Good morning Vietnam (cheese, I know)

Hanoi. Meeting a new pom (Aidan) to help full the void and a fantastic city full of Bai Hoi. I guess that doesn’t really sum it up that well. But it is a good start to the picture.

Once hitting the airport a group formed in search of cheep transport (where we met Aidan), we negotiated and made our way into the city in search of accommodation. The first hostel we tried (where our fourth taxi sharer was staying) helped us find somewhere to stay as they were full. The hospitality blew me away. Free water and a few phone calls later we had a room organised for a decent price (yet some more price negotiations... welcome to Vietnam).

Quickly we made friends with Bai Hoi. This is where you sit on tiny plastic chairs on the side of the road (often quite a way out onto the road) and drink crazy cheap keg beer. It costs 5000D per glass (1NZ$=15000D to put it in perspective). Yes, the beer is almost free. It would have been a sin to not get amongst. A great way to meet people and watch the insane traffic. 

For those of you who haven’t made it to Nam yet I am sure you have heard plenty of stories about the traffic. The constant near misses of flying motos and slowly walking out into busy traffic in order to cross the road become part of life. I am still a little nervous to cross the road, but I have taken the approach of “don’t look, just walk”. It sounds insane, but as soon as you start to cross I have found it the best approach to keeping my sanity and not getting hit (yes, sounds insane again – but the cars and motos just drive around you).

I have a new favourite food. It is super unhealthy but absolutely fantastic. Roti (no, not the Indian kind.... though I will get onto the Indian soon). It is a sweet bun topped with a crunchy sugary shell and with a filling (in my case chocolate wins). They keep them in pie warmers and they taste amazing. 

Fighting over a roti

Food has been the main focus of our time in Hanoi as we have mainly been chilling out. I have had the best Indian of my life (yes, the BEST) and it is pretty damn hot too. We have also found a fave cheap spot to eat where there is an English menu but it is packed with locals at lunch time. It has the great vibe that street found has with the benefits of an indoor bathroom. 

About the only touristy thing we have done here is gone to the water puppets (google them or check out my vids). Pretty cool. We also tried to get Myanmar visas, only to find the rules have changed so we have to wait until really close to when we go to apply. And of course we have done our far share of bargaining, from successful purchases to things that turn out to be cheap and nasty. I have said farewell to my Kathmandu day pack, which was an emotional moment as we have been through a lot together and have purchased a northface one good for short treks (northface is made in Vietnam). 

It has taken me sometime to work my way around the city and start to learn how to get places (such as bai hoi) but I am getting there. 

Tonight is the night train up north. Sapa here we come.

Bai Hoi anyone?

The party town and northern Laos

What it is all about down on the river

Our lil crew on day one (a bit chilly still)

Wow. After two more days of solid rain the sky cleared and what a reward we got. A fantastic day of partying on the river. It is something I can only handle for one day that’s for sure (feeling old anyone?). Buckets with a cup of vodka, tubes, flying foxes, swings and a wild, friendly party. Minus Tom getting robbed on his way home by some children (cards and money) it was a good day all round. Spike headed back again for another full day and I spent a day chilling out. 

The next morning was a terrible bus ride to Luang Prabang. Too many corners and a flat tire later we made it alive. It is a nice (yet very touristy)small city with a fantastic market. Due to our flight out of Luang Prabang being only 4 days away we raced up north the next day to Ma..... somewhere I had spotted a while ago and really had my heart set on seeing. We did not a lot other than relax in this small town. It was nice. Well worth it.

However the trip back to Luang Prabang was a nightmare. We signed up for the boat ride back to Luang Prabang. An apparently amazing 6 or so hour trip. The boat left (rather full) at 11:30. It was relaxing and beautiful. Until we heard a loud bang and the little dude launched himself into the water to stop the boat from tipping or taking off downstream. A broken propeller at 12:50. Only an hour and a half into the journey. So all 20 of us jumped out and took refuge on the river bank, where we chilled out for just over two hours while the driver and his young helper (neither of who spoke any English) went to a village to get it fixed (well we assume that’s what they did anyway). We enthusiastically set off again and were just getting back into the amazing views when the propeller came off again. Yet another one was retrieved from inside the boat and attached. Seems this is a common problem. Only about 15 minutes later it turns out the boat trip was over. The water was too low (the boat to full) and we had a two hour tuk tuk back to Luang Prabang (Needless to say I was pretty angry... hoping to take the boat to avoid the terrible (and travel sickening) journey by bus). We encountered many boulders over the road once again (a potential result of quarry work? We are not totally sure, but heard a lot of explosions while waiting on the river bank for the boat to get fixed). All in all it was not what I had in mind for avoiding the car sickness by relaxing down the Nam Ou river. We did however see a guy we met in the south, as Don Det heading the other way in a boat north. Small world.

The final breakdown

On the upside to the day not turning out anything like planned we made it back in time to enjoy a beer Lao or two with Tom (who had taken the bus back due to limited money).

I am sitting in Luang Prabang airport as I write this, waiting for the flight to Vietnam. We had a mear with our Visa (we understood we could get it on arrival by flying in – incorrect). So it cost us a fair bit to get a fast process. But hey, we made it and will be getting n the plane, so that is the main thing.

