Thai-Lao Border crossing @ Huay Xai 會晒

Today I gonna start my journey in Laos. My first travel destination in Laos is the ancient city - Luang PraBang (LPB). I have decided the best and safest option taking a slow boat to there since time is on my side. I knew it gonna be REALLY a time-consuming journey to reach there. 

Here is my 2 Day 1 Night itinerary :

DAY 1

- take the earliest bus to Chiang Khong [2.5 hours]

- go to the Thai Border check point.

- take a river boat to cross the Mekong River to Huay Xai

- get my passport stamped @ Lao Immigration check-point

- look up for any tour boat that goes to Luang PraBang by Slow Boat option

- exchange some Lao currency(Kip)

- get into the slow boat to Pak Beng [7-8hours]

- reach Pak Beng get a cheap GH (guesthouse) room

DAY 2 

- take the same slow boat to LPB 7-8hours

- get a cheap GH room in LPB

The green colored useful master map of Indo-china courtesy from TAT. 

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HOW DID I GET HERE? 
DAY 1 CHIANG KHONG (THAI BORDER)

It was almost 6 in the morning where the sky here started to turn bright. I caught the earliest Chiang Khong bus from the bus terminal. It is a local 3rd class bus without A/C (65B).

The journey took less than 2.5 hour to reach CK. The bus just stop me somewhere along the main street. I checked AppleMap but I wasn't sure where is the exact location of Thai Border Checkpoint. But I knew it is somewhere 1-2km away. To be on the safe side, I took an expensive tuk-tuk (40B) to get to there. 

I came to the Thai Exit checkpoint, there is no people waiting at the counter. It was so smooth and within a minute I'm done! I walked further down to the river pier and I could see few motorbikes and people were transported on boat and a China car-plate 4-wheel drive was transporting on a huge bamboo boat coming towards the Thai border. 

I paid for (40B), me and my backpack, to cross the Mekong river to the opposite side, Lao immigration checkpoint. The Mekong River looked muddy and water is unclear to notice any fish swimming below.

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HUAY XAI (LAO BORDER)

After 5 minutes on the boat, we finally set our foot in Laos DPR! It was my second trip to Laos by boat. My previous trip to Lao was last Jan where I joined a Chiang Mai tour group to Don Sao island, located opposite Golden Triangle. (Passport was not needed)

As soon as I reached Lao checkpoint river border @ Huay Xai, there were quite a number of foreigners waiting anxiously to settle their VISA. I was approached by a guy who seem to be a travel agent there. He just nicely told me to proceed to the counter since  I have a Malaysian passport so I do not need a VISA to enter Laos PDR. Without a Lao VISA, I could just walk pass the crowd and get my passport stamped within minutes! It is as simple as that!
(Note: Malaysian and A.S.E.A.N passport holders do not need VISA application or additional charges.)

I also checked with the guy about the Slow Boat to Luang PraBang. He quoted the price 950B, takes 2 days, including a night in a remote village Pak Beng, which is almost the same price in book. The accommodation in Pak Beng is excluded from the price.

I agreed with the price, I just needed to wait until 11am and he needs to send me to another river pier (1-2km away) to take the slow boat.

The slow boat trip (2 days 1 night) from Huay Xai-Pak Beng and Pak Beng-LPB will take about 7-8 hours for each day during hot season.

WHAT TO DO IN HUAY XAI?

There isn't much to do in this border town. I decided to have my early lunch here while waiting for the time to come. Many Thai imported food can be seen in the small grocery shops along the main street. There are also some Malaysian imported biscuits selling here. No doubt the prices here are slightly more expensive than in Thai since most of them are transported across the border. 

I exchanged some Lao money just in case. According to the local, Thai Baht is widely accepted in northern Lao: Pak Beng and Luang Prabang. I supposed it is because there are some close local businesses cross the border among the Thai and Lao people. 

(Exchange rate US $1 = Lao 7500-7600 Kip = RM3.20)

My lunch : Fried rice with chicken + egg 15,000K (RM6.20), not cheap though.

After my lunch, I just waited at the tour office. I noticed they did offer various transport options : Slow Boat, Speed boat, VIP bus and Minivan. They could also arrange a mini van(bus) to go to LPB and Luang Namtha (a remote village, close to China border). If travel by VIP bus, they can reach LPB, Oudomxay, Luang Prabang and even Vientiane (capital of Lao). 

It is pretty common to see these bottles of cobra whiskey for sale in here and LPB but these are less seen in Thailand nowadays. 

I was waiting at the tour agent office.Animal parts were hanging all over the wall.

I arrived at the river pier by bike. There are some backpackers seem to be going to LPB too. We all waited quite some time and a row of slow boats were orderly parked at the pier. 

At almost 11 plus, the boat kick started its engine and we are ready to depart! 

