Crappy rooms to crash in

In all my life, I’ve experienced many a crappy hotel, rather guest house rooms, whilst on the road with a bicycle.  What actually constitutes ‘crap’ depends really on one’s comfort levels, tolerance and expectations at the end of another day on the road or trail. Looking at many many photos over the years, I’d dare say that my ‘crap tolerance level’ or CTL is pretty high. I rate it 8.5 out of 10. 1 being total luxury and 10 being, ‘I can’t wait for sunrise to check out’. Thankfully my lovely wife, Coleen has not tolerated anything beyond a 6 or 7 and thus we are still married.

Now while some rooms and establishments approach a 8 to 10 crap rating, I must add that their locations on a mountain top or along a pristine lake or river might make up for a great stay or experience. Who knows, the person you’re tolerating all this with, might just make the stay more tolerable. I’m talking easy going good friends, with similar interests and a high CTL. (Conversely no amount of luxury and pampering will make a hotel stay bliss if your room mate is ‘intolerable’  Another plus for solo travel, as you can only blame yourself for stinging and getting a crappy room)

No doubt in time someone will build a nice resort with 5 star rooms/villas to elevate comfort levels, but then the crappy room wouldn’t cost $5 a night. This brings to mind the eternal question of,  ’How much is too much?’ for a certain level of comfort. Another subjective subject to ponder over till the cows come home.

These rooms are definitely one nighters, but I’ve been known to deviate where necessary.

I’ve also seen $300 rooms close to 2 metres away from the resort fence where when you add another 2 metres, you get a dusty major highway linking 2 towns in Laos. I’m sure the spa, the infinity pool and restaurants and even the rooms are nice but……so here goes some photos, toilets not spared, and comments from staying in rooms from $3 to $800 plus 21% taxes. The CTL 1 rooms / villas / resorts deserve their own post, somewhere down this blog.

$6 / Phay Boun GH, Nong Kiaw, North Laos

The minimalist Phay Boun really looks better than it is. My flash reveals a shiny linoleum floor, tight bed sheets and even a new waste basket, but my friend Paul and I didn’t stay here, we arrived late and got the back room with a cement floor, which makes this triple look like a suite. The bathroom was dark and infested with fruit flies, well better than real flies anyway. What the camera flash doesn’t show were the three noisy China men who just vacated this room, and the girl whom they ‘had company’ with that night. She then proceeded to ‘reset’ this room to it’s CTL level of hmmm, 7.  Same sheets, same blankets, same pillowcases, all fluffed up. I did not check the bathroom. I must say she did quite a good job, with a just a broom and bare hands.

$8 / Xieng Kok Resort, Xieng Kok Village, Laos

The balcony at XK resort was so nice I laid out my Thermarest and slept outside in 15 deg C temps. Paul was inside and snoring louder than the resort’s power generators.  The mighty Mekong River in the background leads to Yunnan in China, while the opposite bank is Burmese territory. Location, location, location, though the village at the end of a 70 km dirt road, is a few wooden shacks and not much else. We took a 3 hour speedboat ride back to Thailand from here.

$6 / Duangvichit GH, Kuikacham, Laos

This is even better CTL 9, as we had to deprive one of the staff here from ‘her’ bed ! Needless to say she was not happy and we had to do our own housekeeping ! Stuff like making the beds, checking for bugs and throwing someone else’s trash into the hall way. It was a long night in the mountains of Laos, but good company and my I Pod made up for it. Thanks Alvin

One of 2 bathrooms shared by you or 20 others, depending on occupancy and of course your luck

If you thought this was bad, this bathroom was pitch black and un tiled when they first opened. Not much water also in the holding tank till the village truck came and rubber hoses were forced the slots in the wall and fresh brown water flowed. At 1200 m, it was icy cold too, but the owners will get a kettle or two of boiling water and mix it with the cold, in a pail if you’re fussy.

RM$50 / US$15 @ the Princess Hotel, Pontian, West Malaysia

A typical 4 decade old hotel in a small Malaysian town in all it’s 4 decade splendour. Non LCD TV, ancient but cold AC and hot water. I wait patiently as everything is wiped down with wet wipes. It’s like a SWAT team checking every room in the perp’s house before shouting “Clear! Clear!”

Tadapani hovel, Nepal

Keen eyes will note that this room was once a balcony, so I had a nice view of the snow capped mountains beyond the green curtain and of some other hiker through the window panes. She was blonde.

Italian Nepalese tonight !

