Planes, trains, boats, and buses: Will it end?

We just completed a marathon travel session.  We left July 24, at 6:30pm and got to Koh Samui the next day around 2pm (bus and ferry).  We left for Koh Phangan on the 28th at 5:30pm and got back the next day at 6am (minibus, speedboat, minibus).  We started our journey back to Bangkok at noon the same day and arrived the 30th at 10am (minibus, ferry, bus, train).  We are officially tired of traveling!

We wish that we could slow down or stop for a bit, but our Thai visas expire on the 2nd, so we are now enlisting the one thing we though we would only need to get to Hong Kong and then again to get home.  That is right: an AIRCRAFT.  Just the thought of sitting on anything that moves slower than 200 mph gives us chills.  I don't care if it is a VIP, super, rapid, express, direct, sleeper, 1st class, air conditioned, magic people mover.  I want to just stay somewhere for a while and even that isn't likely to happen soon.  As I dread moving to the next place, we are in talks about buying rail and air tickets for coming home twice more and getting around China and Europe.  All this has caused us to open our wallets and deal with airport security to get from A to B as fast as possible without dealing with C.

Granted, all our land and sea crossings are cheap by comparison (especially when a hotel isn't needed for sleeper trains/buses).  But nothing beats the allure of shooting to your destination at 36,000 feet in hours rather than days.  W also have a time crunch as we cut out some stops (anything hiking related) to make room for the ones that we can relax at (read: beaches).  So wish us luck and hopefully the roll of the carriage can once again swing us to sleep.

Koh Samui: Chaweng beach

This island was just too commercial.  On the Chaweng beach area there were at least 2 McDonald's, a Starbucks, and Burger King.  This is on top of the normal assortment of bars and restaurants that cater to tourists alike.  It was also interesting to see so many families with younger children there.  The area wasn't too seedy, but it didn't give off a wholesome vibe at the same time.  While some might like how everything is assessable, that wasn't what I was looking for in a beach community in Thailand.  The island is fairly large and it could be more rustic outside of this popular area, we were just on a time crunch and we figured the popular place has to be popular for a reason.

I shouldn't knock convenience and availability of products in reviewing a location, it was how all this spilled out onto the beach.  Resorts practically touch the water, they are so close and vendors have no problem hunting in the sand.  There was even a suit-tailor-shack on the sand like it is normal to go swimming and get fitted clothes.  The buildings along the ocean even overtook the palm trees that should have added a hint of nature to the area.

On the plus side, the water was generally clean of human garbage (palm fronds can be forgiven in the ocean) and standing shallow for about 100 yards from the surf.  The clear, blue green water also added a nice ambiance when going for a dip.  It was in the water that the anger of commercialism melted away and the natural beauty of the island stood out.  The jungled topped mountains that surround the cove shrink the buildings into the sand, which allows for a nice sunset overhead.  After several days of laying on the beach and floating in the water, the island grew on me and I'd saw we would return again.

VT night train BKK

7/23

We took the train from Vientiane to Bangkok, well actually a hard seat car from Thanaleng station outside of Vientiane to Nongkai, Thailand and then a sleeper train to Bangkok.  The whole ordeal cost 560,000 kip ($68.18) per person and 12 hours.  It is a farther distance than taking a bus, but it gets in quicker because the boarder formalities are easier and only costs a few dollars more.  We didn't know how expensive food would be on the train, so we brought snacks, but had to buy beers at an inflated train-price.  Interestingly enough, time flies when you drink several 640ml beers and play 12 games of UNO.  

Renee got the bottom bunk, which was our seats folded out and it was slightly roomier than my top bunk.  My bunk folded out of the wall like a Murphy bed and was fine for what it was, but the light came through the curtain and made an eye shade a life saver.  Generally everyone kept to themselves and no one was loud after the sun went down.  

The bathroom was a toilet that gave an excellent view of the tracks below and several wash basins were provided for simple freshening up. 

All around this was a pretty good introduction to trains in southeast Asia.  

Vientiane

Renee poses for a stolen picture of the US Embassy; big no-no.

Random sight in the city

Eh, boring city, but kind of nice in a boring kind of way.  We spent several days at Loas Silk Hotel for 160,000 kip ($20) a night.  The place is the nicest we have stayed at since we started the trip.  Air conditioning, wifi, plush bed, etc.  We liked this place and it was close to the river.  The first night we ate along the river at a stand that served fresh caught river fish.  Very good as it was grilled in front of us and for only a few bucks with beers.  On another night we tried the Loas hot pot from a street vender, of course it was delicious.  We added the ingredients to the broth as it cooked on the clay pot grill in front of us.  

In terms of sight seeing, you are limited to buildings and oddities.  Nothing too interesting, but something to do as you pass though.  The Patuxai, is in the center of town and has a nice park and Buddha Park shows an eclectic's desire to show off.  