The passenger seats are obviously some standard car-cushion seats that are in quite new condition. I also read from the wikipedia, a soft blow-up cushion is longer needed as previously they were just  using all wooden hard benches. Nevertheless, all these car cushion seats are movable and can be easily rearranged according to the space in the boat. I occupied 2 seats since a Japanese guy switched his seat. It is not a luxurious boat and no live jacket is provided. (Safety might be a big concern especially in the wet season) Also I read there are incidents during dry season where the river level @ Mekong river became really low and at some point of time the boat couldn't move forward. The people on boat might need to get down and push the boat going further! 

But I feel I was really lucky as it was a smooth sailing journey all the way. I don't really feel much discomfort throughout the journey despite the usual hot tropical weather.

It was a long long journey to reach PB. 

This is my second time taking a slow boat in a foreign country. It was an enjoyable and slow-paced moment. The endless mountainous lush landscapes and thick forests were continuously flashing before my eyes. This Mekong river scene was pretty decent to me who lived in the city. From time to time, the boat would stop by a village or to pick up some locals from villages along the river.

Enjoying the scene around, talking to backpackers, reading book, drinking beer, eating snacks, taking a nap can kill time much faster! Everything seemed to be so slow-moving. C'est la vie...

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White Temple (Wat Rong Khun) 白廟

HOW DID I GET TO WHITE TEMPLE?

This is my second time coming to here. I came here with the tour bus previously. And it was quite easy to get here by taking a bus from the bus terminal.

After visiting the Black House, I took a songthaew (20B) back to the bus terminal. I had my lunch in a noodle shop just opposite. 

I took another bus to Wat Rong Khun about (20B). I have no idea what number is this. But it get full with passengers after lunch hour!

It is pretty straight-forward to reach to the temple since it is located just next to the Highway No.1. Chiang Rai town is at the Northeast where as the temple is located 12km away at the Southwest. I just notified the bus driver and conductor that I am going to Wat Rong Khun.

WAT RONG KHUN (WHITE TEMPLE)

Wat Rong Khun a.k.a the White Temple is perhaps the most stunning white temple I have ever seen. It is designed by a well-unknown Thai artist/architect - Chalermchai Kositpipat. This templed began construction from 1997 by him and the construction phase at other part of the area are going-on too. It is believed that the whole masterpiece is yet to be completed until year 2070. I wonder if I still exist on earth during that time.

TICKET         : NONE

TIME              : 09:00 AM - 18:00 PM

It looked extremely eye-catching from far. This whole Wat area isn't really big but its fine details of each and every corner will surely blow your mind away. 

Here's my personal understanding(perception) about Wat Rong Khun. According to sources, this temple represents the good and evil - heaven and hell. While walking pass the tiny pond in front, you will come to a pit that leads you to a bridge. There are hundreds of hand in the pit, it represents the hell where most bad people will suffer in here if they chose to continue with their sin. Once walking pass it slowly, you will cross the glittering bridge that leads you the main White Temple. The temple represents Heaven. Perhaps it is saying that every person will go through good and bad in life and whether you could reach heaven, all living beings are subject to the karma - the cause and effect.

Black House Museum (Baan Dam) 黑屋

 

Today my plan is to visit two contrasting places :

-> Black House Museum (BAAN DAM) 

-> White Temple (WAT RONG KHUN)

I visited the White Temple few months before. So I decided to visit the Black one first since I was pretty curious with all the gallery photo I've seen in the Internet. This mysterious spot is not covered by most travel books even Lonely Planet.

HOW DID I GET TO BLACK HOUSE?

The day before, I checked with the owner of the GH since I decided to go there by public transport. She drawn out a simple map that explains the route and landmark along the way to reach Baan Dam and Wat Rong Khun. How nice she is!

Based on the info and map, I caught an early public bus from bus terminal that is going to Mae Sai (Northernmost Thai border city). The bus should drop me off somewhere along the highway and I need to walk all the way to reach the Black House. 

Along my way to bus terminal, there's a CIMB Thai branch just beside the busy main street (Thanon Phaholyothin). It’s really convenient for me to withdraw Thai Baht where it does not require any transaction charges since I have a ATM card from CIMB. This is the main Chiang Rai Bus Terminal (right)

The public bus will leave from the bus terminal to the Black House paid for (20B), 10km away. The front of bus was written Mae Sai and I just told the bus conductor that I’m going to Baan Dam. The bus only has fans and the windows are opened. I wore a mask as I expected it could be really dusty all the way!

As I was told, the bus would be going towards the north from the bus terminal. It drove across a bridge, passed by the airport junction (on the right) and it came to a crossroad with traffic lights. It headed straight, there's a Singha beer storage warehouse (on the left).

The Black House is located on the left of the Highway No.1.

