My Third Journey (Bangkok-Laos-Vietnam)

Here is a brief description of my third trip, in July 2009.

Time: 2-18 July

Duration: 16 days

Visa:

- Thailand no visa needed for Indonesian passport holders for 1 month

- Lao PDR Visa 40 SGD $ (1 month , Indonesian passport holder), applied in embassy in Singapore, obtained in a half hour

- Vietnam no visa needed for Indonesian passport holder for 1 month

Journey:

* Flight from Singapore to Bangkok using Tiger Airways (SGD 60)

* From Bangkok(Thailand) to Laos

- Bangkok - Nongkhai(Thailand) = Thailand railway train, soft seat fan 2nd class, 12 hours, 388 THB

- Nongkhai - Thailand Immigration post = Tuk2, 10 minutes, 150 THB (shared by 7 people)

- Thailand Immigration post - Lao Immigration Post = Bus via Friendship bridge, 10 minutes, 20 THB

- Lao Immigration post - Buddha Park(30 km from Vientiane) = tuk2, 30 minutes, 250 THB (shared by 7 people)

* Journey in Lao PDR

Buddha Park (30 km from Vientiane) - Vientiane - Luang Prabang (excursion to Pak Ou and Kuang Si) - Phonsavan (excursion to Plain of Jars)

- Buddha Park - Vientiane (Talat Sao Bus Terminal) = bus #14, 30 minutes, 5000 kip

- Vientiane - Luang Prabang = "VIP" Bus, 12 hours, 160,000 kip

- Excursion to Pak Ou and Kuang Si = local jumbo, +- 2 hours total, 300,000 kip (shared by 7 people)

- Luang Prabang-Phonsavanh = local,non aircon Bus, 8 hours, 75,000 kip

- Excursion to Plain of Jars = minivan, 11 USD (include admission to POJ)

* From Phonsavanh(Laos) to Vietnam

- Phonsavanh - Vinh(Vietnam) = "VIP",non aircon bus, 12 hours, 138,000 kip

* Journey in Vietnam

Vinh - Hue (excursion to Royal Tombs) - Hoi An (Excursion to My Son) - Nha Trang (excursion to 4 islands) - Saigon

- Vinh - Hue = Vietnam train, 8 hours, 138,000 Dong

- excursion to Royal Tombs = Boat and Minivan, 2 hours(return), 5 USD (include lunch)

- Hue-Hoi An = open tour bus, +- 4 hours , total = 390,000 Dong (open bus Hue-Hoi An-Nha Trang-Saigon)

- excursion to My Son = tour bus, 2 hours (return), 3.5 USD

- Hoi An-Nha Trang = open tour bus, +- 12 hours , ticket already paid before in open bus ticket paymen

- excursion in 4 islands boat trip = minivan,boat and bus, 2 hours(return), 6 USD (include lunch,wine and fruit)

- Nha Trang-Saigon = open tour bus, +- 12 hours , ticket already paid before in open bus ticket payment

* Flight from Saigon to Singapore using Tiger Airways (USD 57)

Accommodation:

- Bangkok = Baan Hualampong GH, THB 220 (1 night) ; fan,hot water, bathroom outside

- vientiane = Saysoully GH, 4 USD (1 night) ; AC, hot water, bathroom outside

- Luang Prabang = Vanvisa GH, 130,000 kip (for 3 nights); hot water,bathroom outside

- Phonsavanh = Phou Kham GH, 35,000 kip (for 2 nights); fan, bathroom inside --> cheapest !!