Views making up for the dismal room

An average Nepalese village on the Annapurna trail. It would not exist without tourism, so maybe 6 lodges with say 2 dozen rooms each, meaning 144 rooms, sleeping 288 or more tourists plus Nepalese guides and porters who might sleep in the warmer kitchens, will populate a hill slope such as this one. Toilets and bathrooms? 2 of each max, per lodge. I went au natural in the forest, just before sunrise.

Tourist tent at Bhoti Koshi, Nepal

I cannot remember the price for this one but, the tent was cosy at 16 deg C. Close to the Nepal Tibet border. The Bhoti Khoshi area is a prime spot for river rafting and hosts Nepal’s highest bungee jumping site. Looking at the trails and dirt roads in the hills, a moutain bike here will be loads and days of fun.

Tourist food at Bhoti Koshi, Nepal, always get hungry looking at this

Wonokitri Wisma, East Java, Indonesia. Sure the colors look pleasing. Wait till it fills up at night with a rowdy crowd and nicotine.

We made a quick mistake of checking into this colourful rat hole and paying Indonesia Rp 100,000 / $10 upfront. A dirty room and dirtier bathroom. Of course the caretaker said that this was the better place to stay here, of course he was lying or loyal to his boss, of course he did not give us a receipt, and no of course no refunds whatsoever, even half a refund, (after we found this place below while walking around the village) And he got angry after we left. It took no effort to repack everything and move here. Out came another Rp 100,000, which the owner said that we could pay when checking out. He had to attend to a patient as he was the village doctor.

This is more like it, new sheets, new bed and what a view. Can you see Paul’s joy ?

Early morning views from the balcony @ Wonokitri. East Java, Indonesia

One of 3 rooms at Subandi's Homestay, Kerisik Tuo, Jambi Provinve, West Sumatra, Indonesia

In 1998 this room would be a 10+++ on the CTL, but as I age, I re rate it a 7 or 8 not because of it’s old but decently kept run down state, but as Indonesian homestays go, it’s sleep here or out in the open. A saving grace here is that behind that dark door the owners had just retiled the bathroom and squatting toilet, so that was in a better state than the room. Switch off the 25 watt light bulb and it’s so dark I can’t see my hand in front of me. Thankfully I had good company for 3 nights here, as the owners were so jovial and heartwarming, wondering why I did not want to go trekking, but ride my mountain bike all day in the endless tea plantations at the base of Mt Kerinchi, Sumatra’s highest volcano. This $3 per 24 hrs room takes the cake for the best views from the front porch of a crappy room / guesthouse.

Mt Kerinchi, 3805 m West Sumatra/Jambi Province

Sometimes the crappy room is a Godsent, especially when mountain biking in the mountains, all day without water or food, ie we were totally lost. Beggars can’t be choosers, so the Thai Border Patrol’s mountain resort will have to do. They were even kind enough to offer dinner and breakfast, and there was a late night party with the village girls, and I suspect some boys who were aspiring to be girls !

My friend Paul did not bring any bedding. I brought my trusty 15 year old blue Thermarest

Breakfast with the Border Patrol. True to form I slipped a Thb 500 note to the Captain in charge of the place

Crappy or not, after 90 kms of cycling in the mountains, the Piang Luang gulag guest house close to Burmese border with Thailand, seemed like paradise, at that time. The orange bulb lights up room and loo at the same time !

Luang Prabang: Part 2

Wednesday November 12, 2008, 15 km (9 miles) – Total so far: 236 km (147 miles0

This journal will finally lift off once we leave this town. In the meantime, here’s 0.3 % of what I took.

Wat Xieng Thong's funerary carriage hall

the Nam Khan river as it flows to meet the Mekong in Luang Prabang

Joma Cafe's delights

a local eatery, packed every night

On the Nam Ou: Back to Luang Prabang

Tuesday November 11, 2008, 10 km (6 miles) – Total so far: 221 km (137 miles)

It was hard to leave Nong Kiau this morning, but the promise of a slow boat ride that had been put off for 3 years made me hop out of bed in a jiffy, only to hop on the bike for a chilly ride 10 kms to nowhere. I managed to find some solitude by the river a few kms before the town proper. That peace was shattered by mamy, many school kids on bicycles, some pillion riding as they plodded on to school. I wonder what they made of their tiny village being on the bluelist of the backpackers of the world.

2 words, learn English. That’s the Sheriff of Nong Kiau’s forte. He’s the one with the fancy hat and  can’t fault his dedication to serve the backpacking world.

