Bai Nai? The Adventure Recommences!

I have itchy feet.
And no, it's not jungle rot/athlete's foot. Which is kinda a miracle.
I've been anxious and restless here in Pai, despite its beauty and utter pefection, but I was afraid to make the next big jump. After the 12 hour trip from Bangkok, I haven't made any big leaps.
And the time has come for another one.
Pai is wonderful. But I realized, as I packed to move to another guesthouse-- essentially for the hell of it, that I am prepared and ready to wander.
I've got a really small bag and only the necessities for a reason!

I was sitting, yet again, with a group of Thai rastafarians drinking iced coffee. I had just moved my stuff BACK to the rustic guesthouse outside of town and Gang had been wanting to go the hot springs for days. (But it was much too hot today to go to the hot springs-- so we wound up at the waterfall later instead, and you haven't lived until you've tried to wash someone's ass length dreadlocks in a waterfall). And I was restless and uneasy.
Finally there was a break in the constant stream of thai and the beautiful woman with the pile and gorgeous dreadlocks on her head asked me "Bai nai kha?" THE quintessential thai question."where you go today"

Ummmm, I said. I think I go Laos. (In Tingrish (Thai English), you just don't bother with alot of filler words"
Khaaaaap? Gang asked.
(Yeaaa?)
Kha. I answered.
(Yea)
And I hopped on my motorbike and sped off to buy the slowboat ticket.
I'd been deliberating and deliberating and it's just time to be getting on. But... Even as I sat at the ticket counter I deliberated, then finally handed over my money and she stamped a "no refund" stamp on my ticket mighty hard.
At 9 pm tonight I board a minibus to the border. Then we have breakfast there while we await our visas (about $30 US) then we get on the slowboat for the day, off for a night in a port town, then back on. Word on the street is don't get the runs on the slowboat. If you do, just throw yourself off the boat.
It's gonna be a grueling trip but hell, I'll probably meet some interesting people.
I'll go to Luang Prabang, the ancient city, then Vang Vieng then Vietiane the formerly french occupied city(that's not true, the whole country was france's but this city is apprarently little, humid Paris), then back into Thailand by train to bangkok then train to and THEN down south.
Sound like a plan? You bet it does. Which means it probably wont happen that way, but oh well.