Panning for gold

A woman crouches beside the fast-flowing river, panning for gold. Hers is a simple life in a rural village, but success here could change it forever.

Margaret of From Pyrenees to Pennines and Teresa of My Camera & I have both invited me to join them and other bloggers to post one favourite travel picture a day for ten days without explanation, then each day, nominate someone new to join in on the same terms. I don’t usually post a single photo on my blog; I like to tell a story. But for this challenge I’ll resist that temptation and instead play a guessing game with you all. So, does anyone know which river I am on, or in which country?

And the answer is, the Nam Ou, a river in northern Laos. We spent a day on the river, travelling north to visit some of the hill tribes, and saw quite a few local people panning for gold. Our guide told us that they do quite often find some, and on the Mekong too. 

I realise not everyone likes to be nominated for this sort of thing so I’m not nominating any more people. But if anyone else would like to join in the fun, please link back to this post as I’d love to see your photos!