant playing local live rock music. Laotian food is a mix of Thai and Cambodian food with shrimp paste in everything – good, but definitely not as good as Thai food.

Our 2nd destination in Laos was the nature town of Vang Vieng, surrounded by breathtaking scenery. We took the modern Lao-China train, a short 50 min ride, to this small town that reminded us of the Cat Ba island on Ha Long Bay. We absolutely loved our time at Vang Vieng and the Riverside Boutique hotel. We spent our couple of days here relaxing by the pool overlooking the towering mountains, getting a Laotian massage or going on a few adventures. We rented a 4WD run down buggy to drive around west Vang Vieng through rice fields, bridges across the Nam Song river, green mountains and very bumpy roads. We stopped to walk into a cave with stalactites and stalagmites, and to dip in the cool Blue Lagoon 3 on another hot day. We also took a tour in Vang Vieng through 10 zip lines, tubing the now brown Nam Song river, and jumping off a 5m board into Blue Lagoon 1. Ayaan and Ariana thoroughly enjoyed the adrenaline rush during these activities. We highly recommend Vang Vieng for everyone, including families.

Our final destination in Laos was the word famous UNESCO heritage city of Luang Prabang. After another 50 min Lao-China train ride, we checked into the On the Mekong resort that was, you guessed it, right on the Mekong river with the best sunset views in Luang Prabang. We had a Laotian lunch on the river in town where a Canadian expat, who started the first private fire company in this communist country, shared his tips and tricks about Luang Prabang and Laos. Next door, we visited the famous Buddhist temple Wat Xieng Thong and set out on the highlight of the day – spending a couple of hours playing with kids 6-10 years old at a local school Big Brother Mouse 2. The goal was to interact with them in English so they could improve their skills. Ayaan played soccer with the boys, while Ariana played some board games with the other children. The school children were very curious and asked us a lot of questions! That night we ate at the many stalls of the night market (Ayaan enjoyed the chicken skewer and Ariana at a Vietnamese spring roll) and had a night cap nearby at the Avani hotel (I enjoyed my peppercorn flavored old fashioned).

We woke up early next morning to the sounds of prayers in our room from the temple next door, where we observed the Alms giving ceremony of a full moon with the entire village congregated at the temple to offer food to the monks, some as young as 10 years. We were lucky to be in Luang Prabang on this auspicious day, and the kids were very curious about the lives on monks. After breakfast at the hotel that included yummy mangoes, we walked up 300 steps to the stupa at the top of Phousi mountain with 360 degree views of Luang Prabang including where the Mekong river meets the Nam Song river. The walk down the mountain was full of surprised with spotted Buddha statues along the way and a cave with Buddha’s footprints. We also visited the National museum where the kids enjoyed seeing how the king lived in the Royal palace. One of the most enjoyable things about Luang Prabang is walking down the streets with its colonial architecture, restaurants, and Buddhist temples.

On our last full day in Laos, we took an all day tour that started with a relaxing 2 hour cruise along the Mekong river, with stops at a village that makes Whisky and the famous Pau Ou caves with 4000 Buddha statues. The lunch was delicious with grilled skewers and Thai curry, but the real delight was when an elephant strolled to the restaurant and the kids got to feed it dozens of bananas! Ariana said she was so happy seeing the elephant and this made her more excited for the upcoming safari where she expected to see 50 animals (shhh :). After a long 1.5 drive from the lunch, we arrived at the gorgeous Kuang Si waterfall. It reminded us of our time at Plitvice national park in Croatia, with its many smaller waterfalls and blue pools of water. We all took a dip in one of the natural pools, and were constantly pricked by little fish that gave us a pedicure. Our tour guide Thin was fantastic, which made this all day tour even better!

Laos is definitely a country to add to your bucket list with its hospitality, spirituality, culture, nature, architecture and affordability. Khop Chai Laos, you exceeded our expectations. Ariana is lucky to have Laos as her 40th country visited!

I’ve always dreamt of Halong Bay and we finally arrived at Hanoi from Siem Reap, after visiting another dream destination. Our flight was late and we reached the MK premier boutique hotel around 1030pm and were happy to find that it was located smack in the middle of the French quarter. Hanoi is extremely crowded and chaotic swarming with bikes, scooters and cyclos and people drive on the sidewalks too! We had a day before we departed for our cruise the next morning, so we decided to explore Hanoi. We took a taxi to the Tran Quoc pagoda which was interesting and located in the one of the few lakes in Hanoi. We then walked with the double stroller to the Ho Chi Minh Masauleum area, struggling along the way with the stroller and kids through the busy streets. We were pretty exhausted after the little excursion in the heat in the morning and took a taxi to a recommended restaurant Quan an Ngon which was quite nice with an extensive menu and and a large area. Kids and Anjali had a good nap while I read and we were ready for the evening after a Iced Vietnamese coffee at the rooftop of our hotel where we watched the sunset. The kids were then super excited to sit in a “cyclo” that took us to the main lake area. Anjali and Ayaan went to visit the famous Ngoc Son pagoda in the middle of the lake, and unfortunately someone swiped Anjali’s iPhone from her bag – understandably she was upset but happy that everything else was ok. When we reunited we took the kids for the famous water puppet show that they absolutely loved with its water buffaloes, boats and live music. We had a fantastic dinner at Duong 2 and had our first taste of amazing Vietnamese food 24 hours after arriving. Anjali put the kids to sleep while I went for a walk in the Friday night market that was packed with people (it was also a Vietnam soccer game that they won against Malaysia) and smoked some hookah at the Hookah room.

