Pakse, Laos

Not quite getting enough money out before getting onto the island (there's no ATM here) I'd completely run out and Talitha had just enough to buy us both a small breakfast and one tea bag (which we shared). I dashed to the ATM as soon as we hit the mainland and bought an impressive array of drinks, crisps and nuts to munch en-route to Pakse. There's a little confusion as to who's going in which minibus but eventually we get a seat. On the move we begin to demolish the feast but at the end of the road we're ushered out, into another minibus. Very odd. I don't know the reason. Into the older new bus and we're moving again; at least until the minibus gets a puncture thirty minutes later.

Arriving at Pakse at 3pm we head straight for a lonely planet recommendation as it's raining heavily and we just want to ditch the bags and shower. Talitha isn't staying in Pakse; she's catching a bus north to Vang Vieng that evening for some tube pumping Mekong action. The Sabaidy 2 guest house has the hallmarks of a Lonely Planet approval: unhelpful staff and higher prices. They were very off about Talitha putting her bag in my room for a few hours, and also wanted to charge her for using the shower (she managed to ninja one). Pakse is a large town with a friendly feel, nested between the mountains. There's a large Chinese and Vietnamese population here and everyone (it seems) drives expensive 4x4's. For tourists it's mainly a base for motorbike adventures to the Bolaven plateau and the coffee plantations; this was my plan for the next four days. We walk to a temple then to a large bridge over a big tributary of the Mekong, where there's a beautiful (derelict) French colonial mansion (for sale) on the other side; it looks fantastic - I want it!

After that we stroll back and grab some tasty Asian food in a western style coffee shop then sup a warm beer in the guest house garden while a thunderstorm rages overhead; the fish in a giant tank love it! Once the rain dies a little we hail a motorbike and sidecar tuk-tuk to the bus station. We hang about in the station for around an hour (a cat finds me) then, realising the lack of people about, and hearing various stories of the Pakse to Vientiane route, we start to worry about someone trying to take advantage on the sleeping bus. At the last minute someone that was on the bus with us before turns up and all is good! I wave goodbye and decide to walk the 5km back to the hostel, as it's now a beautiful night.

Next day I cheerily exit the unwelcoming guest house and head to Miss Noy's motorbike shop on the high street. I hire a bike for four days at the cost of 50,000 kip per day. Fitted with the usual sweaty undersized helmet (I have a large skull). I scoot off on my semi-automatic Honda Wave, rucksack and all, ready for a great adventure, quickly nipping into a market and buying some pure white shakin' Stevens canvas pumps. The road to the plateau is long and climbs steadily upwards; it takes me a few attempts to find the correct road as the map is vague. Before long I'm straight into the damp clouds and I can only see about 20m in front. It's cold and wet; I pop on the jumper and raincoat and continue, hoping to break out of the clouds, but at this point I'm pretty much on the plateau, and no break happens. For the sake of having a bike for the day I stubbornly press on for about 200km. Occasional breaks in the cloud give me a beautiful view of the coffee plantations and peaks in the distance. People in little towns and muddy villages wave as I cruise past.

Cold and wet I seek sanctuary in a temple

See what?

Stuck clouds

Numb bum, RSI stricken throttle hand, back aching from the rucksack, soaked and cold through I eventually give in and turn back, heading north-west to a guest house I'd previously researched. Within 5km of the guest house I come upon a large gathering of people just outside a village. I get closer to see a collapsed bridge, completely split broken in two and in the river!

Fuck!

Asking about there doesn't seem to be a way around this. I have to go almost back to Pakse to get around then back up to the guest house. I start to think this was never meant to be and, as it's getting dusky, decide I may as well just go back and stray in Pakse. The clouds had lifted a little by this point and I could get some nice speed (as much as you can from a 125) from the bike. As soon as I hit the main road from the plateau I'm out of the cloud layer and it gets immediately warm. Back in Pakse the weather seems beautiful as I limp into town! I take the bike back and the explain what happened to the bike lady; the bridge story being overheard by some tourists who decide that maybe they won't hire a bike after all. The lady gives me three days cash back and I pay an extra 10,000 kip (it's 60,000 for one day). I explain that if the weather's good I'll attempt it again tomorrow.

I stay in a cheap and characterful place with flowers in bombs in reception and photographs of former Laos leaders meeting with Ho Chi Minh - I wish I'd noted the name. Unfortunately I woke up the next day to the same view of clouds on the mountains and decide it's probably going to be the same, so I grab a fantastic Tom Yum (to get me in the mood for Thailand) at a stall then get the overnight bus out that evening at 19:30.