- Hue = Ban Minh Hotel , 12 USD(for 2 nights) ; AC,hot water, TV, bathroom inside(bath up) --> best accomodation

- Hoi An = Hoi Pho Hotel, 18 USD(for 2 nights) ;AC,hot water, TV, bathroom inside

- Nha Trang = Blue Sky Hotel, 6 USD(1 night); fan,bathroom outside

- Saigon = Xinh Hotel, 10 USD(1 night); AC,TV,Bathroom inside

Travel Partner:

Bangkok-Laos = Emenda,Yanti,Dessy,Rini,Pritta (Indonesia), Donna(Phillipines)

Vietnam = alone

My Comments:

This is my first journey as an group traveler, and I was more grown up by this unforgettable trip. I was very blessed to have such a supportive group that helped me a lot not onlyin bargaining for hotel and also eating in restaurant but to accompany me during rough bus journey on Laos.

I learnt a lot about history,culture and many other things about Lao and Vietnam. Indochina experience was always classic and oriental, even this is my second time to visit Vietnam, i still intrigued by the Vietnamese life style and still fall in love with the natural scene, the noise and of course the girls. Laos is very impressive, very quiet and shy people, calm and serene atmosphere.

For food, for the first days the food in Lao and Vietnam are very interesting but after several days when you ate Baguette every morning and noodle every noon, then i missed my chicken rice in Singapore.

Best and Worst :

Lao

Best Journey : journey from Vientiane to LP , at least we have aircon and the ticket include good lunch

Best Food : Grilled fish and nasi padang that i hunt in the rainy night

Best Situation : Watching ritual of Feeding Monks in Luang Prabang

Best Place : The mystical Plain of Jars

Worst Journey : From Phonsavanh to Vinh, the bus was packed jam like a hell !!

Worst Food : Duck Embryo, i think

Worst Situation: Inside the bus , when some local laying his head on my shoulder during the hot journey

Worst Place : hmmm.....all the place in Lao were very good, only the Phonsavanh bus is worst

Vietnam

Best Journey : journey from Hoi An-Nha Trang , the best sleeping bus i’ve ever had in my life

Best Food : ate last dinner with group in Vinh Train Station, the chicken were good

Best Situation : Sharing with local in Hoi An about her way of life

Best Place : The Royal Tombs in Hue

Worst Journey : From Nha Trang to Saigon, dead aircon all the way

Worst Food : hmmm...i found all vietnam food are acceptable

Worst Situation: Nam Can border, stranded 1 hours and the officers didn’t know wheter Indonesian passport can pass without visa or not, they asked about everything from religion,purpose,return ticket....but finally we can pass

Worst Place : hmmm.....all the place in Vietnam were very good

Please comment, girls

My Wanna Go Destination

My Wanna Go Destination in Asia

Country Why I wanna go (+) = supportive things
(-) = problems

Central Asia

1.Afghanistan The turbulent past and hospitality
(+)
(-) highly volatile state,war zone, terrorist and religious extremist

2.Uzbekistan
3.Kazakhstan
4.Tajikistan Part of Important for history of Silk Road
5.Kyrgyzstan
6.Turkmenistan
(+)
(-) Bureaucratic nightmare visa , corruption, and no budget flight

East Asia

1.China The biggest country in Asia, and I am also Chinese descendant
(+) will go there on December and January, visit Shenzen from HK and Kunming from Lao
(-) language barrier

Macao As the first and last European colony in China, Macau has more visible colonial history than Hongkong
Hongkong Place with multiple personalities, as a result of being Cantonese Chinese with a long time British influence
(+) will go there on December, already book Air Asia Ticket
(-)

Tibet Entirely different world, Potala Palace, Dalai Lama, Tintin has been there
(+)
(-) After Olympic 2008 Riots, now is almost impossible to go there independently, must book
"expensive" tour, flight ticket and Tibet permit

2.Japan The "Land of the Rising Sun" is a country where the past meets the future.
(+)
(-) no budget flight, expensive living cost !

3.South Korea Asian Tiger, Korean Movies, Korean Foods
(+)
(-) no budget flight, expensive living cost !

4.North Korea Kim Jong Il, Arirang Mass Games
(+)
(-) independent travel are not allowed to go there, must book expensive tour and last
NUCLEAR !

