The Quiet Capital.

We stepped out into Vientiane and were totally amazed that the airport was almost deserted. Finally after changing some money we caught a taxi to our pre-booked hotel. The airport was not far from the city, so we were there in less than ten minutes. Our hotel was an old renovated building at the river front with huge rooms and a lovely pool – so it was a nice spot to spend New Years at. After settling in, we started exploring the city and immediately noticed that this capital was different than other capitals in Southeast Asia: not a lot of traffic, only few tuk-tuks, some motorbikes and cars which all drove very orderly & slow. Nothing compared to busy and bustling cities like Bangkok or Ho Chi Minh City … The Mekong river is flowing languidly along the board walk, which is almost finished with the refurbishment (to give the city a flashier look). Some buildings along the river front are still in pretty bad shape though.

The inner part of Vientiane is a bit more lively. The area around the bus station is probably the busiest place in town. Vientiane is also not as large as other cities and therefore everything can be reached by foot, though travellers tend to rent bicycles or motorbikes, to get around faster. “PVO Motorcycle Rental” on Norkeokumman Road has good bikes to rent and allows driving anywhere in Laos as well (this is where we rented our motorbikes). You have to leave your passport but that’s no problem because no one is going to want to see it (unlike for example in India) when travelling through Laos.

As Laos was once French territory, it’s easy to find shops selling wine and champagne (which was lovely for New Years). You’ll find a lot of different restaurants serving all kind of food in down town Vientiane. We opted for local cuisine – why eat Sushi in Laos? – and found an extraordinary little restaurant called “Lao Kitchen” in Rue Hengboun close to Lao National Culture Hall. This place serves authentic Lao food and has a very very pleasant ambience – highly to recommend!

Street Markets Ahoy.

The market behind the American Embassy sell a lot of curiosities: antiques, animal parts like rhino horns or  tiger claws. We were a bit suspicious if these were fakes but who knows … if there is a demand, it could be. In that case, poor animals! At the wet market in Vientiane you’ll find different kinds of strange food like bush meat , toads, frogs and snakes. You can also buy them the “take-away version”. There’s definitely plenty to explore here.

With our rented motorbikes we drove to the Buddha Park, which is a sculpture array about 25 km Southeast of Vientiane. The statues are made of concrete and often have a religious theme … some are really bizarre with a labyrinth inside the structure which you can follow until you find your way to the highest outlook.

In the evening a night market opens along the riverbank and on the street side lots of food stalls open their kitchen, offering all sorts of yummy food. Some places even have mattresses where you can lay down and eat your meal while lying – this was not ours though …

And one more thing that should be mentioned … all through our days in Vientiane, we hardly saw any beggars or homeless people. Of course there are some but a very educated Lao man told us that unless you are very very lazy, nobody in Laos needs to starve. There is enough for everyone and if you are bright and clever you can live a very good life in Laos. So maybe that’s why almost everybody has a smile on their face :)

If you want to read more about our motorbike adventure through Laos, please check out Part 1 and Part 2 of our trip.

A must visit monument in Vientiane: Pha That Luang Temple aka “The Golden Temple”.

Communist Laos has around 5 million Buddhists, who form roughly 70% of its population.

Early in the morning you will see several monks walking along the river bank of the Mekong river.

As slow as the Mekong river runs through Vientiane, life along its banks is.

When the Mekong runs low in Vientiane, the river banks are used as walkways.

Motorbiking through Laos was one of the best adventures ever. And as you can see, we had heaps of fun.

Goldsmiths can be found at the market in Vientiane just behind the American Embassy.

Selling goods at a market in Vientiane.

Finding grilled frogs at the markets in Vientiane is nothing uncommon.

Grilled fresh fish at a food stall in Vientiane.

Tonle Sap Lake is the largest freshwater lake in South East Asia and of great importance to Cambodia. It’s a bit more unusual than “normal” lakes: Its flow changes direction twice a year and the portion that forms the lake expands and shrinks dramatically with the seasons. This is why entire villages are dismantled due to the season and the waterline of the lake. Therefore most villages around the Great Lake have adjusted by living in so called “floating villages” on boats. They are home to a large Vietnamese & Cham community and they managed to adapt very well to the lake’s seasonal changes.

So, whether it’s the school or rubbish dump, living room or local store – the boat it not only the main transport system but also the grounding for every resident.

Chong Khneas is the name of famous floating village at the edge of the lake. It takes a 30-minute-car-ride  from Siem Reap to the boat dock where boats wait for visitors any given time of the day. The boat trip through the floating village takes approximately two hours. Be aware though, it’s total rip off! I’d never ever do it again, since this really is the worse I have ever experienced! Back when we visited the first time (over 10 years ago), the area wasn’t owned by a private company like today, therefore the floating village was still unique…sad to see what happened to this place!

Family life on Tonle Sap Lake. Five provinces circled the area of Tonle Sap Lake, more than three million of population inhabited around the bank of the Lake and 90% of them earn a living by catching fish and making agricultures.

Tonle Sap Lake is also an important commercial resource, providing more than half of the fish consumed in Cambodia.

