The Long Hard Road to Luang Prabang Part 2

My night bus from Vientiane to Luang Prabang





WAITING GAME

In Vientiane. At the North Bus Station.

It was 5PM. I have 3 hours to spare. I walked out of the station and proceeded to the nearby Butterfly Restaurant. My very first proper meal in 25 hours! My last meal was a snack at Klever Juice in Hanoi. I ordered Chicken Fried Rice at 15,000 kip ($1.87), Iced Lemon Juice at 8,000 kip ($1) and Pepsi at 4,000 ($0.50). The place was also a karaoke bar with waiters outnumbering their customers by 1:5. My waiter was extra attentive. I’d take a single sip and he refills. I’d turn to get my camera from my backpack and he assists. It was embarrassing. Why do I seem to get very enthusiastic waiters? During my meal, he began relaying his sob stories. I’m awash with melancholy. I was in Laos to have fun, yet he was making me cry. So I masticated my food faster than I had to. I churned the chicken meat with my molars until I was victorious enough to respond with “Can I have my bill?”

LAO MUSIC

At 8PM, I boarded my bus. I was satiated. I took my seat just in front of the last row. The bus boasts of a toilet. At 8:10, the engine roared to life and I was – finally! – on my way to Luang Prabang. Two Lao boys sat behind me. One of them was playing his iPod, occasionally singing along – aloud! – with Westlife songs (Fool Again, My Love) although his lyrics were mangled into unintelligible words. It sounded cute. I’d go to France and do a French song. I’m sure they’ll find me cute too. LOL. The aircon was blowing steadily. I had my jacket on. I closed my eyes and relaxed as a loud line-up of Lao rock boomed from the speakers. Oh well. I might as well listen to Lao music in Laos. Where else will I be lucky enough to hear them? It’s an opportunity to educate myself.


I was getting comfortable with my position. I felt I was heading into deep sleep. Ten (10) hours to get to Luang Prabang! It better be worth it! My head tilted against the empty seat beside me. Then it got uncomfortable. I opened my eyes, checked the air vents. OH MY GOD! NO AIR!

OH NO! NOT AGAIN!


FAST FACTS:

Official name: Laos PDR (People’s Democratic Republic)
Capital: Vientiane
Government: Socialist Republic ( i.e. Communist)
Independence: From France July 1949
President: Lt. Gen. Choumally Sayasone
Population: 6.5 million (Vietnam now has 86 million)
Currency: kip ($1=8,000 kip); the dollar and the kip are accepted all over Laos although you have to be sure not to exchange too much kip since it can’t be change to other currencies outside Laos.


Mood: laidback, hospitable, friendly, good natured & honest people






RANDOM EXPENDITURES:


· Tuktuk ride from south bus station to north – $1.25 or 10,000 kip

· VIP bus ticket from Vientiane to Luang Prabang - $15 or 120,000 kip

· Chicken Fried Rice - $1.87 or 15,000 kip

· Iced Lemon Juice - $1 or 8,000 kip

· Pepsi - $0.50 or 4,000 kip

What SITEMETER tells me.

For the fun of it, I recently installed Sitemeter on my blogsite. To my surprise, about 70% of my hits come from outside the Philippines which somehow underlines the “reach” of the internet. I am aware of its reach, just not with my blogsite, which is spectacular. To be honest, this site has a limited readership. Which is fine. I just want to document my travels and, in the process, share some insight on travels to these amazing places.

I used to keep a journal on these travels. However, they just gather dust somewhere. When I try reading them again, I lose interest. I cannot read my handwriting!!! LOL. Putting them down in a blogsite is way better. For one, the photos come alive!

Here’s a cross-section from the locals hits: Caloocan, Quezon City, Baguio, Cainta Rizal, Aloguinsan Cebu, Tarlac, Makati, Manila, Baliuag and Meycauayan Bulacan, Puerto Prinsesa, Pandi Bulacan, San Pedro Laguna, Bacoor Cavite, Negros Occidental, Alang alang Leyte, Davao. Isn’t it spectacular what sitemeter can gather?

