Despite the bungalow-style accommodations on both sides of town, Nong Kiow is little more than a transfer point for the newest upstream-town-cum-attraction. The most that visitors ever see of Nong Kiow is the bus depot beofre stern light grey bridge spanning the Nam Ou. They load up on supplies and gingerly manage the steep slope down to the docks. Their last image of Nong Kiow is the columns and underside of that concrete span after having boarded thin, noisy longboats. Nong Kiow knows no banks, ATM’s, public Internet connections, or paved side streets. An apprentice monk awaits tr [View Full Entry]

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Either the secret is out or it was never a secret to being with. Luang Prabang is an idyllic peninsula of greenery, Lao royal history draped in French architecture, and hip Westerners who can finally look casually chic in Laos without trying. The premier destination for all of Laos, the city’s accolades are justified. It makes Vientiane look like an industrial accident. Beware: the spoils of the Lao Shangri-La come at a price. Boutiques, eco this and that, touts, beggars, herbal spas, and dishonest tuk-tuk drivers all want a piece of the action. The prolific number of wats are tru [View Full Entry]

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When the bus pulled over, I swore the thump meant we had hit someone on a moped. It sounded like a peculiar collision, but could be hardly felt because of the sheer mass of our vehicle. The two dozen or so Europeans also on their way north stood up in unison and peered forward from the upper deck of the coach. At least half of them went for their cameras. The driver jumped out to attend to the commotion and when the side passenger door opened, the flow of Westerners took to the street to capture the moment. The locals rushed [View Full Entry]

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It will take me three nights in Vientiane to figure out why I would want to spend even one. It is not that the Lao capital is necessarily a bad place, but I question what purpose it really serves. Dozens of travel agencies advertise over-the-road and aerial means of escape from Vientiane’s ordinary streets that lead nowhere special. Vientiane takes care of the hundreds of welcome encroachers whose sights are already set on points deep into the more remote provinces. Orlando and Las Vegas fear not: Vientiane poses you no threat. As I cannot recall all the newly-independent Soviet rep [View Full Entry]

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It isn’t the destination itself, but what happens there that sticks with the traveler. She was in a group of four. Under all other circumstances, I would have avoided them. They arrived at the same café for a late breakfast. They, unlike me, ordered as if they were at Friendly’s. I had the rice soup with pork. At first sight, there was nothing extraordinary about their appearance or behavior. They spoke a bit too loud and giggled, but did not offend or annoy anyone. Immediately, they brought me back to a class I once taught, one in the early morning with [View Full Entry]

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As the crow flies, it is slightly over one hundred kilometers from Chiang Khan to Nong Khai. Conventional wisdom tells visitors to leave Chiang Khan and double back through Loei in order to transfer to Udon Thani and onto Nong Khai. The trip is faster and far more comfortable that way. It is a mindboggling six-hour haul through the rolling fields of Issan. No one takes the river route, I am told. If they do, they all have to wait for a bus originating from Leoi at Pak Chom. It would be easier to go to Loei and forego the river [View Full Entry]

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The road north from Leoi can continue no further than tiny Chiang Khan, a community of twenty or so sois supported by three perpendicular roads. It is here where Thailand and Laos momentarily cease their sharing the banks of the Mekong River, their common border for the rest of its southward journey. Ranked among the world’s greatest rivers in importance and length, the Mekong is a mighty, voluminous, but silent flow of mocha to which Chiang Khan clings on its southern edge. A burst of afternoon showers has zero impact on the lonely fisherman in his longboat. He methodically casts [View Full Entry]

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Loei is a provincial cow town. In the showrooms on the access road coming into Loei, there are only a few more mopeds and pickup trucks on display as tractors and roto-tillers. Mine is among the few Western faces in town others have seen. When passing in front of a high school schoolyard for boys, they point at me with index fingers extended, “Farang, farang!” Stares around town are commonplace. I feel like the featured caged zoo animal of the month at Busch Gardens. When I arrived by tuk-tuk at my guesthouse, I asked the proprietress if she had a room. [View Full Entry]

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As a gateway to Issan, Thailand’s oft ignored Northeast, an infant skyline looks down upon a layout of crowded gridded streets. It does little to differentiate Khon Kaen from any other Midwestern city. The region’s largest university pulls in a young, hip, and energetic crowd that harbors hopes of improving their lives in what is also Thailand’s poorest area. Khon Kaen does not incite awe at first glance; it has not a single remarkable feature. However, if curious to jump into a world far from the familiarity of Bangkok, Chiang Mai, and the southern strips of Thai sand, t [View Full Entry]

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The shiny new split-level bus’ interior is trimmed in bright purple, yellow, and red. Everything is new. The seats recline and kick forward when the lever is pulled. No streaks hinder the view out the window. I have more legroom than on a Southwest flight and a movie (in Thai) to keep me entertained if needed. Yet, the activity outside on platform sixteen and beyond is an affront to the eyes and especially the lungs. Khon Kaen’s man bus terminal is like any other in the Third World. In spite of custodial staff that mops the patched floor and even under [View Full Entry]

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