Luang Prabang turned out to be such a relaxing place, that we stayed 3 nights.
Its one of those sleepy towns that just grows on you and has a laid back atmosphere that’s addictive. We met some Polish guys taking a break from their cycling trip around China (http://neverendingtrip.net/)- they were there 2 weeks already… There’s not much to do in Luang Prabang (except visit the local waterfalls and temples), but the lure of a cold beer by the Mekong or a delicious bagguette at the local market, prevent you from leaving.

Our next destination was to be Vientaine - the Laos capital. However, we again decided it would be more interesting to stray off the main road, avoid the tourist trap and get more in touch with the locals. We therefore headed east towards Vietnam before turning south again at a town called Phonsavan. This is where the asphalt ended and the fun began….
For the first thirty odd kilometers the road was uneven but solid gravel with the occasional series of potholes and local fauna to manourve around.

The winding hilly terrain kept the speed down to about 40km/h. It did allow us to admire some spectacular scenery.

As the light deteriorated, so too did the raod… First came the river crossings, about four in total and each shallow enough to ride through. But just to be sure, Iza would first wade through and then I followed on the bike. With the rivers negotiated, it was time to hit the mud…

I had read that this particular road was impassable during the wet season and now we were beginning to see why. Although this was still officially the dry season, some rain had fallen in the previous days and logging trucks had turned certain sections into a dirt bikers heaven. On a heavily laden Africa Twin, we were obviously not as nimble and our speed dropped to about 10km/h.
Our rest stop for the day was to be the vllage of Tha Thom. But with each passing minute, the road got worse, the sun dipped lower and our chances of reaching Tha Thon before nightfall decreased.
Now riding with the high beams on, we asked passing locals how far we had to go. Estimations ranged between 2km to 23km This did not inject us with confidence and with a couple slow speed ‘tip-overs’ on a road that now resembled an ice-rink, we decided it was time to call it a day.
At the next village we enquired about accomodation. Expecting to be told to continue down the road, we were surprised when the first villager we met indicated we can sleep at his house! A few hand gestures later, we confirmed he was actually offering us accommodation and that we can park the bike next to his shack.

By now our high revving bike inching its way through the mud, had attracted the attention of half the village and they all gathered around to get a better look.
Our host offered water, food and a place inside his raised hut. Seeing that it already housed ten or so ocupants, we decided it might be too crowded. Instead, we asked to sleep on a bamboo bench underneath the raised hut (and next to our bike). Our host was somewhat surprised, but agreed and even erected a mosquito net to shield us from the hundreds of circling moths. It wasn’t the most comfortable night we had spent on the road, but it was definitely the most unique.

The next morning we were awoken by the customary call of roosters. It was only about 5am but we could hear the whole village commencing their daily chores, so we decided to do the same. Of course the same crowd had gathered again to watch our every move…

It was another 15km (1 hour) to Tha Thom so we were happy with our decision to stop where we did the night before. A quick breakfast of noodle soup and we pushed on.
Thinking the road couldn’t get worse than the day before, it suddenly did. We spent the next 5 hours grinding our way through 20km…

There was even a river crossing we couldn’t ride through…

Thankfully one of the locals helped transport the bike using a makeshift bamboo raft…

Reaching civilization again (after some 200km) was a welcome relief, that’s not to say we didn’t enjoy every minute of our 2 day off-road adventure.
We overnighted in Paksan (one of several border towns with Thailand) then made quick progress south to Savannakhet. Our next stop is Si Pha Don (Four Thousand Islands) where we’ll rest before riding across into Cambodia.

Cost of fuel in Laos is US$1.20