25 Days of Laos (Part 7)

This is a journal of our 25-day trip around Laos on a rented Honda FTR that we fondly called Mustafa. It starts with a long bus ride from Hanoi to Laos and ends with a longer bus ride back to Hanoi.


Day 8: Nong Khiaw to Vieng Thong
After having breakfast and grabbing some sandwiches from Delilah's, we left for another long bike ride with hopes of reaching Sam Neua before night fall. The weather wasn't in our favor that day. While we were having a stopover in Vieng Thong, we ended up getting stranded because of some heavy showers. Seeing that it was impossible to get Sam Neua before dark and that it would be difficult to find any accommodations on the way, we decided to stay in Vieng Thong for the evening.

Beautiful Blue Mountains

The Road

Although the lights were out in the guest house we were staying at, we were both very happy to explore a new place that's not available to most tourists. Our guest house had a list of sites to visit in Vieng Thong and even though the directions were difficult to follow, we found ourselves in the hot springs the town is apparently known for. It was beautiful. With the mist moving up from the gurgling spring, we were awed by the magical setting.

Near The Guest House

The Rice Field Outside The Guest House

Bathe here!

After that, we decided to explore an uphill road and ended up staying in a family-owned cafe overlooking beautiful green fields and blue mountains.

That night, after a meal of sticky rice and Laos beef steak that had the texture of beef jerky, we slept amidst lit candles, enduring the heat as the electricity was still out.



Quick Travel Tips:


The road from Nong Khiaw to Sam Neua has only one big town where you can stay the night, Vieng Thong. So, in case you feel that you can't get to Sam Neua before dark, you should stay in Vieng Thong. Otherwise, make sure that you've got a tent with you.


Hot Springs. They're located 1 kilometer north of town. Take the Ban San Tai Road. 



The Journey Continues:

• Part 8
• Part 9
• Part 10
• Part 11
• Part 12
• Part 13
• Part 14 
• Part 15
• Part 16
• Part 17
• Part 18

25 Days of Laos (Part 6)

This is a journal of our 25-day trip around Laos on a rented Honda FTR that we fondly called Mustafa. It starts with a long bus ride from Hanoi to Laos and ends with a longer bus ride back to Hanoi.


Day 7: Nong Khiaw

After a nice yoga session in a terrace overlooking the river and the limestone mountains, I decided to go for a walk towards the historical Pathok Caves where people hid during the second Indochina War. It was farther than I thought. It took me more than 45 minutes to get there but since I was distracted by the beautiful landscape, I spent loads of time taking pictures.

As I was walking, a couple on a red, China-made Honda semi-automatic scooter passed by. The girl didn't speak English but the boy was able to ask a question as he passed me. He asked me where I was heading -- I told him I was walking towards the caves. He said, "Caves!" and pointed straight ahead before speeding away.


When I finally got to the area where the cave was, I found a tiny hut where I was asked to pay 5,000 kip for the maintenance and preservation of the historical site. After that, I crossed a small bamboo bridge. It was there I spotted two men doing their laundry and hanging them on their scooters which were in the river. It was quite an odd sight -- 1.) Men doing laundry? and 2.) Scooters parked in the river -- Isn't water bad for the engine?

After crossing the bridge, I made my way through the path that led to the cave. At the mouth of the cave is a stair case. Climbing the first few steps was alright. As I got higher, however, the steps became narrower, making it difficult for me to fit my size five foot on the steps -- Yep, the last few steps were made for babies. In order to make it easier for myself to climb up, I decided to do it side ways.

In the cave, I heard music playing. Seriously -- It was the last thing I would expect. And, I was a bit miffed that there was music but no light. I thought that maybe the people who reconstructed the cave and turned it into a tourist attraction should've prioritized lighting it rather than putting a sound system. I reasoned that maybe it would've ruined it for tourists who wanted the experience of spelunking... Whatever! OK -- I was a bit miffed because I also forgot to bring a flashlight or to get one from the lady in the hut.


Luckily, I met Justine, a Singaporean guy who was also staying in the Sunrise Guesthouse. He had two flashlights with him -- And, I followed him into the cave. The cave was actually quite big -- Nothing like the caves I've been to where you'd have to do a lot of crawling into or climbing up or down tiny passages. It was like walking into a tunnel where the ground is just slightly uneven. It was when I reached a hole overlooking the fields below did I find out where the music was coming from. The two teenagers I met on the road earlier were seated on a bamboo mat eating sunflower seeds and uncooked noodles flavored with the seasoning that comes with each packet and drinking a mixtured of lao lao and orange juice while listening to music from a huge MP3 player. They offered me some lao lao and asked me to sit with them but I refused since I wanted to do more cave exploring.

As I walked around, I thought to myself, this wasn't such a bad place to take refuge in until I saw the bamboo ladders leading to a tiny passage... Justine and I decided to join the two teens instead -- The passage just seemed too narrow, too deep and just scary. Hanging out with two giggly Laoatian teens and drinking lao lao seemed more fun, less dangerous and less scary -- At least, that's what I thought until I got home.

