May 29, Tuesday

May 29, Tuesday

Breakfast on the verandah this morning; so very nice!  The baguettes are still hot from the oven; the coffee is delicious and so is the omelet and fruit I ordered.  We were so busy eating we forgot to take pictures of us on the verandah.

 Pictures of the gardens at the Thong Bay Guest House.

 They are spectacular, though I don't think the pond is such a good idea since it breeds mosquitoes.

This is the picture of our little cottage.

We have a free morning until 11 am when Scott, Violet, Melissa and I will get a ride to the Kuang Sii Falls only 28 kms away.  It takes 1 hour to drive there so I will let you figure out what the roads were like.   The country side is beautiful, with lots of small agricultural fields. 

We arrive at the entrance to the Kuang Sii Falls Park and walk in through an area filled with plants and flowers

 
 How gorgeous is this !  Whatever it is.

 And these I know I have seen before.  I'll have to go back into the pictures from South America and Africa and see if I can identify them.

 A huge expanse of "Wandering Jew".  We have to grow this indoors in Canada.

 and these are usually potted when we buy them.

Beautiful hanging bell flowers.  I've seen these before as well.... somewhere during my travels.  Ah Ha !  Found it.  “Brugmansia is a genus of seven species of flowering plants in the family Solanaceae native to tropical South America. Their large, fragrant flowers give them their common name of Angel's Trumpets, a name sometimes used for the closely related genus Datura. Brugmansiaare woody trees or bushes, with pendulous, not erect, flowers, that have no spines on their fruit. Datura species are herbaceous bushes with erect (not pendulous) flowers, and most have spines on their fruit.”

The rest of the group left early this morning for a 2 hour trek through the forest.  We will all meet at the falls. 

 The falls are simply beautiful to behold.  Not hugely spectacular, but quite pleasing.

 The pools of water look so inviting

 But there are signs indicating we can't swim in these.

At the falls.  Look at how white my hair is getting !

The trekkers arrive looking very hot and tired; Sit (their guide), Karston, John, Lindsay and Mike. They have encountered rain and mud on the trails, most of them found leaches on their legs  (or should I say the leaches found them !) a few slipped and fell at some point during their walk. Just not my thing!

 The falls are beautiful and the pools are nice and cool. We reach the pools where we can swim.  Most of the group goes in and although I try to walk into the pools, the bottom is slippery and painful to walk on.

The falls continue on their way, down quite a few levels.  Now this person has found the perfect spot to sit and relax.  Too bad we are on our way out.  We only stay there about half an hour and then walk a short distance to see the bears, which have all been rescued and relocated here.


They are a lot of fun to watch.  Their poses are so cute, you could swear they were human, just hanging out in the hammac;

 enjoying a dip in the pool;

 "I'm ready for my close-up Mr. DeMill"

  What's that I can sniff in the air.  Is that lunch?  "Let's find the pick-a-nick basket Boo-boo"

Not as nice as the Panda sanctuary, but quite well maintained and lots for the bears to do if they want to keep busy.   “All the bears at Tat Kuang Si Rescue Centre have been donated by owners or rescued from the illegal wildlife trade by the Lao Authorities.  New arrivals spend their first weeks in quarantine in order to safeguard against possible disease transmission to other bears.  Rescued bears require expert care around the clock while their growth rates and health status are closely monitored.  Once they are a suitable age and weight and a bit more independent they will move to the nursery play area where they can interact with other cubs.  The bears are well cared for by their dedicated team of keepers. Like people, bears have different personalities, likes and dislikes and the keepers quickly learn to understand each bear and their individual needs.  A local or foreign veterinarian is used if a bear requires medical treatment.”

It starts raining and we leave the bears to make our way back to the parking lot and the restaurants located there.  By the time we reach the restaurant where we will be eating, it is pouring.

 The monsoons are definitely here.

 
 But that doesn't stop us from having a nice lunch.  Great people in our group.
Me, Violet, Karsten, Lindsey, Melissa, John & Mike.

And let's not forget our fearless leader Scott, who has taken over in the kitchen to make one of his signature dishes.  They are always too spicy for me.

We get back to the Guest House and have time to wash and change before heading into town to wander through the night market again and go for dinner.   The streets aren’t very well lit and neither is the restaurant, so I’m walking very cautiously; my balance is definitely not good in the dark.   The meals were all very nice.   Violet and I opted for a tuk-tuk back to the Guest House while the others walked around a bit more and stopped off for some more drinks.  Sorry, no pics, it was just too dark !