The Torture ride from Vang Vieng to Vientiane

Woke up 4am in the morning in the hostel at Vang Vieng with diarrhea and constant walk to the toilet bowl to piss using my anus and repeat every 10 minutes. It could have been the medicine, the food, the mango juice that i seam to crave during sickness since it was the only thing easy to down my throat.

By morning I had not much fluids left to contribute to the toilet bowl. Breakfast was limited to hard mango and banana. No fluids for any drop of water i took send me to the toilet a few minutes later.

I decided to leave Vang Vieng. This place is not helping me get better and after 5 night i was pretty sure the bed i occupied was fully infested. Keeping my self dehyrated and hoping i wont shit my pants while trying to ride to Vientiane, i packed up and headed out.

Throughout the ride from Vang Vieng to Vientiane, it was roughly 150km but this time i did no detours, no lazing stops beyond the occasional stretch of the legs. Somehow my butt hole has a mind of its own so no playing around other than riding to the next hostel. 

Luckily my bowels decided to have mercy on me and the few times i saw a big clean petrol station with great toilet, that was the time my diarrhea kicks in. I think i made like 3 stops to the toilet along the way pissing though my butt hole and throughout the 5 hours journey drank no water and ate no food. 

On the way from Vang Vieng to Vientiane 

I could not afford to risk it. It was slightly dangerous I knew, since dehydration was bad for concentration during a ride. Once i reached the hostel in Vientiane, checked in and establish the route to the toilet, I started gulping water.

I now stop flu meds and even paracetamol meds. Instead i took bascopan for the bowels relaxation and hopefully i should recover by tomorrow else this will go way beyond two weeks and that's not a good sign being sick. 

Cosy City of Vientiane 

Traveled on : Jan 2019

When you are sick during travels – Kasi Hotsprings & Vang Vieng

Sufferings after sufferings. This time the travels are not as smooth as my previous rodeo and it seams every month something pops up to somehow takeover the course of the trip. 

As fun as camping and campfire drinking was in Phou Khon I seamed to have caught some kind of virus from sharing the lao lao drinking rounds with one mini shotglass. I reached Kasi hotsprings and decided to stay the night even though it was 100000 kips per night feeling a little tired and mussle sore.

I thought at first maybe it was due to the camping, you know sleeping on the ground is a strain to my old body nowadays but after a dip into the hotsprings i knew i was comming down with something. The next day i traveled on to Vang Vieng a short ride away and checked in the hostel and i was in shivers. Fever was coming next ... i could tell a cold was forming 

Kasi Hotsprings 

I ended up staying in Vang Vieng for 5 nights doing abselutely nothing popping paracetamol everyday and drinking fluids. In between on the 3rd day i thought i was getting better and decided to at least to see one of the lagoons. A short ride on Bluey under the sun and i could tell my body is not going to hold up. Tried to hike up to see a cave ... gave up less than 50m into the climb.

The biggest mistake i think was jumping into the cold waters of the lagoon. It was so temping with the sun out warm and then into the water cool and refreshing and who could resisit just lazing around being baked by the sun and cooled down at the butts while floating on the rubber tube. That night my fever return two fold and the next day all sense of taste vanish. 

Blue Lagoon in Vang Vieng

I could not really taste anything now and i dont feel hungry but body signals told me to eat for i was getting week and all joints were painful. I up the paracetamol dose to double ... 1000mg and shivered throughout the night. I needed something more ... something for the cold and pharmacy self bought flu tabs for the last night and all was good for a while, till i went to sleep.

Vang Vieng By the River

Vang Vieng Heavy Vehicle Bridge Crossing 

Riding the Countryside of Vang Vieng 

Traveled on : Jan 2019

Camping at Phou Khoun Strawberry Farm

Camping at Phou Khoun was a lucky find. No information on the internet other than on google maps. Zooming in and following the winding road researching for my journey from Luang Prabang to Vang Vieng thinking of how to break the journey led me to this small little town Phou Khoun which has a camping site at a small little strawberry farm with amazing views of the mountainous Laos. 

The beginning of the ride up to Phou Khoun

It was a 100 km ride from Luang Prabang slowly climbing the hills with medium road conditions, the usual pothole here and there and some gravel of short stretches but easy enaugh ride since I had time so by 3pm, 6 hours riding later i was at the farm, asking for a tent and just admiring the view. 

Going up and up ... 

The Road from Luang Prabang to Phou Khoun

Slowly but surely - High up in the mountains of Laos 

Tent cost 50000kip per night and they had squat toilets with hot water for showers. Local family run place with simple menu for every meal plus beer Lao when ever one needed, it was a place to relax. Tent was great as well with mattress, thick plenty of blankets and pillows. Weather was cold, but not too extreme that with a jacket it was lovely just to chill and laze around watching the clouds and mountains during the day and by nightfall, the owners lights up a campfire where we all huddle to say hello. 

The dirt road riding towards the campsite 

Phou Khun Strawberry Farm - Parked for the night

I knew there was trouble and fun the moment the owner Sai brought out a bottle which looked like the Laotian Lao Lao whisky. Hard to say no and so the night begin. 

Sai was a military man serving the army during 1993 to 1997 which was how he came to know about this place and later set it up. He spoke simple english and at the age of 63 i could see the wisdom in the eyes. Not much conversation out of him but every word was spoken slowly with deep thoughts.

