After Vientiane it was something of a
relief to arrive in the smallish city of
Pakse in southern Laos. We'd
been warned that it was going to be hot and humid, and it was but the
city seemed to provide more room and air and wasn't so oppressive.
First stop in the morning was the ruin
Khmer Hindu temple of
Vat Phu, now a World Heritage site. Situated on
the western side of the Mekong it's about 30minutes south of Pakse
and about 6 kilometres from the river at the base of mount Phou Khao.
It would have been impressive in its heyday and even now is worth the
long walk up the causeway and steep climb to the top of the site.
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| Start of the causeway |
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| Mid-level looking back at the causeway |
The
stairs leading up are now in a poor state of disrepair so Robyn
denied herself the pleasure of the last steep climb. Having endured
the climb up Mount Phousi in Luang Prabang I felt reasonably ready
for it and made it okay. I can only say I am glad it wasn't a rainy
day. The old stone steps would have been very slippery and dangerous.
I also sweated out about 2 litres during the climb and walk so was
extremely happy to get back into the air-conditioned van.
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| Steps leading up |
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| View from top (we walked from the lake) |
An hour or so later the Tad Yeaung
waterfall was a total change of scenery. It is also at a much higher
altitude and therefore cooler, which came as a big relief. This is
also a coffee growing area so we stopped off for a double espresso
before the long 2 hour drive south to
Khong Island, one of the Four
Thousand Islands on the Mekong in the southern part of the country.
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| Double waterfall at Tad Yeaung |
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