Comments on: To Luang Prabang by Rail and Road

By: Mike On The Cheap Route

Mike On The Cheap Route — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 22:24:41 +0000

I loved that bus ride, I remember looking up at a huge waterfall through the trees and off a cliff in the distance and thinking how that would be a huge tourist attraction almost anywhere else. There were some locals eating chicken feet next to us, and they kept throwing up really quietly into little baggies. Good times

By: Anca Popa

Anca Popa — Mon, 10 May 2010 14:58:29 +0000

Just thought I should let you know that this month Grantourismo is running a new competition with the theme ‘Food and Travel’, so if you have a memorable food experience from your travels please feel free to share it with us. We’d love to hear from you again!

http://grantourismotravels.com/2010/05/05/grantourismo-travel-blogging-competition-may/

By: Katja

Katja — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 12:33:51 +0000

I love the images of the bombshell and the anti-aircraft gun being converted to different uses. People’s ingenuity amazes me at times.

By: jessiev

jessiev — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 17:39:58 +0000

what a lovely, lovely piece. you’ve certainly made me feel as if i were there. good luck!

By: Monisha Rajesh

Monisha Rajesh — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 13:55:06 +0000

I agree with the above comment, I really love reading other people’s notes and observations on their travels – more than anything it says more about who they are as a person than the place they’re visiting – but the fine detail of this really stuck out – especially the bits about the soles of the child’s feet. A nice touch.

By: Daniel

Daniel — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 18:51:57 +0000

Thanks for the feedback and encouragement!

By: Daniel

Daniel — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 18:30:55 +0000

No worries, Terry. I realize that a piece such as this is subjective, and often communicates more about the writer than it does the geography in which they are travelling. That being said, I’m sorry that you feel it comes off as self-conscious and pretentious. That’s a charge that might be valid if the piece were written for The Guardian, say. I guess that’s why context is important. But it hardly qualifies as pontificating, I’m merely sharing how I felt at a particular juncture of time and geography. That Greene’s description of desolation resonated with me at that time is perhaps telling of how I was feeling when travelling through that particular area.

I discovered Graham Greene when travelling through South East Asia after picking up a tattered copy of The Quiet American. By the time I had made it to Malaysia, I had read his entire collection, even his non-fiction pieces. So I’m familiar with his work. To be fair, the quote cited above was from his book The Lawless Roads. I don’t have a copy with me but I’m pretty sure he was describing a trip from Mexico City to San Luis Potosi. It was there he looked at the desert scrub around him with a decidely ‘modern’ English eye, counting its barrenness for nothing and railing against its inhospitality. When travelling through Laos, that passage kept rattling around in my head. It made it into my journal, in fact, and was distilled into what you read above. I realize that Greene travelled through South East Asia, as well, and was conscious of it when writing the passage above.

Greene is a fabulous writer. I’m agreed with you on that. I’m sorry that you felt the piece was disingenuous but it is, contrary to your assertion, very personal and honest. The only thing I take issue with is that implicit in your criticism is the idea that I’ve misrepresented Greene. And that’s just not true. I think that I’ve been very fair. As a sidenote, I’m reading The Power and the Glory right now. And a lot of Greene’s description of the Yucatan resonate with the ideas presented in the quote above.

But thank you for reading, regardless!

By: terry

terry — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 17:07:10 +0000

Daniel,
Sorry mate but I thought that was self conscious pretentious crap.Graham Greene went there,did it and got many T shirts. He wrote from the heart and head and basically got it all right without pontificating. My advise is keep your writing honest and don’t think about winning the Booker prize.
Terry

By: Cate

Cate — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 16:09:42 +0000

Just took a trip down memory lane!! I remember buses pulling up and “spitting” you out, a bus ride from hell. Great story and well done.

By: Lucylin

Lucylin — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 22:16:25 +0000

That was beautiful. I was on the train next to you!

By: Shannon OD

Shannon OD — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 14:34:34 +0000

Absolutely beautiful – best of luck – this piece evokes so much of the strange wonderment that I found in myself my first days in Laos

By: Daniel

Daniel — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 23:02:26 +0000

Good stuff, Lara. Thanks! Great blog; great competition. We’re working to get the word out!

By: Daniel

Daniel — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 23:01:15 +0000

Thank you, Lisa. Your kind words mean a lot! We'll be sure to link up to The World Is Calling and keep abreast of your posts, too!

By: Lisa @ The World is Calling

Lisa @ The World is Calling — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 14:50:42 +0000

Daniel,

What a lovely essay! I think my favorite part of Grantourismo’s contest is that I get to discover other traveling writers/bloggers. I’ll be waiting on more from you.

Lisa (@TheWorldCalls)

By: lara dunston

lara dunston — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 13:39:43 +0000

Amelia is right – this is a truly beautiful piece of travel writing, Daniel. You really took me there – well done.

And, yes, you’ve satisfied all the requirements and more.

Thank you so much entering the Grantourismo competition! Good luck!

By: Daniel

Daniel — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 23:47:03 +0000

Thank you, Amelia! The comment—and your support—are both very much appreciated!

By: Amelia

Amelia — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 16:12:14 +0000

Beautifully written. Makes me want to go there. Good luck on the contest!

By: Daniel

Daniel — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 13:36:10 +0000

Thanks, Keith. It’s cool that the folks over at Grantourismo are making this a monthly feature. Fun stuff! Good prizes, too!

By: Keith

Keith — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 12:51:22 +0000

Excellent entry! Go, go, go!

All the best,
Keith

By: Daniel

Daniel — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 03:05:13 +0000

Thanks, Flip! We’re pretty excited about this writing contest — we had a look at the entries from March and there were some amazing pieces!