PS - I went to Laos.

So there's a lot to catch up on.......and I have to do it sometime, here we go!

Many of you have probably heard from either Flora or myself that I left Mae Hong Son to travel on my own and she is still there. In the simplest terms possible - the man we were staying with made me feel very uncomfortable. He treated me very differently from Flora and those differences were starting to effect me quite a lot so I decided that I needed to move out of his house. SO many decisions were made within a matter of days - Flora and I spent the night in a monastery not far from Mae Hong Son and our time there was doubtless incredibly helpful in figuring out what to do. I love Mae Hong Son, but for a variety of reasons I decided that travel was the best thing for me after that. My mom is meeting me in Bangkok on May 10, so I didn't have too much time left anyway, I had envisioned more travel in my time in Southeast Asia than had happened, and I wanted to get away from him. Flora stayed behind and has had to deal with more issues surrounding our host........when I told him that I was leaving he became incredibly emotional and unstable (affirming my decision to leave) and asked Flora to move out as well. She's still in Mae Hong Son, living with a friend until she moves into a guest house and working for the other organization we had been involved with.

The week period surrounding the epicenter of these issues was incredibly difficult for both Flora and I.....luckily other NGO workers in the area who we have made friends with supported us in every way imaginable making us feel comfortable and loved. Another upside - it taught me that I need to listen to my instincts. When a man is making me feel uncomfortable, I need to acknowledge that and not try to explain it away. I should never feel that I need to accommodate someone who is being inappropriate because I don't want to situation to be uncomfortable. It was a lesson in sticking to my guns and doing what was best, healthiest, and safest for me. I'm proud of how we both responded to the situation and how we recognized that the the best circumstance for each of us meant that we'd have to split up for a month even if we didn't truly want to be apart. I'd also like to thank my parents for being so supportive from thousands of miles away - I know it's difficult to let your little girl travel on her own and I am so glad that you trust me to do so.

SO! Flora and I parted in the Mae Hong Son nus station - she for a border run to Burma and me for Laos.....both of our visas were expiring. I went to Pai, a backpacker mecca that Flora and I visited about a month ago, to arrange a bus and boat into Laos and within hours I ran into people Flora and I knew from the monastery! I have quickly learned that traveling alone does NOT mean you are alone. Backpackers from Europe in their 20s are generally a VERY warm and welcoming bunch. So I had dinner with two Londoners and a German man and then off I went on a night van to the border. There were monsoon rains and MANY hairpin turns......no sleep, but friends were born of common misery!

After crossing into Laos I took a two-day boat ride up the Mekong river to history Luang Prabang. The boat ride was not only spectacularly gorgeous, but I made loads of friends. The three people I have seen most since being in Laos are a British woman who is on her home after three years in Australia and New Zealand and two Irish guys who are traveling the world after University (college). We played loads of cards and talked about anything and everything (we were on the boat for a long, long time.....) and I know them quite well now, really! I also saw a lot of Quebecoise people, Australians, a Japanese guy, and heaps of people from all over the UK. I am the only American in the bunch and they take great pleasure in talking in accents so thick/slang so random that i have no clue what's going on. The Irish boys especially decided to train me up in sarcastic/dark Irish/UK humor.......they spent a couple months in the US and were absolutely baffled by how gullible our nation is.

Luang Prabang was the capitol of Laos many years ago and is chalk-full of history. On my first day here I went with the Irish and British people to probably the most beautiful place I've ever seen - a series of very safe to swim in pools and waterfalls. The water is quite deep and there was one place you could jump in from high up - Sandra, the British woman, got a sweet video of me and the Irish "lads" jumping in!

I've also spent a lot of time meandering through ancient and historic Wats (temples), up hills to catch gorgeous views of a Luang Prabang (which i really not a city at all but an overgrown village in the jungle), and wandering through markets and town. Yesterday I went on a five hour walk by myself anywhere that my feet would take me. That's really the joy of traveling alone. I've been lucky to have friends....honestly, we humans are social people and need to have someone to share things with every once in a while......but at the end of the day, I'm just beholden to myself. While in one temple, a friendly monk came over to me and we talked for over an hour about religion, living in Laos, our families.....one of my favorite travel experiences yet. He invited me to come back tonight to watch the monks chant in the evening.

Most of my friends have moved on to Vang Vieng (a real tourist mecca) but I've stayed behind to do a little more wandering. I was thinking about going there myself, but I want to have some time free of friends......I had expected to have two and a half weeks! I don't think I'll spend as much time as "planned" (I'm by myself so plans are inherently flexible) because being here I've realized just how touristy that place is. There is a lot to see in Laos, so I htink I'll head to the far south which is supposed to be hardly touched by tourism and one of the most relaxing places in the world!

I love you all, hope you're well.

~Alice