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Published: November 25th 2010
We were very excited about our next sleeper train and expected the same comfort as our previous train through Malaysia to Thailand. However this was not to be, it was 50 year old rust-bucket, with plenty of our old acquaintances...cockroaches! When the skies decided to open up the guard attempted to close all of the windows, no easy task as these were also in disrepair, when he failed to close the one above our bed he shrugged his shoulders and attempted to walk away as rain poured in! Fortunately with Jim's help they both got the window closed. We got through the journey by drinking over priced beer to dull the senses. To make the journey worse the train broke down for 2 hours in the night making a very uncomfortable and hot nights sleep. We did discover that some poor people had been stuck at a station further down the line in the early hours, so it could've been worse.
Our train arrived at Nong Khai on the Thai border and mutual agreement of safety in numbers meant that we joined forces with other travellers to cross the border into Laos. We all crammed into a tuk-tuk, negotiated customs,
rode a packed bus over the 'Friendship Bridge' and shared a air-con taxi to Vientiane, Laos.
After shopping around for somewhere cheap to live, we washed up and went for dinner with our fellow travellers Nina and Robin. As a group we spent the next couple of days exploring Vientiane. First stop was the Laos national symbol, Pha That Luang (also on their Kip bank notes). A huge gold painted temple, very impressive in the sunshine, surrounded by other newer temples built in a traditional style including a freshly made concrete reclining Buddha courtesy of some builder monks.
We also went for a Laos massage in a wooden shack in the middle of a forest. Inside was a homemade sauna, heated from underneath with a huge barrel containing water, oils and herbs. As we entered we were told to watch out for the hole in the middle of the floor, but it was so steamy and smoky that you couldn't even see your hand in front of your face, let alone the floor. We endured what we could of the heat in an already baking hot day and then endured one of the most painful massages known to
man, which left us feeling in more pain than when we went in! Even Carla was in agony after being twisted into unnatural positions.
We spent the last evening enjoying a few drinks watching the sunset over the Mekong River. Nina headed off to Chiang Mai, Thailand, we arranged to meet up again later in our travels. Robin joined us on our way to Vang Vien to find out what all the fuss about 'Tubing' is.
Love, an achy Jim and Carla
xxx
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Our bed on the train