Introducing the sheriff of NK

Conversing with the rest of the world in halting English, while cursing and joking with the rest of his Lao counterparts at the boat landing. He must get tired of the same old questions thrown at him, day in and day out. As Lance would say, racing the Tour de France, SSDD (same sh*t, different day)

Goes like this, “When’s the next boat?’”

Rhetorical answer, “Ten or eleven, maybe”

So in reality, it’s anytime a boat fills up. Your guess is as good as mine. I deduce it to be ten and eleven, 2 boats. The ten leaves from Nong Kiau, the eleven arrives from upriver Muang Ngoi. If heaven is smiling upon you, you get to Luang Prabang in 5 hours or so. If the boat from Muang Ngoi is full, tough.

“Maybe” is for engine failures, bad weather, drunk boatmen with bad hangovers, and Sheriff having heated exchanges with boatman on who gets paid what, etc etc.

To make matters worse, some backpackers get on the wrong boats going in the opposite direction, screwing up the Sheriff’s manifest.

Then we have to haggle with the price, or plice to the Sheriff. Officially it’s 130,000 kip each on a boat of 10 or 11, maybe. Naomi’s my witness.

Enterprising boatman says his boat is special, taking up to 15. Find 14 friends and you are good to go at only 100,000 kip each. We forgo this offer, as the boat will be overloaded and our bikes are pricey and precious. Sheriff is not happy with this blatant behind his back overloading, as boat rules are being broken, and just maybe, his cut will be less. Boatman is keeping the dosh from the extra 5 passengers. More shouting in Lao.

Sheriff gets me to write down our names on his list of 11 people. Nearby grannies chuckle at something. That’ll be the extra 30000 kip for each LHT. What? There’s a charge for motorcycles. says Sheriff. Maybe they’re just bicycles, see no bloody engines on the downtube. “OK, 20000, is OK”. No more maybes.

Flushed with almost a half million kip, Sheriff smiles, thanking me and says, “Have good trip, Bob” During the mayhem, I’ve signed off as ‘Bob Magee’

5 hours of gorgeous river scenery

Our captain manages a lot even without a left hand

We docked at Luang Prabang at 4 pm and headed for our reserved rooms at the Oudom Souk, again. A couple of wise Belgians followed us, seeing that the whole street of guesthouses where we stayed at did not exist in their ‘latest’ edition of LP Laos.

 

To Nong Khiaw: or maybe Nong Kiau

Monday November 10, 2008, 20 km (12 miles) – Total so far: 211 km (131 miles)

Nong Kiau used to be just a dusty staging post for the hour long boat ride upriver to an even more remote village Muang Ngoi or Noi. Seemingly inaccessible by other means. Slouching in a hammock all day was the thing to do there, apart from fishing, exploring some caves and trekking the countryside and bathing with the locals in the river, if bathing was a priority.

These days Nong Kiau itself is a destination and if you like limestone cliffs and the sounds of a flowing river while you sleep, search no more. 3 years ago the overnight choices here ranged from grim to grimmer. And like most far flung places in Laos it was literally lights out at 9 pm when local power generators are switched off. At last count there are about a dozen guest houses here, which quickly fill up in the high season when a boat or bus pulls in.

12 degrees C !!

The classiest place in town must be the Riverside. It’s partly owned an operated by Naomi from Japan. At $35 a night, it’s an astronomical sum in these parts, but with all things you get what you pay for. It’s a great honeymoon spot, but not today, not with two other guys and their mud splattered LHTs.

KG loved the top notch mattress so much, he slept in most of the day, surfacing only to eat. I don’t blame him, what with the cool temperatures and as promised on the NK website, Darling Brand comforters and matresses, suppliers to the top hotels in Bangkok. Naomi was surprised that I did my research and of course guaranteed a good night’s sleep. Our 85 kms yesterday did too.

Views from our balcony

Route 1 continues on to Vieng Kham, Vieng Thong and eventually to Xam Nua and the Vietnamese border on Route 6 over some wild and remote mountains, worth another trip in it’s own right.

Alvin and I had a field day with our cameras and even rode down Route 1 for 20 hilly kms before turning back. The other 400 kms or so to Vietnam will just have to wait.

Tonight all 15 rooms are full and we will see familiar faces on the slow boat ride back to Luang Prabang the next morning. And I have a date with Mr Maybe, aka the Sheriff of Nong Kiau.

