Hanoi

The bus journey from Vientiane was certainly an experience! This was no luxury coach, it was old and rickety and totally full. There were various boxes, crates and sacks being loaded onto the roof and into the aisles. Every bit of available space was put to use, filled with what looked to me like a load of old junk, but obviously its important enough to someone to transport it hundreds of miles to another country! I was not looking forward to spending 24 hours on it.


We pulled away from Vientiane at 7pm, straight out into the remote countryside, in the darkness with rain lashing down. It felt like the beginning of a bad horror movie. I spent the first couple of hours chatting to some of the people around me and reading my book. We pulled in at a little roadside rest stop for half an hour and then it was time to try and get some sleep. Thankfully Ally had given me a few of his valium tablets and they were an absolute life saver. I popped one of those and fell asleep on my big pillow against the window for a couple of hours until the next stop. We stayed at the next stop for 2/3 hours as there was no rush to get to the border because it doesn't open until 7am. After a little walk around and another valium I was out like a light pretty much until we reached the border.


Crossing the border was a bit of a hassle as there are quite a few forms to fill in and various processes to go through. There were no real problems though, except for when we returned to the bus we found the border guards had spilled a tin of green paint while they were searching it, covering the floor where the bags were being kept! A lot of rearrangement and a few green stripes on our feet, clothes and bags and we were ready to go again. I spent the rest of the day napping, talking and reading and it seemed to go relatively quickly and smoothly. Not everyone felt that way though, loads of people hadn't slept as well as me and thought the journey had been pretty hellish. Oh well, another lucky journey for me it seems. I think my threshold for putting up with discomfort and long boring journeys has really increased during my trip. It really doesn't bother me like it used to and I now just accept that we'll get there when we get there. I think this seems to be the Asian mentality towards journeys too so perhaps its rubbed off on me.

We arrived in Hanoi at around 7pm and I went off with a group of people I met on the bus to get a room. Three Irish lads, and an English guy and girl. After a much needed shower we headed out for an even more needed drink. We'd heard everything shuts at 12pm here, but soon discovered that its only the shutters that come down while the party continues behind them! A quiet beer turned into us returning to the guest house at 9.30 in the morning and the next day was a write off!

The following day I went for a stroll to the market and pick up a few things. I managed to get a t-shirt of the Vietnamese flag (yellow star on red background) and some fake Ray Ban's for $3. I also got an overdue haircut which seemed to take far too long, nothing like the 5 minute jobs I usually get at home. After that I took a wander round the lake and temple in the centre of town before meeting up with the others to go and watch the Champions League. This meant another late night as it didn't kick off til 2am here. I was pleased with the result as I didn't want to hear those scouse gits bragging for another year, and especially pleased as I had a fiver on Milan to win 2-1!

Today has been a lazy day. Most of the others are off on a train to go trekking to Sapa in the north tonight but I'm off to Cat Ba island to do nothing on the beach in the morning! It should be a pretty straightforward trip, just a couple of hours on the bus and then a ferry.

[UPDATE: The early night I had planned turned into a sesh til 5am in the Irish bar where one of the lads I was with has started working, but I'm now quite used to that sort of behaviour so the journey to Cat Ba was totally fine, if a little late starting at 12pm!]

Laos

The journey to Laos was not nearly as horrible as I'd imagined. In fact it was a few of the best days I've had traveling!

The bus journey from Chiang Mai to Chiang Khong was nothing special. The guy who was organising it seemed to be a bit drunk at 9.30 in the morning and I was slightly worried when he said he had a 'special room for you, double bed so you can take ladyboy'! Thankfully I did indeed seem to be one of the few with a double bed, but even more thankfully there was no sign of a ladyboy in it! The accomodation was a bit on the shoddy side, it was a row of bamboo huts with a shared shower and toilet block on the end, but it was adequate enough for one night.

After dumping my stuff I got talking to some of the other people who had been in my mini-van, and some more people who had arrived earlier. We sat together for the evening, ate dinner and had a few drinks looking over the Mekong river to Laos on the other side.

It was an early start in the morning with breakfast between 7.30 and 8.30, and then off down to the river crossing at 9.30. I was feeling sick and actually threw up my breakfast which is not what you want when you are about to spend 2 days on a boat! I took an anti-biotic I had bought in Chiang Mai and hoped for the best.