5.Mongolia Genghis Khan, Landscape of Gobi Desert, Ger homestay, Naadam festival
(+)
(-) visa problem again ! ( Singaporean don’t need visa to go here, grrrr )

6.Taiwan The bad boy of China, Impressive scenic sites, F4
(+) have some friends there, AA fly to Taipei from KL
(-)

South East Asia

1.Myanmar(Burma) Traditional people, Thanaka, one of the safest and honest country in Asia (despite the military dictatorship)
(+) will go there on December, already book 1200 THB Air Asia Ticket, yipie !!
(-) political instability, military dictatorship, some red tape for traveller

2.Phillipines Donna's country (hehehe), beautiful landscape
(+) AA and Tiger fly there for reasonable price
(-)

3.Lao PDR Revisit for North and South Lao
(+) will go to North Lao by December via Chiang Kong-Huay Xai
(-)
4.Vietnam Revisit for Sapa and Ninh Binh
(+) will go there on January on the way back from Kunming
(-)

5.Thailand Revisit for North and South Thai
(+) will go there on December to visit Golden Triangle
(-)

South Asia

1.India India !!! Should I explain more ?
(+) Just wait and see
(-) SCAMS !!!

2.Nepal Never Ending Peace and Love; Annapura circuit
(+)
(-) No budget flight, but this is MUST destination

3.Bangladesh world's longest sea beach, countless mosques, the largest mangrove forest in the world, interesting tribal villages and a wealth of elusive wild life. Above all else you'll encounter a very friendly and hospitable people.
(+) AA fly now to Dhaka from KL
(-) Riots in Dhaka

4.Srilanka Many UNESCO World Heritage Sites : Polonnaruwa,Sigiriya,Kandy,Galle and Anuradhapura
(+) AA fly now to Colombo from KL
(-) Tamil Tiger, Bomb and Religious extremist

5.Pakistan Karakaoram Highway , Amazing landscape
(+)
(-) Al Qaeda and Tribal Warlords

6.Bhutan Besides the stunning natural scenery, the enduring image of the country for most visitors is the strong sense of culture and tradition that binds the kingdom and clearly distinguishes it from its larger neighbors.
(+)
(-) No budget flight, No independent traveler and 200 USD is a must per day

7.Maldives White Beach and Blue Ocean
(+)
(-) hmmm, too expensive….let just save it for honeymoon

Reason Why I Travel

Realizing the Dream

Many people always asked me why now suddenly I become a travel bug or an addict, before I explain it, I want to tell that since I was in junior high school I always like to read about geography and history. I still remembered when my father bought me a set of encyclopedia “Mengapa Begini Mengapa Begitu” , the most interesting book I like most to read is about the places in the world, like why they are so unique , how they created for the places such as Taj Mahal, Pyramid Giza, Great Wall of China, etc. I always dreamed that someday in the future if I have money I will go there. When I was in junior high school I also really love the subject of geography especially the “blind map” subject and also history subject. After I entered university, I never thought about this dream again and still until I remember when i was still working for my company in Batam, I do my first traveling overseas with my friend to Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.

After I moved here, I felt that I have more free time to realize my dream further but the main problem is deciding to do so. It’s really easy to fantasize about traveling, or dreaming that some day when i already retired, have million of money or in the peak of your life when you can travel freely. But then I realized that I will never travel if I wait around for the circumstances to be right. By the time I have money, I probably already have another commitment such as family, job or another important matters. I also think that yes I can travel once when I am already retired but I don’t guarantee myself that my body will be still fit enough to do it or I still have the passion to do it. So the reality is i only have enough money and enough time if i make it happen. How enough is enough also the next question. Saving money and choosing the right time are the things that I considered a lot. I saved for four years from my previous job and also some saving from my scholarship and I also did strategy to travel as cheap as possible.

Then after, I decided to do my first backpacking, it was really “blast” for me, I’ve never expected that backpacking in a “dirty” cheap way can be so fun and amazing.