Catch up

I am sitting by the river in Siem Riep. 5 people just rode by on a motorbike, not that is that uncommon here. I haven't blogged in almost 2 months now. Time to give a little recap. 
Last time I wrote I was in Thailand. I have been to 2 countries since then.
 
Thailand
I was almost leaving when I last wrote. I spent another day in Chiang Mai and then headed to Chiang Rai. Went to a Thai movie (no subtitles) with a fellow traveller and did a little shopping. I went to Myanmar (Burma) for an hour to renew my visa so I could have a few extra days. 
I went up into the hills for a few days looking for a little peace and villages. It took me about a day to actually get there (though I don't think I left till atleast 11). A few buses and shared trucks (like a bus) plus a lady with a pickup which the police stopped for me and a little Thai guy. We made it to Mae Salong. 
The weather was nice and refreshing there and I even wore long sleeves some nights. I loved my room (50B = 1.60$) with a nice duvet. I did q little hiking and relaxed. Enjoyed the peacefulness and the local life. I ended up doing a homestay one night in a local Akha village. It was good and the food was delicious. After a few days here I made my way to Chiang Khong, the border with Laos.

Laos
Laos began with a slow boat down the Mekong. 2 days on a boat to Luang Prabang. Well, we did stop for a night. There were probably about 40 tourists and then the locals and at times chickens, lizards and who knows what else. I didn't know what to expect of the boat but it was better than I thought it would be. I met lots of people. Played cards and other games. Read and slept (even in the middle of a card game people were playing). Anything went. People were drinking, I just enjoyed an afternoon beer. 
Luang Prabang is a great city. Spent about 5 days there. We went to an AMAZING waterfall about 30km from the city. Turquoise water and many different pools all the way up. You had to climb through part of a waterfall to get to one which was absolutely fabulous. You could jump in and if you swam up to the edge you could look over. Great day. 
We played beach volleyball some nights at one the restaurant/bars. That was lots of fun. Majority of the people headed south to Vang Vieng from here but I headed north with 2 of the girls (German and Australian).  
First stop Nong Khiaw. A small village along the Nam Ou river.  We got a little bungalow there for a couple nights. Attempted hiking but it wasn't really he place. Here we met a French guy and then 2 others (Finnish and German). We all caught a boat to Muang Ngoi, only accessible by boat. Found even better bungalows along the river with "mama" who took care of us and brought our food to us. 
From here we left our packs(4 of us) and took our small bags to hike to another village. Ban Na village. Through forest, past caves and through the rice paddies. We got bungalows here (1 € for 2 people) for the night and attempted to find a waterfall to swim in with no succes. Ina, Christope, Juha and I spent the night and went to bathe in the evening like the locals in the river. It was wonderful. Ina and I scrubbed each others backs (the locals looked at us a little strange) in the river. The next day we hiked to another village, mostly barefoot. Easier in the muddy rice fields. Along the way I stepped on something that pricked me and made me slip. I fell on my bum. Mud everywhere. Some little Laos ladies walked by a few minutes later. One told me to wipe my hands on the leaves and then took a couple branches to clean the mud off my behind. So funny having the local lady cleaning mud off my backside. 
In some of the rice fields Ina and I asked some ladies if we could try planting rice. At first she told us we would get all muddy in the paddies, but I just turned around to show her it didn't really matter I was already covered in mud. They all got a good laugh out of me. Planting rice is NOT an easy task. 
We made our way back to Muang Ngoi but not without a swimming stop in one of the rivers. We stayed quite awhile there playing silly games and having good laughs. Back in the village we relaxed for a couple days before heading further north. Ina , Christophe and I went to Luang Nam Tha with a night stop in Oudomxai. In Nam Tha we got motos with another guy and went to a couple villages, not forgrting our half clothed (for the ladies) swim in the river. We wanted to do a homestay and tried but we did not get a good feeling from the people so just went back to town. 
The following day the 3 of us went to Muang Sing, stl further north, near the china border. We met 2 other guys and the 5 of us set off the next day in an attempt to do our own trek. It started raining 5 minutes in and we stopped in a village though completely soaked. Eventually we decided to just continue on. Off we went deeper into the forest hoping to find a village to sleep in for the night. Instead Chris got an SMS saying "welcome to china". Oops. We turned around and headed back. Ended up staying In a guesthouse for the night and reattempting the next day in a different direction. We made a rain stop in a hut for a little bit but made our way thick into the jungle. We had a good time, but again no luck with villages. We ended up back in Muang Sing in some bungalows. It was Canada Day so we got a few beers to celebrate. 
Over the next couple days Ina and I made our way to Vang Vieng which included an 18 hour bus ride that we were told would be 10, arriving there at 230 am. Luckily we found a place to stag for the night but changed to somewhere else the next day. I didn't really enjoy this place. Too many young drunk people only there to party. The scenery is beautiful though. 
From here Ina and I parted ways after 3 weeks. I headed south and her north. Vientiane for a day and then a night bus to Pakse and eventually Tad Lo where I did not do much. A little bit of walking and a lot of nothing. I was feeling unmotivated. After a couple days I went to pakse for a night and the went to the island of Don Kho for a homestay. I stayed with a sweet family with a 9 month old. At first I wasn't sure I liked it but it was good. I washed in the Mekong with grandma and walked the island with the little girl next door. From here I made my way to Champasak. Long journey with a headache starting. Once there I went to visit the temples with a few people but was really starting to feel crap. When we got home I just went to bed as my body was aching. 17h30. I stayed in bed till the following morning when I needed to catch my bus. That night I woke many times soaking wet with the cold sweats. NOT fun. Fever. 
The bus to Don Det was not comfortable. I met a Welsh girl that I stayed with on the island. I felt bad because I wasn't good company. I felt aweful. Headache, my eyes hurt. If I turned my head it pounded. I was tired and didn't eat much. I felt like death. It brought me to tears a couple times. I won't lie, I wanted nothing more than to go home. I did make my way to the local doctor who tested for malaria. But by this point after my googling I was thinking dengue. I tested negative for malaria, paid my 1.25$, and asked about dengue. They didn't understand me. 

Cambodia
Off to Cambodia and straight to Phnom Penh so I could see a doctor. The following morning before going to the doctor I woke up ith an awful rash. 75$ later (medical claim to be made) dengue it is, but i was on the up and up. Recovering though still tired. 
I don't know where I got it but in Laos. I don't know how I did it but I manages to go to a club that night. It was fun. 
A few days in Phnom Penh being the tourist and her I am sti in Siem Riep 7 days later. I have done lots of relaxing here. Visited some amazing temples. Soon I'm off to Vietnam to meet my dad for a few weeks of travel. Things are good!!!