We all piled back in the mini-van for the short drive down to the border crossing, then into a tiny, precarious boat for the 150 metre river crossing. Within 2 minutes I had successfully negotiated my first overland border crossing and had my feet safely and dryly planted on Laos soil. After a quick immigration stamp and acquiring some Laos Kip (19,000 Kip = 1 pound!) and we were off to the main boat. There are some terrible stories about these boats from other travellers and within the Lonely Planet; everyone says they are cramped with only hard wooden benches to sit on for each of the 8 hour trips. I wasn't looking forward to it, especially as I vomited again going down to the boat. We had been told the number of our boat but as we were walking down to it a man tried to tell us to get in to another one. It had big car seat type seats and looked pretty luxurious but we assumed it was a scam to get us to pay loads more money, however when we reached our boat (with hard benches as described above) we were told it was full and they were using 2 that day, and we should indeed get on the luxurious looking boat. Result! After that we spent a nice relaxing day on the boat; reading, sleeping and just watching the beautiful scenery go by - with many envious looks from the people on the other boat as they occasionally came side by side.

In the late afternoon we arrived at our halfway stop-off, Pakbeng. We clambered up the hill to a nice guesthouse and had another relaxing meal along with a first taste of Beer Lao. Another early start in the morning combined with the fact they turn the electricity off at 10.30 in that region meant an early night for all.

We met up for breakfast and picked up our pre-ordered pack lunches (fried rice & spring rolls for me) and ambled down to the boat for 8am. Unfortunately our nice car-seated boat was not available this time... but we got an even better set up! The boat we were on had a big floor space at the back and loads of padded cushions and quilts to put on the floor. There were 9 of us so we quickly grabbed all the padding we could and made the space our own. It was perfect. We lounged around with much sleeping, eating and card-playing. It was like play-school!

In the evening we arrived in Luang Prabang (LP) feeling relaxed, refreshed and raring to go. It became apparent that we wouldn't all get into one guesthouse so we split up and arranged to meet back outside a restaurant (which became 'the meeting place'). Come nightfall we were sitting in The Laos Laos Garden, drinking sweet Lao Lao cocktails. Lao Lao is the local spirit and pretty potent I think. At 11.30pm it was kicking out time and it seemed the only place to go was the local bowling alley! Very random I know but the night was yet young so we headed off in a tuk tuk and some more drinks there.

The next day I clambered out of my bed at 11am and headed off to see some sights. I took in LP's most famous wat (temple) and then up a long stone staircase to LP's highest point. Halfway up I bumped in Sean and Aoifa, two of the people from our newly formed little group. We continued to the top together after a bit of a breather and took in the spectacular scenery. From that high up you can really see how remote LP is. Outside of the town, there is nothing but forests and mountains as far as the eye can see. After the climb back down we were wandering down the main street when I bumped into a familiar face - Ally from Pai. Well actually The Shetland Islands, but I know him from Pai!

Later that night we hit the town again. This time adding Ally and his girlfriend Courtenay to our ever-expanding troupe. After a few more Lao Lao cocktails it was that all too early 11pm closing time again. How did we cope when it was like this in Britain? After asking around it really did seem the only late night option was the bowling alley (or Bao Ling as it says on the sign!). This time we decided to actually bowl. We paired up for mixed doubles and my pairing kicked ass in the first game. We didn't fair quite so well in the next, which I'm certain has nothing whatsoever to do with the empty Beer Lao bottles that were piling up around my chair somehow!

The next couple of days were spent wandering the beautiful streets of LP and hunting for bargains at the night market. I'm the king of haggling in SE Asia thanks to my on the job training during my month in India. I think Ol' Blue Eyes got the wrong place because if you can do it there, you can do it anywhere! Much too soon it was time to leave. Most of the group were heading east to the Plain of Jars but I needed to move on quickly to get to Vietnam as my visa had already started. With this in mind I got a bus straight down to Vientiane, the Laos capital.
The bus journey was 9 hours during the day, but it really wasn't that bad at all. I arrived in the early evening and I was instantly disappointed with the city. There are quite a few concrete monstrosities and it's not particularly pretty as many of the guidebooks say it is. It's also really expensive for things like accomodation. Well, compared with other towns and cities in SE Asia anyway. I ate a meal, had a drink then headed off to bed.

The next morning I went for a wander around to see the sights and sort out my bus ticket for Hanoi. My first stop was the Morning Market where I went hunting for a cushion for the bus journey. The place was huge and sold everything you could possibly imagine from electronics to clothes to handicrafts. I managed to pick up nice big embroidered pillow for about $3. Next I headed off to see a big temple which is supposed to be the most impressive in Laos. To be honest I think 'quite nice' is about the upper limit of the superlatives I can use to describe it. It has a big gold spire in the centre and a square walkway around the edge where paintings by local artists are on display and for sale. I managed to pass half an hour or so before going to sit under a tree outside to escape the heat and consult the Lonely Planet on what else there was to see. I only sat for a minute before I was joined by a monk. He told me all about where he was from and what his life as a monk is like, and also what he wants to do in the future. Being a monk here isn't like being a monk in Europe, it's not usually a lifelong thing, they'll just do it for a few years and often study as well. A couple of monks I spoke to said they want to learn English well enough to become tour guides!

