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.
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