Missed the bus😒... "Mission: Laos" postponed

I arrived safely in Chiang Mai, but it was in the afternoon. I grabbed a quick bite to eat and took a stroll through the "red light" streets. Every 10 meters, someone calls out to you from a bar or a massage parlor, and every 5 meters, a lady or ladyboy grabs you on the sidewalk and pulls you into their respective establishment😄 It was a bit too much for me, so I returned to the hostel quite early to research for the onward journey to Laos... I eventually figured out that taking a bus from Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai (about 4.5 hours) and then another bus to the Thai-Lao border would be the best option. In the meantime, I have already booked a room in Laos (a big mistake in hindsight), from where I can easily reach the Mekong River and take a boat to Luang Prabang. That's the plan...😀

The only problem is that all buses from Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai for today were already fully booked (even though they run every 30 minutes until late in the evening), so now I'm stuck in Chiang Mai for another night😑 What's even worse is that I can't cancel my €11 room in Laos for today anymore😱

Okay, that sucks...

But I managed to find a room near the bus station, so tomorrow morning before 8 o'clock, I will go to the bus station and get a bus ticket directly to Laos... the direct bus (without stopping in Chiang Rai) departs at 9 o'clock, so I couldn't catch it today.

I hope everything goes smoothly tomorrow! Then I will spend one more night across the border in Laos and the next morning, take a slow boat over 2 days (2x6 hours) with an overnight stay in a small Laotian village (Pak Beng) to Luang Prabang.

That's the new plan...🤓

Until then, I will enjoy the Thai cuisine. I've heard that the Laotian, Vietnamese, and Cambodian cuisine is even better...Cheerio!✌️