My Bucket List Trip to The Bolaven Plateau

Hey All,

 

Wow, I don't really know else what to say. I know sometimes I don't shut up, but I am just speechless right now, trying to find the proper words to describe the last 2 days. I know I have preached it before but sometimes no words, no pictures, do justice to the things I see and experience. Those are the times I wish you were here with me, because that is the only way to know. Its not lost on me how truly blessed and lucky I am to have the opportunity to do what I do.

 

No shout out today, but my entry today is dedicated to the only true backpacker I know, Katie. Today I officially have crow for lunch, as there are things I told her I would never do as a traveler, and well, things happen. Story to follow.

 

I am going to pause the blog here for a moment to allow you to mute the TV, gather the children, and pop some popcorn.......... go ahead, I will wait........

 

Today, I tackle a long awaited bucket list item, the Bolaven Plateau.

Morning Alms

 

 I was up early as usual, I think 5:45, but as it turned out, it was a good thing. Around 6 , I opened the curtains and noticed ladies setting up for morning Alms. I grabbed my camera and rushed down. For those new to my blogging, there  is a centuries old tradition, where the monks from the local temples, walk around town and gather food for their 1 meal of the day. People gather at the side of the road after sunrise and as the monks pass, they put food, usually rice, in their bowls. The act of giving the monks food and money is known as almsgiving. The people around the hotel set up a little stool in the street, and the monks come by in single file line. As they approach someone, they stop, start chanting a prayer, then one by one receive the alms. Its so quiet at times, just the patting of the monks barefeet on the pavement. I try my best to stay out of the way, and not interfere. Its such a cool thing to watch.

 

 

After breakfast, I pack a few extra supplies, and decide to wear my backpack instead of taking the European Carryall. Extra sunscreen, OFF since I will be out in the mountains, couple of bottles of water, and some protein bars. I head off to Ms Noy's to get my motorbike. They had a good selection, as its slow season, and while getting the paperwork done, this lady kept yelling "yenta, yenta" to the helper. I am sure it was not yenta but sounded like it. So, since I only know one Yenta, I decided to name my bike "Iris". There was another bike next to her that was getting a little long in the tooth, had she picked that one I would have gone with "Joan". I love zinging Joan, even from hallway around the world. While getting ready this morning it finally dawned on me, I had left my helment on the kitchen counter at home. Its hard to find helments that fit me here since they are small people. I found one, but it was red with a big Hello Kitty sticker on the side, but thank goodness, one of the last ones was a go. I look stupid enough on a scooter, but with a big Hello Kitty Logo, I would have been on every facebook page in Laos with some kind of caption. She gave me a map and some tips, and pointed me in the right direction, and I was off.

 

My destination was the Bolaven Plateau, and it heads up into the mountains outside of Pakse through small towns, villages, with several waterfall stops. I think its around 250 km for the whole loop. You can do a 1 day, 2 day or 3 day trip depending on your time and speed. Once outside of town and you hit an intersections, which at that point you can go left or right, then make a big loop and brings you back to that same intersection. There are side destinations off the loop that the 2 and 3 day trip call for. I planned on the 1 day and with her advise should be back by dark. The map is pretty thorough and I am pretty good with directions, so was not anticipating any problems. I had her phone number, even though I don't have a phone here, but was assured someone would have one if I had any issues. She also assured me it was good road around the loop.

 

 

I drove the bike a bit around town to get the feel for it, make sure I would not get run over by the big trucks and buses on the main road. I then headed on the highway out of town and since gas was low, pulled into a station to fill up for the trip, and this was like a trucker type stop, had a coffee shop and everything. Down the road I was doing well, traffic was very light, thank goodness. I would stop and take a picture when I wanted. I came to an area where they were selling homemade knives on the side of the road. There were like 4-5 of these places all next to each other and seems the whole village did this. I could see the blacksmith banging the metal to make the knives and went to watch for a bit. He would constantly put the piece into a fire then move it to his anvil and beat it with a big hammer. I found it amusing that the anvil was a bomb casing from the Vietnam War. I checked out his finished knives hanging on the side of the road and let me tell you, they were sharp. Wish I could have communicated with him but he did not seem to mind me watching him work.

