Laos

My guide book says that travelers who go into Laos from any other SE Asian countries "utter a distinct 'ahhh'" when they arrive in Laos. My first thought was that this statement was absolute bollocks as most guide books have a propensity to exaggerate.
I crossed the Thailand Laos border via Chiang Khong into Huay Xai. I did get a bit of a hassle from the Laos customs as they charged more for travelers paying baht than those paying in dollars to by a 30 day visa into Laos.

The small town of Huay Xai isn't much for natural beauty, stunning architecture, or the atmosphere. It is a place for travelers who are traveling to other destinations. The one distinct feature about Huay Xai is that there are no Tuk Tuk drivers vying for business and rarely anybody hassles the travelers with trinkets and souvenirs.

I stayed in a guest house called BAP Guest house and met a nice Korean girl (lady rather as I found out that she was 8 years senior although she did not look it).
The next day I left for Luang Prabang via "slow boat" down the Mekong river. The first ride took 6 hours to a small transit town called Pak Beng.

Pak Beng was indeed known for people either going down or going up the Mekong river to other destinations. What was unique about Pak Beng was the atmosphere. Another unique characteristic about this town was that the electricity of the entire town was fueled by a small generator. This meant that electricity of the whole town was due to turn off at some point in the night.
Despite being a small tourist town, Pak Beng had it's charms. I had the first East Indian dinner in SE Asia while I was in Pak Beng. I can't recall the name of the restaurant but their Mutton Vin Aloo, buttered chicken, and cauliflower with green peas created festive flavours in my mouth.

The people in Pak Beng were very much relaxed compared to all the other locals I've met in other SE Asian countries. At first I wondered why this was so, but soon I discovered a major possible factor that may contribute to the relaxed atmosphere. After getting of the slow boat, I was approached by the usual crowds of locals who query travelers for guest houses. What was also queried was the business for Ganja. At every turn I found that some local would come up to me and attempt to sell me marijuana. At night time I even found several locals sitting around in small caffes sipping strong Laos coffee and smoking a generous sized joint.

The "magical" time of Pak Beng came when the generators where shut down and the lights went out. I was sitting in front of my guest house balcony at the time and I can recall every bit of things that contributed to the relaxed atmosphere. Since the moon light was the only light source, after the lights went out I could see silhouets of houses and the mountains that were paralleled to the Mekong river. After about 10 minutes numerous fireflies came out from their hiding and flew around in front of the guest house balcony to create the country side atmosphere that I once felt living in Korea.