I passed the next day just wandering around and hanging out waiting for my bus that night. In the evening I was sitting outside my guesthouse waiting for my bus pick-up when a familiar face came bowling up the street, it was Ally again! He sat down with me as I waited... and waited... and waitied. The bus pick up was over 45 minutes late so I rang the bus company and they told me the travel agent had booked me on yesterday's bus rather than todays and that I couldn't go today as it was full. Great. It was slightly annoying as I had to fork out for another night in the hotel but I wasn't too bothered as it meant I was able to hit the town with Ally. We went for a few beers and watched a bit of the FA cup final before moving on to a club on top of a hotel, looking out over the Mekong to Thailand.

The following day was a bit of a groundhog day as I again sat around waiting for the bus, only this time with a slightly sorer head! This time the bus pick up did actually come and I was able to begin the epic 24 hour journey to Hanoi and another new country.

Chiang Mai part 2

It's my last day in Chiang Mai today. I haven't really done a great deal since I came back from Pai. I've just been hanging out with Kristian and my second-cousin Jez. It's been a nice, relaxing week which is good because I've got a lot of long and possibly arduous journeys ahead over the next few weeks.

I leave for Laos tomorrow which I think is going to be just such a journey. I'll be getting on the bus to a border town called Chiang Khong, 5 hours away. I'll stay there overnight and cross the border over the Mekong river in the morning. Once on the Laos side I'll board a slow boat which will take me to Luang Prabang in 2 days, stopping overnight in Pak Beng. I'll post more about this journey once it's completed.

As I said, this week I've mostly just been hanging out. I've met Kristian's son Bus a couple of times. He never, ever sits still and is always looking for things to poke, prod, throw, bend or break! It's quite amusing to spend time with a 4 year old, but I have to say I couldn't do it full time as Kris is about to do.

The one thing I've actually done this week which is actually worthy of a write up is visit Doi Suthep, a big temple up in the mountains. I've been meaning to go for ages but it's been raining a lot in the last few days so I only got round to it yesterday. I rented a bike for the drive up there and the 18km ride was worth the price of the rental by itself. The scenery was beautiful and the constantly curving road was like a race track. I felt like Valentino Rossi, except that I don't think his bikes usually come with a basket on the front!

Once I got up to the temple there was still a bit to go under my own steam. There are 306 steps to climb before you reach the gates! Legend has it the reason the temple is in that place is that in the 14th century a king was transporting a holy Buddah relic on the back of a sacred white Elephant. The Elephant climbed the mountain and then died of exhaustion. The king thought this meant that the relic wanted to remain in this spot so the temple of Doi Suthep was built to house it. After climbing 306 steps I thought I knew how the elephant felt!

It was definitely worth the climb though, the temple is very colourful, if perhaps a little too touristy. Being a tourist I can't really complain about that though! One of the best things about the place is not the temple buildings and statues, but the view. I could see the whole of Chiang Mai below me, looking like nothing more than the little roll out road mat I used to play with as a kid.

I'll let the pictures do the talking on this one I think. Now it's off to pack for the journey to Laos, and possibly discard a few clothes as I have way too many!

Pai

I've just come back from one of the most beautiful places I've ever been - Pai, a small town, north of Chiang Mai. I set off on Friday for the 3 hour mini-van journey which is an experience in itself. The road weaves through some absolutely jaw-dropping scenery, up and down 2 mountains and into rural Thailand.

After finding a guesthouse I headed out for something to eat. At the time I was experimenting with being a vegetarian for a week in order to be healthier and balance out all the boozing and late nights that are inevitable when you're travelling. It's quite easy to do here as there's lots of variety of veg food, but I fell off the wagon after 3 days and had something with meat in it I'm afraid. After my meal I had a bit of a walk around Pai. It seemed very quiet and I was a bit worried I was in for a dull weekend. I was very wrong!

Eventually I came across a bar with people inside so I went in. I met up with an English guy who gave me a few tips about what to do and where to go in Pai. It seemed that everyone does the bar 'circuit' at night, which came about because they all shut at different times and when one shuts everyone speeds off to the next one. I say 'speeds' because although Pai is quite small, it's not that small so a moped is needed to get around. I was a bit shocked at first to see so many people drink driving, but after a pretty drunk Scotsman gave me a lift to the next bar I understood. Firstly drink-driving doesn't seem to be at all illegal in Thailand, secondly the mopeds are so easy to ride that a monkey could operate one (even a drunken monkey I suspect), and thirdly there's really not a lot you can crash into in Pai.

During the evening that followed I hung out with the aforementioned Scotsman, Ally, and 2 American guys called James and Tom. I met so many people on top of these that it would be impossible to write about them all (even if I did have a perfect memory of the night!). Pai is one of the friendliest places I can ever remember being. It's like a little community. Locals, ex-pats and short-term backpackers mingle and everyone gets to know everyone within a day or 2. The atmosphere is lovely.