The foreign hits: Basking Ridge of New Jersey, Sydney, Bad Ddrenberg in Germany, Erlangen and Pffarkerchen of Bayern Germany, Tokyo, Brisbane of Queensland, Phoenix Arizona, Guangzhou in China, Singapore, Bombay of Maharashtra in India, Oakland California, Lexington Kentucky, Vegas, Hanoi, El Mirage California, San Jose California, Bangkok, Hayward California, Jersey City, Santa Clarita Cali, Neuhausen of Baden, Markham Ontario, Prague, Orlando Florida, Calgary Alberta, Beckenham Kent of the UK. Dubai, Vilnius Lithuania, Denmark Copenhagen, Loughborough Leicestershire, Milan, Sitka Alaska, Meezen Germany, Landskrona Sweden, Dallas Texas, El Paso Texas, Wheaton Illinois, Calcutta India, Harwich Massachusetts, Honolulu Hawaii, Billancourt France, Jakarta Indonesia, Moreno Valley Cali, Bedfordshire, Chennai, Rhododendron Oregon, Warsaw Poland, Reykjavik Iceland, Turku in Western Finland, Macon Georgia, Exeter, London City, Delhi, Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh, Cairo, Hong Kong, San Mateo California, Maricopa Arizona, Akashi Hyogo, Vienna Austria, Kuala Lumpur, Cleveland Ohio, Gaithersburg Maryland, Madrid Spain, Corpus Christi Texas, Amsterdam, Ljubliana Slovenia, a French island territory called Reunion Island near Madagascar, Alhambra California, Saugus Massachusetts, Jacksonville North Carolina, Montreal Canada, Taipei.

All these countries in 48 hours? The world is really getting smaller!

And where in the world is Gullbringusysla? I am also getting a place called Reunion Island which, I learned, is a French territory just off the coast of Madagascar. (I met a lady from Madagascar on my train from Paris to Barcelona once. She was from Antananarivo, which I believe is the capital.) I am amazed not with the volume but the variety, the cross section of different places. I am sure it is just novelty. I am sure other blogsites get so much more (variety and hits) than what I have. Nevertheless, it blows my mind to get such detail in 48 hours from sitemeter. If you haven’t installed one for your blogsite, please do so. It’s fun.

I’m getting some places like Delhi and Calcutta, Chennai, Uttar Pradesh (isn’t that where Agra is? Taj Mahal) and I’m thinking, hey guys, I’ll probably be shaking hands with you before the year ends. Pede bang maging ka txt mate? (Can we be textmates?) Silly me!

How come there is a China? I thought the Chinese government blocks blogger.com – my friends in Shanghai cannot access my site. Why am I writing about this? Coz I am amused with what I have learned. And if anyone of YOU gets to read THIS, thank you for dropping by my blogsite. I hope you all get to travel soon. Otherwise, my blogs would solely benefit ME! LOL

Goodbye, Vietnam

Tam biet, Vietnam!



Tung Trang people were grasping at straws when I asked them to book me a bus ticket that will leave Hanoi, cross the border to Laos, then take me all the way to Luang Prabang, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, located north of the country. I have been reading up on borders and border crossing; on people who have actually taken the bus from Vietnam to Laos. Most of these readings reveal something that disturbs me. THERE IS NO BUS THAT TAKES PEOPLE DIRECTLY TO LUANG PRABANG! Most public transports head straight to the capital of Vientiane (located at the center of the Lao land mass, bordering Thailand to the west). I must be lucky coz I was able to book for my bus that will supposedly take me straight to Luang Prabang in North Laos.

If you scrutinize the map, there is a more direct western route from Hanoi to Luang Prabang. Derechong pa kaliwa eh, so what gives? Most routes travel all the way south to the Vietnamese province of Vinh then turn westward to cross the border, then head straight to Vientiane. Why not get a more direct route? I shall find out in the next few days. Majority of the buses stop in Vientiane, where connections to the north (Luang Prabang) can be had. That’s what I have been getting so far.

BUS OR PLANE

The decision to cross the border overland is basically an adventurous streak. Taking the plane would be too easy. A Hanoi-to-Luang Prabang (LP) would be a painless 50 minutes by plane to the tune of $165 by Vietnam Airlines. Last February, a boisterous and bossy German lady booked a plane from hanoi to LP for just $115 (I overheard the transaction while I was checking my mail) – not sure with which airline. On the whole, these are affordable rates really, and cuts time and border worries by leaps and bounds. BUT that will be too easy. I am a tad crazy. I actually want to experience how such border crossing goes. Then smugly declare to have "been there" and "done that!" I hate the actual process but I have made a deal with myself for purposes of, once and for all, whetting my curiosity. Besides, the whole idea already sounds like one exciting adventure. It is memorable already way before I took my first steps at the NAIA! I was so tempted – and gave in!

