Motorbiking trip from Vietnam to Laos in 2 days

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A trip to Laos

Part1: The first afternoon, 290km by bike started from 1pm - 7:30 pm

Track log: Hanoi - Xuan Thuy - Ho Chi Minh trails - Cam Thuy - Canh Nang - Dong Tam - Quan Son - Na Meo

Have 2,5 days in the weekend and want to "pack up and go", why not Laos? All roads lead to Laos, believe it or not!!!

Frankly I didn't plan to off for Laos, but the idea came and I just catch it.

Na Meo is one of the Border gate to Laos, located in the West of Thanh Hoa province. Passing Na Meo, you can easily reach Xieng KHoang, Xam Nuea get into one of the fire center during Vietnam- French war.

Departed Hanoi around 1pm on Friday afternoon, me and a friend from Travel forum (ttvnol) ride a Honda - Dream followed the Highway 6 'til Xuan Thuy and off to Ho Chi Minh trail. The new road is awesome, smooth like silk and I thought I can sleep and ride at the same time. The scenery was nothing to compare with, I started dreaming of coming back in spring time when all the "brown branches" along the road will bloom out with pink and white flowers. We soon passed by the back side of Cuc Phuong national park, and turn on the track lead to Pu Luong. Oh my holly monkey! Pu luong is truly my love, I was so happy to see the La Han ferry again and remember my good time trekking along Pu Luong valleys. The sun was soon going down and we stop at a very good spot to take picture of that moment before we embarked on the mountain loops lead to Quan Son.

The most stunning moment was when we found a point where we can see the whole picture of Dong tam valley, the Pu Luong mountain range and Ma river. It was truly dream sense. The rest 80km of 290km jouney we spent riding in the dark. It was scary but very exciting to ride in silent, surrounding by dark green of jungle, no villages, no sound of any other engine... we ride and kept our mouths shut until we reach Na Meo border village.

The village is very small, however they have 3 guest houses and we soon found a place to rest our back. Surprise surprise we met some "Khoai Tay" there as well, they traveled up from Ninh Binh just to join the Na Meo weekend Market open only on Saturday morning.

Lucky me! When you travel you always get thing which is most unexpected. The market was so great ... but first I have to sleep the night. Will come back and write more about the next morning later

Day 2. Na Meo market and I crossed the border

Wake up around 6am in the morning, I was surprised by a clear sky in Na Meo. It's supposes to be fogy in mountain area... hummm maybe a good day for photos I thought.

After doing a quick wash up, I head out to the market. It was already busy on the only road. A stream of people from Laos were caring many stuffs on their shoulders, big basket with a string across their head, veggies, foods, strange stuffs... they all meet in the main market for selling and after jamming their pocket with money, they will trade stuffs from Vietnam back. The market divide to two main session, in a far end it's daily use stuffs like shoes, mattress, pillows, plastic tubes... look boring though. But from the main entrance to the sub-entrance there were packed of people. It was the lane of fruit and food.

Laos wear Sarong, and Vietnamese Thai people wear a bit more colorful. It's hard to recognize who is Vietnamese who is Laos. 70%!o(MISSING)f the seller couldn't speak Vietnamese and I guessed they are Laos however the buyers speak Vietnamese and I make a bet that all the food were selling there were "specialty" from Laos and from what I saw I was right.

The sellers took out from their basket many different stuffs, only few of them sell 1 thing, the rest sell both veggie and meat or at least we called them meat. They put things on a piece of carton, and arrange them so neat and nice. Some sell chilly in plastic bags which make round red rings, putting next to bamboo in yellow, some mint in green. Some other sell strange fruit, veggie put together in small small bunch, rat meat, fired bugs, sour veggie. My friend was getting crazy with all the stuffs he saw, he would like to buy everything and bring back to show his " whisky pals". However we ended up buying only 2 bags of Mac Khen, it's a strange fruit which size as a small bean seed, spicy and tastily, very good to add in BBQ or fish soup or whatever need a "strong taste" flavor.

We both left the market happily.

Tried hard to trick and craw under the law but at the end we couldn't bring our bikes to Laos. The only way to do it was got on our foot and walk. Walk among happily trader aint' bad at all. My passport got stamp with a blood red stamp and I was so eager to cross the border.

Everybody want to break on through to the other side.

The whole adventure just start!

On the other side was another small market, people tried to sell out things which other who couldn't get through the border wanted to buy. I didn't have patient to join that busy little trading environment because I was busy looking for a motorbike for rent. Unlucky we couldn't rent one even how much we would like to pay. A tuk tuk passed by, then another one... All tuk tuk were modified from Pick up truck. There were one go to Xieng Khoang, and yes I will hop on that one. Who cares, don't want to waste time at the Border gate anymore.

