Wednesday 27th February
I woke up shortly before 07.00, having spent a reasonably comfortable night; it had been slightly cold but not as bad as I had anticipated. It had been another undisturbed sleep for me but I soon found out that it had been an eventful night for my fellow trekkers. It turned out that John and Regina had both been badly sick during the night – John violently so – and this commotion had resulted in yet another generally sleepless night for everyone.....except for me. I had been oblivious to the goings on around me during the night.
Of course, I was very sorry to hear this news and could empathise with their plight given that something similar had happened to me in India. Hopefully, I thought, they would get over it as quickly as I had. It became clear how bad John was feeling when the group began to discuss alternative arrangements for the rest of the trek. In the end, it was decided that John would go back to Vieng Poukha, Regina & Adrian would continue on with Boolean as their guide along a less demanding route, and the other four – me, Kara, Karine and Paul – would carry on with Sombat as originally planned. It was a pity that this had to happen but, thankfully, it wasn't as if anyone had to be airlifted to Thailand or anything, so it could have been worse!
I don't think there was much of a coincidence in the fact that, of those of us who didn't fall sick, all of us had been travelling for several months, and in a variety of places around Asia. I think that our levels of immunity to germs were probably more advanced than the others who had only come away a short time before. On such a trek, you are exposed to so many different germs that it is easy to pick up a bug or two from any number of sources.
John was picked up by the local school teacher on his motorbike and they set off in the direction of Vieng Poukha. My group then said goodbye to Adrian & Regina and we headed off across the paddy fields and into the hills for a long days trekking. The going was considerably tougher that the previous days trek; access road changed to proper dirt trail, and the inclines and descents were significantly steeper. We were happy that the others had made the correct decision not to venture onwards, as they would likely have only suffered more.
I wasn't feeling 100% percent myself and I had little appetite as we stopped for lunch in a beautiful spot where two rivers met amongst the backdrop of the lush forest, as butterflies floated around us. I thought I had picked up a slight bug myself, having felt a bit queasy during the night, but not serious enough to feel the need to do anything about it. I also put my loss of appetite down to the fact that another meal of sticky rice and boiled vegetables was starting to become less and less appealing. I managed to eat a few mouthfuls before we packed up and moved on again.
We continued on at a good pace, the terrain alternating between 'ups and downs' (as our guide Sombat put it). We were grateful for the various breaks that we had during the day, although the temperature and humidity levels were quite comfortable throughout. Once such rest came at a village that sat on top of a hillside, similar to the first village that we had come across the day before, although this one had a sweeping view of the range of hills in the distance. We stopped off at a local school and saw that the few kids that were there were very well behaved and disciplined, largely ignoring the foreign visitors who were looking in the windows at them.
The rest of the day continued in the same vein: more ups and downs (geographically speaking), a lot of panting, sweating and pounding heartbeats. Late in the afternoon, we took a break on a hilltop and saw just how far we had come over the course of the day: not a short distance as a crow might fly, and certainly a good trek given the terrain we had crossed during the course of the day.
We arrived at the second Akha village in which we were to stay at 15.30, well ahead of schedule and particularly good progress given that we had a later start than planned (due to the events of earlier in the day). This village was in an even more beautiful and remote location than the one we had stayed in the previous night, set atop a hillside, overlooking the rolling, forested valleys and hills set out on the horizon.
We relaxed at the lodge and then took a small walk around the village, with Sombat introducing us to some of the locals. When we arrived, only a few women and children – some wearing the traditional head dress of the Akha people and which would not have looked out of place at a European music festival – stared at us in bemusement. These visits allow yo to see how these people live up close, and you can get some really good photos, although you have to be sensitive to the fact that these people may not wish their photos to be taken, so it's best to ask. The kids have a particular distrust of cameras, shying away when one is pointed in their direction. On the other hand, they are fascinated by the images displayed on the digital cameras and their initial caution is soon overcome when they realise that it's all a bit of fun. The kids are very cute and there is an obvious bond between them all, and it seems that they view themselves as belonging to one greater family.
After dinner – 'If I see one more bowl of lotus....', I thought to myself – we were treated to a massage from some of the Akha women, and this was particularly welcome after our exertions during the day (although the adults in the village had surely had a tougher days work than we did, and probably deserved it more than we did). This set us up well for a good sleep, and we chatted briefly before turning in at 21.00, nicely tired after an eventful day.
