December 30, 2024 – Champasak day ride – 30 kms day ride – Anouxa Riverview Guesthouse
December 31, 2024 Champasak day ride – 32 kms day ride – Anouxa Riverview Guesthouse
January 1, 2025 – Champasak to Km 32 on Paksong road – 64 kms – Sabaidee Valley Resort
January 2, 2025 – Km 32 to Tatlo – 85 kms – Palamei Guesthouse
January 3, 2025 – Tatlo to Phethamdy Nammakhod Guesthouse – 56 kms
Gordon: We have spent the past few days going up and over the Bolaven Plateau. This is an oval highland area about 100 kms wide on the long axis. It rises 1000 metres above the surrounding land; at 1200 to 1300 metres it is 5 degrees cooler than the lowlands, making it a pleasant cycling environment.
The agricultural potential of the Bolaven was recognized by the French colonial government. It was planted in coffee plantations starting in the 1920s, a product which is still the major money spinner in the area. Other cooler weather crops such as apples and strawberries are also grown.
The Bolaven was identified as a strategic area during the Vietnam War, and as a consequence the Americans dropped a staggering amount of ordinance on the Plateau in the Secret War. The area is still littered with UXO, and we saw one house that used a cluster bomb casing as a structural element.
We passed a large number of villages that appeared to be home to ethnic minority groups. Rather than concrete, almost everything was built with wood and rattan. While there appeared to be considerable prosperity in the region due to agriculture, the villages didn’t seem to be sharing in it.
Laos is considerably poorer than Thailand, with a per capita GDP of around $2000, versus about $8000 in Thailand. This is obvious in the infrastructure and, relevant to us, the availability and quality of the accommodation. Once a traveller departs from the tourist circuit, guesthouses are thin on the ground, and not always that attractive.
We have decided to head north from the Bolaven Plateau towards the Thakhek motorcycle circuit. We are moving along a little used road that is thankfully still paved. Ruth was just able to piece together enough probable accommodation, though some promises to be spartan. Today we were looking at a 80 km ride to a guesthouse that carried a lot of warnings on Google. Comments like: “Run away poor fool! Really, it’s the worst place I stayed in Laos”. We had the possibility of another place, but we weren’t sure if it existed. Imagine our delight when a sign appeared saying it was up ahead. Sure enough, we came across a very basic but functioning guesthouse. After checking in I wondered why it was shown in the wrong place on Pocket Earth and only had a sign in Lao characters. After a shower and a nap, we went up the road a kilometre to find the guesthouse we had been looking for. It was the same price as the grotty one ($12) and we immediately secured a room. Sometimes it’s nice to be rich enough to rent two hotel rooms for the same night.
Ruth: OMG I don’t think Gordon adequately described the first hotel. When the lodgings get a bit sketchy, my mantra is: at least it’s not wild camping.
This place we found was worse, much worse than the one we were trying to avoid. The suspected male prostitute who showed us the room giggling as he brought us water should have been a clue. The smoldering rubbish pile that the chickens were poking at was not the garden setting I had hoped for. I was prepared to spend the night, even after I saw the bathroom and even after Gord found a condom wrapper. After all, what choice did we have? We settled in and Gord had a nap while I tried not to touch anything. I think our stay there for a few hours was consistent with the normal usage.
By comparison, this very basic guest house feels like palace, even if it doesn’t have a bathroom sink.
Very rustic! Nice that you seem to be keeping your sense of humour and gathering some great memories and stories for when you return.
It has always struck me as a gift that time expands when you travel. I’m sure you have memories from every day on the Camino. We are indeed haya good trip and having many memorable experiences.
Ha, I love camping ⛺️. I love reading your travel blog, you write it so well that it is easy to imagine that I am sitting with you and listening to you slowly telling the story.
And the pictures are great as well.
Hugs!
Thanks, Ewa. I’m glad that you are enjoying the blog. I hope we get an opportunity this year to tell you some more stories in person. Like New Year’s Eve at a shadow puppet show, and how did a gecko get in the toilet? Hugs to you as well.
Looking forward to seeing you two in person. Hugs!
That was a bit confusing – two accounts that did not match. Nevermind. The pictures are marvelous and the water colour better.
Probably one of your best posts but things had to get sticky and maybe a bit hot and sweaty.
Intrepid travellers are you!! Great stories.
Great pictures…good luck & continue your amazing Adventure
We get less intrepid every year, but we do still push ourselves a little to take the path less travelled. I stand in awe of the resilience of some of our travelling friends, for whom any sort of hotel room would be a rare luxury. Glad you are enjoying the blog.
If you travel in Asia, you’re going to have a guesthouse story. I once stayed in one that was literally a dugout in the side of a hill. Nice landlady. Four horrified guests.
Your story sounds like a much better one than ours. The pace of change and the rising standards in SE Asia are surprising. You would probably be hard pressed to find a dugout guesthouse now.