 

Further down the road there was another village area where they were making and selling all kinds of bamboo baskets, brooms with large display racks on the side of the road. I watched a coupe of ladies weaving some bamboo into hats, they were pretty fast at it.

 

It was getting really warm but this time so I pulled over to have a water. I thought I should be getting close to the intersection and sure enough it was right up the road. With her advise I decided to go right and head for the Tad Fane waterfall. It was easy to find as it is on the grounds of the Tad Fane Resort, which had a big sign on the road. You cut off the road and follow a dirt path for a bit to the resort. I parked and followed the signs to the waterfall. You cannot get close, as its on the other side of a ravine falling a long way down a steep rocky face. It was beautiful none the less. I was the only one at the spot and took some time to enjoy and take few pictures. After heading back down the road, according to my map my next destination is the town of Paksong. By this time you could tell we were way up in the mountains, the scenery was amazing, but it was still HOT, at least not as humid. There were rows and rows of plants along the road and I stopped to investigate, and it was coffee plants. Right up the road there was a little coffee and tea shop and pulled in to check it out. She gave me sample of the white tea and it was delicious. I bought a coffee and a tea and headed on my way again.

Dirt Road to Tad Fane

Tad Fane Waterfall

Roadside Tea Stand

 

 It took a while but soon reached Paksong, and it was here I made a fatal error. You are supposed to veer off to the left but I missed it, probably looking at everything as I tend to do. I drove another 45 minutes before I realized I had goofed. So, reverse back to Paksong. I think you can sense a theme here, I stop way to much and lost almost 2 hours headed the wrong way. I barely found the cutoff on Paksong as it was not marked at all, I had to show someone the map and point it out to me.

Pak Song

 

 It was quite a long journey to Tad Lo, but I did have to stop a lot, as my large rear on this small bike got uncomfortable quickly, not to mention my carpel tunnel holding the gas down. I would have to stop and walk around shaking my hands, I know some people thought I was insane. Found several cool villages and had to stop despite the time frame. Stopped to have a lunch at a small little roadside village. It was a bowl of noodles with chicken, very nice I must say. Finally reached Tad Lo cutoff and drove to the falls. Wow, this place was so amazing. I could have spent all afternoon here. There were several local ladies beating their laundry on the rocks of the river bank. The water was so cool and clean, had to wade out into it a bit, almost falling in twice. Managed a few selfie shots but they turned out really bad. Broke out the small tripod and set on a rock and got a decent pic. I found a shady spot and drank a water and had a protein bar for a snack. As I was leaving this guy was riding an elephant and went close to the water but did not go in. Not sure where he came from and what that was about.

Tad Lo Waterfall

Playing with my camera tripod
 

 

It was at this time I realized I was in trouble, it was already 4 pm, and I was not going to make it back to town by dark, and did not want to be traveling on that road after dark.  I decided to head down the road anyway back to the main highway. About 30 minutes later I saw a homemade sign for Mr Viengs Coffee and Homestay. The sign also noted they speak English and French. I pulled in for some advise. It was a bit off the road, but he was a short, very nice gentleman who was eager to show me how they pick, dry, sort and roast coffee beans.  After sampling his good coffee, I inquired about his homestay. It was 20,000 kip per night ($2.50) and a meal was $1.50 extra. It was so nice there, the breeze was great, and he was super nice guy. He showed me the quarters and it was basically a room with a bamboo mat in the floor and a flat pillow. I had no spare clothes, no toiletries, just a bottle of water, can of OFF and some sunscreen. I saw no other options at this point. I took the mat and he stated its quiet tonight, that he had 9 backpackers a few nights ago and 7 last night. Right at dark, a motorbike pulled in and it was a young couple from France, surprise.

