Crossing the border into Laos...

My visa had run out and it was time to catch a bus to Luang Prabang, Laos (central Laos, it's a landlocked country). I bought my ticket from the people at my last hotel in Hanoi. $49. The people I bought it from said it takes about 18 hours. I knew that was a bit shorter than I expected because I read a few blogs saying it's more like 24-30 hours. I was picked up at my hotel in Hanoi by a guy driving a motorbike at 5:30 pm. He took me to a minibus and then I took the minibus to the big bus. We left at 6:30 pm and drove for two hours then stopped for a break (10 min) and then drove until the Vietnam/Laos border. We got there at 7:30 am. Applying for our visas and doing all that took about 2 hours. Then we walked across the border to the bus waiting for us (picture). We drove another 2 hours into Laos and ate lunch in a town I didn't know. Then it was the long haul...we didn't stop until arriving in Luang Prabang at 11:30 pm. It was about a 29 hour bus ride. The last couple hours were rough. my iphone battery died and i just wanted too jump out and run around. No bathrooms on the bus either. We took a taxi into the town center and grabbed the only guesthouse that was open and crashed out for the night. The last few days I've had the chance to look around and try out some of the Laos cuisine. They have a heavy French influence here in Laos. They have excellent sandwiches on the street and delicious fruit shakes too. I had a papaya-mango shake and a pineapple-papaya shake today. We walked up this long hill in the city and could see across the whole city. I took a couple pics that ill post from it. Tomorrow I'm going to a huge waterfall that is the most beautiful thing you've ever seen. You can jump in and swim in it too. Yesterday was my Dad's birthday. I heard the family went out to Kobe's for dinner. That's awesome! Happy birthday pops! You know how much I love ya! Until next time...love