The Overnight train from Laos to Thailand

The trip was quite enjoyable compared to the 17 hour train ride from hell. The pictures along the way were pretty interesting though so I decided to share. 

I sat here wondering how this was a sleeper train...

Turns out each pair of chairs across from each other turn into bunk beds. 

Arriving in Bangkok

Savannakhet Motorcycle Loop

This loop felt like the little brother of the Thakhek loop. It offered some amazing views of its own as well.

Brand new motorcycle! Much better than what I had before.

First stop in the morning of my ride. Nice collection of small waterfalls.

Little pathway leading to the largest waterfall. 

Farmers preparing the fields for the next season.

Why thank you!

Savannakhet

After departing from Thakhek I found myself in Savannakhet, another small town in Laos. I set about touring with a rented bicycle and managed to cover almost the whole town in a day. 

You'll notice the yellow signs all the way down the road. This is for Beer Lao, the biggest product being made in Laos. Beer Lao is to Laos as Pepsi or Coke is to restaurants in America. 

Building being built out of recycled beer bottles. 

Place of worship. 

Guarding the doors.

 After riding around for the day, I learned of another motorcycle adventure that could be had out of Savannakhet and I jumped on it. This time around, I ended up on a brand new motorcycle and managed to avoid 3 inch long nails. 

Thakhek Part 2

Main street of the city. There wasn't much going on.

Town center. Not much going on here either.

"What a shit hole (Thakhak) but do "the loop" only reason to come to this God forsaken town." I guess it's a good thing I decided to do the loop. 

"The Loop." 360 mile loop starting at the south west intersection near Thakhek, then counter-clockwise starting at Route 12. The loop is dotted with many caves to explore. The great thing about being on a motorcycle is having complete freedom to choose when and where to stop. 

This is the typical view for most of the ride. Took this just after leaving Thakhek.

Thakhek

I arrived in Vientiane, the capital and felt completely alone and very lonely. This city seemed to be filled with mostly bars and restaurants, activities usually enjoyed by groups. I had to get out and decided that the next day I would get on a bus and leave to the next stop. I took out the map and tried to figure out whether I wanted to do a northern loop in the country or travel directly south. I had read a lot about each place and remembered that Thakhek had something cool to offer and so I purchased myself a ticket and arrived there the next night.

I found myself a hotel and headed out to get something to eat for dinner. I decided now would be a good time to figure out what to do next. I read through the Wikitravel article on Thakhek and realized the single reason people come to this town is to do a 360 mile motorcycle loop through the jungle. I had two options, get back on the bus and head somewhere else or learn how to operate a motorcycle. I opted for the latter and picked adventure over wussing out.  

I inquired at my hotel where I could go about getting a motorcycle  The attendant said he could have his friend there early in the morning with a motorcycle. I retired to bed and woke up early to get started learning how to ride a motorcycle. The man showed up and he gave me a five minute lesson and then tossed me the keys. 

At this point I assessed the state of the bike. Various parts of it were falling apart or already broken. I remembered from months ago, reading a blog about the motorcycle loop and how the guy had a broken odometer and indicated its value. If I was recalling correctly, I was now sitting on the same bike with the same broken odometer value. The rental price for the bike was $8 a day so I couldn't exactly complain about the state of the bike. 

I grabbed a few key articles of clothing and other necessities from my big backpack, filled up the gas tank(with a broken gas gauge), and headed off for mile one of the journey.