 

Mr Vieng

Mr Vieng Home Stay Hut

So this is where I eat crow, having made the statement to Katie, I would NEVER stay at a place that had dorm room setup and a shared bathroom (in this case a shared outhouse). I forgot to mention the best part, the outhouse, it was an Asian style toilet, in other words, no western style throne to sit on, just a piece of ceramic in the floor with a hole that you would squat over to go. There was no toilet paper, there was a hose with a spay head like you rinse dishes at the sink. I am not done, the shower was a bare concrete area where you dipped a bowl into some cold water and poured it over yourself. I could only imagine some of my high maintenance friends at this place. Dinner was good and his wife was a good cook, even though I have no idea what it was, but it was tasty. After dinner we all sat at Mr Viengs homemade outside furniture and with him translating from French to English and visa versa we had a good time. I retired first as I was dead tired from the riding and my rear was still killing me. I tried to lay on that mat but it was impossible. I knew a night on this and I would be in traction at the hospital. I don't know how these people do it. I remembered right outside the door, under the front porch was several hammocks. I put on some bug spray and retired to the hammock. Turns out, the French dude joined close by in the other hammock later on. I have to say I slept well in the hammock, it was cool and breezy. It was soooo quiet there except for the occasional critter some where. I was sound asleep when the rooster announced his presence within a few feet of me and almost made me fall out of the hammock. I took the cold shower and thank goodness did not need to go #2. After a great cup of coffee and some rice porridge for breakfast, I was on my way to the other waterfall.

Scenery from the Drive
 

 

It was quite a drive but found the next waterfall and it was a bit more popular. You have to walk across this rickety bamboo bridge to get there, and it was swaying and rocking with me and these girls were giggling away at the edge. I made it and the name was in Lao but I took a picture anyway. Spent some time admiring the falls and then headed back to the main road. I guess it was about 10 when I hit the intersection at the end of the loop. From here it was a breeze back. Since I had already run over on the bike, I remember seeing a really big Buddha statue on the side of a mountain overlooking the city. I turned off on the edge of Pakse and went across another long bridge over the Mekong River to see if I could figure out how to get to it. I found a road that looked promising and right away there was a very long, very steep stairway that you could tell was very very old. The road seemed to keep going so I decided  to see if this took you to the top. It was a steep climb and at time my bike was struggling to get fat boy up that hill. Sure enough, it was the right toad and I checked out the statue and there was a very nice temple next to it. When you pull up you are looking at the back side of the statue, and to get around front you had to walk this rickity old planks of wood around to the front to take a picture. They need to do something about this.

I think this is Tad Soung Waterfall

 

 

I drove back down the hill and returned the bike to Ms Noy. They got a kick out of my story from what they could understand. I think it was around 1pm when I got to the hotel. I answered a couple of quick emails and took a nice hot shower and laid my weary body down for a bit.

 

The Bolaven Plateau was all that I hoped for and so much more. I would not trade that trip for anything. Iris got me back safe and sound and the people I met on the road were all just so nice. Its times like this that makes all the hard work getting here pay off.

 

I think I will chill the rest of the day and there is a massage place across from the hotel. I have passed it numerous times and they have a whole wall lined with chairs where you can set and get a foot and neck massage. It sounds heavenly right now but they may charge extra for my horrid feet.

 

I have another amazing adventure planned for tomorrow, so get the popcorn ready.

 

Happy Travels,

Don

Coffee Plants

Traditional Lao Home

One of the many small villages

Roadside Gas Station

No traffic and easy riding

Drying chilies on the side of the road, these dudes are insanely hot

Elephant at waterfall

Now this would have been an awesome homestay

The Bridge from Hell

Mr Vieng Price List

View from the Buddha Statue at Pakse



 

I Found My Happy Place in Pakse, Laos

 Hey All,

First a shout-out to all my CM friends at Oro Valley and Northwest, you know who you are. I miss you guys but not enough to rush back - haha. Exactly!



