Last Days

Day 21 & 22 - We headed back into Thailand over the newly built Thai Lao Friendship Bridge #3 between Thakhek, Laos and Nakhom Phanom, Thailand and spent a very long day riding about 550kms to Chum Phae (Where little Chris's house is). We stayed the night at the Major Grand Hotel in Chum Phae which was quite modern and basic but nice rooms.

We woke up the next day to pack the bikes up for their last day of the tour. Today we ride back to Chiang Mai to return the bikes relatively unscathed to Reed. It was a long day at just over 500Kms with lots of mountain and some patchy but heavy rain along the way (Of course over the slippery mountain roads as luck would have it). We road on the highways back via Phitsanulok and Uttaredit before crossing the mountains at Lampang and arriving back in Chiang Mai just as it was going dark. We checked into Le Meridian Hotel in Chiang Mai right across the road from our old favourite Centara Duangtawan and we found Le Meridian was alot newer and fresher than the Centara but of course carries a higher price tag. We stayed there for the next 2 nights before returning home with a 23hr stop over in Singapore.

As mad as we are, we decided to hire bikes in Singapore for the 23hrs we were there. Staying at the Crown Plaza Changi Airport Hotel we caught a taxi to the bike rental place (Not easy to hire in Singapore it turns out) and we picked up our 400cc Yamaha Naked bikes and cruised around singapore for the day visiting Raffles and the Botanical Gardens among other things and some shopping :)

On the way back to the Gold Coast we upgraded our seats to Business class and had a lovely sleep on the overnight trip home. Definately recommend trying to upgrade at the airport when you arrive, if the seats are available they aren't that expensive :P

Thanks for reading our blog, apologies it was a bit light and late on content towards the end but it has taken us some time to get around to finishing the last part of the holiday off.

Stay tuned for our next adventure in Nov 2013 back to Laos to Ride for Good Causes! Choo ai nip noi

Day 20 - Ho Chi Minh Trail Ride

Day 20 - We headed off towards the trails and the most bombed part of Laos (Most bombed place on earth). On the way we stopped at a SAM Missile site and had some Breakfast before pressing on to the trails. Riding the Ho Chi Minh trails was absolutely amazing and such an experience for two relatively new off road riders :). During the day David managed to flip off of his bike and into some bushes when he rode into a rut in the trail he couldn't see due to Chris's dust cloud ahead. Thankfully David and the KLX were both relatively unscathed so we pressed on through the trails towards our rest stop a couple of dozen km's ahead. On the way we also stopped to say hello and chat with some MAG Volunteers. These people have the dangerous task of clearing the land of UXO (Unexploded Ordinance) and god bless them they had stopped for a wee lunch break. Later we rode up to the Vietnamese Border at the Mu Gui pass which was a stunning road and view before heading back to Thakhek for the night before heading back into Thailand the next day.

         

Day 19 - Ban Namsanam to Thakhek

Day 19 - We set off for some local caves and then back to the Hotel for a substantial lunch before heading for Thakhek some 180km's away. The road to Thakhek was a treat and was quite quick for most of the way. We arrived just after dark in Thakhek and found a nice air conditioned hotel to make our base for the next days trip to the Ho Chi Minh trails. After finding a nice but expensive Vietnamese restaurant where we got some lovely food (even though it wasn't what we thought we ordered) we returned for to the hotel for the night to update the blog and prepare for the following early days start.

     

Day 18 - Vientiane to Ban Namsanam (Sainamhai Resort)

