Back to the Basics

So...I have (hopefully) been doing a phenomenal job sharing our adventures with you....what we see, where we go, etc.  But what about the day to day basics of living on the road? I think it's time for some behind the scenes posting...


Showers....
Being clean. Pretty important to me.  How it happens everywhere else is not the same as the US...Exhibit A:

Grossss....

Yes, this is the worst hostel we have stayed in yet. Please notice the mold and water damage....  So there are no actual showers when you stay in basic accomodation in SE Asia; there are hoses that spray water over the entire bathroom, including the sink, toilet, and door.  And that is if you are lucky.  There are also the bucket showers, as we had the option of using during our homestay in a hilltribe village.  I am a pretty simple girl but I'm not going to lie...the first time I get to use a shower with an actual wall or tub again will be glorious...as will using one where the hot water just comes out (here, you can get hot water some places- but only after turning on a few switches, etc).

Our option at the homestay....I think I'll just wait....

 Don't get too much of the wrong idea, though- the homestay was only one night as was the water-damaged hostel...we are currently in a place where there is an actual shower curtain!! (no actual tub walls or anything but the curtain prevents water from going everywhere).

Toilets:
As those of you that travel probably know, Eastern plumbing does not accomodate t.p. Therefore, the garbage cans in bathrooms are.......well, use your imagination.  But this was something we both knew going in so, when in Rome.....

Surprisingly, most of the places we have stayed have had proper toilets and not just squat toilets, so that has been a pleasant surprise!

Transportation....
I am simply not going to know what to do the next time I get into a vehicle that has doors, windows, or seatbelts. The majority of Thai and Lao people ride motorbikes....and I am not talking single folks on motorcycles with helmets, I am talking entire families (mom, dad, and two small children) on one motorbike while one of them eats dinner on the way home from work. While Katy and I are not brave (stupid?) enough to rent motorbikes, we are using the only form of public transportation, the tuk tuk, or songthaew...both open air vehicles that I'm sure are wildly unsafe but definitely the only option. 

Enjoying some Beerlao in our songthaew on the way home from Kuang Si Waterfall

 

 

Tuk tuks waiting for passengers in Luang Prabang, Laos

Bugs, bumps, and bruises:
Well...I am an official backpacker now. My legs look like I have trekked through the forest and been beat up all at the same time. I don't think I've seen one fellow backpacker with nice looking legs, and mine definitely aren't looking too hot either. Between the bruises and scratches I've obtained along the way and the hundreds of bug bites....both Katy and I are looking pretty rough.  We haven't found too many creature in rooms we've stayed in yet, with the exception of this little friend that we found while trying to kill some sort of beetle during our homestay in Chiang Mai :)

Yea, he looks kinda small here but you should've run into him wearing only your headlamp while trying to shoo away another large bug....

We haven't been sleeping under mosquito nets or anything (unecessary at this point) but we are both taking our malaria pills and I am personally loading up on some serious DEET if I remember before I leave the house.

H20: 
We have been saving dollas on water because we are drinking tap water!! That's right folks, water from the sink....and it's phenomenal to freak fellow travelers out as we whip out our water bottles full of water that is clearly local.  But we were smart enough to buy a Steripen before our travels...in my opinion, the best travel invention ever.  The Steripen is a UV light that changes the DNA of bacteria found in water so that it cannot harm our sensitive Western stomachs. I would make commercials for this product if they let me.  

Steripen in action

And I think that covers a good majority of it!!! Stay tuned for a possible Chiang Mai summary and some definite Lao updates.