Where in the world are Jen and Josh?: Kayaking, and Caving, and Tubing, Oh My!

We booked a full day tour of kayaking, caving and tubing. It was a ton of fun. In addition to our two college-educated guides, our group had two French doctors and a Swiss nurse so we were in good hands.

On the truck to the caves...

It has been raining even though it is the dry season so the bamboo bridge was washed away so we had to take these tiny speed boats across the river.

Then we hiked to a small cave called the Elephant Cave.

Notice the bell is made out an old bomb from during the Vietnam war.

It's called the Elephant Cave because of the stalagmite shaped like an elephant.

There is a Buddha footprint there which our guide was very proud of. It is amazing how religious everyone is.

Then we hiked to the next cave.

We passed lots of cows just wandering around.

The second cave (the snail cave) was huge and beautiful and of course had a buddha in it.

It goes on for 6 kilometers but we only went less than a kilometer in because it would take all day to get to the end.

It's very well maintained because the cave is seen as a religious place.

I couldn't figure out how to get the background to appear for Jen... Oops... It's pitch black when you turn off your headlamp--we did for a couple of minutes.

Then we had lunch. Beef. Near all the cows. I felt bad but it was very good.

Then we went to the Water Cave. I was a little nervous about the idea of going through that tiny hole to get into the cave.

It was cold but super fun.

The water flows out of the cave so you pull yourself in a few hundred meters to the end and then float out.

The ceiling is very low in places so you have to put your head back touching the water to get under.

We loved it.

All through that tiny hole.

Then we took the boats back to the truck...

And drove to go kayaking...

Kayaking was awesome but Jen got a little nervous during the small rapids so no pictures there.

It is so strange how much they love friends.

Kayaking was awesome.

There was one more cave that Vang Vieng is most famous for called the Blue Lagoon. It is larger, further and a little bit more treacherous but our guide was fantastic and very safety-conscious so we decided to go with him there as well. He convinced us that the best way to travel there was to ride motorbikes. I am very sorry mom and dad. It was very safe but it was also the last time we will rent motorbikes because in hindsight it was an unnecessary risk. We only went 7 kilometers and never drove faster than 20 kmh on a dirt road with no cars the whole way and we wore helmets and Jen road with the guide since he was a better driver.

Our guide gave me a detailed lesson on how to ride it before heading to the cave.

The cave was the scary part because it was very slippery and very steep inside. Our guide was great and went super slow with us taking each one of us individually holding our hand down each part as he could tell we were both a bit nervous. I know, we are wimps.