Left Vientiane with the clouds crying at my going, stopped in at the scandanvan Bakery for the last time to enjoy their Omelet and fresh fruit breakfast, I had been having it since my return to Vientiane, it will be a shame not having it any more. After a relaxing breakfast I mounted my bike for the 20km ride to the border and Thailand beyond. I knew I would get across well in advance of the train departure but I also did not feel like hanging around.
I took a slow ride to the border stopped off in the area Lashana was staying to see if I could see her before I left, after a fruitless search I was off on the open road again, the insurance has still not sorted me out and I can’t really carry on my travels till I know what is going to happen.
The border came up to quickly so I stopped and enjoyed the stares of amazement at me and my bike, then did the necessary paper work and headed for the friend ship bridge, it was a quite ride across with only a couple of trucks heading the other way. After this it was Thai border control and a questionnaire about my health, it seems there is some Virus around Thailand and Lao at the moment. One of the questions was about lymph nodes so I had to tick yes and the guy on the other side of the table quickly put his mask on.
I headed to the train station and brought the ticket for Bangkok and for some reason he would not sell me the ticket for my bike as well, had to show up later when the train arrived to get that. Not sure what was happening there.
I stopped outside and read my book while the local tuk tuk drives all came around to look at my bike and trailer, they were all looking how it connected up and everything with a few questions thrown my way. If you see tuk tuks in the future with trailers it was probably because of these guys.
After this I headed for the city of Nong Khai for a look around and to see if I could find my old friend the & eleven, I had to ride quite far into the city to find it but it gave me a look around. They do have a really cool fountain on the main street into Nong Khai and from the looks that’s about it. I did manage to find a internet café, with a lot of kids I am sure should have been at school.
As I was about to leave, something happen outside, I am not sure what but when I got out there there was a guy with blood all down one side of his face and no one else, although it did seem to me that he was yelling at some other people down the road. I left them to their yelling and headed back to the train station, had a quick dinner and by now there was only an hour or so to go till the train left.
I wondered back up to the ticket counter to get a ticket for my bike off the same guy who had sold me the ticket earlier, go figure. The bike was then loaded with not too much hassle, notice the not too much there. I wished my bike well and headed for my sleeper for the night.
The rest of the journey was not to bad besides the air-con had turned the carriage arctic in the middle of the night, luckily I had learnt from last time and had some other clothes to put on even then it was still pretty cold. I am not sure how the conductors and baggage guys put up with the swelter heat and then the freezing cold all the time.
So it is not the 27th have still not heard anything from My insurance will have another day waiting around, have found a place not far off Kho San road. Thought maybe have a look around a few shopping malls and find out where the hospital is, that’s the job for today. Once I have the OK I am not going to hang around. I want to get back out there.
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