Back to Thailand

The bus trip back to Vientiane was just as long and boring as the one to Luang Prabang. We arrived at Vientiane at 7:30 in the morning and started looking for the cheapest way to get to the center. This wasn't as easy as one might think because the tuk-tuk drivers wanted to rip us off. Luckily we met a cyclist couple who didn't feel like cycling in the rain, and we shared a tuk-tuk with them.

Back in the center we had to wait for a while for the money exchange offices to open because we didn't have any kips left, and the tuk-tuk driver naturally wanted his payment. In the meanwhile we were talking with the couple. The man was from New Zealand and the woman from Brazil. They had been cycling around Asia for quite some time now and their journey was about to come to an end soon too.

You don't see this sign every day.

At eight we finally got some kips, paid the driver and walked to another bus station to buy tickets to Nong Khai in Thailand. Nong Khai is a city just across the river, and it's one of the border crossing points between Thailand and Laos. The ticket was cheap and buses frequent so in no time we were on our way back to Thailand. Some fifteen minutes later we already crossed a long bridge and were greeted by border control signs. We had to leave the bus and walk through the customs and passport control.

I didn't have any troubles getting through and getting a new visa stamp, but Inna had to go inside the office to get hers. It took some time, and I had to wait all that time outside, already on Thai side of the border. Finally she got what she needed and walked through the customs and back to the bus.

In Nong Khai we didn't do much. First thing in the morning we took a tuk-tuk to the railway station and bought tickets to the ancient city of Ayutthaya for about a thousand bahts for two tickets. After that we had hopes to find an Internet café, but the railway station seemed to be in the outskirts of the city so we just went to eat in a restaurant on the other side of the street.

I bet you haven't seen an Internet café like this!

After eating we asked the waitress if she knew where to find an Internet café, and she pointed an old train carriage with her finger. I thought that she didn't understand us or that there might be something behind the carriage, but soon we found out that there actually were three computers inside the carriage! It was nice to sit there for a good while as our train wasn't leaving anytime soon.

The sun was almost setting when we boarded the train. We had bought two lower seats, but a local young man was too shy to sleep on the same side with one of us so we changed seats with him. The funniest thing about this was that the boy's sister had to ask about it, for he was too shy to do it himself :).

Our beds were locked in up position before the man working in our carriage opened them for us. There was also a shower room with not much water coming from the tap, but we were able to wash ourselves somehow anyway. All in all the sleeper carriage was great, and the beds were the best I've seen on any train so far.

Laos Summary

Before saying final farewells to Laos, it's time to list a few final thoughts about the country based on our short visit. First of all I want to mention that I was surprised to see how well developed tourism is in Laos. The country itself isn't well developed at all, but still they offer all kinds of tours and activities for tourists. Apparently it's the easiest way to make money in a poor country like Laos.

You shouldn't understand me wrong though by thinking that Laos is spoiled by the tourism. Laos is a landlocked country and you won't see your typical beach tourists there. Most of the foreigners we saw were backpackers, and for example on the road between Vientiane and Luang Prabang we could only see jungles and mountains instead of hotels and clubs.

I would have liked to try hiking in the northern parts of Laos, but we didn't have time for that this time. Hopefully one day we can come back to hike and to take the photos I couldn't take!

Pros

• Lao people are nice.
• Nature is really beautiful.
• It was perhaps a bit cooler than in Thailand and Malaysia.

Cons

• We didn't have enough time!
• Roads and buses are in horrible condition.
• Although we didn't see any, we know that there's a lot of UXO (unexploded ordnance) in the forests, and it makes it pretty dangerous to get off the beaten path.
• Laos was the only country we visited where a vaccination against Japanese encephalitis is recommended.

The officers on the border stapled the departure card to my passport.