Next morning we woke up excited and anxiously waited for our 2 hour ride to the cruise at Halong Bay. Ayaan was very excited since he hadn’t stayed on a boat before. We were picked up at 9am in a luxury 6 seater minibus and the kids were entertained playing with the many gadgets in the minibus for the ride. We had a quick pit stop to see how pearls were extracted from oysters and also got our first view of the magnificent Halong Bay with its thousands of limestone islands – the myth goes that a dragon spat out these islands. We arrived at the cruise lounge where we were greeted with a smile, wet towels, a welcome drink and appetizers. After much research we had decided to go on the newer 3 days 2 nights Au Co cruise from Bhaya cruises instead of the more popular Paradise cruises. It was an absolutely awesome luxury experience and the only improvement we could think of was to have more live music. The boarding was seamless and as we sat for a 5 course set meal lunch we realized there were just 23 guests on board. We were also delighted since we were given an extra room that was much appreciated with our two monsters. The lunch was delicious as we sailed through the limestone islands offering a heavenly view. Our first stop on the cruise that afternoon was to visit the Tieng Ong cave with stalactites and stalagmites. The kids enjoyed the little trek and particularly had fun with the dogs that lived in the cave. After some brief rest on the cruise, our second stop was to visit the 200 person Cua Van floating village in a row boat. This was a particularly serene and relaxing experience, so much so that Ariana fell asleep in my lap on the boat! We spent the evening back on the boat where Anjali went to the hot tub at the back of the boat and then we all went up to the bar to enjoy a happy hour drink while they held a master chef competition. Dinner was another fantastic 5 course set meal and the kids happily munched on their specially prepared dinners. I spent a few hours reading on the balcony and enjoying the moonlight over the islands, as the rest of them slept like babies.

The first morning on the cruise started early and we barely got time to grab breakfast, before we sailed off on the tender boat to the Cat Ba island and national park. While other guests biked, we took the buggy through the stunning landscape and to the town to Viet Ha. Along the way we stopped at a little farm where Ariana enjoyed playing with the hundreds of butterflies of all colors. We got back to the boat with enough time to have a dip in the hot tub and then sit for another 5 course set lunch that was delicious. The final outing that afternoon was to the emerald waters and a white sandy beach of Ho Ba Hahm. This was the highlight of our Vietnam experience as the tiny beach was deserted, the sand powdery and the emerald water calm and warm with an amazing view. The kids were in love and we achieved a proud parent moment where Ayaan and Ariana could float independently in the sea albeit with their floats. Ayaan also took turns to go out on a kayak and he also helped row with his oar! Once again the evening started with drinks on the top deck at happy hour while we watched the sunset and Ayaan then visited the engine room and captains deck with Anjali. Over the course of 2 days Ayaan visited the captain half a dozen times and also blew the fog horn. Our final dinner on the cruise was a live music filled bbq buffet dinner on the top deck which again was amazing. On our final morning we woke up late, had a relaxing breakfast and chilled on the decks taking in for the last time breath taking views of Ha Long bay!

Our ride back from Halong Bay to Hanoi was less relaxing as the kids decided to throw their tantrums as they were sleepy but didn’t sleep. We arrived at the O’gallery Majestic hotel and the kids finally napped, while I dropped off laundry and read some more. We figured the kids would enjoy another cyclo ride, so we took them on an hour long ride through the French quarter after a bite at the hotel lobby restaurant. On our last day in Hanoi, we had debated leaving town to visit the beautiful Ninh Binh district to see “Halong Bay on land” but decided against it after our nightmarish drive back the previous day. We figured we would have a day for the kids for a change. So after breakfast we took a taxi to the kid friendly Thong Nhat Park. The kids absolutely loved this park since it had not only slides and swings, but also rides in trains, cars and even a carousel. We also walked along the calm lake, and overall it was a good change from the otherwise crowded and not super safe for kids (traffic wise) city of Hanoi. We grabbed lunch at Ngon Villa and this was our favorite meal in Vietnam. They had an all you can eat menu (not buffet) for $18 and every item on it was delicious. One of the highlights of our SE Asian journey has been that the kids have loved the food and eat really well at every meal. That evening after a nap we had a dip on the tiny rooftop pool that Ayaan enjoyed because it had one very strong jet that created a downstream effect. We wanted to eat a nice meal to end our Vietnam trip, so we walked 10 minutes to the famous Grandmas restaurant that was fantastic as well. Ariana particularly enjoyed the restaurant with the “two ladies playing the music”. On our final morning in Hanoi, we walked over to the historic Citadel and the kids were delighted to find a stage for a water puppet show set up there. Halong Bay was definitely the highlight of our Vietnam trip, and Hanoi was just too crowded to enjoy with the kids although the food was amazing! On to a couple of weeks in Thailand!