Vang Vien

The place was pretty small, but everything you would want was there.  Our room was 90,000kip ($11)  a night for a a double room that had a balcony facing the  river.  A great treat is sitting in one of the many restaurants that serve cheap Laos food and show popular TV shows.  It was easy to pay $3 for fresh juice and fried rice while watching seasons of Family Guy.  A random pillow kitten that was hiding makes it even harder to leave.

It Was Bound to Happen

A lesson learned and I knew it would happen.  The rental was only 40,000 kip ($4.87) for a day, but I didn't use it.  Within 15 feet for twisting the handle, I had put the bike into a bodegas glass display.  I had my doubts when the renter couldn't tell me how to operate it.  Luckily no one got hurt and the total damage to the shop and bike was only $75 dollars.  The only rub was paying the shop owner $100 extra because he had to close his shop early, "not call the police."  Our hotel owner tried to smooth things over and acted as out translator, and he even said that the hush money was excessive.  Lesson learned and just another case where money solves everything.

Tubing Vang Vien

Cheap and easy fun with a splash of buckets.  Tubing in Vang Vien is a popular past time and one that is well toured.  55,000 kip ($6.7) per tube with a 60,000 deposit that includes a drive upriver.  There is one official rental place in town and they have a real racket.  You can buy your own tube from a store and take a tuktuk up river to save a few bucks, but the official place is fine for a onetime why-not trip.  The river is only 3km long and all the bars are kept in the first click.  So, most people just hang out around bars 1-3 and then float down at the end of the day.  The bars have cheap buckets, 20,000 kip ($2.44), and attractions: slides, zip lines, dancing, whatever.  You only need about 2 hours to float straight down the river with getting their and walking from the end to get your deposit back.  Protip: the river is fairly dirty and seeing people with bright red eyes is common as the bacteria causes conjunctivitis.  Luckily, drops are available from any pharmacy for a few bucks without a prescription; just show them your symptom.

Let's take a bus from LP to Vang Vien, It won't be too bad...

Mini bus to Vang Vien from Luang Prabang.  About $14 and six hours later.  The ride was ok, but cramped as it was just a large minivan.  We stopped a few times for the driver to eat, but the views were nice as we wound through the mountains.  

Luang Prabang: Three options

There are pretty much three think you can do when visiting Luang Prabang: drink, see the city, and get out of the city.  After six nights there, we did pretty much everything.

Loa Loa whiskey from the source

As with most places in southeast Asia, drinks are cheap and abundant.  That doesn't mean, however, that there are a ton of places to drink.  LP was way to relaxed to have a good bar scene and this was the only place that the midnight curfew seemed to be enforced; which made watching World Cup matches difficult. Loas does have a few unique brews and LP is a great place to experience them.  For beer, Beer Laos was pretty much standard and not too bad when cold.  What is even cheaper is lao loa whiskey that can be mixed with anything.  5,000 kip ($0.62) was standard for a shot or simple cocktail of Loa Loa.  The secret to LL is that it is more like a glorified moonshine made in the jungle.  This keeps cost down and varieties plentiful.  We were lucky enough to be taken to a vendor on our elephant tour.  We got to try several "flavors" of LL however, the basic is the best.  Besides using different types of grains for flavors, other ingredients would be added to mix up the palate or add herbal remedies.  Snakes and lizards aside, the "jungle" option included twigs and grass that tasted terrible and it took several basic shots and a cola to dull the aftertaste.


If trying the local brew doesn't fancy you, then a jaunt around the city can be interesting.  The whole town isn't so large that you cannot walk it, but a loop around the city does take a bit of up and down through the hills.  Renting a bike is a pleasant option as the streets are generally free of traffic.  We rented beach cruisers for 20,000kip ($2.44) for 12 hours though mountain bikes ran a bit cheaper.  Around town there are more than half a dozen vats to visit, though after you have seen one, you feel like you have seen them all and paying an admission fee started to add up.  The best vats were also close to the main street atop hills, so transportations isn't necessary to visit them.
Climbing to the top of Vat Phousi was worth it for the view and sights alone.  There are also three different vats on the mountain along with Buddhist shrines and Buddha's footprints; all were included for one price.

Getting out of the city allowed us to ride elephants, visits waterfalls, and see the cave of 1000 Buddhas.  Of the two waterfalls in the area, only one was flowing and that was included in a day tour that included elephants and a cave for 250,000kip ($30.44).  I'd say that swimming with the elephants and the beautiful waterfall pools were the best part and worth it alone.  The drives were under an hour to get outside of the city and the scenery made up for any lull in action.

FYI, our tour guide used to train elephants and we went to his family's elephant business.  He said that they have four elephants, but only two work at a time while the others are off eating in the forest.  The tours are easier on the animals as they would otherwise be dragging logs or falling trees all day.  The family makes more money training elephants for tours than for manual labor, so the pachyderms only work several hours a day each rather than all day.  Plus they get to go play in the water every now and then.