Lao Air ATR 72-500, at least it was not one of their old Chinese built YAK planes, those are notoriously unreliable

 

 Up this am, and made my way to the airport about 9. The do mestic terminal at Vientiane was a nice structure 40 years ago, but its time for a makeover. Almost exactly like in Yangon last year, you wait in a big area with uncomfortable seats for them to put your flight on this makeshift board, then you proceed to the door and walk to your aircraft. While waiting to board, there was a sign for an airline I had not heard of called Lao Express or something like that. When they put their info up about 7 or 8 people went to the door. The sign stated they were going to some city that started with an H, but did not write it down. It must be a real puddle jumper.



Lobby at domestic terminal.

 

 While waiting, I had an official looking guy in a uniform come ask for my passport, and after looking at it he asked for me to follow him to security. Now, this is new, and not something you want to happen in a 3rd world country. He took me back through the check point and to an office, where he opened a door and at this point I was about to wet my pants. When I walked in, my checked bag is laying on a table. Now all kinds of bad things are running through my mind like, did someone put something in my bag? There was another police person in the room and they asked me to open my bag as the screening spotted something. I am sweating bullets, but open up and they asked what was down the side, and I pulled out my can of OFF insect spray. They asked if any other aerosol cans and I pulled out my deodorant. They inspected both cans and Isaid its OK, I can close it now. ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!! I was already in my mind practicing screaming "that's not mine". I went back to my seat and then and only then, did I exhale. Never had that happen before especially over OFF Bug Spray.

 

Soon my flight was called and headed for the small prop plane. It was only bout half full, and most of them were some French tour group, as they all had these stickers on their shirt, like that matters. It was an uneventful flight thank goodness, and we landed with all our wheels. Unlike the airlines in Myanmar, they did not serve any meat pastries, which was a bit disappointing.

Strolling across the tarmac at Pakse International Airport - 3 flights daily to the best of my knowledge

 

 

This was one of the nicest small airports I have ever been to, rivaling the one in Sittway, Myanmar. The sign said Pakse International Airport, and considering they have like 3 flights a day I will have to see where that international flight goes to. I wonder if Lao Air has a Bangkok flight from here? Got a tuk tuk and headed for the Pakse Hotel, as they sent an email saying no problems with rooms, like I was worried about that during low season. Its a tall narrow hotel, which I hate and I am on the top floor, but I do have a good view.

 

I am now officially a happy camper. Bangkok, Nong Khai, Vientiane, I enjoyed you guys, but this is where I am in my happy place, in a small quiet, very Lao, little town on the banks where 2 rivers converge. Guess what? One of them is the Mekong River, are you sensing a theme here? Its  no surprise that the Mekong is the life blood of SE Asia. But, I love this place already, there is NO traffic, the people have been super friendly. We have the 2 rivers on one side, and the mountains on the other. This place so reminds me of Battambang, Cambodia, one of my other fav places in Asia.



View from room looking down on the market area, with the river and mountains in the background, its majestic in person

I have already talked to Ms Noy about a motorbike rental and got all the details. She is located right around the corner from the hotel. Tomorrow I clear an item off my Bucket List that was put there when I first read about this on my last trip to Laos 7 or 8 years ago. I am super excited.

 

For dinner found this Vietnamese place and it had a nice crowd, so once again, should be good and I was not disappointed. Had bowl of veggies and noodles with chicken, outstanding. After checking out the menu, I will be back.

Vietnamese Noodle dish with veggies and chicken, so delicious

 

 I can tell this is going to be a great stop and sooo happy I made the decision to head this way.

 

I had an email asking "what is a Stupa?"  Its a structure that usually contains some Buddhist artifacts or the ashes of someone. They can be small to large like That Dam. You can google to get more information.

 

Speaking of Google, at some point your homework is to Google, "Plain of Jars". This is where I was headed had I gone north. There are some small towns and interesting places near there. I guess another trip will be in my future.

