Ready for Your Next Great Travel Adventure?
To help get you started, and to set the scene, below are descriptions from my books of some of the world’s most amazing destinations. These clips are to help you learn about the location, prep for your travels and drive up your excitement about a specific place.
near Luang Prabang
A couple of years ago while standing on the east bank of the Mekong River near the village of Pak Ou in the southeast Asian nation of Laos, I could only see the water stretching before me as a twisting liquid highway leading to vast residential and commercial destinations occupied by sixty million people. Looking down into the water, I saw nothing but murky brown muck, thick enough to swallow a body whole.
I knew if I fell into that water, no one would ever find me.
My guide waved me towards a boat. A long, flat wooden Lao riverboat, half the height of a canoe. I got in, so did my guide and two other guys. Me the Western tourist, and three Laotian guys who, I assumed, were going to share the twenty dollars my guide had asked for the trip.
As we moved out into the water, it occurred to me that they could charge double and I would pay it. I would pay triple too. Only an inch of wood separated my body from those sludgy waters in the poorest country in the region. An area still struggling to emerge from colonialism, war and communism. A country just beginning to open up to tourists.
They could take my money, throw me in to the river and be done with me. The thought did cross my mind.
But as our trip progressed, I realized they would not be throwing me in to the mighty Mekong River.
Because the three young men were entrepreneurs.
They wanted their legitimately earned payday, and a long-term viable business.
The twenty dollars I paid was for a ride to see more than 4,000 Buddhist statues of varying sizes, shapes and substances left inside limestone caves on the edge of the river. If I safely returned, my guide could hope my positive reviews of the trip would lead to more guests, more money and a thriving life for himself, and perhaps his family. The opportunity to work on his own, earn money and support a family through individual effort was much more appealing than throwing me into the river. The number of guys who want to kill me is considerably less than the number who wants to earn twenty dollars for a couple of hours work.
The young men were focused on their own advancement. They were motivated. Not to throw me into the river, but to earn money by running their tour business. The money could pay for higher education, another boat to expand the business, food for the whole family, support for the village. They had bigger dreams than throwing a tourist into the river. They had hope.
Those young entrepreneurs took me to the caves and back, safely. I gave them $30.
– Describing a trip to the Pak Ou caves in Laos in Life Dream: 7 Universal Moves to Get the Life You Really Want through Entrepreneurship by Case Lane
Place: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, land-locked in Southeast Asia’s once colonial Indochina
Visited: Once
Most Recent Visit: TBD
Original sites: Manageable
Familiarity: Medium
English usage: Rare
Surprise: New tourist amenities from coffee shops to hostels were appearing every day.
For Rising Entrepreneurs Expanding to Global Markets: The poorest country in the region still struggles with post-colonial challenges and the legacies of its neighbors’ wars. But beautiful and calm Laos has potential to watched and cultivated over the next decade.
Country Details: U.N. Country Data Stats for Laos
Reading Recommendations (click the book cover to learn more)
Want more details about visiting Laos: contactcase(at)readyentrepreneur(dot)com
Disclosure: Book links are affiliate links to the Amazon.com bookstore meaning as an Amazon Associate Case Lane or Ready Entrepreneur may earn compensation from qualifying purchases. Advertising may support the maintenance of this website and the information you are receiving.