SIX PLANE TRANSFERS

Last February-March travel had was also an extensive itinerary, but it consisted of 6 air transfers – madugo sa plane fare! I drew blood from my credit card. LOL (Although by the time my travels started, most of these plane transfers had been paid already. Besides, etickets can only be purchased through credit card so there was no other way.) My earlier travel also gave me an insight that long bus rides are personally feasible. Pwede din pala for myself (I earlier imagined I’d be miserable sitting for hours with unimaginable backpains).

Now back to Tung Trang, they quoted $30 for my bus seat. It is an aircon bus seat that will take me straight to Luang Prabang, with no bus changes anywhere (even at the border crossing) until LP. Hanoi to Vientiane was just $14, so I have an idea of how far this sojourn will take me. I wanted to go straight to LP so that my Laotian journey can take a more direct itinerary from up north, then going south. Besides, this will save more time and avoid backtracking. I asked the Tung Trang people for a little more detail, but they told me to ask the bus driver once I am there at my bus. It is disconcerting not knowing some major details about a cross-border trip – or how many days I would be traveling! It would be around 2-3 days! Ok then. This will be interesting. Panindigan!

BORDER DILEMMA

So far, there are 6 official Vietnam-Laos border crossing that I know- Na Maew-Nam Xoi, Nam Can-Nam Khan, Nam Phao-Cau Treo, Na Phao and Cha Lo, Dansavanh-Lao Bao and Attapeu-Quy Nhon. There is a Muang Khua river crossing to Nong Khiaw, but I’m not too crazy with an exceedingly slow river cruise. Sayang ang oras. Malamok pa daw. With regards to my overland crossing, any of the first three borders would be my possible destinations. Na Maew (Hua Phan Province, Laos)-Nam Xoi (Thanh Hoa Province, Vietnam) is the northernmost crossing, with infrequent transportation and a difficult crossing. Moreover, overland visa processing for on-site visa application may not be available. Not my problem, since I am visa-free in Laos or Vietnam. Nam Can-Nam Khan traverses the Xieng Khuang Province (where Phonsavan is, the take-off point for journeys to the Plain of Jars). I don’t think this is the one, since Phonsavan seems too”out of the way” from the main roads leading to Luang Prabang from Vientiane. Therefore, Nam Phao-Cau Treo should be it! The good news is, this has a very scenic route called the Kaew-Neua (Keo-Nua) Pass. The bad news is, this route also travels all the way south to Vinh (which is near Khammoan (already south Laos). Sounds far. Another bad news is, no one knows for sure coz no one volunteers any information and the idiot bus drivers didn’t even consider telling their passengers where they are taking us!

Notoriously popular and charming former presidential daughter Kris Aquino (left); Laos President Lt. Gen. Choummaly Sayasone (center); Laos flag (right)

KRIS AQUINO AND THE CONTENTIOUS LAOS

Before going on further, I’d like to digress to a minor topic of pronunciations - just for the fun of it. I must have read a blog criticizing Kris Aquino for allegedly saying that Saigon is the capital of Vietnam (yeah, she could be an idiot for saying that on air if she hasn’t actually checked). The other point of contention is that, Kris Aquino was gravely mistaken for saying that the diphthonged “Laos” is actually pronounced as a single syllable with silent “s”– and that she is once again in the proximity to being an idiot for saying so since the word has two syllables. Though most dictionaries pronounce it with 2 syllables (la-wos/ley-os), all the locals actually say “Lao”. Laotians SHOULD know how to correctly pronounce their country, don’t you think? Even the backpackers I’ve met along the way call it “Lao” like Im from Udon Thani (which borders Thailand & Laos), my German friend Mario from Berlin, Mark from Brisbane and Sarah from Toronto. Ms. Aquino-Yap was NOT WRONG on that account. Laos was a French colony for several years, and being French, the “s” – if it appears at the end of a word – is usually not pronounced (e.g. Francois –“fran-shwa”). Kris is, afterall, a very smart lass – if only she stops herself from talking too much.

All together now, “LAO!” Nuf said!

DEMOCRATIC

Another thing - Laos is officially called “Laos PDR” which stands for “People’s Democratic Republic”. Is it a democratic country then? Not really! It is a socialist republic, i.e. (like Vietnam) communist! The whole country is headed by a military leader (Lt. Gen. Choumally Sayasone, the President). In fact, several parts of the country practice the “curfew”. By 10 PM, most restaurants in Vang Vieng and Luang Prabang are close and these "cities" become the proverbial ghost towns. People, even tourists head off to their beds. A geriatric British guy I was in a bus with revealed to me the real meaning and essence of “PDR” - which is (drum roll) ... “Please Don’t Rush!” A perfect description to the laidback demeanor of the Lao people!