The Wanderings of busman7

VIP (Very Ineptly Planed) this is what some sadistic moron did when he designed the “sleeper bus” which is basically a sardine can on wheels with a bunch of  double-decked “cages” each holding 2 90 lb Asians sitting or laying down possibly in somewhat tolerable conditions. However for anyone else it gives new meaning to, know your bunk-mate! Will definitely never ever again ride 0n one of these moronic, asinine abortions!

Just to top off the experience the air compressor on the bus decided toll pack it in a couple hrs short of  Paxse & by the time a replacement bus showed up 3 hrs later we had missed the connection to Dontet but a pickup ride to the office resulted in a full+ refund then a ride to the local bus station got us a bus (2 ton truck with seats on the side & cargo in the middle) COOL!! Resulting in meeting a really nice girl from Toronto & a cool Finn who checked out the guest house situation while I relaxed with a Brit couple having a Beerlao! Resulting in a basic bungalow (bed, fan, squat toilet + cold water shower) for $5.OO cad/night think will chill here for a while then head for Vietnam. Bungalow also includes a front porch complete with hammock where when one awakes in the middle of the night you can lie listening to a gentle shower falling on the steel roof, pretty nice for January, just couldn’t resist that last bit.

OK been chilling for a few days recharging my  batteries, catching up on my reading & playing Devils Advocate on a thread on Dos Centavos where I just caught a poster contradicting his whole premise but of course he will try to change horses in mid-stream for about the 4th time & deny it!!

Took a long walk/hike today around Don Det then across the old railway bridge, of the only rail road the French ever built in Laos to Don Khon another one of the 4000 Islands along this stretch of the Mekong (a whole lot nicer than the St Lawrence’s 1000 Islands around Gananoque.

Guess any traveler can’t go wrong bucket listing Laos with the slow boat, Vang Vieng & the 4000 Islands a must, if you are into cities take in Vientiane, the capitol & maybe Paxse which J chose to bypass. Like Montreal & QC the French cultural influence plays a part in making for an enjoyable trip.

Have my bus ticket (nonsleeper) for the 24 hr trip to Hue Vietnam Sunday, wanted to take the boat to Pakse but it’s dry season & the river is too low or as the ticket seller said “the rocks are too high” & the adventure continues!!

This entry was posted on Friday, January 22nd, 2010 at 22:20 and is filed under Travel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.