{"id":5683,"date":"2014-09-01T11:58:59","date_gmt":"2014-09-01T09:58:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.worldbiking.info\/wordpress\/?p=5683"},"modified":"2020-01-05T03:44:58","modified_gmt":"2020-01-05T08:44:58","slug":"a-short-spin-through-laos-land-of-smiles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.worldbiking.info\/wordpress\/2014\/09\/a-short-spin-through-laos-land-of-smiles\/","title":{"rendered":"A Short Spin Through Laos–Land of Smiles!"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
Warm greetings from the Land of Smiles!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We love Laos.\u00a0 This is where we met way back in 1996 and the country will always hold a special place in our hearts.<\/p>\n

Much has changed since we backpacked there in the mid-90\u2019s.\u00a0 Back then there was no tourist trail.\u00a0 A few backpacker friendly guesthouses were popping up in Luang Prabang but that was pretty much the extent of the tourist scene.<\/p>\n

Boy, have things changed.\u00a0 Even the tiniest off-the-beaten-track town now has a guesthouse.\u00a0 Menus are in English, Wifi is on offer all over the place and in some spots (Pak Beng for example) foreigners seem to outnumber the locals.<\/p>\n

\"\"
When we arrived (exhausted after a series of KILLER hills all the way from the Thai border) the town was quiet and not a foreigner in sight. A few hours later the tourist boats pulled up and disgorged hundreds of boisterous backpackers. The hordes of foreigners mean bakeries have sprung up and there’s even a (quite good) Indian restaurant. The tourist trail does bring benefits.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Luckily the locals have taken all the outside influences in stride.\u00a0 They are just as friendly and welcoming as we recall from our first trip almost two decades back.<\/p>\n

This was our second cycling trip to Laos, but still we could have easily lingered for weeks exploring some of the lesser-known roads.\u00a0 But with summer winding down, our thoughts turned to the Tibetan plateau.<\/p>\n

In Kuala Lumpur we\u2019d managed to finagle 90-day visas for China.\u00a0 This is exceptionally good.\u00a0 Some travelers are flat out denied visas for China and often all the authorities authorize is a month\u2019s visit.<\/p>\n

Although Tibet is currently off-limits to those without a state-authorized guide, we can cycle the neighboring regions which are still part of the Tibetan plateau.<\/p>\n

And that\u2019s why we whizzed through Laos.\u00a0 We don\u2019t fancy fighting a blizzard at 4,000 meters in mid-November.<\/p>\n

We actually crossed into China almost a week ago and are making our way through Yunnan province heading to Sichuan and Qinghai.<\/p>\n

Here are a few images from our time in Laos.\u00a0 More from China (which we love) later.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Endless hills! The ones near the Thai border were the absolute worst. After that the grade lessened and we could actually breathe easy and enjoy the scenery.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Temple camping on our first night in Laos. This didn’t actually last long because the police showed up and insisted we move to a guesthouse (for our own safety). The monks had welcomed us warmly but I guess the authorities had other ideas about what kind of conduct is appropriate for foreigners.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Laos is a stunningly beautiful country. We had dinner at this pretty little spot by the river and enjoyed the soft colors of sunset.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
A backyard barbecue, Lao style!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
These are the typical village dwellings. Not the sturdiest homes and not always waterproof in the rainy season.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Village life is not always easy. The lack of development is glaring coming from comfortable and relatively prosperous Thailand. Each village has a few water taps and children and women queue up to fill containers.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Hard at work. Hopefully, tourist dollars will bring more development to the hill tribes and her life will soon be a tiny bit easier.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Of course, it’s not all work and no fun! In fact, kids in Laos often seem to be having a blast with very little in the way of ‘toys’.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
These girls were fetching water AND having fun. Well, maybe not the youngest sister who appeared to be rather frightened of the odd foreigners on bikes.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
As always in the tropics, sunrise is the absolute best time to be on the road. Rice paddies cover much of the country and corn fields take over at higher elevations.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
We will never tire of daybreak on the bike.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Women still sport the colorful traditional dress.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Late afternoon everybody heads to the river to take a bath or just splash around. Women wash clothes and gossip.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Grandmothers look after the kids while parents work the fields.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
We would have liked to spend more time winding our way through Laos but winter is on its way and China calls!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We love Laos.\u00a0 This is where we met way back in 1996 and the country will always hold a special place in our hearts. Much has changed since we backpacked there in the mid-90\u2019s.\u00a0 Back then there was no tourist<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5693,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[115,126,49],"tags":[25],"yoast_head":"\nA Short Spin Through Laos-Land of Smiles! - Worldbiking.info<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/www.worldbiking.info\/wordpress\/2014\/09\/a-short-spin-through-laos-land-of-smiles\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A Short Spin Through Laos-Land of Smiles! - Worldbiking.info\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"We love Laos.\u00a0 This is where we met way back in 1996 and the country will always hold a special place in our hearts. 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