Vientiane, Laos - January 28, Thursday a.m.
From Bangkok, I took an overnight train to the Laotian border, across the river from the Laotian capital - Vientiane. The train was a non air conditioned 2nd class (my choice), was a 12-hour trip and cost 530 baht ($16.30). So that included my transportation and hotel room, and just like FIRST CLASS in an airplane, there was no shower, and the toilet was at the front of the car.
I love sleeping on trains, especially with the window open and the wind blowing through. At night, bedtime, the porters came and pulled down thick screens over the windows. You could not even see through them, but air flowed through it. This was to stop thieves from reaching in and grabbing a bag or whatever when the train stopped at stations.
The drawback to a non air conditioned car is - NOISE . At night when we would pass another train, it would sound like a tornado coming though my berth. Then in stations, it seemed every one we pulled into, the man with the PA system decided to make all his announcements while our train was in station! But I loved it all.
Getting off the train in Thailand I had to catch a bus to the Laos side, about a mile away. In Laos, I went to immigration, (I had gotten my visa in Bangkok for $30.00 at the Lao embassy there), and got checked into Laos. Then I went to the money changer for some Lao money. The exchange rate here is 8,450 KIP for one US Dollar, or 259 KIP for one Thai Baht.
Wanting to save my dollars as long as possible, I exchanged 1,000 baht, and I got 259, 350 KIP.
The denominations were 50,000, 20,000, 10,000, 2,000, 1,000. Needless to say, I got a handful of money, but the real problem was trying to convert cost in Kip to how much actual money that was in dollars!
I got a tut tut with 5 other Laotians to town, for 50 Baht ($1.50). All of them went to the central market, but my driver told me to stay in, and he would take me to my hotel. Okay, great I thought. Not thinking to ask how much for the next leg of this trip!!! ERROR.
When we got near where my hotel was - he had no idea. I asked how much. He said 75,000 kip!($8.87) ... now, how much is that I thought? and how does that stack up to 50 baht ($1.50) to the market?
Man, it's hard for me to think in situations like that, but I determined to at least try not to get ripped off too bad. A few minutes of negotiations where neither party involved understood the other party. I paid him 25,000 kip ($2.95), which was probably only a half dollar to a dollar too much. So I felt okay about that.
It was getting hot now, it was about 2 o'clock, (the train was 4 1/2 late) , so I went into the first hotel I saw, The Orchid Guesthouse. It was a very nice hotel - marble floors and teak wood walls and they had a room for $10.25 with fan, no air, and shared bath (down the hall).
I checked it out and was about to go somewhere else when I met two women (western) and one was flushed and hot and tired. I asked had they looked at other hotels, and they replied everyone was full! So.... I went down and took the room I had just looked at - no more questions. It is a good room - except it is on the 5th floor. They call it the 4th here... 53 steps up. My legs are burning when I get to my room. Free exercise gym.
For lunch, I had fried rice and vegetables - the usual. But there are a lot of western fare restaurants here.
oh yea, I finally got some photos up and out, they are below in previous blog.
All for now
I love sleeping on trains, especially with the window open and the wind blowing through. At night, bedtime, the porters came and pulled down thick screens over the windows. You could not even see through them, but air flowed through it. This was to stop thieves from reaching in and grabbing a bag or whatever when the train stopped at stations.
The drawback to a non air conditioned car is - NOISE . At night when we would pass another train, it would sound like a tornado coming though my berth. Then in stations, it seemed every one we pulled into, the man with the PA system decided to make all his announcements while our train was in station! But I loved it all.
Getting off the train in Thailand I had to catch a bus to the Laos side, about a mile away. In Laos, I went to immigration, (I had gotten my visa in Bangkok for $30.00 at the Lao embassy there), and got checked into Laos. Then I went to the money changer for some Lao money. The exchange rate here is 8,450 KIP for one US Dollar, or 259 KIP for one Thai Baht.
Wanting to save my dollars as long as possible, I exchanged 1,000 baht, and I got 259, 350 KIP.
The denominations were 50,000, 20,000, 10,000, 2,000, 1,000. Needless to say, I got a handful of money, but the real problem was trying to convert cost in Kip to how much actual money that was in dollars!
I got a tut tut with 5 other Laotians to town, for 50 Baht ($1.50). All of them went to the central market, but my driver told me to stay in, and he would take me to my hotel. Okay, great I thought. Not thinking to ask how much for the next leg of this trip!!! ERROR.
When we got near where my hotel was - he had no idea. I asked how much. He said 75,000 kip!($8.87) ... now, how much is that I thought? and how does that stack up to 50 baht ($1.50) to the market?
Man, it's hard for me to think in situations like that, but I determined to at least try not to get ripped off too bad. A few minutes of negotiations where neither party involved understood the other party. I paid him 25,000 kip ($2.95), which was probably only a half dollar to a dollar too much. So I felt okay about that.
It was getting hot now, it was about 2 o'clock, (the train was 4 1/2 late) , so I went into the first hotel I saw, The Orchid Guesthouse. It was a very nice hotel - marble floors and teak wood walls and they had a room for $10.25 with fan, no air, and shared bath (down the hall).
I checked it out and was about to go somewhere else when I met two women (western) and one was flushed and hot and tired. I asked had they looked at other hotels, and they replied everyone was full! So.... I went down and took the room I had just looked at - no more questions. It is a good room - except it is on the 5th floor. They call it the 4th here... 53 steps up. My legs are burning when I get to my room. Free exercise gym.
For lunch, I had fried rice and vegetables - the usual. But there are a lot of western fare restaurants here.
oh yea, I finally got some photos up and out, they are below in previous blog.
All for now
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6:32 PM
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