We Met at a Bar While Backpacking in Laos
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Who: Will Hatton and Rose Ward
Where: Luang Prabang, Laos
When: 2014
Status: In a relationship
(As told by Will)
A long time ago, in a land far, far away, two backpackers going in different directions around the world crossed paths for a fleeting moment in a crowded bar. It was to be the beginning of a truly odd, utterly unexplainable, friendship which would bring them back together over a year later.
I had been traveling the world for over seven years, blogging about my experiences online and trying to avoid having a proper job. Unfortunately, my plan was interrupted and I was forced to take a job in the UK as a travel agent. Needing to escape, I used up all of my vacation at once, and headed off to Laos, one of his favorite countries. My family was keen to see what the hell it was I had been doing for the last seven years, so they came along for the ride.
Will traveling in the Philippines. (Photo: Will Hatton)
Rose was right at the beginning of her adventure. She had been working hard for several years and had saved enough to hit the road with her best friend, Harri. She planned on traveling the world for a year, beginning her adventures in South East Asia and making her way to Australia and then America for an epic road-trip along Route 66.
Related: I Went to the Philippines to Be Tattooed By a 97-Year-Old Woman
When I walked into the bar in Laos, it was filled with people— backpackers mostly, but also a small handful of locals. Empty bomb casings hung from the ceiling, weapons turned into art. My brother was nowhere to be seen, off chatting up some girl I supposed. I was seated on a jumble of cushions on the floor, a huge circular table in front of me, drinks piled high with a dozen travelers opposite me.
That’s when she approached me with some friends, laughing. Wild blonde hair stuck out in all directions. I hoped she would sit nearby. We locked eyes and she sat nearby. Not quite near enough.
“You look fun! Do you want to sit next to me?”
The words tumbled out of my mouth before I even know I was going to say them, a first for someone who normally weighs what they are saying before they say it.
The couple reunited after not seeing each other for a year. (Photo: Will Hatton)
Electric energy coursed between us, everything else faded into background sound. My entire focus was on this girl, whose name I did not yet know.
“Rose” she said, in a slightly welsh accent. I think I fell for her straight away. The night tumbled on, we chatted, she moved closer, my hand brushed hers —a veritable spark passed between us. I wanted to get to know Rose, I wanted to find out if this chance encounter was just that, or if I had been meant to meet her in a crowded bar in the middle of nowhere.
We chatted for a while, but time was against us. The night grew long and the bar began to shut. After a lingering hug, we turned and walked our separate ways.
We had been together just a few hours and I already felt like somehow, everything had changed. I needed to see her again.
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A year passed, but we chatted online at least once or twice a month. I knew I liked Rose, but we kept it light because we both suspected it was unlikely we would see each other again.
Rose returned from her travels and I returned from mine (I had quit his job and spent six months exploring South America). A lot of my life was up in the air, but what I did know was that we were both in the same country for the first time in a year. I got her number and I picked up the phone.
“So, this sounds nuts. But I think we have a real connection and I want to explore it, would you like to meet up?” I said.
“Ok, sure, why not,” she replied.
She was coming to visit me!
She crept up on me at the station and launched into a hug from behind. Our connection was instant.
Will and Rose look forward to a future filled with adventure! (Photo: Will Hatton)
That weekend was possibly the best couple of days of my entire life. Nobody is on the same wavelength as me…I’m a bit mad. But she was! We chatted late into the night, we told each other of future travel plans, I hinted that maybe we could take on the world together; she nodded at me excitedly… perhaps, we would hit the road together.
A few weeks passed and we continued to see each other, planning our adventures around the world. Our plan is to explore every nook and cranny of the world. We shall dine with head-hunting tribes and drink with Tibetan yak herders. If you have the right person beside you, nothing can stop you.
If upon the road you meet someone whom you have this kind of connection with, the kind of person whom you feel you could travel with, live with, love for a lifetime….put in the effort. Who knows where a random rendezvous in an Asian bar could lead.
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