The tuk tuk off into Laos. I were packed in the back, next to an old Laos man who was half sleepy half drunk... soon after the tuk tuk ran for 1 km he woke up and cried out to ask for a toilet break. Funny! The tuk tuk took many break along the way. Picked up people, dropped off people, picked up goods like wine -bamboo, dropped of goods like gasoline in pastic bags...

I thought: Holly chicken! I will reach Xam Nuea by tomorrow at least

However when you think things are bad, actually you find a "bright side of the moon". Whenever the tuk tuk stopped I jumped off and took pictures. If not, I would have no pic to bring home.

The scenery was so beautiful, painted with the red yellow and white of blooming wild flowers, huge rice field has been harvested within a week, impressive valleys. All villages are small but charming with wooden houses on stilts.... Laos is beauty and wild!

By magic, we reached Xieng Khoang around lunch time, 60km but 4 hours drive. Unbelieveable!!!

Had no KIP ( laos money) in my pocket but few small changes, I paid off the tuk tuk ticket by Vietnam Dong. And went in a small maket which pointed as CENTER of Xiang Khoang. My trip was truly a market trip! The further I go the clearer this point get.

Got in the market, I felt hungry immediately, bought a pack of sticky rice for 1000kip, I filled my empty stomach with it and another soup in a biggest restaurant. The next challenge was find a place to get some cash for tuk tuk to Xam Nuea. I spent half an hour begging and crying until I got 5$ changed. That was why I had the money to continue. This time in the back of the tuk tuk I sat next to 2 guys from Vietnam. They are Thai people from Muong Chanh, a very small remote village of Thai community near the Viet-Laos border. Their Vietnamese are very limited and they kept asking me if I can use my camera as a mobile phone, yes! They saw that people can take picture with mobile phone so why can’t a camera make some call. How should I answer them my dear traveling pals on the back of the tuk tuk!!!!

Another tuk tuk ride and I reached Xam Nuea. “Should I cry out loud or not” I asked myself. The valley of Xam Nuea is just small as a conner of Hanoi. Nothing was going on there, when I found the Tourism information office, it was DEAD CLOSED. Damn! the only thing we can do was rent bike and explore the small city ourselves

I had to use all of my "limited Thai" to communicate with the local. It damn hard, my Thai was bad and their Laos was crazy....

We eased all that hardship by a good round trip and find a HIGH SPOT on top of a pass on the way to Vieng Tian where located a "heaven" restaurant. We had Beer Laos and beer laos and finnaly beer Laos...

See! Xam Nuea was not bad at all after few beers...

Yep! Beer Laos you saved my trip!

Sam Neua - Na Meo - Hanoi, ride among cloud and flowers
Day 3. Back to where the trip began

The second night we spend in a clean and tidy guest house. I used my silk sleeping bag cause I didn't believe in the "cleaning level" of any place ranked below 3 star. I found hard to fall asleep, felt like I'm missing somebody, not very clear but it was there, disturbing me. I played trick with my head by counting my ex-boyfriends, when I counted up to the ex-277th I felt into a soft dream.

Woke up the next morning by 6, I decided to wash my hair to "brain wash" the emptiness out of my head. Took my camera bag, I went to the Riverside market. The sun hadn't up yet, the market already packed. I strolled along with buyers, enjoyed the feeling of peacefulness filling my soul. Few Khoai Tay were walking around as well, they look sleepy and curious. I smiled at a guy and he smiled back, he carried a big Canon attached in a 70-200mm len and it was the most impressed thing from him I guessed.

I bought 2 fried cakes which costed me 2000 kip, eating and taking pictures. Truly enjoying myself.

I walked 4 times around the market and decided to go back to the hostel to find my friend. We decided to leave Xam Nuea with the first bus of the day. 8AM we got in the bus run by a Vietnamese company and drove back to where the trip began.

The drive was much more pleasant than the other day. I opened my window to enjoy fresh cold air blew in. The sky was grey and it warning a rainy day ahead. When the driver turned sharply through all the dead curves I put my hand out to think I'm flying. and to lie myself that I'm riding on a bike, not in a boring bus.

at 11am we back to Na Meo. I got my passport stamp again, jumped on the bike and ready than ever to ride back.

The trip back was a ride among cloud and flowers. It gave both of us in a dream of spring time, like we were driving to buy a " Dao" flower for TET.

We hit Hanoi by 19:30 I climbed up to my bird nest and felt on bed... Sleep a long long sleep until I got up the next Monday mornign. Open my mail box, send an email to P and went to work,

The trip to Laos seem happend long long ago... When I wrote these blog, I thought Where the heck is Laos.

Believe it or not... I was sitting in a tuk tuk to Xam Neua 2 days ago....

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