The night finished back on the porch of Ally's bamboo hut by the river. It was spectacular watching the sun come up to reveal the picture-postcard surroundings of the mountain tops shrouded with clouds and the river babbling past.

Obviously seeing the sun comes up takes it toll on the day time and I was still in bed at 3pm the next day, but after a nice American breakfast at 4.30pm (so back on the meat now) I managed to get myself sorted enough to get a scooter. After a very comprehensive training course (turning in a circle and driving 20 feet down a deserted road!) I had my wheels.

Since I'd had no real respite from the heat for the last few weeks I decided to head straight up to the nearest waterfall, about a 20 min ride away. The ride up there took me through some very beautiful countryside. I'm going to have to use the word 'beautiful' a lot when talking about Pai - there are simply no other words to describe it. There were mountains, dry paddy fields and a few traditional looking houses. Once I got up to the falls it was even more beautiful. The water was cascading down a mountain into a pool of a size that you could swim in it. Then it continued down to 2 or 3 smaller pools that were perfect for just laying in and cooling down. There were quite a few people in the bigger pool at the time so I just settled for laying down in a smaller one. The water was crisp and cool; perfect after the sweaty ride.

After my nice refreshing waterfall bath I drove back down to the town and headed out for the evening. I drove round to the pub to meet up with the guys but Ally didn't make it. It seems some Scotsman can't handle their whisky after all! James, Tom and I met up with a Polish couple and took them over to Bebop Cafe, to listen to some live music. I wasn't quite ready for passengers yet so the others took them! There were some old westerners playing that night but they weren't too bad and even slipped in a bit of Kaiser Chiefs. Soon it was closing time and it was time to get back on 'the circuit'. James had disappeared for a while so I now had to take a passenger. It was certainly a baptism of fire taking a 15 stone Pole on the back of my little bike, but we survived and I felt like my riding skills were now on a par with Evel Kneivel, Streethawk and Ghost Rider all rolled into one!

We all ended up staying at the Fubar until the early hours. It's a great location over the river and it's built mainly from bamboo. The owner is also an Englishman so we could talk about football, sausage and mash and the like! Also, everyone who you see through the day and earlier part of the night eventually ends up at Fubar so it's got a great meeting place atmosphere. It's like going into your local at home when you know half the people in there.

The next morning I got hold of a map of Pai. I spotted more waterfalls, some hot springs and an elephant conservation centre which were of interest to me. I decided to do a little tour of the waterfalls. I drove off to the first one at Pam Bok which was about 12km away (7.5 miles) apparently, but it seemed much further when I drove it. Perhaps it was because the roads are so windy where they meander through the hills and moutains. It doesn't really matter how far it is though as the drive there is more than half the fun, the scenery and surroundings are so lovely.

Once I got to Pam Bok though it was a little disappointing. It's quiet place to chill bit not really much good for swimming in. I took a walk up to the pool and then decided to leave. At the bottom of the hill I'd seen a sign pointing to another waterfall 3 km away. I reasoned that the more of the beaten path a place is, the more peaceful and untouched it would be. I hopped back on the bike and sped off to find it. The roads were a lot of fun to begin with, up and down mountain with steep drop-offs and no barriers! I came across a few villages too which was interesting to see. I wondered how people could live in such a rural place, but then I looked around me and realised how idyllic it really was. Then the roads started to get a little bit bumpy. Big potholes started to appear and soon the road was just one big series of potholes. I imagined I was a contestant on Kickstart and ploughed onwards! After 1 1/2 hours I started to think perhaps the sign had been a little bit misleading. Or perhaps this waterfall had dried up long ago. Either way, it was time to head back so I retraced my route all the way back up to Pai and headed up to the waterfall I'd been to the day before.

I was heading back the next day so I resolved to get an early night... unfortunately resolve is not one of my strong points when it comes to denying myself some fun! The night followed a similar pattern (er, pretty much identical actually!) to the nights before and I ended up hitting the hay at around the same time the birds were waking up. I had to check out at 11 am so I woke at 10 and decided to my morning shower should be of the natural variety. I got straight on my bike and drove up to the waterfall. I got up to the car park (not really a car park, just where everyone leaves their bikes) and there was not another vehicle to be seen. It couldn't be deserted could it I thought. I hurried down to the water and YES! It was totally empty. I had an entire waterfall to myself. I swam in the pool and stood under the water coming down the rocks. The view down the mountain through the river valley was spectacular. It was perfect.

I didn't want to leave the waterfall but my bus back to Chiang Mai was leaving at 2pm so I had to head back into town. After a one last ride around I took the bike back and got in the mini-van. Once on the bus I realised that perhaps river water is not a completely effective substitute for a shower with soap! Ah well I thought, and fell asleep for most of the journey back to CM.