On their way to school

Luang Prabang: 2nd Day of Part 1

Saturday November 8, 2008, 5 km (3 miles) – Total so far: 51 km (32 miles)

On any ordinary day, I have no intention, nor desire to take pictures of monks out on their morning alms. Mostly because back home any food offering to monks are done within temple premises, and monks back home get around in BMWs and Volvo SUVs, donations from business people who have prospered from going to the right temple. But I’m in Luang Prabang on a chilly morning, enjoying cycling in rarefied weather, puffing heaps of smoke without really smoking. Besides the hundreds of monks were here first.

Polite signs and posters around town, showing the proper way of keeping one’s distance, not standing higher above any monk and especially not using a camera’s flash are disregarded as some tourist papparazi stalk and follow the endless trains of orange robes.

 

Monks under seige

There’s no denying the popularity of Laos in general as a choice destination in Indochina. As a UNESCO World Heritage site, Luang Prabang’s draw has grown by leaps and bounds. Yes there’s the idyllic setting by the banks of 2 meandering rivers, the surrounding mountains, the 33 temples that you can loose your cultural self in, and great tourist infrastructure in beautiful hotels and restaurants.

But the place is bursting at the seams. The reality is that there’s the high and very high tourist seasons throughout the year. Rainy season? No it’s the ‘Green Season’ with a little less tourists who try to avoid the messy year end high season, thinking also that prices will be a little cheaper. Wrong.

Our guest house down a once quiet lane hears the constant buzz of hammering, grinding and sawing as more and more guest houses are being built.

While properly managed progress is generally a good thing and incomes rise, (I saw this in the glee of our 29 year old guest house owner as he washed and waxed his new $37,000 2.7 liter Toyota Fortuner SUV one night) I can take heart that cycle touring under my own steam on a LHT with like minded friends, is one of the better and simpler joys in life.

I am also much too lazy to wash any car of any size. Bicycles are fine.

 

Amazing Laos

From Thailand to Laos: Across the Friendship Bridge

Thursday November 6, 2008, 34 km (21 miles) – Total so far: 34 km (21 miles)

Old Nong Khai

After a heavy rainstorm last night that threatened to blow off all the roofs in Nong Khai, we awoke to beautiful clear blue skies and intense UV. Messing about with sunblock was a small price to pay for a great day out with the camera and our short ride into Vientiane. Last night’s rain was the first and only wet weather we had on this trip. Bring on the blue skies and sunshine, Laos. We managed 10 kms seeing the town, plus the 24 or so kms into Vientiane.

Then there’s the bridge, built with Aussie help ie. funds, and opened by then PM, Paul Keating in April 1994. The bridge, all 1200 metres of it, is narrow. Cars overtaking bicycles are OK. Trouble is, though Laos being the fourth poorest country on earth, has increasing numbers of Hummers, Land Cruisers and other large SUVs. Thais travel in huge vans and buses across the bridge. The rail line in the center of the bridge now extends into Lao territory, and is set to operate by March 09.

Official policy on cycling across the bridge is confusing at best. Mostly ‘NO’ if you ask. The Lao side has bicycle lanes at it’s immigration. The Thai side doesn’t, and many a cyclist have been frowned upon entering the Thai side of the bridge by bike. We hustle across Thai immigration and customs and make a run for it passing by some Thai customs ladies tucking into lunch. The one that wasn’t eating raised her voice. We smile and keep pedaling. I’m on official duty taking pictures for CGOAB and bike on a bus is not an option.

Sharing a romantic evening with Lonely Planet finds by a fountain

We get into town for a late lunch at Joma Bakery. Heavenly mushroom quiche and iced cappuccino freeze. Met up with Joma’s country manager, Miss Nang, a Bangkok native who made bookings on our behalf on Lao Airlines, for the next day’s flight to Luang Prabang.

Most of the town’s hotels were full, seeing that Nov 12 was the date for the week long That Luang festival at the country’s most revered temple, That Luang.

KG kept an eye on our bikes parked outside. Alvin took care of the air tickets, while I rode off to find a room for the night. Errands done in 40 minutes or so.

Lao Airlines does accept on line bookings, when their website is working, and Alvin has Church contacts with Joma’s CEO owner. We are well connected, and by the end of the trip I have 7 Joma reciepts in my wallet. www.joma.biz

We check into the Mali Namphu guesthouse whose rates have inflated 75% in 20 months. Alvin remembers it best for an episode in which his friend lost a helmet whilst the bike was locked in the hotel’s elegant Parisian inspired courtyard.

