Category Motorbike
Many of the people I’ve met on this trip seem to be masters of the ancient mystical art of hanging out as they get stuck in places for days. I am but an amateur of the art, and after staying a few days in one city I start to feel restless. So, eye healed and the major sights of Luang Prabang ticked off from the list, I set out towards Vang Vieng. I was there back in 2009 so didn’t have to come back but I wanted to see how much has changed since then. You see, back then Vang … Read the rest
It’s like I’m not in Laos anymore, the mountains are still green but they are covered in grass rather than jungle. Here and there dark grey, almost black cliffs shoot up, bare rock against the blue sky. The lower slopes are covered in a kind of tall grass with white plumes at the top that makes it look like some giant has shaken out an old feather pillow over the hills.… Read the rest
My next goal was Luang Prabang, northwest of Phonsavan. It’s a fair distance between the two and I had heard that the roads were bad so I was expecting a long and arduous journey. Turns out that the road was one of the best I’ve been on in Laos so far and I was able to go relatively fast. It still took me the whole day to get there, but I could stop as often as I wanted and didn’t need to stress.
Just a few shots along the way
After checking in I went for a short walk before … Read the rest
I’ve been doing a lot of riding the last few days and I didn’t really want to spend yet another day on the bike but I had to reach my next goal, Phonsavan. The road was better than the one from the border but still not up to Vietnamese standards; it shows that Laos is a much less developed country.
Well, I’m kind of getting tired of riding and, strangely enough, bored with the scenery, even if it is very beautiful. I guess I just want a bit more variation. Because of this, and the incessant drizzle, I didn’t take … Read the rest
I’ve made it! It took me three border crossings, four days and several hundred kilometers on the bike but im finally in Laos and I managed to get my motorbike across too. Sure the weather is bad, sure the road is bumpy, but I don’t care, all that matters is that I made it.… Read the rest
I’m on a small road running along a ledge above the river, jungle clad mountains sloping down towards the greenish brown water. The road curves it’s way forward, following the flow of the water. Normally it wouldn’t be possible to ride at significant speed on this kind of road, but it’s just straight enough and I’m pushing 75 kilometers an hour. This kind of speed on this kind of road is exhilarating, I let out a shriek of joy.… Read the rest
The light is fading fast; the sky, though free of clouds, is not as bright blue as it was a few minutes ago, and the road lays in shadow. I take a quick glance in the rear view mirror, see the road unfold behind me and in the distance, the hazy outline of the city with the mountains behind it. And there, over the silhouetted peaks, the sky is blazing orange, shifting into pink at the edges. It’s only a glimpse, I have to turn my eyes back to the road, but for a moment I feel a kind of … Read the rest
The good thing with not making any plans is that you have the freedom to do what you want. The bad thing about not planning is that you can get into trouble which is exactly what has happened now. My idea was to ride down to Dien Bien Phu and cross the border to Laos from there. The night before leaving Sapa I googled for a bit and found out that it might not be possible to bring the motorbike across at Dien Bien Phu but that information was at least a year old and I figured things might have … Read the rest
I’ve been riding through the mist and drizzle all day and then, just as I reach the highest point of the pass, I spot a patch of blue sky up above. Moments later, the whole sky opens up and I can see for miles, the mountains rising into the mists on all sides, the slopes down towards the valley below clad in verdant green against the clear blue sky. In the middle of this stunning vista is a sea of clouds, pristine white foam lapping the mountain sides… What a view.… Read the rest
There is a highway connecting Hanoi with Lao Cai, the city closest to Sapa, which could get us there in about five hours. I knew we couldn’t get on the highway with the motorbike but looking at Google maps I saw a normal road that looked to be more or less next to it. I figured with a few stops along the way we could get there in maybe six or seven hours; a long ride but not impossible.
It was quite chaotic getting out of Hanoi but eventually we made it without too much trouble. Out on the main … Read the rest