 

Lets see what tomorrow brings,

 

Happy Travels,

Don

Temple by Hotel

Pakse has a lot of the old French Architecture about

 

Tired Legs and My Last Day in Vientiane

Hey All,

First a shout-out to Jeremy and Valerie and my 4 precious grandkids, Lydia, Jethro, Vivian, Jarvis and due in about a month Violette. They are at my house while I am here, oh the best laid plans.

 

The night before last after I sent the blog out, I decided to go soak my legs in the pool. I really did a lot of walking yesterday. Sharing the pool was this couple with 4 kids from 4-14. I cannot even imagine traveling across SE Asia with 4 kids that age. God Bless Them. I think he was American, but she was Australian by the accent. They were asking about crossing the border into Thailand and I was filling them in. They had come from Luang Prabang and asked if I was going that way. I told them I had been there 7 years ago and after hearing how things are now, I cam glad I did it them, seems the charm is about gone. I told them I was still debating going north, or south to Pakse. Without hesitation they both said go south, they had done that years ago and felt it was still a worthwhile trip. Even going to bed last night I was still wrestling with it.

 

UXO LAO is a UN agency working to find unexploded ordinance from the Vietnam War dropped on Laos.

 

 I was up early again, and after breakfast headed to one of the travel places around the hotel. The nice thing about staying on a street with lots of hostels and backpackers, there are usually a plentiful supply of travel people to help with bus tickets and such to your next destination. At breakfast, I decided to go with my gut feeling and head to Pakse. I discussed with the travel lady my options of overnight sleeping bus or plane ticket. Both had pros and cons, the bus from what I read is not comfortable and you have to share a sleeping berth. Not only that but it goes against everything I have ever been told about traveling in Asia: NEVER EVER TRAVEL AT NIGHT. The roads are bad and dangerous, and the drivers usually never get enough sleep. The air option, while sounding the best, is more expensive, and its on Lao Airlines, which has a notoriously suspicious safety record. Seems just a little over a year ago one of their plans crashed into the Mekong River flying to Pakse. I think they are better than they used to be, when stories about wheels falling off the airplanes after they took off. Push come to shove, I chose the 1 hour flight tomorrow at 10:30 am. Please keep me in your prayers.

 

I emailed a hotel in Pakse I heard good things about and they have openings, so I know where I will go on arrival.

 

Found this cool house near my hotel, I shall call it Lemon House

 

 With that business out of the way, I took off again on another exploratory trip to see what I could discover. I had my handy dandy map provided by the Lao Tourism Authority and felt confident. I heard there was a brand new Mall here and wanted to see what that was like, and of course its air conditioned. As I was walking I did note several things to discuss with you. First is just how many Coffee Shops there are in Nong Khai and here. They are everywhere and not a single Starbucks. This area of the world has gone coffee crazy. Second, motorbikes here rule the road, and sidewalk. You have to be so careful walking because bikes will use the sidewalk when they can, and drive through the middle of parks and such. You have to be aware of your surroundings all the time or they will sneak up behind you and put you in a world of hurt.

 

Street Food by Hotel

 

 While following my map,  I was crossing a small road and when I looked to my left, there was this really old stupa. Its on a roundabout, and the grounds are not kept up well, and trash was everywhere and it made me think they don't care much about this, which is surprising. There was not a sign anywhere saying anything about it, and it was not even mentioned on the map. I had no idea what it was and when I got back to the hotel later, I showed the picture to the lady at the desk and she wrote down That Dam, of course me, I said "That Dam What"? She did not get the irony and thought I was calling it a Wat, which is the word for Temple in Khmer.  She said "no wat, stupa" I could easily have gone all day with this but, I looked it up and read this:

 

Sitting at the centre of a quiet roundabout near the centre of Vientiane, legend has it that the stupa now known as That Dam was once coated in a layer of gold. The gold is said to have been carted off by the Siamese during their pillaging of 1828, after which the stupa took the ‘black’ sobriquet in memory of the dastardly act. However, another myth is slightly at odds with this. It says That Dam is the abode of a dormant seven-headed dragon that came to life during the 1828 Siamese–Lao war and protected local citizens, though apparently not the stupa’s gold…