Day 18 - We headed for Thakek and the Ho Chi Minh trails. Along the way Chris had his first road incident. A few seconds after doing an emergency stop to avoid hitting a 70 odd yr old lady who tried to cross the highway without looking, a Toyota Hilux was unable to stop, following too closely he ran into the back of Chris's bike stopped on the road. Thankfully it was only a nudge as the Hilux came to a stop but it pushed Big Chris into Little Chris and then Big Chris in slow motion put the bike down as it tipped to the right stepping off the bike to the side of the road. No injury to Chris and as it turned out a slightly bent KLX frame, we said our peace to the driver and headed off to a fuel station just down the road where we stopped to collect our thoughts and come to terms with what could have been quite a painful and expensive prang. We were then full steam ahead towards the trails and after riding and close to 400kms for the day, we ended up finding  a random resort in the middle of nowhere which was absolutely amazing. Dinner at the hotel was simply amazing and the Owner, Mr Vongsamay Malibayphit came and shared a Beer Lao with us whilst he explained some of his past and what he has done in his town. He is an elderly gentleman who was part of the Vietnam war and remembers vividly having to flee from town to town when the USA were on their relentless war machine campaign trying to defend the world as they so love to do. (US Government of course not the US People). The owner is an amazing fellow and has setup a shop and purchases fabric for the local disabled children/people and poorer local families to create some very special crafts helping them to learn skills to support themselves and flourish as a community. Our friend Chris from the UK is also heavily into doing good for the Laos people and we have now made it our mission to contribute to this cause by raising money to provide education tools and clothing for those families less fortunate that ourselves. This was the absolute highlight of the trip and i feel very excited about having a contact here now that we can arrange to help people through. Unfortunately the kind of help that is provided by the International governments etc is not going to assist these people in any way at all any time soon and if anything will likely serve to only destroy the beautiful culture that exists everywhere in Laos. I cannot tell you how moved we were and excited to be able to share with others to help as this is such a worthwhile cause. If you would like to make a donation towards helping our good friend Chris from the UK in his honest and noble mission to help these wonderful people, you can donate visiting http://www.motorcycle-tours-laos.org/ . After a lovely evening chatting with Mr Vongsamay Malibayphit we retired for the night pending out trip towards Thakhek with some sightseeing on the way the next day.

    

         

Day 16 & 17 - Vang Vieng to Vientiane

Days 16 & 17 - We arrived in Vientiane early afternoon after a midway stop at a restaurant where we apparently ate brain soup. Whilst David finished his brains, after we realised what it was i decided to stop eating. Arriving in Vientiane at the Salana Boutique resort and spa we checked into our room only to be booted out 30mins later for the hotel to be fogged for mosquitos. After a trip to the night markets and some drinks at the Bor Penyang Bar (Your Welcome Bar) overlooking the mekong across to thailand we retired for the evening. After some discussions over a Long Island Ice tea and a Singapore Sling we decided to Join Chris and head south to Thakhek in Laos and ride some of the Ho Chi Minh trails. The next day we explored Vientiane and found another hotel as our one was full for the next night and went to renew our insurance for the extended stay in Laos. Conveniently not mentioning that we were planning to ride the Ho Chi Minh trail :P. We then checked into our New Hotel for the night which was the Green Park Boutique Resort. The only room left was a Grand Executive Suite with 2 bedrooms and looked to be amazing. Unfortunately the price coupled with a dodgy bath/shower in the Master Ensuite and no working Wifi Internet we felt rather ripped off. After some stern words the following morning prior to heading for Thakhek with the Manager they offered us a measly 10% discount which i took and then politely explained that their excellent rating on Trip Advisor will be somewhat tainted after i share our views on the lack of value for money.

Day 14 & 15 - Luang Prabang to Vang Vieng to Vientiane

Days 14 & 15 - Heading for Vang Vieng. On the day we left we fueled up the bikes and tapped in GPS Directions for Vang Vieng for our next stop. As we had not clarified the route UK Chris took, we opted to trust google and instead of the main road to Vang Vieng (Route 13),we followed Google Maps out to Route 4 which goes out West before heading south and meeting up with Route 13 just west of Vang Vieng. This has to be one of the most amazingly breathtaking roads and views we have ever encoutered, thank you Google :). After a very picturesque day on the road we ended up in Vang Vieng early afternoon to check into the Vang Vieng Riverside Boutique resort, yet another beautiful resort. After a swim in the riverside pool we headed for dinner in the town at the Peeping Som's BBQ Restaurant. The next day we putted around town and explored the interesting sights. Unfortunately Chris became very ill with an upset stomach which was the first time for the holiday thus far. After about 24hrs stuck in the hotel feeling horrid we decided to head for Vientiane to meet up with Chris from the UK again at our next stop.