We left Vietnam and got signed out (1$ stamp fee), of course none of us had an idea where we had to go next, so we just followed the shown direction of some officers and walked around 10 minutes through thick fog, you barely could see anything and the Iceland girl got seriously worried whereas me and her boyfriend tried to calm her down and that the bus would not leave without us. I was pretty sure none of the people would have shown us the wrong direction to the Laos border and et voila a few minutes later we could see the border house.
I have been told that my Laos visa would cost 30$. I had exactly 34$ dollar with me at that time and had only 33$ left after the first stamp fee, little did I know that on Saturday and Sunday you have to pay 2$ overtime fee plus another 1$ stamp fee, I guess I was lucky that I had the exact amount of money with me.
Later at the border a group of English Girls joined us, they didn’t get the Visa to Vietnam and had to return to Vientiane. Apparently they applied online for the visa and paid 25 Pounds each and the officer at the Immigration office explained that no such thing exist and it was a scam, of course they were not really happy with it but had no choice and had to return since Vietnam does not offer a Visa on Arrival on any boarder.
Additional to that I can tell you that on such trip in a bus with no toilet it is really not funny to have to go to the toilet. I tried to control my liquid intake, but of course I was not able to survive without a drink for 21 hours.
When we finally arrived at the Vientiane Bus Terminal we got picked up by a Jumbo Tuktuk and had to pay 20k kip each to get to the city centre (around 20-30 minutes). The trip reminded me a lot of Thailand (especially Krabi and Koh Samui).
Upon arrival I had again no idea where my pre-booked hotel was located so I asked the driver to bring me there for some extra money but for some unknown reason he refused and only showed me the (wrong) direction.
With my blisters (and don’t forget the cut I received during my last pedicure) I started walking, even with a map I was just not able to find this place. So I asked another driver to bring me there, but even for 50k I was not in enough pain, so I got him down to 20k, even though that was still too much in my opinion. Anyway, I finally arrived at my hotel of which the staff didn’t speak a word of English. I was just tired, dehydrated and very very hungry and just wanted shower. During the trip my cold came back and my nose didn’t stop to run and I started to cough. I just hope I didn’t annoy the others too much with it and disturbed their sleep.
It was around 5pm when I finally left my hotel and went to the city centre and river to find something to eat. Watched across the river I realised that just a few meters away is the Thailand border, for s split second I was considering just going over there…. While continuing to walk along the river I decided I don’t want to stay longer in this city and booked a bus to Vang Vieng for the next day, which means I can’t do a lot of sight seeing here in Vientiane, but in all honesty, I didn’t mind that today, I was just tired, in a bad mood and felt like this would never end. I guess not everything can be great all the time, even though I am trying hard to enjoy myself right now…but the loneliness came back once again.
I regret a little bit that I have to rush through Laos and don’t have enough time at each place to relax and really take the atmosphere in. But somehow I doubt that at this point I am coming back to Laos, more likely to Vietnam with some more time on my hand.
The next morning I got picked up for my bus to Vang Vieng, which apparently is the Phuket of Laos. The trip was pretty uneventful but the scenery really nice even though I fell asleep during the ride, I got weaker by the hour.
I arrived in Vang Vieng and got a free trip to the City Center, of course they drove us to a guesthouse hoping we would stay there, however I done some research beforehand and was lucky to still get a bed in one of the busiest hostels in the city, the Easy Go Hostel, for just 3$ a night. It was a cute and comfy hut house that offered a bed and shower facilities, all I needed.
I arrived in Vang Vieng and got a free trip to the City Center, of course they drove us to a guesthouse hoping we would stay there, however I done some research beforehand and was lucky to still get a bed in one of the busiest hostels in the city, the Easy Go Hostel, for just 3$ a night. It was a cute and comfy hut house that offered a bed and shower facilities, all I needed.
I started to walk around and do some research for some trips and how I will continue. I decided for the next day on a Kayak trip and a bus to Luang Prabang for the following day.
The dinner in one of the river side restaurants was amazing, the sunset stunning and the atmosphere relaxing UNTIL the party backpackers invaded the place. After a while I decided to head back to my hostel, which was deserted since everyone else was out to party, I decided I could do with some more rest to get rid of this awful cold of mine.
The following day was amazing with a trip through the Makong River and the surrounding scenery just amazing, even though the kayaking was pretty hard work and I ended up having a blister on my hand.
We have done as well some tubing and passed the tubing mile in Vang Vieng, where you just float along in your tube and stop at the several bars for a drink. The loud music and party atmosphere wasn’t disturbed by the fact that it was just one in the afternoon….
It was time for a well deserved Lao Massage after the trip, I heard my bones cracking with every push the lady did, ouch, but very relaxing. Later that day I met up with some fellow travelers in one of the riverside restaurants and enjoyed a chat before I returned to my hostel.
That night was the worst I ever had, I fall totally ill with everything you can imagine, getting up several times at night I felt once again sorry for my roommates but I had no choice…
Fever, coughing and some other symptoms I don’t want to elaborate came during the night and continued through the next day. The ride for Luang Prabang was very windy and the roads rocky, but I managed to keep my act together for the whole 7 hours.
Upon arrival I asked the tuk tuk driver to bring me to a nice Guesthouse that is cheap and et voila I ended up in the Chitlatda Guesthouse, just a minute walk for the main streets and landmarks.
After check in I continued dizzy and with nearly blind eyes to see where I am at, I forced myself to see at least some attractions around here since I would leave the next day again to return to Vientiane.
Now some of you might wonder why I didn’t go from Vietnam to Luang Prabang and made my way down to Vientiane, which would have been much easier and less time consuming, believe me, I am asking myself the same questions, but I guess I have been just advised incorrectly in Vietnam with the times of the bus trips. If I would do it again, I certainly would pick a different route.
I went to bed pretty early, still feeling dizzy and sick, luckily this only happened to me at the end of this trip and not earlier.
I slept like a baby and felt slightly better the next day; however my body was still so weak, that I was not able to visit the remaining attractions in Luang Prabang. I just waited until I had to check out, tried to have breakfast, failed and waited for my bus to bring me back to Vientiane.
Even though this part of the trip wasn’t the best I had, I am glad I did it just because of the Hmong villages I got to see on the way as well as the Mountain View, it was just amazing and capturing. I would love to hike here one day.
After just a 12 hour bus trip, 3 hour waiting time, 3 hour flight time, 2 hour trip to the hotel I finally can sit back and relax my last hours in Asia. My flight back to London is tomorrow and I am very excited to see family and friends again.
This was now the last part of this trip which means future updates will come again from Europe trips, mainly over weekends. The next blog entry will be about costs, tipps and general impression on my travels, maybe that helps some other independent travellers out there.
I hope you enjoyed your ride along with me through Australia, New Zealand and Asia. I can’t wait to see the other side of the world.
Stayed tuned and happy travels for all those that are still on the road.
