Mekong River Views

My final day in Cambodia was spent at Stung Treng, on arrival I ride around the busy town market area before settling on a hotel for the night. It is the Cambodia / Laos New Year holiday period and over the next three (3) days roads are busy with people heading to their home Provinces for family celebrations. I pass utilities and minivans that are packed with people, luggage, scooters and who knows what else, and if it won't fit in the vehicle, no problem just strap it to the roof, boot lid, or tail gate.

 

 

 

I was up early the following morning, packed and ready for another border crossing. On arrival at the Cambodia Immigration check point my passport was stamped out, the Customs booth was next, my Carnet form was complete with efficiency, enabling the exportation of my motorcycle and I am good to go. A quick ride across no mans land had me at Laos Immigration, a visa on arrival was issued promptly, then I ride two (2) kilometre's down the road to a Police check point, where I fill in a form, details are entered on a computer, a printed copy is handed to me, and again I am good to go, does not get much easier than entering Laos.

 

My destination for the day is the small town of Champasak, with a mountain range back drop and Mekong River frontage my first impressions are good, but first I have to ride up onto a small vehicle barge to cross the Mekong from Muang to Champasak.

 

 

 

 

 

I was thankful the barge I was on was slightly more substantial than the one we passed mid river.

 

After an early hotel check in I spend the afternoon walking the grounds of the nearby Wat Phu (temple). It is during my ride to and from the temple I become aware of one part of Laos New Years celebrations, drenching passing vehicle occupants with water. Local residents use a hose from a tap or set up water filled drums on the road edge, then using smaller buckets, containers, and water pistols, passing ute's, scooters or any other form of open transportation is bombarded with water. Needless to say I was wet through on arrival at the temple and wet through again on arrival back at the hotel, it was not an unpleasant or annoying experience and drying out was pretty quick due to the 38 degree temperatures at this time of year.

 

 

 

 



With my first impressions proved correct and as picturesque Champasak was, the following morning I made tracks early because I had a long day's ride ahead of me to reach Tha Khaek. I'd received an email from Terence during the night, he was in Pakse, he'd ridden a long day and passed me while I was in Champasak. With no idea where in Pakse he was, I thought the chance of seeing him was slim, but due to a wrong turn on my behalf as I entered Pakse, and a breakfast excursion on Terence's behalf, we ran into each other. So once Terence was packed we set off together for the ride to Tha Khaek.

 

After both of us received multiple water drenching's throughout the day we reached Tha Khaek late afternoon. The New Years party mood had also reached a new level with road side party groups dressed in colour and motif coordinated T shirts, dancing, singing and drenching passing traffic to music at maximum volume through speaker stacks that would put a heavy metal band concert to shame, it would be s a long night for sum and a longer day recovery for others judging by the party atmosphere.

 

After settling into hotel accommodation, Terence and I ventured out on to the streets for a BBQ meal and to partake in some festive activities, including drinking beer containing ice cubes, which is the preferred method of consumption in Laos.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Up and packed early again the following morning, I was heading North to Vientiane and Terence was heading East for his own adventure in Vietnam. We bid each other safe travels, snap a few photos and went our separate ways.

 

 

 

My 355 kilometre ride to Vientiane took just over five (5) hours, as I arrived at my chosen central Vientiane accommodation I became aware it only had street parking for my motorcycle, the very helpful staff ensured me this was not a problem, pointing out a movable timber ramp that provide access up the front  steps and into the hotel foyer for safe and secure overnight motorcycle storage.

 

My two day stay in Vientiane was spent wandering the streets and visiting tourist attractions including Patuxai Monument, Phu That Luang Temple, Wat Si Saket and Haw Pha Kaew Temple.

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As with most of the other Laos towns I visited, Vientiane was also situated on the banks of the Mekong River, while it is home to many beautiful colonial buildings and structures, Vientiane's river front setting was not as dominant, nor provided the photographic back drop to the city as experienced in other river front towns in Laos.

 

Departure from Vientiane had me heading to Northern Laos. On the way I stopped for lunch at Vang Vieng, then crossed a mountain pass high enough for a relieving temperature fluctuation of 15 degrees, with the base of mountain temperature of 38 degrees plummeting to a cool 23 degrees  at the mountain top. As I reached the mountain base on the other side the temperature quickly rose back to 38 degrees and it stayed that way as  I rode into Luang Prabang, finishing a six (6) hour ride day. 

