On the mother of all waters

On March 9, 2025, I traveled by minibus from the Golden Triangle between Thailand, Myanmar, and Laos to the Thai-Laotian border, crossing an unusual intersection before entering Laos: Thailand drives on the left, while Laos drives on the right, so the side of the road must be changed without any collisions occurring.

I spent the night before the trip in Huay Xai. The capital of the Laotian province of Bokeo is a sleepy little nest and offers a stark contrast to the special economic zone in the same province, where Chinese are creating a glittering, synthetic city with casinos and hotels. At an improvised-looking pier in Huay Xai, I board a so-called slow boat, a long wooden vessel that will take me, along with local travelers and backpackers, on a two-day journey down the brown waters of the Mekong to Luang Prabang.

Backpackers rave about this journey. “A once-in-a-lifetime experience,” wrote a blogger. I have been on the Mekong several times, which in Laos is called “Meh Nam Kong” or “mother of all waters,” but never on a slow boat. The long wooden riverboats, with seating for 50 to 100 people, are what the water is to overland buses on the road: the cheapest means of transport. They stop several times along the way to let passengers on and off.

The mythical Mekong, 4300 to 4900 kilometers long (its source is not precisely defined), originates in Tibet and flows through China, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. At least 65 million people live directly off the river, whether as fishermen, boatmen, traders, or operators of hotels, inns, and restaurants, or as farmers who use its water and carried sediments to irrigate and fertilize their fields. For years, hydropower plants have been built on the Mekong and its tributaries, disrupting the ecosystem and decimating fish stocks.

Countless riparian communities also use the river as a flowing garbage dump. On the two-day journey from the Golden Triangle 350 km down to Luang Prabang, alongside branches and trees are tons of plastic waste, packaging material, and other trash, including a dead cow drifting past us.

Laos is considered one of the cheapest travel destinations. In Huay Xai, you can find a bed in a hostel for six or seven euros, and a hotel room for just over ten euros. However, almost all accommodations get poor ratings on Tripadvisor. The offer would be better in the Thai town of Chiang Khong on the opposite side of the river. However, experienced travelers have advised against this option because the processes at the Laotian border post, which you reach from Thailand over a