The 1000 Day Holiday

day 1.. Picked up my Honda Baja 250cc dirt bike in Vientiane. .. and its now really really dirty..

Once everything was sorted did a bum numbing 350km to Thakek. A nice sealed road all the way. So a good time to get acquainted with my new friend.

All pictures of the Southern Loop 

day 2.. The start of the Laos Southern Loop. Thakek to Nakai (90km). I made it 160km by taking lots of tracks off the main road and seeing what I could find. The road was pretty good. The area is full of limestone cliffs making so a very beautiful ride. There was insane number of large trucks due to the dam construction making it dusty and interesting when they overtake each other blinded by the dust!

day 3.. a great day winding through some dense virgin forest. The road was fun w lots of big 20 tonne trucks to dodge on the blind corners. The advantages of the dirt bike becoming more obvious as potholed sections can be straight lined at speed! The road into Ban Kong Lor was crazy as it had rained just a little making the newly formed clay surface really slimy. The 5 river crossings being quite interesting as well Learning how to get a dirt bike stuck in mud.. 180kms today…

Day 4..spent 2 nites at ban kong lor.. Kong Lor Cave is 7km long and has a river flowing thru the mountain. A very spacey trip by boat thru the cave and out the other side..

Day 5.. came out from ban kong lor.. dropped my bike in a deep section of the first river crossing.. wouldnt run at more than an idle for about an hour ( i figure the air filter needed to dry).. but it came right..

Then learning how to get a bike unstuck from mud while some bemused locals look on and dont help (on the detour to a footbridge) I think they wanted to see me ford the river, but it had risen considerably (to approx ~1m depth) from the rain overnight. No more major mishaps after that. The electronic display on the bike is still dead.. but hoping that should work once its dried out .. FINGERS CROSSED! Sleeping in Pakxan/Paksan ~120kms today

This is my southern loop complete.. Tomorrow I head north on a 250km dirt road with 5 rivers that “might” be fordable. The target: Phonsavan.

Australia has issued its first ever travel warning for NZ saying that there is a risk of earthquakes..

I guess theyre just covering their asses just in case an aussie gets hurt in an earthquake while in NZ and sues them for not holding their hand 24X7.  sheesh..

While traveling you meet an insane number of people. Some just in passing, others become good friends.

I can usually recognize those I have met previously, but linking them to where/when is sometimes a much greater challenge.

A few weeks ago, I walked into a bar in Pai (Northern Thailand),  around ~2am…  I looked at this guy who was there and knew I had met him before. We chatted and he was saying the same thing..

It took us just a couple of minutes, but we got it down to Jeffreys bay in South Africa in November last year!  Not bad..

Its not surprising that locals look at us like we’re a bit crazy.. In africa they call it “Killing Ants”

My top purchase this month is a fantastic travel style hula hoop.

7 segments slot together to make a multicolored  hula hoop!

My skills with the Hula have been on the serious decline since my youth But with this new travel fitness tool its time to watch out.

Pics still to come of it in action..

Asia is the only place in the world where its super cheap to hire a motorbike and enjoy the freedom, exhilaration and the feel of wind blowing through my hair (SIC). $2.20 per day gets you on a scooter, out and about exploring the countryside.

Now about the way they drive in Asia. I actually prefer it to the western style.Lets compare them:

Western Driving

• Drive to the left of the line
• Don’t let anyone get in front of you - e.g a merging car
• Speed up on the straight sections where people might overtake you
• If another driver is in the wrong, don’t adjust your driving. Scare them or give them the finger. e.g pulling out in front of you.
• Get angry if motorcyclists split lanes to get to the front at stop lights

Asian Driving

• Generally drive to the left, but the whole road is there to be used.
• Motorbikes turn corners early, running up the inside of the corner
• Toot your horn/flash headlights on tight corners to alert others you’re coming
• Toot your horn if you need more space or to alert cyclists/pedestrians to move off the road
• Lanes are a guide only. Splitting lanes, smaller vehicles weaving through traffic is efficient
• Do whatever you want to do. Expect everyone else to do the same. nothing is a surprise, just adjust and carry on.
• Use indicators to show the edge of your vehicle to an oncoming vehicle in tight spots

The only downside is that they never check what traffic is approaching before joining from a side road. This screams of natural selection. Other than that it works pretty well.

Its a great feeling when you arrive in a new town, and instantly like the vibe. In this case  Pai, Northern Thailand.

Then all that remains is to find the perfect hostel/Guest house/ Hotel.

You would think this would be easy and happen a lot. Its a simple formula, yet it seems in 500+ days theres but a few hostels/guesthouses that really do rate as a 10 out of 10.

• A decent common area, cushions, hammocks  etc
• Friendly staff
• Clean rooms
• Bonus points are great food or a view.

clean rooms are easy enough to find. Nice people running the place is a 50/50 hit and miss. The thing that is usually missing is the lounge/relax/hang out space.

not having one is like living in a house that has no lounge. you dont hang out in your room.. thats just where you sleep.

So I’m glad in this town I did find such a place to stay.

Perfection!

516 Days down, 484 to go…
01/06/07 Yangon
02/06/07 Yangon - Overnight bus to Bagan
03/06/07 Bagan
04/06/07 Bagan
05/06/07 Bagan
06/06/07Bus to Kalaw
07/06/07 Kalaw - Hiking
08/06/07 Kalaw - Hiking
09/06/07 Inle Lake - Bike ride to the Thermal Pools
10/06/07 Boat Tour of the lake
11/06/07 Overnight bus to Mandalay
12/06/07 Puppet Show
13/06/07 Flood!
14/06/07 Moustache Brothers
15/06/07 To Yangon
16/06/07 Yangon
17/06/07 Yangon - Platinum Club
18/06/07 Shwedagon Paya
19/06/07 Fly Yangon - Bangkok
20/06/07
21/06/07
22/06/07 Train to Chaing Mai
23/06/07 Chaing Mai
24/06/07 Chaing Mai
25/06/07 Chaing Mai
26/06/07 Pai
27/06/07 Pai
28/06/07 Pai
29/06/07 Pai
30/06/07 Pai