Wat​er​falls and kayaks on the 4000 Islands

Arriving on the hippie island of "Don Det", we were once again approached if we still needed a hostel. Since that was the case, we went along and actually got a nice room right away. Later it turned out that there would have been many other nice hostels, but ours was good too, so we stayed for now. Upon arrival, we had also read something about a Full Moon Party and although we were quite tired from the eventful day, we wanted to check it out. The party was on a small beach with a campfire, good music, and many drunk/high people. If you were in the mood to party, it would certainly be a good place, but we were more overwhelmed by tiredness than the party atmosphere, so we went back to the hostel soon.

The next morning we slept in again. After that, and after a good breakfast, we rented bicycles to explore the two main tourist islands Don Det and Don Kong. The islands in the Mekong are not particularly large and therefore easy to explore by bicycle. Past the countless hostels, homestays, and guesthouses, we reached the Liphi waterfalls in the western part of Don Kong. Here the Mekong rushes over hundreds of ledges, steps, and cliffs. Really impressive how much water flows there. At the end of the waterfalls, there was a small bar with bungalows, hammocks, and even a small beach in the Mekong, which invites you to linger. And so we lingered... until we could see the waterfalls again at sunset. Since the bicycles had no lights and the roads on the islands are not illuminated, we had to start our way home. At a delicious dinner in the same, highly recommended, restaurant "Mama Thanon", we let the day come to a cozy end.

Getting up early again was the motto the next day, because we wanted to explore the 4000 Islands and see the rare Irrawaddy river dolphins on an organized kayaking tour. The meeting point was a restaurant where breakfast was served, but there was no one waiting there... During the not very inspiring breakfast, another 5 people arrived and we were happy to be such a small group. This dream was shattered by the tour guide who eventually arrived and brought us together with the other 25 tourists... well, nevertheless, put on the life jackets, store everything in the dry bag, and take a seat in the wobbly plastic containers called kayaks. The wind in the early morning was cold and on the (at this point) 14 km wide Mekong without much current, we had to work hard to keep up with the guide. On the first stage, a boat capsized, on the next section through the occasional rapids and the many stones that now appear during the dry season, several more. After some small discussions, we both maneuvered quite well through stones and bushes.

There was a break planned for lunchtime, during which two guides grilled kebab skewers on an improvised campfire on the bank in the middle of the jungle, while the group could admire the supposedly largest waterfall in Southeast Asia. What nobody told us was that we still had to walk 30 minutes through thickets, water buffaloes, and over wobbly tree trunks over the rapids to get there - in flip-flops. Arriving at the Kon Phapheng waterfall, one of Tina's flip-flops broke while climbing over the sharp rocks, and 10 minutes later the other one... >here, too, the note to always have hair ties with you is helpful again, to temporarily tie the broken shoes to your feet< By the way, the waterfalls were not half as beautiful as the ones from the day before. Back at the campfire, the food was ready and rice, bread, and watermelon were served as dessert.

Freshly strengthened, we continued, this time through even more challenging passages where some unintentionally fell out of their boats... unfortunately, our Georgi too. Nevertheless, everything was not that bad and in the end, we arrived at the bus-tuk-tuk with the complete group, which should take us further towards the dolphins. Then we went with two motorized boats to the spot on the Mekong where you can supposedly see the dolphins best, although we did not have high hopes with a population of about 90 animals worldwide (and only 5 of them at this spot). But actually, we spotted a fin, then several, and sometimes a head or the back of one of the dolphins. It has to be said that they are not the prettiest animals, as they have a pushed-in snout, but it was still a great and unexpected experience!

With a boat and a bus, we returned to the spot where the ferry to Don Det departs at a beautiful sunset, where we got back into our kayaks and quickly paddled back to our island in the emerging twilight. After a good shower, we had arranged to have burgers with three of our German kayaking companions, Inken, Niklas, and Ela, where we exchanged information about the countries visited and celebrated the day with two rounds of beer pong.

Our journey continues in the next post with the stressful border crossing to Cambodia and the drive to Siem Reap. New adventures are waiting :)