‘Aggro Paul’ or easily aggravated Paul, now a sheep breeder in Queensland, Australia kicked up such a ruckus at the lobby until a sheepish (pun intended) hotel employee brought out the said bike helmet and placed it back onto it’s rightful owner’s handlebar. Though it was just a $20 knock off Giro helmet, the lesson to be learnt here is, not to mess around with all 6 ft 2 inches of Aggro Paul.

Xieng Kok to Ban Ton Pheung: Aquaplaning to Thailand

This was as remote as we got to in Laos without the possibility of being stranded for days. The location of Xieng Kok resort cant be beat. From our balcony we got views of the Mekong as promised in the guidebooks. A remote outpost at the end of the Akha road with the jungles of Myanmar on the opposite bank of the river. Once in a while a cargo laden vessel would amble on by, most bringing their tarp covered customs sensitive cargo upriver to Myanmar or eventually to Jinghong in Yunnanese China. As this was the dry season, river traffic was slow but we had the good fortune of having a fast boat ride offered to us right after checking in.

I was wondering why this blond haired Lao was getting too chatty right outside our cabin. He must have spotted us miles away and knew where we wanted to go, back to Thailand. So he figured on 2 guys, 2 bikes going 200 kms down river to Ton Pheung where we could start cycling again to exit Laos at Huay Xai. THB 1000 each ($25) plus a little more like THB 300 per bike. Our single biggest expense in Laos was in far flung Xieng Kok. Seeing that most fast boats can take up to 6 passengers at the going rate of THB 1000 each or more, we shook on the deal to leave at 9 am the next day.

Xieng Kok along the Mekong with Burma on the other bank

Watching this guy was as interesting as building up a bicycle. What a performance. Mixing the dough into his hand made mould, squeezing the squiggly contents into the boiling tub of water and watching the whole lot boil into long strands of noodles. The woman next to him would transfer the lot to another pail presumably to cool it off and then serve the noodles in little bowls. Then another lady came by dumping some greens into the tub. They would giggle each time I took a picture and laughed even louder when they saw their images.

Very instant noodles

What do you get when you attach a 1.6 liter twin cam Toyota motor to a hundred pounds of wood? A floating rocket that skims and aquaplanes over water like a skateboard on steroids. Even with 3 people and our 2 bikes and luggage I felt we were going at 60 -80 km per hour on the straighter parts of the river. It took a few minutes before my heart rate returned to normal and I guess if our driver had to sit on a mountain bike doing 50 kmph downhill he too would scared shitless.

Viengkham gunned the engine over most of the swirling rapids and I think the front end of the boat must have lifted off at least three feet or more on a few occasions. Other times he was just skillfully looking out for deeper but calm water which was always closer to jagged river rocks. He told us that the greatest dangers were submerged logs which can take out the underside of a whole fast boat and the wakes from all the bigger ships going upstream to China.

He was a bit coy when I asked about fast boat accidents in which the record number of fatalities must have been 10 or more. There have been rumours of such head on collisions or crashes into submerged logs and rocks and subsequent drownings in the past. Wearing life jackets and smelly motorcycle helmets are compulsory, so we had our cycling helmets on. We had about 3 hours of this F1 powerboat like thrills before the river widened near Chiang Sean and the touristy Golden Triangle area where Thailand, Laos and Myanmar share their borders along the Mekong.

To supplement their incomes in the low season or repay debts, some speed boat drivers get drawn into smuggling amphetamines or yaa ba pills from factories in Myanmar down the Mekong to their counterparts in Thailand. Most are just couriers or mules in an intricate chain of supply for a product that costs a few cents at source and fetches THB 1000 in a Bangkok disco. What’s ironic is that during the extremely busy peak tourist season at year’s end some boat drivers depend on yaa ba to maintain a constant buzz to stay awake and ply their trade.

Refuelling stop along the 'Khong

We started riding out of Ton Pheung at high noon. Some customs guys here couldnt be rustled out of their siestas, not that we wanted them to. Wonder what they thought of all the prosperity of Thailand’s Chiang Sean across the river, with Chinese freighters unloading boatloads of cargo every day.

I thought I would be nursing a huge headache after sleeping at 3 last niight, but surprisingly the cycle touring buzz kicked in, as it does every day. I suppose eyes dont get too fatugued from seeing far horizons when touring, as compared to facing an LCD monitor for hours, back home.

We road along a quiet laterite road which was dead straight for about 30 kms along the Mekong. Except for a few dry bed river crossings, it eventually led out to a perfect asphalt road with wide and hilly bends for another 30 kms before reaching Huay Xai. Like most infrastructure projects in Laos, there were signs in English stating that this road was being built by a grant from some donor country like Germany.