It is SO cold

Vang Vieng - awesome mountains

Another long (and this time freezing) bus trip and Tom, Spike and I arrived in Vientiane. The plan was to get organised for a massive moto trip up northern Laos for about 9 days. However on our first evening the rain set it. That was a few days ago now. And it is still raining. So we made a decision to jump on a bus up to Vang Vieng and work our way to Laung Prabang on buses and try go from there (if this rain ever leaves).  The weather however has just got progressively worse. It is SOOO cold in Vang Vieng. Which is rather strange considering this is close to what is meant to be the hottest time of the year. Damn global warming. The locals said the two days we have been here is about as cold as it gets. I am in thermals and a hat and still cold. Needless to say it is far too cold for tubing (which is what makes VV famous). 

All there is to do in the rain in enjoy the many bars..

So who knows what is next. Guess we will head up and see if the weather comes right so see a bit more of the countryside. It is beautiful here, just too touristy for me (and I don’t normally mind tourist spots) and the weather is really getting me down.

There is something people always say when you are travelling which somewhat grinds my gears.  “You are SOOOO lucky”, they say, in response to something I have done on the road, or the mere fact that I am travelling.  I am not sure luck has a lot to do with my current state. I saved for as long as I can remember, I left my job, I took a risk and I planned. It is something I worked for. Something I MADE happen. Not something that just happened to me out of sheer luck.

Moan over for the day.

An adventure on a moto

The bus ride from the islands down to Tha Kheak was interesting. It took a lot longer than we were told (as it to be expected) and we got in about 10:30pm. There was a crazy amount of people lining the aisles sitting on stools, loud karaoke the whole way, and the bus stopped every two seconds (making me feel pretty car sick to be honest).

Spike got my awesome cold (which I am still battling with) so we put off bike riding for a day and chilled out in Tha Kheak with Tom (who we first met crossing the border to Laos and ran into again on the boat to the mainland from Don Det).

The book

In Tha Kheak there is a hostel where people stay who do the loop (a four day unguided moto trip into the country) and they have a large number of books filled with advice, thoughts and stories from travellers who have completed the loop (or a version of it). It was a great read before we left and an even better read now we have returned and can look back on our own experience and compare it with others (anti clockwise was SO the way to go).

After a heap of nothing we hit the road running. Spike and I on one bike and Tom on another – learning to ride. The start of something amazing and one of the highlights of my trip to date (one of those experiences you never forget).

Some quick highlights and points of interest from the trip

Everything we took for four days

DAY ONE (Tha Kheak to Tha Lang):

Odometer started at 5440kms, day ended with a reading of 5546km = 106kms

Sticks  got stuck in moto wheels

Explored 2 caves

I was attacked by a tree (first injury of the trip is a prickle)

First interesting ‘vegetarian’ experience where we tried to explain I didn’t eat meat at lunch time in a tiny town.

Same town, ‘pat’ conversation (cow pat) when we were trying to learn some Lao.

I left my camera left behind on the side of the road when we had a toilet stop and had to turn around and get it (luckily I noticed a few metres down the road).

Two gas stops 20,000 Kip and 30,000 Kip (the bikes were empty to start with).

I broke my sunglasses a the caves and lost the screw.

Only 2 ‘fun bumps’ were we hit a bump hard enough for me to get decent air off the seat.

Day one - cave one

A huge snail shell

DAY TWO (Tha lang – Lak Sao):

Lowlight – the dumb hot springs that were really just baths

29 ‘fun bumps’ (this was the toughest and a really fun riding day).

1 crash – were Tom sent himself flying into a ditch

1 concussion as a result of the crash and a lot of locals gathering around while he came to and human again. This was pretty scary, we thought he had died. Thank god for helmets.

As a result, 1 trip on the back of a truck with a damaged Tom and a still working though slightly bet up moto (only a few cracks, two broken mirrors and a bit of a bend).

Spike managed to purchase an inhaler in Lak Sao (as his was faulty) after some hunting and miming out what he was looking for. It cost the equivalent of $NZ10 (for those of you who don’t know, they are 3 bucks on prescription at home, so this wasn’t too bad considering we were basically in the middle of nowhere).

Only spent 15000 Kip on gas today (didn’t go very far – made it to Lak Sao by lunch and went looking at hot springs and then Tom crashed).

We got a flower pin from a group of children (who had a tape up blocking the road so you couldn’t get through until you brought one). I forgot to ask at a hostel what they were for, so still don’t know why.

5635km at the end of the day on the odometer = 89kms

Spike on a tractor

A pig crossing the road

A sign I love (they showed up a lot)

DAY THREE (Lak Sao – Koun Kham (and down to Konglor))

No ‘fun bumps’ (off the seat)

1 dead chicken (we hit it and the locals had a right laugh. We felt terrible of course. I guess they had chicken for dinner?)

Trip down a 7km long cave on a boat. Totally awesome. Huge cave, cool boat, wet feet (from pushing where it was too shallow).

We got some more of those flower pins

Spent 20000 Kip on gas

Came across lots of animals on the road –water buffalo, cows, goats, pigs, chickens...