 

That Dam

 

 After admiring the unknown Stupa, I proceeded on my walk. I found the mall by the Southern Bus station which is on the north end of town. This map has me all confused. According to the map, the northern bus station is on the western part of town. Be that as it may, the mall was a BUST. The place is a giant waste of money to try to spruce up the city. Even though it was fun watching some old lady making her first attempt at an escalator. She was petrified of it, and when it got to the top she had no idea what to do and almost fell. Outside of the mall was an area all set up with yellow tents, and people cooking and selling stuff. I meandered about, and then noticed a big sign that said it was the 2nd Annual Vegetarian Festival. Needless to say, I did not hang around.

 

The Worst Mall Ever

Vegitarian Festival

 

 The more I walked the more I realized that map was bad and no help at all, so quickly deposited it in a nice receptacle. I can do better on my own. I headed towards the river front to visit some big statue I had seen from afar the other day. It was a long walk and the heat was brutal today. After walking a lot yesterday, but legs were aching. I made a couple of rest stops but soon saw the statue and made my way. Its some ancient military guy either gesturing, this is where we will build a city, or telling Thailand, this is were I draw the line in the sand. I did not feel it was worth the effort to google it later.

 

Not sure what he is pointing at but he looks serious

 

 I found an air conditioned smoothie shop and could have camped out there all afternoon. Near by, since it was way after lunch, I found a lady grilling sausage on a stick and it smelled wonderful. I had one and it was as advertised.

 

It was a long way back to the hotel, so I hailed a tuk tuk and went home. I had to rest a bit as the heat and humidity was taking a severe toll on me.

 

Around 6 I headed out looking for food, and found a place with rice and chicken which sounded simple but good. It was busy so that is always a good sign. You are given a host of items to dress it up as you like, some were interesting, if not gross smelling. I think the fermented fish stuff just does not agree with me. I chose more of a soy with chilies.

 

Street chaos around the Southern Bus station at the north end of town

 

 The advil had kicked in and decided to take a stroll in a direction I had not gone yet, since I was leaving in the AM. It was almost dark so I carefully remember my landmarks to get back. I was not seeing a lot, when I noticed what I thought was the word Bowling. I said it cant be, and went to investigate. I found the Lao Bowling Center, JACKPOT! Its really hidden away and you could easily miss it. You would never notice if you were riding in a tuk tuk, would pass by too quick. OMG this place was so cool, there were 10 lanes I think, and people were laughing and bowling in their bare feet. From what I saw, bowling is a new thing to the Laotians, they are TERRIBLE, but I don't think they care. I was there maybe 5 minutes when I started to get this queezy rumbling in my stomach, then felt kinda faint, and the first thing that I thought about was that Sausage on stick, please don't make me sick. I thought I better get a tuk tuk right away. I hated to leave this place, such a good find.

 

I got back to the hotel,, and was not feeling well. I laid down and in about 30 minutes in the cool air, it passed and was fine. I think it was the heat catching up to me again.

 

Well, enough for tonight, need to rest for sure, and take some advil for my aching legs.

 

Wanted to address another email:  This is addressing the black carryall that I had on in the pic yesterday. I carry it all the time, as it has my money, glasses, cameras, and sorted other items. I have had it for about 4 years now and love it. NO, ITS NOT A MAN PURSE!!  Its European.

 

Keep the questions and comments coming.

 

P.S.  I tried to sent this blog out last night, but the internet failed me. So this AM I am at breakfast and seems to be working now for another try. I have leave for the airport in 45 minutes, so going to rush this trough. Not sure how many pictures I will be able to get downloaded. Thanks for your patience. :)

 

Happy Travels,

Don

 

 

Cannot imagine why they have issues with the power going out. Who could find the issue.

Found you a car Christine