Back in Chiang Khong, Thailand and looking across to Huay Xai in Laos. 2 countries seperated by a $1 or THB 40 sampan ride across 300 metres of muddy water I gathered all our Kips to change it back to Thai Bhat at the BAP guest house in Huay Xai. This place is run by a cheery matronly Lao lady whose desk drawer was chock full of US, Lao, Bhat and Euro banknotes. She quoted the actual bank rates for the day, unlike the creepy wannabe money changer at immigration whose day job was well, stamping passports.

There is a licensed money changer at the immigration office but it was closed. Clearing Lao immigration was a breeze and we were hit for an extra $1 each for an ‘overtime fee’ clearly stated on a placard, as it was after 4 pm. This surcharge applies if you enter or leave Laos on the weekends too.

Back in Thailand looking across to Huay Xai in Laos

*** June 2007 update. The bridge is coming! Laos and Thailand have agreed that it’s finally time. China gave a big impetus. They’re paying for most of it. A third cross border bridge across the Mekong from Huay Sai to Chiang Khong to be completed by 2011. This will make it technically feasable to drive from Singapore to Beijing or smuggle stuff between Laos and Thailand without getting wet. Party time for rich Chinese and Thai investors with insider info and plots of land near the proposed bridge. With the completion of Hwy # 3, cycling from Huay Xai to the Lao north will be less of a Indiana Jones expedition of fording rivers and jungle camp outs.

After some time in Laos, crossing back into Thailand was something of a mild shock to the senses. There was more, of everything we usually take for granted. More buildings, more traffic, more shops, (and the shops were well stocked) more streetlights, more people but less screaming kids which we had grown accustomed to. And this was only Chiang Khong, a small, two street border town on the banks of a muddy river with its source in Tibetan China and mouth in the Mekong delta 4200 kms downstream. We had the next 4 days to get back to Chiang Mai, some 320 kms south and then fly back to Singapore, before the wives do some spring cleaning and throw out some precious bike parts….

Leaving Luang Prabang: Let’s see how far the road takes us

Lak 600,000 or Lao Kip or all of US$60. is just nough for 3 whole days spending for the both of us. The largest denomination in 05 was LAK 50000 note. I would be seeing another money changer in Luang Namtha to see how much more to change for Muang Sing and Xieng Kok.

Trying to break or get change for the LAK 50,000 outside of Luang Prabang or Vientiane is going to be a minor miracle, unless you’re paying for a very nice hotel room or dont expect any change. Before leaving Laos, change any remaining LAK into Thai Baht, Chinese Yuan or if you really still have a lot of LAK, USD. The LAK is non convertible outside Laos. To add to the confusion, if you spend any of the above foreign currency in Laos, you’ll always be given change in LAK or worse, a combination of all of the above. It’s almost impossible to get change in Thai Baht if you’ve just spent in Baht.

Dealing with such mental arithmetics on a daily basis does keep the mind sharp though and I’ve even had a granny or two out calculate me. You can also aggravate any situation further by not accepting any change, say 50 cents or a dollar equivalent (if you know that’s exactly what’s due to you) by grabbing a bottle of water, can of Coke or some snacks, assuming again that you know the average price of those items!

The better restaurants and most guesthouses and hotels in town will usually hand you a hand written bill in all the 3 widely accepted currencies in Laos. For eg, $5 or LAK 50,000 or Thai Baht 200. (May 05 rates)

The good thing about having price lists and fares spelt out in Laos, is that if you’re going to be overcharged for a service, every foreigner will be overcharged equally. I feel almost better already.

Hong’s Place an old French Lao house that moonlights as a Rasta Pub/Bar out in the suburbs. We rode there to try their khao thom or minced pork and rice porridge breakfast and were not disappointed.

It's going to be al oooong day

How far can the road take us? Well, heading south on Route 13 to the Lao capital at Vientiane is roughly 400 kms of which some 300 kms are mountainous. Heading north, through less steeper terrain will lead to China, about 300 kms away. We headed north, still on Route 13 which after 100 kms links up with the old Route 1 at Pak Mong, a small crossroads village.

After the last three days of sweltering heat, guess what, it rained for two hours on the dawn of our departure. No complaints here, so thank heaven our ride was cool and cloudy till about 11 am or after 70 kms on Rte 13. At this point the road which was rolling alongside a very scenic Nam Ou river veered westwards and started to climb gently for the next 20 kms, flattening out 10 kms before Pak Mong.

