The next morning we got some breakfast, then spent an hour at the bike repair place waiting for our new tire. Naturally the whole family hung around and waited with us, offering us beer at eight in the morning before a long day of riding motorbikes. I guess years of watching backpackers pass through had given them the impression that all westerners drink beer all day, every … [Read more...]
Monkeying Around on the Motorbike Loop
After the statue cave, we saw another cave. I can't remember a single thing about it, so it must have been spectacular. Moving on…. Our next stop was a lake located a few kilometers off the main highway down a dirt road. It was our first experience with dirt roads on our week-long motorbike trip around the central 'loop', but far from our last. We handled this road … [Read more...]
Solving the Mystery of the Disappearing Gas
At the rental place, we tried to get the owner to pay for the tube that had to be replaced, but shockingly, he refused. He claimed that we had agreed we would pay for any damage to the tires, which was technically true, but we understood that to mean we would pay to have any punctures sealed that happened while riding over the often rough roads along the central Laos motorbike … [Read more...]
Big Mac Set? Never Heard of It. We Do Have a Big Ma Set…
Are you opening a burger place, but can't afford a food photographer? Just take a picture of a McDonald's menu and use a black marker to hide any mentions of Mc or Mac, a red marker to cover the golden arches on the french fry boxes and voilà! Problem solved. Here's the full sign, found outside a little burger place in Vang Vieng, Laos (and no, the actual burgers looked … [Read more...]
Still in Tha Khaek – At Least the Mekong Was Beautiful
The next morning we got up early and went to a nearby bike shop we had scouted out the night before to get some bikes. The standard recommendation for the motorbike 'loop' is to rent bikes from the owner of the Tha Khaek Travel Lodge, the guest house I mentioned in the first part of this series. He charges a bit more, but the bikes are said to be more reliable. However, just … [Read more...]