Into Northern Laos

  Muang Khua, Lao Peoples Dem Rep
Sunday, March 23, 2008

After a day of recovery from the dusty trip to Dien Bien Phu I buy a ticket across the border to Muang Khua, Lao Peoples Democratic Republic, a small village on the Nam Ou river. The following morning I again find myself in a dark bus station looking for the bus to a distant destination with people and other creatures I've yet to meet.

Dien Bien Phu bus station at 5AM

I catch the bus at 5:30AM and begin to climb the jungle covered mountain range which separates the two countries. As we climb the temperature begins to drop.

Climbing to the border

Near the top are the Vietnamese and Laotian border control crossings. The first thing I notice is that Laos provides VISA on entry and at a price of $25 vs. $45 in Hanoi!! The crossing officials see little activity so I'm good entertainment and so are they. They were willing to take my photo but were unwilling to have theirs taken. At the Laos side one of the officers was educated at the Leycee in Vientiane and speaks excellent French.

Old American at the border

My bus mates were a bit shy but a few brave souls were willing. It's always important to ask permission!!

Busmates

The women are wearing traditional Hmong dress I think. There are so many ethnic groups I can't keep track.
After a very relaxed border crossing we lumber down the hillside toward Muang Khua on a road that is no longer paved fording deep streams and passing through indigenous villages with pigs, chickens and dogs running everywhere.

Village and People

Coming through a village

After 3 hrs of bouncing around with my mobile family we arrive at the Nam Ou river crossing where the ferry has broken down. There are however long boats ferrying people, animals and possessions across the swiftly flowing river.

Ferry at Mong Khua

I make my way across and find a guest house called Nam Ou overlooking the river.

I find a cheap guest house.

"Homeland Security" quickly arrives and checks my papers.

I am quickly checked by "Homeland Security".

I have no "Kip" (Lao money) and the village is closed. But as with most things the attitude is "no problem". The bank will be open tomorrow. I can't get away anyway. So I settle in for the evening. Soon two bicyclists (a young couple from Berkeley) who have been touring Thailand, Vietnam and Laos show up. I remember passing them on the way down from the border crossing. What a treat to speak some English!
I plan to catch a boat down river tomorrow to the village of Nong Khiaw which is said to be in an idillic setting surrounded by limestone peaks. However the following day I find that boats may not go as there are not enough people to share the cost. After waiting most of the morning I realize I must take the bus. Nuts!! At 12:30PM I catch the local bus with the "usual suspects" and make the 4 hour ride to Udomxai and change to another going to Pak Mong. Nong Khiaw is 15km beyond Pak Mong (the end of the line)but the driver stays with a friend there and takes me the rest of the way! What a kind thing to do. I come to find that this sort of consideration is typically Lao.