On the road in Laos, you’ll be greeted by children of all ages, from the hillsides and down by the rivers and streams. My quick guess is this boy has found that he’s getting a larger catch and more protein by using a mask. My apologies Paul for having to stop…again.

We came across some ‘eco park’ along Rte 13 for those not keen on Kenya. Lots of fake life sized animals. My 5 year old nephew still thinks I went to Africa.

The oven like conditions was a good excuse for lunch. Unfortunately, the menu did not match the size and splendour of this riverside restaurant. The kitchen was closed and all they could muster up was some instant noodles from their dusty shelves. Even tossing some eggs into the pot seemed too major an accomplishment. To quote Paul, “I’m feeling slimmer by the minute” and that was good.

We were ready to pack it in after reaching Pak Mong. Somehow sleeping at a truck stop (unless one is a trucker) didnt seem that appealing, so we decided to push on to Nong Khiaw where the scenery was better and sleeping choices were a bit better than grim. Thankfully the 33 kms were slightly downhill, there was a slight tailwind and we made this ‘I’ll go for it, if you go for it’ deal that always works and 90 minutes later Nong Khiaw was in sight.

This quiet back road is actually Rte 1 and has many thatched roofed homes and villages similar to those in the far flung provinces closer to China. Given it’s proximity to Luang Prabang, they wont stay the same for long.

On the 1975 China built bridge at Nong Khiaw

Paul headed straight to the Phayboun GH while I found some last ounces of energy to take a few rapid fire pictures of myself on the 1975 Chinese sponsored concrete bridge across the Nam Ou. Time check was 5.17 pm. 2007 update : A new swanky (for Laos) place, the Nong Khiaw Riverside Resort has six chalets with luxurious teak? rooms and balconies that open out over the Nam Ou. $15 a night. They should be perched high up on the jungle clad limestone hill ‘behind my helmet’

After one of the best cold water baths ever, we took a stroll around ‘town’ a very loose term, to check things out, dinner being on the top of the list. This one bridge village is surrounded by vertical limestone mountains on both river banks and has become one of the must sees in Laos. One hour up river on a slow boat brings you to Muang Ngoi, another one street village with about a dozen or more guest houses backed up against towering limestone hills.

I suppose there’s some some great trekking, caving and swimming spots up river, but the general consensus among some of the backpackers who’ve ‘done’ Muang Ngoi can be summed in one word. ‘Rats’ or maybe field mice. Lots of them, especially at night, in the rafters, rooms and backpacks .

Our last surprise of today was this guy on a hybrid with an improvised bike packing system. While I suppose everything works for him, the weird part (another loose term) was the he was setting off at sunset into 200 kms of mountain roads of Rte 1 towards Vieng Thong in the east. Seeing us and anyone that stopped to say hello, he just glared angrily and started muttering, to his bike or some imaginary friend. At one point he shouted at his map and bike, saying he did not want to ‘walk up’ any more ‘f***ing steep roads’ or shiver at night in a ‘crap room’ When a female tourist or two stopped by he waited for his grand finale, took of his long pants, mooned everyone, it was a skinny moon, and proceeded to wear a very loose pair of cycling tights. Cycle touring can be addictive, but I think fellow was on another high or a severe case of solo bike touring burnout.

Homeless guy on a bike

Luang Prabang: Ancient France on the middle Mekong

A UNESCO World heritage site since 1995, Luang Prabang’s 33 temples, some crumbling and some restored French influenced architecture seems to be the darling of the backpacking crowd. It’s location along the banks of the Mekhong river and smaller Nam Khan on the other side of a peninsula that houses the old city adds to its physical allure. Most sights can be easily seen on foot or rented bicycle. Good food is cheap and plentiful with French loaves and baguettes to be found at almost every street corner eatery. There’s even northern Indian, but not much better than those in Singapore or Malaysia.

The muddy Mekong

We also stumbled upon some very nice upmarket boutique hotels in and around town with rooms up to $200 or more. These must be for the retired from backpacking crowd. It’s easy to spend a week or more in Luang Prabang, sipping coffee at all hours, having late lunches and even longer dinners after a stroll along the night markets while trying to fit in $4 massages and trips to the Kuang Si waterfalls or the up river trip to the Pak Ou limestone caves.

With our own transport we managed to ride about 50 kms in and around the town seeing all the tourist sights before quitting after lunch each day to seek refuge in our air conditioned room. Did I say it was hot?

