some pics from the thailand - laos border
April 23, 2007
here some pics from both sides of the mekong river, the laos-thailand border
dusk (from thailand into laos)
the ferry into laos
finally in laos!
flickr set: chiang khong
flickr set: huay xai
dusk (from thailand into laos)
the ferry into laos
finally in laos!
flickr set: chiang khong
flickr set: huay xai
Create a free TravBuddy account or login to leave comments, meet travelers, and share experiences with the TravBuddy travel community.
udomxai
April 23, 2007
i am still alive, not because i mastered the art of driving half-broken laos motorbikes but because they wouldn't let me rent one. blah - the chinese influence in udomxai is everywhere, e.g. the big fat 'NO' as an answer to all my questions at the only rental bike shop
ah well, maybe it's better that way :)
so what to do in udomxai to spend the overnight stop until the bus to nong kiaow leaves the next morning? there are not many people who like udomxai for as it is the northern transport hub between laos / thailand / china and even vietnam a bit. but especially the chinese influence (guesthouses, restaurants, overfilled songtaos, etc) make the town interesting. it's basically one big dust road with small concrete buildings on each side
so just hanging around people watching and further laos food experience gathering was plenty of entertainment - especially since the few westerners who found themselves in udomxai overnight quickly all found together :)
the hotel room had cable tv which showed english movies, another nice thing i didn't expect in laos hehe. unfortunately there was no water the whole afternoon because of street work, a thing i indeed expected in laos :)
ah well, maybe it's better that way :)
so what to do in udomxai to spend the overnight stop until the bus to nong kiaow leaves the next morning? there are not many people who like udomxai for as it is the northern transport hub between laos / thailand / china and even vietnam a bit. but especially the chinese influence (guesthouses, restaurants, overfilled songtaos, etc) make the town interesting. it's basically one big dust road with small concrete buildings on each side
so just hanging around people watching and further laos food experience gathering was plenty of entertainment - especially since the few westerners who found themselves in udomxai overnight quickly all found together :)
the hotel room had cable tv which showed english movies, another nice thing i didn't expect in laos hehe. unfortunately there was no water the whole afternoon because of street work, a thing i indeed expected in laos :)
the trip to nong khiaw
April 23, 2007
we were at the bus station at 7, quickly claimed our tickets with a seat number and lifted the bags on top of the minibus. unfortunately seat numbers on minibuses don't really mean that you actually get a seat so i had to live with a plastic chair for the 3 hours journey.
i wouldn't mind the plastic chair at all as they have a nice fresh air delivery system compared to the sweaty leather seats but i was seated in a very unstable half broken chair next to the door... the journey was through the hills so i constantly had to counter the g-forces in the speeding bus
everyone was friendly and nice on the bus, very interested in who we are and what we are doing. especially the small lao kid and the guy who speaks 5 languages including french. the second person i've seen speaking french in laos, good old colonial heritage once again
bought a tasty watermelon at the snack break for 1000 kip which is about 10 swiss rappen - nice!
the bus arrived in udomxai and it did not take long to find out what i was already afraid of: the 14:00 bus to nong khiaw is a myth
so decided to stay in this unremarkable town here or the night and head to nong khiaw tomorrow morning instead of travelling there today with a stop in pak mong. which would mean arriving late and paying extra for a chartered songtao from there as nobody was sure if there still were ordinary ones going in the late afternoon.
which means i finally got some time to practice my motor bike skills
i wouldn't mind the plastic chair at all as they have a nice fresh air delivery system compared to the sweaty leather seats but i was seated in a very unstable half broken chair next to the door... the journey was through the hills so i constantly had to counter the g-forces in the speeding bus
everyone was friendly and nice on the bus, very interested in who we are and what we are doing. especially the small lao kid and the guy who speaks 5 languages including french. the second person i've seen speaking french in laos, good old colonial heritage once again
bought a tasty watermelon at the snack break for 1000 kip which is about 10 swiss rappen - nice!
the bus arrived in udomxai and it did not take long to find out what i was already afraid of: the 14:00 bus to nong khiaw is a myth
so decided to stay in this unremarkable town here or the night and head to nong khiaw tomorrow morning instead of travelling there today with a stop in pak mong. which would mean arriving late and paying extra for a chartered songtao from there as nobody was sure if there still were ordinary ones going in the late afternoon.
which means i finally got some time to practice my motor bike skills
