Laos, May 25th to June 13th, 2023
we are still on the 4000 Islands (Don Det)
and my birthday
It's early June, and we're still on Don Det. Karli and I wake up every morning and plan to leave the island the next day, only to postpone the plan for another day. I'm happy. I can't tell you how happy. It just feels right to be here.
Speaking of happiness or being happy. I want to give you a tip, in case you ever come to Don Det. If you find something like "Happy Shakes" or "Happy Pizza" or anything else "happy" on a restaurant's menu, you're not just ordering something specially prepared. No, these dishes contain mushrooms with a special effect... :D
I'd like to tell you a bit more about the island. Don Det is somewhat touristy, but not comparable to Thailand or such. Everything here is very simple, with a local-level standard and less European influence. Plus, it's currently the low season due to the rainy season starting. By the way, there are no ATMs here on Don Det. So, Karli and I withdrew a lot of money beforehand for our days here. A total of 10,000,000 Dong. Yes, 10 million Dong. A lot of money. When you hold it in your hand, you feel really rich. But converted, it's just about 500 Euros. Not much for us. Especially considering that Karli and I can live on the island for two weeks with 500 Euros for both of us, including bungalows and food. However, for the locals, it's a lot of money. I talked to our host, and he told me that an unskilled worker (which is the majority of the population due to the lack of a proper education system) earns only around 1.7 to 2 million Dong per month. That's less than 100 Euros.
Nevertheless, the people of Don Det are incredibly amazing. And they are soooo honest here. One day, I forgot my wallet in a restaurant, and Mai followed me on her scooter and returned it to me. Then Jay, a café owner, with whom we had so many great conversations... A few more impressions about the locals, as told by the foreigners living here. Like Assi, a Finn, who has been living alone on the island since January. Her neighbor comes by every day to check on her, being a single woman.
This brings me to another interesting thing I've observed here that makes Don Det unique for me. There are some Europeans here in Don Det who have built a life as bar or restaurant owners. That alone is not particularly unusual; we've encountered such cases in Thailand and Laos frequently. However, until now, always in the context of a romantic relationship – a foreigner (usually male) together with a local (often younger and female). I believe it's challenging for foreigners to integrate among the locals here, due to language and cultural differences. Also, I feel that as a white person, you often get different prices than locals, which makes it difficult to establish your own business. Here on Don Det, for the first time, I've seen foreigners running businesses alone, without a romantic relationship. There's Marco from Hamburg with his sandwich bar, Phil from England with his bar, and Graham from England with his bar. I find that quite intriguing. And they are all very relaxed.
Four bar owners meet behind the counter. One evening, we were at Marco's. When he closed his place in the evening, we went with him to Graham's bar. At some point, Graham didn't want to serve us anymore and closed up. So, we went with him to Phil's bar and had a few beers there. Some time later, around 11 o'clock, Phil also closed his bar, as foreigners have to adhere to the nighttime quiet hours. So, we went to the Raggee Bar and visited Wath there. From then on, four bar owners stood behind the counter. And Karli just thought, "Four bar owners meet behind the counter." - Sounds like the beginning of a bad joke.
In the last post, I mentioned the many wonderful people we've met here. Isaac and Sharmi are from Mauritius, born there, not just migrants. As most locals from Mauritius, they don't have much money, so during their travels, they camp now and then to save some money. That touched me deeply, especially since many bungalows here on Don Det cost only 4 Euros per night. Vincent from France also impressed me. He's also traveling through Asia for several months but to reduce his CO2 emissions, he hitchhikes only. I've spent some really lovely evenings with these three. But eventually, they move on. It's not a big deal, as it gives Karli and me the opportunity to meet more people.
Tonight, Karli and I were at Assi's. She's been coming back to Don Det since 2019. This time, she's been on the island since January and will probably stay until August.
As I said, for a while, we kept waking up every morning, planning to leave the island the next day, only to postpone it by one more day. A few days later, we decide to stay on Don Det for another 5 days. The trigger was Assi, the Finnish girl, finding out that my birthday was coming up. Assi suggested that I celebrate my birthday here. She even offered to celebrate in her house or in a bar, wherever I wish.
My Birthday
On my birthday itself, we met at Graham's, one of the bar owners from London here on Don Det.
Graham is my favorite - worst bar owner I've ever met. It's always a game of chance whether his bar is open. It feels like it's open twice a week. All the other days, he's somewhere else in a different bar on the island. I've been asking him for two weeks to make his "Lime Rum" for me. No response. And Graham has this incredibly funny way of laughing. Assi and Graham were so kind and organized my birthday.
On June 12th, my birthday, we met at Graham's bar in the afternoon. He rented a boat for us. The day before, I had invited some people I had met in the last few days. Assi and her dog Lucy, Flora from Brazil, Nick from Australia, Graham, Karli, and me, of course. Some others I've met on the island, like Sharmi, Isaac, and Vincent, have unfortunately already moved on. Together, we board the boat and cruise up the Mekong for a while, heading to a small island where we'll spend the day. Graham has brought beer, and *drum roll* he made his Lime Rum especially for me *woohoo*. This is a real sensation because I've been asking him to sell it to me for 2 weeks now (that's the "worst bar owner I've ever met" part). But for my birthday, Graham gave me a bottle. So, we steer the boat towards a small island and unpack a huge beach mat. Lucy, the dog, is incredibly excited to be on the island and digs lots of holes. We drink beer, nibble on chips and cookies. Nick borrowed a small Bluetooth speaker from his landlady for my birthday, and we listen to music. Eventually, we move from the beach mat to the water. We continue drinking, chatting, making jokes, and having a wonderful time. Sooooo incredibly beautiful here.
At some point, the sun starts to set, we gather our things and hop into the boat. On the way back, we experience an incredible sunset. Awesome. Truly awesome. I'm so happy.
Back on Don Det, we go to a restaurant together, order delicious food, more people join us. More beer until everyone is full (stuffed), and we fall into bed.
I have fallen in love with this island.
I am very grateful that I got to celebrate my birthday here together with all these wonderful people.
📷 You can find great pictures from my birthday in the photo album
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