GoodBye Laos...We Decided!! February 2, 2008...90K

Woke up this morning at 4:30 a.m....pouring rain again..what else is new??? 6 straight days of rain! Please God...let it stop!!! I mean, did I really do antything so bad to piss you off?? Enough is enough...really!

Our Guesthouse in Vientiane

We rolled out of bed at 6:30...hauled our butts with bags down to the lobby of guesthouse for morning fix up...Kaffe Lao Dam (black Lao coffee). We made a final decison over Lao coffee and pouring rain. Let's get the hell out of Laos!! So we looked at the map and knew where to go to hook up with the Friendship Bridge between Laos and Thailand over the Mekong River. This bridge was built several years ago and is called the Friendship bridge given the two countries had been adversaries and enemies for so long. So I loaded up Big Red, said a prayer to the Lao Buddha and off we rode out of the guesthouse on a dirt, mud, pothole filled road with lots of water. We got to the main highway (Lao #2) and knew it was about 22K to the bridge. It was pouring rain and we stopped for breakfast 15 min later...to see if the rain would just diminish a little...(was that asking too much?). Headed back out and found our way to the main highway to the bridge. We stopped at a gas station for a pee stop (Lao coffee does that to me) and I told Colin to take the lead and I hung way back as it was raining hard, he has no fenders and I wanted to stay out the roostertail he was throwing back my way! We rode on, got to about 20K and I thought we should be seeing the sign for the bridge. In a little bit we came upon this overpass with a big green sign which says....Lao-Thailand Friendship Bridge *(*()*()%^&$%...whatever the hell that meant!). I thought it meant 1K to the bridge and he did too, so we continued. Then all of a sudden we're on this pot hole road that is now mud and dirt...and I had to ride slow through it as Big Red doesn't have front suspension and he bristled at going through all that s...ing mud and pot holes. Well, Colin rode ahead to where I couldn't even see him anymore (he's riding a Tred 4300 aluminum frame vs. Big Red high strength steel loaded with 4 panniers) and I looked at my Garmin Edge GPS (I bet you didn't ever think I'd get that plug in did you Matt?) and it says we're riding NE. I go ...what the hell? I mean...hey dude...we're riding into Thailand, not China!!! We're supposed to be going South!!! So I stop and ask some people and everyone points straight down the road toward where we're headed. I'm sitting there going..no way! Then Colin stops a bus driver...same answer...straight ahead. Well the Thai are very much wanting to help, whenever and wherever you stop to ask..they will never tell you what you don't want to hear, mainly to save face. So we went with it. Finally after 7K (about 5 miles) I knew we weren't going the right way. No way would a major bridge across the river have traffic going down this sh...hole road!!! And I trust my Edge!!! So I stopped again...and I knew we had to go to the city of Nhong Khai in Thailand...so I ask...Nhong Khai...and the two guys point straight backward. So I stop dead in my tracks...and wait and wait for Colin, who slowly sees I'm not behind him and makes his way back. I say...we're going the wrong way...and he says are you sure? I say...watch this...2 different guys...hey dude..Nhong Khai? And they point backward, same as the other guys. So off we head. We suddenly catch our two Swedish cycling friends we'd met over breakfast in Vang Vieng and they were lost too! So we all made our way after talking to a Thai policeman, to the turnoff. Then the wait started...we had to stand in the line for foreigners to get our passports stamped for entry into Thailand and that took about an hour! But...we were out of the rain!!! YEH!!!

So we left there around 1:00 p.m. and had 55K to ride to Udon Thani in Thailand. Udon Thani is famous for only 1 thing...it was the home of the U.S. airbase during Vietnam War for jets flying bombing missions into Vietnam. So, off we went. We hadn't gotten 3K down the 4 lane divided highway with a great bike lane to the side, when...yep..you got it..pouring rain again. But it was fairly flat and we wanted to just get it over, so we hammered like hell for 20K and stopped at a little noodle stand for a late lunch (I wish to God we had these little noodle stands alongside the road in the U.S....they're great. Big bowl of rice noodles in broth with chicken or pork and sprouts, basil, ah, so good and nutrious and dirt cheap...about $.30 a bowl...oh yeh I forgot...we can't do that in the U.S....Board of Health would never approve of that...). After several cups of hot Thai tea following lunch, off we went again. We rode pretty hard given the pouring rain and all and finally got into Udon Thani around 4:30 p.m. We'd looked at the Lonely Planet (we actually have had better luck finding places on our own and not going with their recommendations) and knew pretty much where we needed to go. So we ended up finding this great hotel called Ton Koon Hotel in central Udon Thani for only $25 a night. Huge rooms, with AC, king bed, bathtub (a first), hot water, and HBO and FOX news...ha!!! I hate Fox news...but at least I can cuss out Bill O'Reilly in Thailand! So, dripping wet, we booked 2 nights..again..another dryout night. We located a masasge parlor down the street and got a 2 hour massage to get rid of the aches and pains of the day's ride (I'm gonna hate going back to US after being over here for so long and not getting my daily massages...who the hell can afford a daily massage in the U.S.??)..a 2 hour massage for only 280 baht (divide that by approx. 30...what $9 for 2 hr??). Then we had dinner at this wonderful little seafood restaurant near the hotel. I had the stirfried Chinese broccoli in Oyster sauce for veggie and chicken fried rice...for oh...a whomping $1.50 but that didn't include Leo beer. Oh, I almost forgot...there is also a great re-hydration drink in Thailand called Leo beer. Love it...great beer. So here's to my friend Leo in Wampler's Heights Michigan! I think they named this after you Leo!! Ha!

We headed back to the hotel to watch football (no, not American football) on the big screen in the hotel lounge. Ok, I'm gonna say it this one time...and I know it's probably gonna piss off a bunch of you people in England who are reading this blog every day (or Colin says you are)...but man, I would rather watch grass grow than watch soccer on tv! I mean hey guys...don't you find it a bit boring?? I mean really??? You can go hours and nothing friggn happens? I recall going to the soccer games in Brazil when I was down there in the 80's and even though I didn't understand the game, at least there was lots of scoring and no one ever sat down!!! Course 90% of the time, we were rather inebriated as well! I wish I could get into soccer as it's a world game and all, but other than watching World Cup at Amati coffee shop in Boulder, well, sorry...but I doubt it will ever be as popular in the U.S. as American football. We'd much rather watch a 250 lb linebacker hit someone and knock him on his ass...enough said!

Well, off to bed...big day tomorrow...clean bikes and do nothing but hydrate!

Tune in tomorow.

Len

P.S...if this blog post today sounds rather strange, perhaps it's because me and Mr. Leo have had an engaging afternoon and evening..............