Phongsali

A small provincial Capitol, Phongsali is pretty much the end of the line in northeastern Laos. More Chinese than Lao, Phongsali would have ended up a part of Yunnan province but for the French colonial occupation.

This is the farthest point on my current journey. When I leave here, it will be South, via the Nam Ou, heading down river in stages, until I reach Luang Prabang.

Because Phongsali is so isolated, there is little in the way of modern technology. The electricity is on until ten at night and then the whole region is dark until six in the morning. There is no wifi, so all of the recent blog entries remain in my outbox, unsent until, perhaps, Nong Kiaw.

I am jealously guarding, and reveling, in this isolation. I am blogging, meeting new friends, delirious with the sheer joy of travel, forced to speak Lao in a town without English, but to the outside world I do not exist. What freedom!

And so, what does one do with that level of freedom? In my case, one fortifies himself with a breakfast of noodle soup and sets out, on foot, for some outlying villages.