Dan and Mo was the most interesting couple. Dan from Australia 35 years and his wife Mo 29 years laotian. Dan could even speak laotian. I find it beautiful and Mo kept most of the conversation going speaking in both Laotian and English with the bottle of Lao Lao whishky at hand mischievously pouring shots and never letting anyone out of the fun.

One of the local girl came and join and Mo and her giggled all night talking about something which seams to involved Dan. I could barely follow the conversation but it was all fun and drink around a campfire. 

Just watching the mountains from afar .... Phou Khoun

Mini Map of Phou Khoun

The Strawberry farm - Phou Khoun

Just Chilling away - Phou Khoun

The stars were bright and the place was cosy with great vibe. Not a party type vibe although we were drinking lao lao whisky the lao way ... sharing one bottle with one shot glass going in turns in circles. Once the whisky was finish, Sai brought out his home made strawberry wine, and once that was finish Mo started buying beer followed by me buying beer ... all shared from one shot glass going round and round until someone surrendered and then there was 4, then there was 3 and 2 and it was time to sleep ... barely 10pm.

In the morning before I left Dan remembered a place and told me to visit the hotsprings in Kasi on the way down .... i ended up staying at the hot-spring albeit a bit expensive at 100000 kips a night but then this is Laos, slow and relax was the way to go.

Traveled on: Jan 2019

Chilling in Luang Prabang with Dad

I finally meet up with Dad on my travel since the start of the journey. He did join me at the very beginning at Hat Yai when I first crossed the border into Thailand but after that for the next 4 months there was no way to meet up. Or rather I was so much at the countryside that there was no budget direct flight that I could fly him in. Mom was a lost cause as always since trying to get her anywhere was a slim chance and now even more so since lil niece needed her grandma for babysitting.

Me & Dad at Kuang Si Waterfall

As per my previous post, “When your atm card expires during travels”,while the expired ATM card triggered and made the decision easier, Luang Prabang was always on the list to fly my parent up for a short meet up. It make sense since it was not too far with a connecting flight through BKK and it was one of those chill place where I could hang out with them sightseeing architecture wonder. I knew Luang Prabang was a UNESCO heritage city as well, so all things should be easy for travel. I only managed to fly Dad in, but it was a good relaxing week. 

Best thing to do in Luang Prabang. Just chill by the Mekong river looking at sunsets 

I got in one day in advance of course and stayed at a hostel and then check out to go to a guest house and picked Dad up at the airport. I now have my new ATM card so I am good to go for as long as I need and the one week at Luang Prabang with Dad was spent just eating, chatting, walking around and doing some day trip tours such as the boat ride on the Mekong River and a visit to Kuang Si Waterfall. 

The favorite breakfast place like a local. 

Sightseeing the UNESCO heritage temples at Luang Prabang

Morning Alms tradition ... never did manage to wake up so early to see it. 

Mekong River Tour to Pak Au Caves was a nice long 2 hours slow-boat up river visiting a small village which sells homemade lao lao whishky and homemade weaving textile scarfs and going further on to visit a cave with thousands of Buddha statue inside a cave. The short flights of steps going up to the caves saw Dad fighting with his knees to go up every steps beyond the first twenty. Heck I am not fit myself but I always thought that given enaugh time, travelling is never a problem. 

Boat ride on the Mekong River

Lao Lao Homemade Whisky Factory

The Lao Lao way to make Lao Lao whisky 

Still, the same way I give up certain strain type activity, Dad now is even more limited on the types of travel. Espescially when the top of the hike and the visit of the caves were a disappointment. The guides will tell you tales of a thousand Buddha and the festivals and rituals performed but being there, all one could see is lots of Buddha statue mostly cracked and moldy that it seams like a cheap souvinear to leave a Buddha at the caves. Tales of grandure spun by the tour guides may captivate the ears but being there and seeing the caves seams like just any other ordinary caves in South East Asia. 

Pak Au Caves 

With the caves experience, Dad was reluctant to go for the Kuang Si waterfall daytrip thinking that hiking was required to get to the waterfall.. I heard there is a bear at the waterfall outside before the entry to the hike. Animal zoo. Lets go see the bear at least I told Dad. 

Have you seen a moon bear before ?? 

Moon Bear Sanctuary at Luang Prabang

Moon Bear Sanctuary at Luang Prabang 

Persuaded by my Bear sales we got on another daytrip to Kuang Si Waterfall. The tiers and many levels of pools was an easy walk gently on slopes going uphill but with large enaugh space and a hoard of tourist. It was one of the most beautiful waterfall I have ever seen in South East Asia and Dad agreed that this trip was more worth it than visiting the Caves.

Along the way to the waterfall we saw the sancturary for the Moon Bear and took our time just sitting and observing these grand creature that look more cute than dangerous inside the large playground. I bought my lil niece one ugly black Moon Teddy Bear and passed to dad to bring it back to her for CNY. Supprisingly the feedback was she liked it. 

Kuang Si Waterfall - Luang Prabang

Kuang Si Waterfall - Luang Prabang

Kuang Si Waterfall - Luang Prabang

Kuang Si Waterfall - Luang Prabang

Age is starting to catch up with Dad now and i could really see it not just in the looks but in the physical fact that travelling for him will be very selective in the future. No more long treks or hike up steep hills. The lazy old man traveler will have to be the way and that limits even more the places which I could bring him around. 

Traveled on: Jan 2019