away from the main Vientiane-Vang Vieng-Luang Prabang tourist trail that is HWY 13...
- buses are second or third hand vehicles that spent their past lives in China
- highways are mostly unpaved or were once paved
- roads literally dissolve away in the rainy season
- buses wait for bulldozers to create a path along the highway in order to pass
- it 'rains' soil when excavators dump their diggings right on top of passing vehicles
- the soil can be too loose for tyres to get any grip
- tyre changes mean replacing the most flattened with the second most flattened
- buses roll downhill when they stop on upslopes
- buses carry a block of wood to be placed behind the tyre whenever the bus stops, so that it won't roll too far downhill
- at steeper slopes everyone gets off to walk uphill to meet the bus at the top of the slope, if the engine is good
- everyone gets off to help pull the bus uphill, if the engine isn't so good
- passing vehicles kick up dust clouds that reduce visibility to zero
- drivers have to wait for dust clouds to settle in order to see the road again
- seats may be sacks of grain or plastic chairs in the aisle or steps at the door
- things can be loaded & unloaded through the windows
- small-sized locals can alight by climbing out of the windows
- toilets are the great outdoors (beware of UXO)
- it can take 7.5 hours (dry season) to 13 hours (rainy season) to travel less than 200km
- speedometer needles never move beyond 0 kph, which reflects the pace of life
- at the end of the ride, whatever people dig from their noses & the corners of their eyes is brown
- whatever people spit out is brown
- when you jump on the spot you create your own dust cloud
- when you comb your hair your comb turns brown
- sharing food, drink, jackets, gloves, scarves, conversation & laughter
- searching for plastic bags for the nauseous
- helping to load & unload one anothers' belongings
- helping to calm & entertain babies & kids
- huddling together to share body heat
- using their own body to shelter others from the biting wind
- lending glove-less fellow passengers their jacket pockets to keep their hands warm
- hanging onto those hanging onto the door/back of truck to prevent them from falling off
- letting dozing passengers rest their heads on their shoulders or knees
- alerting the driver if anyone has been left behind
- helping the driver to repair the vehicle
- helping you find your connecting bus/truck/boat
- helping to make sure you are not overcharged for your fare
which more than makes up for the lack of rearview mirrors & non-punctured spare tyres =)
account of the HWY 3 journey between Huay Xai & Luang Namtha by someone who travelled along it just a few weeks before e cat did.
click on images to view larger version
[1] lunch break along HWY 1B from Pak Nam Noi to Ban Yo, Udomxai to Phongsaly
[2] lost count after 5 breakdowns & tyre changes along the infamous HWY 3, Huay Xai to Luang Namtha
[3] 'seats' for 2 more passengers on sacks of grain in aisle + standing room for 2 at door, Huay Xai to Luang Namtha
[4] Pak Beng to Huay Xai slowboat
[5] down the beautiful Nam Ou river from Hat Sa to Muang Khua
[6] afterwhich you have to remove the Nam Ou from your backpack
[7] American MIA from Xieng Kok since early 2005
[8] ugly side of tourism
[9] the 4 guys who paid for my trip
[1] breakdown along HWY 3, Huay Xai to Luang Namtha
[2] 'paved' road in Huay Xai
[3] breakdown along HWY 3, Huay Xai to Luang Namtha
[4] plants along HWY 3 can photosynthesise only during e rainy season
[5] breakdown along HWY 3, Huay Xai to Luang Namtha
[6] colour of comb after combing my hair after travelling on unpaved highways
[1] beginning of HWY 1B to Ban Yo at Pak Nam Noi
[2] travelled at 0 kph according to speedometers on most buses - usually nothing on the dashboard works
[3] 4 modes of transport - boat, bus, songthaew (opposite bank) & tuktuk, Muang Khua
[4] from Hat Sa to Muang Khua along the Nam Ou river
[5] Hat Sa, Phongsaly province
[6] removing the Nam Ou from cat belongings
[7] Luang Prabang to Pak Beng slow boats, Tha Heua Luang
[8] electrical tape - most useful item packed on this trip
[9] slightly less than half a million kip from trip to the bank, Luang Namtha
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