Anyway, before that part, I enjoyed the company of the two teens. Lay, the boy with the cool spiky hairstyle (Honestly, I haven't seen any Laoatian in Nong Khiaw with the same hairstyle) doesn't know a lot of English words but managed to strike a conversation with us. Using gestures and objects around us (realia, as we English teachers call it), he managed to teach us some Laos words and laugh about different nationalities especially how tipsy Filipinos get after a few shots of lao lao... Well, I am a light weight.


On the way back to the Sunrise Guest House, I decided to stop by for some lassi after my long walk. The lassi became lunch when my boyfriend decided to join me. And, after my long walk that morning and my big lunch, I decided to spend most of the afternoon, sleeping in the guest house and watching the sunset from our terrace. The last thing we did that day is get some dinner at Delilah's.

Quick Travel Tips:


The Pathok Historical Caves. It's actually a nice place to chill. The entrance fee is 5,000 kip.


Deen's Indian Restaurant. I really love their malai kofta. By the way, there's an added attraction in this restaurant -- A huge bomb casing which used as a decoration.


Delilah's. They've got both Asian and Western dishes. Watch out! Some of their dishes can be really spicy.



The Journey Continues:

• Part 6
• Part 7
• Part 8
• Part 9
• Part 10
• Part 11
• Part 12
• Part 13
• Part 14 
• Part 15
• Part 16
• Part 17
• Part 18

25 Days of Laos (Part 5)

This is a journal of our 25-day trip around Laos on a rented Honda FTR that we fondly called Mustafa. It starts with a long bus ride from Hanoi to Laos and ends with a longer bus ride back to Hanoi.

Day 5: Luang Prabang
My day started with a nice bike ride around Luang Prabang. Although I'm not really a morning person, getting some sun and cycling at a relaxed pace without having to worry about evading loads of passing vehicles or a crowd of tourists made it worth the early start.


When I got back to Khem Khong View, my boyfriend and I headed to Cafe Ban Vat Sen where we pigged out on pain au chocolat and butter croissants. This amazing breakfast marked the beginning of a beautiful friendship with Cafe Ban Vat Sen. It became our breakfast place in Luang Prabang.


The butter croissant was creamy. And, when we ordered some cream cheese with it, they gave us a huge scoop. The pain au chocolat had a creamy, bittersweet chocolate filling. And, we were very much impressed by the service. 


After breakfast, we went for a walk around the temple area. Wat Phouhak, the wat by the steps that lead to the peak of Mount Phousi got my attention. I climbed up the steps to take a picture of it. After taking a few shots of the exterior, I noticed that the door was open and went inside. The walls were covered with paintings, describing scenes from ancient Laos. When I got out, I took some pictures of Wat Pha Bang which is located across the street.

Wat Pahouak

Wat Pha Bang

On our way back to Khem Khong View, we passed by some more wats. One of them is Wat That which resembles a temple in Chiang Mai, Thailand. We also passed Wat Mahathat which has a drawing of Buddha under a Bodhi tree.

Wat Mahathat

An Old Stuppa in the Wat Mahathat Temple Grounds

Day 6: Luang Prabang to Nong Khiaw
We started our day with breakfast in Cafe Ban Vat Sen, where we feasted on croissants, before leaving for a four-hour trip to Nong Khiaw. It was an easy drive with not many slopes and turns. We did have some problems with our motorbike. Our rack came loose and we had to find a welder to help us repair it.


Luckily, we found one on the way. He seemed very skilled as he had all sorts of furniture made of gears welded together. I thought that the concept was really original. While my boyfriend was busy with his motorbike, I took some pictures of the little girl who kept saying "Sabaidee" to us and the kids across the streets who were watching us and were giggling non-stop.


We arrived at the the Sunrise Guest House where we got a really basic cottage by the river. Although we had to bear with a squat toilet, we had a terrace with a beautiful view of the river. And, it came with a comfy hammock that's great for chilling. 


After we dropped off our luggage, we had lunch in a restaurant across the street from our guest house. The have a really nice rice curry. At the back of the restaurant is a noisy myna bird that drew my attention.


We chilled on the terrace until dinner time came. That night, we were in the mood for some Indian food so we went to Deen's for some papadams, malai kofta, chicken masala and lassi. And then, after a long day, we headed back to our guest house to get some sleep.

Our Favorite Breakfast Place in Luang Prabang

What I saw in one of our stopovers.

A Table Made Of Gears

The Road to Nong Khiaw

The Kids Across The Road

The Welder's Daughter

The view from the restaurant where we had lunch

The Noisy Myna 

The View From Our Terrace

Quick Travel Tips


Accommodation and Food
Sunrise Guest House. What I like about this place is its location and price. It's pretty cheap and has got a view of the river. It's also near most of the restaurants. Across the guest house is the restaurant where we had lunch. It serves fried rice and noodles and has a beautiful view of the river. Beside that is Deen's Indian Restaurant. And, across Deen's is Delilah's which serves western food and has hammocks that are great for chilling.



The Journey Continues:

• Part 6
• Part 7
• Part 8
• Part 9
• Part 10
• Part 11
• Part 12
• Part 13
• Part 14 
• Part 15
• Part 16
• Part 17
• Part 18