 

Luang Prabang is a pretty town, the Mekong River frontage, the delightful colonial buildings, temples, and forested mountain back drop have you reaching for your camera at every turn. I spend a relaxing four (4) days in Luang Prabang, walking the streets, visiting sites including the Royal Palace Museum, the Royal Palace Car Collection housing two Lincoln Continentals among other vehicles, That  Chomsi, Wat Than Phu Si and Wat Phu Phutthabaht.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The town night market provided nutritious good value meals with a plate full of buffet delights including rice, noodles, and mixed vegetables for about $1.20 and a BBQ chicken breast for about another $1.20 or a BBQ sausage for about $0.50.

 



 

 

Back on the road I headed North to go South, the only supposedly decent road that got me where I was going required a bit of a diversion, and that diversion included possibly the worst and the best roads I have ridden on throughout my adventure. The road North out of Luang Prabang was pretty run of the mill, I reached Pak Mong and turned West, that began eighty (80) kilometres of rough dirt road, rocky, pot holed, watered down mud and slush, it had it all, several hours later I was relieved to reached Udomxai, turn South and enjoy the relatively new Chinese built road that provided shear motorcycle riding pleasure, twisty hill passes, sweeping corners, and long flat stretches on wide line marked tarmac. The road conditions stayed like that all the way to Luang Nam Tha, where I checked into a nice little guest house for a one night stay, ate fried rice and a big chunk of pork rib including the crackle for dinner and rested up for the next mornings easy ride on the same great road South for another border crossing into Northern Thailand and then on to Chiang Rai.

Eighth Wonder

Crossing the border into Cambodia was pretty straight forward with the correct paperwork, a Carnet is required for foreign motor vehicles, though if you don't have a Carnet just skip the Customs office and continue on your way, no problem. I have a Carnet so exiting Thailand and entering Cambodia took me about ninety (90) minutes with all the correct paperwork completed and place.

On my motorcycle I now swap the left side of the road for the right side of the road, motor vehicles are left hand drive and car drivers are noticeably a little more crazy. On a two lane road, approaching traffic can be three abreast with a car passing a another car while both are passing a motorcycle, I have to move on to the dirt shoulder of the road to avoid a head on, this is standard practise. Riding a motorcycle in South East Asia requires concentration at all times, if it's not the on coming vehicles, its the lunatic passing from behind at 140 kilometres per hour allowing little space between us, or the dog, cow, goat, chicken, or pig crossing the road. Probably my closest call is an oncoming 4 wheel drive vehicle passing a bus while rounding a tight blind corner with forward view blocked by a hill cutting on both sides of the road, I was well into the corner before the 4 x 4 came into view, it's the only time on this trip my heart has skipped a beat.

Cambodia is home to the eighth wonder of the world, The Temples of Angkor. I based myself in the nearby town of Seim Reap for four (4) days while taking in the sites. Rather than ride and navigate myself around in 38 degree heat I choose to relax and take in the views in an open air trailer towed by a motor scooter which is known as a Tuk Tuk.

 

There is no greater concentration of architectural riches anywhere on earth, all are global icons and have helped to put Cambodia on the map as the temple capital of Asia. The hundreds of temples surviving today are the scared skeleton of the vast ancient Khmer empire. Angkor was a city with a population of one million when London was a small town of 50,000.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After two days strolling around the temples of Angkor I'm back on my bike for the ride to Kompong Cham and a one night stay. During the afternoon I ride to the nearby island of Koh Paen via a temporary bamboo bridge, the bridge is dismantled for the duration of the wet season then reassembled for dry season access. Riding across the bridge on my two hundred (200) plus kilogram motorcycle was a bit freaky, providing the sensation of riding with flat tyres, I was glad to get back on terra firma.



 



 

 

During my travels my evening meal usually consists of some sort of food cooked at a temporary night market stall, sitting at a wobbly table on a plastic stool, Kompong Cham to my detriment was the exception, I dinned on a tasty Khmer curry at a touristy restaurant. Through the night, at about 1.30 am I wake with the almighty feeling of my stomach contents wanting to exit my body, and I was not sure which orifice the contents desired to exit, so at that moment and at regular intervals through the remainder of the night I visited the WC porcelain bowl, while lets just say my body attempted to cleans its self of said dodgy curry. That curry would haunt me for the following week or so, needless to say it was back to the trusty street food after that. No time to sit still and recover though, so bread and jam or plain rice for breakfast blocked me up and allowed me to ride the day with confidence, in this situation its all about managing what and when you eat and staying hydrated.

