Here are the last few days in excerpt:

Just got to Lao today. I feel both a little lost and also very at ease. I'm not sure where I'm going next. Either I'll take the slow boat down to Luang Pragang or I'll hith-hike somewhere, maybe Luang Namtha. I have to remind myself that I'm not in Thailand anymore, since I've been there for over a month and haven't ever been to any other country in Asia.

Heading North tomorrow. Spent the day with Nok(couchsurfer). Here are some things that you don't see in Europe.

A restaurant where going to the bathroom involves walking through the kitchen into the back yard. When I ordered my meal I asked if I could watch the cooking process. I was able to help by mincing the chicken with a butcher's knife. Nok agreed to cut my hair and we did it right on the sidewalk of the main street. Her friend came out from the internet café that she was working at and helped cut my hair too. That's just a small excerpt of how different things are here and I have to remind myself of it, because to me this way of life without rules makes sense and works. When I paid for my meal it was 42'000 kip and I handed a 50'000 note and she gave me a 10'000 note back and said that was close enough. People are generally very trusting. Nok gave me the keys to her brothers scooter and hopped on behind me, trusting that my scootering experience was sufficient. How wonderful. She showed me a cool little weed that shrivels up when you touch it.

Arrived in Luang Namtha. Nok gave me a ride to the edge of town and then I tried to hitch-hike. The first guy took me 3 km and then offered to take me to his town where they were celebrating mung new year (must look into this). So I went and got some food and everyone stared at me. Many people were wearing the traditional old clothing. It turns out the guy just wanted to get some money. He started offering me a wride for 100 dollars. I hiked back to the road after sitting there for almost an hour. I finally got a ride another 10 km or so. Very nice family, they offered me water when I go to their place on the side of the road. I then pulled over a bus, which took me the rest of the way. We passed through countless bamboo shack villages in steep hilly terrain. Luang Namtha is more modern again, but I would really like to find a good way to spend time in some of the small villages.