5789km to the end of the day = 154 km (80 of which was the trip down from the little town to the cave and back).

Getting Tom's bike fixed

Buffalow

The outside of the cave

DAY FOUR (Koun Kham – Tha Kheak)

1 ‘fun bump’

5963km to end the day = 174kms (and we were back in Tha Kheak by lunch time)

The last bit was a tad boring - 100km (of 142km today)

We stopped from a drink (as we do) and there was a table of locals, probably around our age or a bit older chilling out. They took photos of me on their camera phone, thinking I wouldn’t hear the sound of it going off.

Spent a total of 22000 Kip on gas

Sunrise on the last morning

Us!

TOTAL KM 521

KIP ON GAS (to come....)

Other highlights/lowlights:

The children yelling out and waving a lot along the way

Such a sore butt from riding

Discovered my fave green tea – honey lemon (Japanese oishi green tea) – it is a chilled bottled one.

Overall – FANTASTIC, TRIP OF A LIFETIME

Another relaxing Mekong island

Already Laos has meant chilling out a lot more with other travellers. There seems to be a slightly different vibe already. I do miss the Cambodian people though. It is exciting to be in a new country and seeing how things pan out. There is less English here, and it is great fun seeing people communicate with each other. 

A sunset over the Mekong at Don Det

The trip up from Kratie included a three hour mini van ride. Where we were packed to the brim (and damn uncomfortable). I got a heck of a fright when a melon fell on my head and when I heard a fish jumping around in a polystyrene box behind my head. 

Me at the waterfalls

Our his and hers bikes

Don Det. One of the four thousand islands in southern Laos. Chilled to the max. Not a lot to do apart from enjoy sunsets, swim, eat, drink and flow in a tube. We hung out with a lot of neat travellers over our time here. Ate pumpkin burgers and generally relaxed. We also took a bike ride to some waterfalls on an adjacent island (rode across a bridge to get there) and that was pretty fun, cruising around the islands on a bike. Also meant we got to check out this other great place for lunch (yes, our time here really did involve very little activity other than eating). In our defence, it was crazy crazy hot on Don Det anyway. It meant we had a whole day of Non-Asian food though, which was a nice change (we had Indian for dinner).

I am fighting a cold at the moment. Ironic huh, considering it is anything but cold here. Pretty sure I caught it off the cute children on Koh Throng. But Mama makes some good food here (even though she speaks very few words of English) so hopefully that should help.

Our pimped out bus from Pakse to Tha Kheak

After we left Don Det we had a decent (not crazy long) day of travelling ahead. Saw a funny bike in Pakse, it was like a moto and a motorbike joined together but with two wheels at the back. It looked kind of crazy. The bus ride was a journey and a half. The first part (few hours) was fine. And then we changed buses. So much for the express service. What really happened was a local style bus, that stopped every few seconds when someone wanted to get on and off. You can imagine it was no longer the easy 6 hour leg we expected. The bus was pretty funny though. You have to love the pimped out buses they have here... and you have to love the karaoke (blasting ridiculously loud).... either that or it all makes you want to pull your hair out and throw things.

 

A teacher after all

As soon as we hit Kratie we headed for River dolphins. We were guaranteed sightings of the highly endangered dolphins and that was no understatement. 

Taking the moto across the river

What a wicked experience the next day was. We rented a moto (yes,again) and headed over to Koh Trong island (I think). We didn’t see another white person until about midday (and we left about 8am) and that was running a hotel. But spent the morning feeling like celebrities, with everyone greeting us with smiles and hellos. After a couple of hours of cruising around the beautiful island we were yelled at in English as we drove past a group of locals “want to taste?”. Pulling our moto to a hasty holt Spike U-turned us back around to the group. Sitting on the riverfront we spent the next couple of hours drinking rice wine (and spike trying sausages) with a guy who takes tours on the island (one of very very few (if not the only one) fluent English speakers there) and his friends, the lady running the show and various children coming and going (not drinking of course). 

A quick shot I got of the school as we left

As if that wasn’t enough fun he then arranged for us to visit the English school the younger children attend in the afternoon. We attracted quite a crowd of them on their way home from school (younger children go in the morning and high school in the afternoon). So at 1pm we headed to where some of the younger children learn English for an hour or two in the afternoons. We didn’t know what to expect as we pulled in behind our new found friend to the ‘school’. Which was, quite literally, a whiteboard and some old benches under a building. About 25 children crowded onto the benches and a few others hung around at the back.

It was a fully involving, on the spot type situation. Where the teacher had us teach, the teachers asked for us to teach them, I sung  for the class and they sung for me, we practised sounds, sentences, the head of the community came to meet us and thank us and the children and teachers asked many many questions. They all struggled with pronunciation, as they have no one to learn the sounds off and the books the teachers taught from had an incredibly high amount of mistakes. But the children we awesome. They didn’t have much, they wore dirty worn clothes, they had only just got pens and books. But they were sager to learn, interested, alert and passionate. So easy to fall in love with.

It was an amazing experience, something you would never think would really happen.

A hay stack shot for dad