I have no idea why I keep going on these long bus rides without preparing first. When I'm thinking right I stock up on drinks and food for the long drive, but waking up at 7am seems to always have me forgetting. Bus left for Nong Khai at 8:30am and I was pretty sure I wasn't going to be able to eat until 4:30pm which would have sucked. Luckily the driver got a little restless and we stopped in a small town for a hour and I was able to eat at a noodle shop on the street. After another 3 hours the bus finally pulled into Nong Khai and before the bus even stops it is literally assaulted by tuk tuk drivers trying to be the first thing anyone sees when they step off the bus. Overkill really, and I brushed a few off and sat down for a second before getting one anyway but on more relaxed terms. He seemed pretty intent on taking me to a brothel which I found very amusing, but soon enough I arrived at Ruan Thia Guesthouse where I'd be spending the night. I'm going to be taking an overnight train tomorrow to kanchanaburi so I needed to extend my 11am checkout time which they did by charging me half price for the next day which allows me a 6pm checkout which seemed very nice. After settling in I was out to Mut Mee's where I had heard they do sunset boat trips along the Mekong river to watch the sun go down over the bridge to laos. Here I'll let the pictures tell the next 5 minutes of the story:

       Breathtaking orange glow lit up everything from the water to the bridge. While there was to much cloud cover to see the sun, the clouds really made the colors come out which was lovely. After taking pictures and video, I sat back down to my table on the bottom deck of the boat and enjoyed my stir fry and a beer. I was approached by a woman asking some curiosity questions like where I was from etc, and they came over and joined my table. There was a man who happened to be from Boston with them and we started chatting for the remainder of the trip. Turns out they were all teaching English not to far away at a school for small children and gave me the info in case I ever wanted to extend a vacation and pick up some money. No degree required here and also looks past whether you have a work visa or not. Definitely a place to keep the info on for the future. Turned around for one last look before preparing to debark my lovely little boat.

      After docking back on the shore, I said my goodbyes and was invited to join for a few beers later which I gave a maybe too. I was considering it and actually maybe will for a change. But for now it's back to the guesthouse for the night. Have to do my exploring tomorrow since I arrived so late. Very happy I made it in time to get the boat ride in tonight......