The Travel with Your Eyes operators fill a balloon with hot air in preparation for a flight over Vang VIeng, Laos. Photo courtesy of Miranda Siu

Up, Up and Away

All around town, posters entice visitors to ‘Balloon over Vang Vieng’. Teamworkz, the whl.travel local connection in Vang Vieng, recommends Travel with Your Eyes, a Chinese-run company that operates balloon tours with precision.

On my trip with them, a small crew deftly inflated the balloon in a matter of minutes while my group of seven stood nearby watching in awe of its growing size. When we were bundled into the basket, the crew was crowded around its perimeter, weighing it down until take off. We felt the ferocious heat of the gas being blown into the balloon on an already warm afternoon and then suddenly, smoothly, we were airborne. There’s a certain thrill you feel from the sudden weightlessness. Even the six rugby-player-sized men in the basket with me were cooing with excitement.

As we drifted through the air, the majestic Nam Song River valley revealed itself to us, the karst limestone peaks overhanging the valley like kings sitting happily on their thrones. Due to wind speed, there were occasions when I thought we would touch the ground. But then our ingenious conductor always saved the day and we’d drift up once again. We did have a brush with a tree, though; we were momentarily stuck in the clinging branches, but with a poof of gas we were free.

The shadow of a hot-air balloon adds a whimsical touch to the Nam Song River valley landscape near Vang Vieng, Laos. Photo courtesy of Miranda Siu

For the duration of the trip, there were moments during which I’d look down and just wonder how we were suspended there in the air. Then, with a sudden rush of adrenaline, a child-like joy would wash over me and I was just happy to be there and enjoy the view.

We peacefully floated wherever the wind took us, although secretly the conductor must have known where we were going since we landed exactly where the crew was waiting. As we neared the landing site, the conductor threw a rope down to the crew and they grabbed on and held tight. The conductor had advised us to brace against the bars of the basket rim and bend our knees. On impact, we gently toppled over each other in the basket. We landed gracefully on a patch of grasslands.

One by one, we toddled off, each of us replaced by a crew member to keep the weight down until they could properly deflate the balloon. We all grinned and shook our heads incredulously at the landing as we headed to our van back into town, high on the experience.

The guides of the Vang Vieng rock climbing trip make it look so easy. Photo courtesy of Miranda Siu

Rock On

‘Rock on’ is climbing terminology for a particular climbing move, and a clever play on words. There is a plethora of jargon to learn when you start climbing, and I found myself learning while stranded halfway up a climb about eight metres from the ground. The group below shouted various instructions like ‘side pull on left’, ‘pincher on right’ and ‘try a rock on!’. My arms were pumped. My legs were shaking. Hearing these bewildering instructions induced panic. Where is that hold that they are talking about, what the heck is a ‘rock on’ and how do I do it?

Rock climbing is very much a mental sport. When I felt my fingers losing grip and my legs giving way, the blood was pumping hard. Then the adrenaline kicked in. I managed to pull up and not let go, somehow finding that sweet foothold, then a handhold. I kept on climbing with this renewed energy. I was able to keep moving up the rock, one pull after the next. I finally reached the top, elated.

The rugged scenery of the limestone karst peaks in Vang Vieng, Laos, already makes a rock climbing trip worthwhile. Photo courtesy of Miranda Siu

Earlier, standing at the base of the karst peaks along the Nam Song River in Vang Vieng – the same ones we had seen from the air – was as rewarding an experience as it is for climbers at every experience level. We had reached our climb after a short walk through the scenic countryside. Fortunately, the guides were as familiar with the trails through the brush as those up the cliff faces, for even when they were on the ground and I was 10 metres up, they could direct me to the best handholds. Many of these guides can even boulder (climb up to two metres without rope) wearing just their flip-flops! They are constantly on the lookout for safety, even while pushing people’s limits just to make sure that everyone gets the adrenaline rush and the elation that is sure to follow.

The Nam Song River is the heart of the tourism industry for this small mountain town. Set against a backdrop of karst limestone mountains, the river enables the ‘river tubing’ for which Vang Vieng is so famous. Add to this the kayaking trips and the caves the Nam Song and its tributaries have created and it becomes clear just why the river is a central point to so many people living in Vang Vieng and working in the developing tourism industry.

While the river activities have for a long time been solely used by international visitors, a growing number of domestic Lao tourists are now flocking to this riverside haven to find out what all the fuss is about and to join in with the fun and games found daily along the riverbanks.