Cloudy mountains - meh

Tom VERY Yum

Sa Pa, Vietnam

Sleepily crawling off the night bus from Hanoi the mountain freshness and a coffee soon wake us up. A lady offers us a $5 each double room at "Nha Khach Giao Thong" which translates as "The back packer hostel" I believe. Most people who come here go trekking into the nearby hills so in the town you can see groups of westerners keenly followed by the traditionally dressed resident ladies of the various nearby hill villages: Hmong, Dao, Giay, Pho Lu and Tay. They literally follow you for all of your trek hoping that you might buy some clothes or trinkets that they make. Tomorrow we do one of these treks so we have today to relax. We have an omelette then have a look around the shops and markets which sell colourful arrays of trinkets and food (including dog meat, although I couldn't find any). The village square has a huge 8-point star in the middle (Christian?) and working communist propaganda speaker arrays in each corner. Next to the square is a catholic church from the days of the Sa Pa as a French hill station.

Sa Pa town square

We book a two day one night homestay trek with Nomad trails for which I decide I'm going to need a rucksack. I hate rucksacks while travelling, purely because I hate carrying two bags around (a common sight is the traveller surrounded by a big rucksack on back and small rucksack on front). Vietnam holds no prisoners when it comes to faking stuff and here is no exception; there's hundreds of shops selling rip-offs (mostly North Face). I decide to go against the masses and not get a North Face bag, eventually finding a shop selling Deuter so reluctantly purchase a knock-off rucksack for $8. Extortionate!

 

There's a cute little cafe perched on the roadside with tiny chairs outside and a little BBQ. Grabbing a jug of Bia Hoi and some meaty kebabs, mushroom kebabs, purple potatoes and grilled sweetcorn we proceed to get drunk with some ex-pats who work in an eco-lodge a few km out of town.

Nha Khach Giao Thong hotel

 Next morning Talitha's friend (and violin teacher) Emily arrives off the sleeper bus from Hanoi, she's going to be travelling with us for a month. She meets us at our hotel and we let her shower and get the sleep out of her system before embarking on the trek. Fake rucksack packed, battered vans on feet and camera in hand we follow our guide out of the town, followed by around ten village ladies and their super-cute babies strapped with cloths on their backs.

Threading along the valley past fields of indigo (I never knew it was a plant!) and down dusty roads the views are fantastic, only spoiled slightly by occasional diggers and trucks. It's baking hot and sweaty work so we stop every so often for refreshments, trinket purchases and for our guide (I forget her name) to explain about the valley and village people (no, not the band) in very good English. Onwards and downwards into the valley, crossing rivers and paddy fields. For lunch we have some noodles with 100 other hungry trekkers and 1000 new trinket sellers then carry on to our homestay.

 

I've never stayed at a homestay before and I expected it to be literally a small cosy home, where just a few of us would spend a night and eat with the residents. Don't get me wrong, it was very beautiful, and the people did live there, but it was more like a dormitory, in the loft of the house, where up to twenty people could stay. But I have no other homestay experience to compare this to so I'll leave it there! For dinner it was me and about twelve girls. The food was incredible. All fresh cooked dishes with enough to feed an army, for want of a better expression. We had some beer and rice wine, watched a massive storm brewing then retired to our mosquito nets, worn out from the day.

Homestay

Day two and we had more pancakes and bananas than anyone could ever eat (I cannot fault the food!). Before we know it our guide is up and we're off down the valley; promptly joined by more village ladies plus babies, and children. The second day took us through whispy bamboo forests, over almost dry waterfalls, through damp paddy fields and tiny farms with muddy half-clothed kids playing with pigs. Lunch was a quieter affair as most people has just done the one day trek. I bought some wrist bands from a cute old lady that had been following us for an eternity and an mouth instrument that sounds like a little like a digeridoo. I gave one lovely lady my hat and she gave me a free wrist band! We continued for another hour then were picked up by a minibus for the journey back to Sa Pa.

Cute wild village kids 

Lady in my hat and my new wristband

Next day is exploring time. Hiring some motorbikes from a man on the street corner ($4 a day) we set off up the mountain roads. Unfortunately it's raining so we have to take it easy, but eventually find the waterfall and have a coffee on what seems like a pass (there's too much fog to be sure). Back down out of the clouds Talitha drops out with a bad stomach while me and Emily carried on down the valley. It was at 60k/h that I saw an enormous bug coming towards me. Next thing I knew I felt a crazy buzzing in my helmet so prompted Emily to stop so I could look. I took the helmet off and a giant dragonfly flew out; I have no idea how it survived that! Getting too far down the valley we headed back up, refuelled then went over the other side of the mountain where the sun was blazing. HELLO rain shadow!! The roads here are fantastic and we opened the bikes up for a great ride. It was here that my motorbike appreciation nodule opened for business!