Chong Khneas is the name of famous floating village at the edge of the lake. It locates at Southern part of Siem Reap town about 15 Km, and takes only 30 minutes by vehicles to the boat dock where there are always boats waiting for visitors. The boat trip through the floating village takes approximately two hours. Be aware, it’s TOTAL RIP OFF!

During rainy season from June to October, Tonle Sap Lake is filled by water flowing from the Mekong with 14 m in depth and expands the surface of 10.000 km2.

In dry season from November to May the size of Tonle Sap lake is 3.000 km2 with two meters in depth and water flows out from the Lake to the Mekong, in and out flowing is the natural phenomenon occurrences.

Chong Khneas was very interesting before, but now region is owned by private firm they increased the prices and the area looks very commercial.

The boat trip usually includes two stops: one at a touristy floating ‘fish and bird exhibition’ with a souvenir and snack shop, and the other at the Gecko Environment Centre, which offers displays and information introducing the ecology and biodiversity of the lake area.

During our first visit to Tonle Sap lake (over ten years ago), the floating village was still a really impressive sight. Today, it’s just a another tourist trap.

Unlike much of the Cambodian job opportunities, the income is also reliable, but life on the water is difficult. Fishermen sometimes travel two days to reach the middle of the lake and spend up to a week at a time out fishing. Large waves, limited food and dangerous conditions take their toll. The life expectancy of a fisherman is 54 years.

Because the water levels of Tonle Sap Lake differ so drastically in dry and rainy season, fishing families who make their living on the lake began living in floating villages which move with the changing water levels.

Tonle Sap Lake is so big, it can easily be mistaken for the ocean.

About 450 km – Travel time (suggested) at least 4 to 6 days.

We already arrived in Tha Khek by motorbike, but I can definitely suggest to rent a motorbike directly in Tha Khek (if you don’t have that much time). Mr. Ku from the Tha Khek Travellodge – situated about a few 100 meters from the roundabout direction Eastwards on the left side with only a small sign – is the right man for motorbikes. The lodge is a pleasant hotel, with big rooms and a garden, despite the industrial area surrounding it.

After spending a night in Tha Khek, dining at one of the nice restaurants along the Mekong river and visiting the big market with all sorts of strange food, our journey started north-bound from the roundabout.

Ready, Set, Go!

The paved road was excellent and you can visit a few caves (at km 15 is a very large one) along the way. We didn’t get very far because right at km 12 to the right was – without sign – the German run Green Climbers Lodge crossed our way.  This is an absolutely stunning place with pleasant stilt bungalows, a cave in the back, a swimming hole, great food and the opportunity for people (who know how to do it) to climb up the karst walls. Keep in mind that it’s only open from September to March, due to flooding.

We stayed the night and left early next morning. We were told that the entire way to Konglor was paved but we still wanted to have buffer just in case. Turns out that we needed that buffer, since the road isn’t paved all the way. Still, it was a smooth drive up to Nakai where we passed a weird looking landscape due to the building of a giant dam. It left us wondering if this was really the right thing for an otherwise beautiful jungle area. Villages were relocated and are now neatly arranged 50 meters in the back of the tarmac road, one house near the other.  It’s interesting to drive through these villages (most tourists don’t bother to do so). The kids loved it and we were happy to shoot some great photos with us. There was no screaming for pens or lollies (like in other parts of Asia) because people here seem to have enough. We were told that nobody in Laos starves and if you are smart you can achieve a lot…

Here’s part 2 of our motorbiking trip through Laos.

Motorbiking the Loop in Laos.

Ready, set, go! The Loop in Laos would would be one of our great motorbike adventures of the year.

Bugs (Lethocerus), frogs & other dead animals can be found at the markets in Laos.

The vegetable at the markets in Laos looks really fresh (& it tastes amazing too).

The Green Climbers Lodge in Laos is a beautiful place to spend the night.

For this kind of climbing in Laos, you should know what you’re doing…

Dam building leaves strange-looking areas in great parts of Laos.

Dam building for electricity supplies leaves this behind…

The kids in Nakai village were happy to pose for us.

We stayed in Bangkok just a couple of days before the flood hit the city. We were pretty disappointed with the weather but I guess after all were lucky in the end. The flood has been described as “the worst flooding yet in terms of the amount of water and people affected“. The area which was severely hit in Thailand was Chao Phraya but also in the Mekong River basin. Beginning in late July and continuing for over two months, the floods have caused over 500 deaths in Thailand (250 in Cambodia, 43 in Vietnam, 34 in Laos) & affected over 2.3 million people.  58 Thai provinces were hit by the flood, from Chiang Mai in the North to the capital city of Bangkok near the mouth of the Chao Phraya.

As I already said above, we actually experienced the heavy rain ourselves during our travels to India & Koh Kood Island in Thailand. I mean honestly, the weather is crazy all over the globe and sometimes it almost seems like the world is coming to an end. It feels like it’s getting worse every year…but maybe I’m just beginning to be paranoid.

Bangkok started getting ready for the flood while we were there…

Our entire resort on Koh Kood island was under water…

It was raining cats & dogs for three days in a row…