Ours was the simple but sufficient Rama Hotel in the suburbs or just a 10 minute walk from most of the action downtown. The low season rate was $15 a night in a nice wood paneled room with the usual cable TV, hot shower and all important air conditioning that wouldnt ‘ice up’ after running for 72 hours. Our bikes slept in the restaurant downstairs together with some of the hotel employees motorcycles.

My cycling buddy Paul and I decided to give cycling in Thailand a break and see what laid further north of the Thai border and Mekong river. That led us to Luang Prabang and north Laos. We spent 3 days in Luang Prabang, soaking in the sights and soaking in our sweat in 38 C plus daytime temperatures in the hot and humid season of May. It was slightly ‘cooler’ at night, but still about 33 C outdoors.

After a 2 hour stopover at Chiang Mai in north Thailand, we boarded a Lao Airlines flight to Luang Prabang. One whole hour on a heavily vibrating French made ATR 70 seater twin turbo prop with engines from Pratt and Whitney, Canada and after market propellers from Hamilton Sunstrand from the US. That’s what it says on the website. The fare of US$66 got us great low altitude views of Thailand’s and Laos’ mountains and rivers, tiny villages on ridge top roads disappearing into the hazy distance and a little blue box, the contents of which I think resembled…..a hamburger?

Down town Luang Prabang

Loei: Hills!

 

views from room balcony across to Laos

Most of the Thai river towns have a concrete pathway or simple boardwalk by the river banks. This one ran right by the Woody Hotel’s restaurant doors and under my bedroom. That explains the voices under my bed and the muffler of a motorcycle or two in the early morning hours.

I  came across three of such gatherings in Chiang Khan. The whole street is closed and any vehicle has to back track. Conclusion? Like the old wooden buildings, there are a lot of senior citizens here too.

Today’s ride was the hilliest so far. Heading south inland to Loei’s hill country, there are a few national parks and even some wine growing country. See www.chateaudeloei.com

The province holds two temperature records for the whole country. Minus 4 deg C up a mountain top in December and 42 deg C in the valleys during the May hot season. Cant recall which year the stats were taken but today’s ride was hot, humid and took some effort. You know the drill, big ring, middle ring and if all else fails, granny’s ring. Anything but walking. The shame of it all.

Walking is OK if you need to get to one of these. No little wood and zinc country shack can claim to be a full fledged provider of sustenance and hydration to overheated cyclists if it doesnt have this little purring blue glass and metal box. My recommendation as always is : Lactasoy, lactose and soy in the white bottles. First bottle is usually gulped down fast, standing. Second bottle, slowly savoured, sitting, bench or stool in a clean shady part of the country shack. 30 cents a pop, tried and tested many times in north Laos. Add an energy bar and lunch is done.

My internet research confirmed that King’s hotel in Loei city was being refurbished, a room at a time. This was interesting. Carpenters building furniture on a grassy courtyard. Plumbing and tile work going on in some rooms, electrical work and painting in others. As the placed resembled a building site and smelled like a paint and varnish shop, rates were halved to Thb 390.

“So solly for the banging er…drilling noise, sir….they stop work at 5 o’clock” said a very apologetic receptionist as I handed over a whole ten bucks worth of baht. In true Thai fashion all work stopped at 4.30 pm.

Wow, this time I got the very last semi finished room, beaten by two French guys on Harleys 2.5 minutes earlier on who got a fully finished room. At least my bike’s in the room, its dirty tires on virgin faux marble tiles.

A check on the TV listings came up with a cable channel showing movies by Kevin Costner. Just great, 12 hours of so so movies, averaging 3.25 hours each without commercials. That’s what arriving in town at lunch time is for. Securing a room early on a Saturday is vital too.

I rode into Loei’s outskirts in a about 3 hours. Highway signs seem to point in a direction away from the center of town. That’s fine if one is driving. Past by huge roundabouts, 3 lane roads with bill boards, bus terminals, countdown timer traffic lights, and still no sign of a downtown. I’ve been snagged by the ring road syndrome. Nice, smooth wide roads circling the town. Lulled into complacency by linear riverside towns the past few days. In the end I asked for directions and tailgated some schoolgirls on scooters, into a small side road, across a small river and right into Loei’s main market. Great success, as Borat would say.

Dinner was hit/eat and run as it usually is in Thai night markets. Did I need any more legwork? No. A whole street lined with food? Yes. Internet place? Does Shimano make bicycle parts?