 

Kratie is my next stop and what a busy little town it is, I walk the streets in the late afternoon, passing through the bustling street market, take in a sunset over the Mekong river, and eat sensational barbequed meats at a street stall.

 

 

 

 

After my rice, BBQ meat and mixed vegetable meal I'm walking back towards my motorcycle for the ride to my hotel when I notice a rider on the same F800 GSA motorcycle as I ride, I don't quite catch up on foot so I jump on my bike and head along the water front, soon enough the other F800 circles around in front of me and stops in the adjacent hotel forecourt, I also stop and introduce myself to Terence, a Singaporean guy travelling Indochina as a warm up to his world tour starting in 2015, we sit and talk over a drink, exchange contact details and agree to catch up in the coming days.

 

Another day dawns, and with another destination to reach I hit the road for a short ride before I stop to rehydrate at a section of the Mekong known to be home to the critically endangered freshwater Irrawaddy dolphins.

 

 

 

A popular day retreat for the locals, well set up with bamboo huts, food and drink stalls and bamboo bridges providing access to swimming holes, I snap a few photos, enquire about dolphin sightings, I am told the dolphins are not about, so I keep going to my destination Stung Treng for one last night in Cambodia before another border crossing to my next adventure destination Laos.



 

 

Hot and Dry

Leaving Malaysia and entering Thailand was very quick and efficient, a quick stop at the Malaysian Immigration booth to have my Passport stamped had me cleared to leave, another quick stop at Customs to complete the exportation section of my Carnet de Passage had my motorcycle cleared to leave. I then moved on to the Thailand side of the border, where I filled out a form at the Immigration booth, received a 15 day entry stamp in my Passport and then proceeded to the Customs booth, presented my motorcycle registration certificate and received back a printout to sign guaranteeing I will export the bike or pay a big fine. So within about twenty minute I was now heading to Hat Yai, Thailand for an overnight stop.

The following day I ride kilometres of newly completed four lane roads in temperatures nudging 38 degrees Celsius. I expected hot, dry weather and during this seasonal build up to the wet season, that is what I got. Reaching Krabi mid afternoon, I walked along the river front, before a quick long tail boat ride had me walking in nearby caves set within angular limestone karsts amongst the river mangroves.

 

 

 

 

After a pleasant breakfast overlooking the river in Krabi, I was back on the road for another hot yet shorter ride day, within a couple of hours I arrived at the touristy beach town of Koh Lak.

 

 

As I made my way through Thailand I had overnight stops at both Chumphon and Hua Hin, before riding North West of Bangkok to the town of Kanchanaburi. After one night in Kanchanaburi I leave my bike in the care of Guesthouse staff and catch a mini bus to Bangkok for four (4) days of sight seeing as well as applying for two visa's I will need in the coming months. Bangkok is a big bustling city, I choose a river ferry for a more relaxed mode of transportation to enjoy some of Thailand most historic and holy sites, including the Grand Palace, Wat Phra Kaew and Wat Phra Chetuphon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Within walking distance of my Bangkok hotel I visit Patpong night markets where knock off designer goods are the speciality amid Bangkok's night club and red light district.

 

After successful completion of business in Bangkok I was back on the mini bus for a three hour drive back to Kanchanaburi for a more sombre sight seeing tour, I visit the Bridge on the River Kwai (aka Death Railway Bridge) and the Chung Kai Allied War Cemetery. I also visit numerous temples including Wat Tham Khao Noi and Tham Seua. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Leaving the relaxed river side setting of the Sugar Cane Guest House 2 Kanchanaburi I was back on my motorcycle and headed to Thailand's heartland, the central regions fabled and fallen city of Ayutthaya. Today the ruins of the old city survive amid a modern provincial town.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  With only a couple of days left on my visa I ride to the very dusty and busy border town of Aranaprateth for an overnight stay before I cross into may next adventure destination Cambodia.