The bus just dropped me off on Highway No.1. I walked about 500m, walked pass a small blue sign board written National Artist Mr. Thawan Duchanee. The first left junction is leading to Sura, Korean restaurant. I headed to the next T-junction and turned left into Soi 13. After some minutes walk, the road was getting muddy and it seemed like a dirt village road! I was lucky enough to hitch a ride on a local guy’s truck to get into Baan Dam.

The blue signboard (right) written
National Artist Mr Thawan Duchanee

On the way back, I walked out from the gallery to get back to the highway. I just walked across it where the cars are moving the opposite direction back to Chiang Rai town. I managed to catch a songthaew (20B) back to the bus terminal.

NOTE : Baan Dam Map @ official site HERE .Both in Thai and English.

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BAAN DAM MUSEUM (BLACK HOUSE)

My first stop at Baan Dam Museum was entering from...

I thought I was already at the Baam Dam entrance? But wait...the driver just stop me in a place that looked more like a countryside village. I looked puzzled after getting off from his truck. The sincere driver kept saying,"Baan Dam,Baan Dam..." and pointed his finger in front of his village - that's BAAN DAM! There are obviously some mysterious looking charcoal black wooden huts ahead! After thanking him, I walked pass the village and stepped into its territory from the back. How amusing it was to me as if I'm an intruder appeared out of nowhere from the back way and wanted to do something suspicious there.

It was a gloomy early morning after a heavy downpour yesterday night. The surrounding was almost close to silence with only birds whispering somewhere on those trees or bushes. Apparently I was the only person visiting the museum since it wasn't 9 am yet.

On my way finding the entrance, I spotted the owner of the museum, Dr Thawan Duchanee.  I could recognize him from his long bushy white beard. Without a second thought, I greeted him and a Thai lady, only the lady greeted me back "Sawadee ka". He didn't seem to bother to look at me. I was thinking he was acting way too cool and didn't look so welcoming. Perhaps he treated me like some other China people. This is because recently before my visit there was a rumor saying there's a group of China tourists came here and they broke one of their art-piece here. On the spot they were told to pay for it, they just pretended they couldn't understand English and they managed to escape from the scene. Hence, the rumor saying that the owner had banned China tourists from entering the gallery. I supposed this rumor has yet to be confirmed. And also when I was there, I was warned by the staffs not to enter to certain areas (with the sign "NO ENTRY") and he has even questioned about my nationality. Luckily I wasn't been kicked out from the museum. From that moment, I kept paying attention to the surroundings to ensure I did not step into any restricted zone.

This is the unique charcoal black wooden house at the main entrance of Baan Dam Museum. There's a misleading info on the signboard.

TICKET         : NONE

TIME              : 09:00 AM - 17:00 PM
                           12:00 PM - 13:00 PM (CLOSED)

Most Beautiful Clock Tower @ Chiang Rai 清萊

HOW DID I GET HERE?

From Chiang Mai Tha Pae gate, I took a “rod daeng” (red songthaew) to the Arcade bus station for (40B). After reaching the bus ticket office, I was told to get a queue number to purchase the ticket to CR. The company name is Green Bus. It seemed that many locals are heading to CR (Chiang Rai) as well.

The schedule of the buses from Chiang Mai to other main town in the northern region. I have eaten an expensive McD breakfast for (128B), located nearby the bus terminal. The interior of the bus station, it isn’t that big but their staffs are quite efficient. I bought the 2nd class bus with A/C and it costs (189B). There are buses going to the southern part, such as Bangkok or Hua Hin.

After 3 hours ride, I have reached the main bus terminal in CR. Do note that they made at he first stop at a 2^nd bus terminal, which is few km away from the main town. I confirmed with them that it is not the main one. After 30 mins walk, I managed to find this guesthouse. It was just near to the temple “Wat Jed Yot”. The room looked simple with fan and bathroom but still rather comfortable. (250B)

WHAT TO DO HERE?

Basically there are places to visit within the city and around city. The traveller spots are arranged by PART 1, PART 2 & PART 3 as below:

Chiang Rai City : [PART 1]
- Wat Jed Yot
- Night Bazaar
- Golden Clock Tower 

Around City :
- Black House Museum (Baan Dam) [PART 2]
- White Temple (Wat Rong Khun) [PART 3]

The City of Temples @ Chiang Mai 清邁

HOW DID I GET HERE?

After checking out from the Happy Guesthouse, I headed to the Sukhothai bus terminal and purchased a bus ticket with the same price (239B). It also took another 6 hours to reach Arcade bus terminal (CNX). At the main road beside the bus station, I caught a Rod Daeng (red songthaew) back to Chiang Mai Old City, Tha Phae Gate for (30B).

NOTE: From CNX airport, In order to get to Chiang Mai Old City (2-3km depending on the location of hotel), it is also flat rate (120B). Most streets within the Old City are 1-way street.

There’re songthaews parking in the bus station that demanded for at least 100B. That’s way cost too much. The better idea is I walked out the station to the main street and simply catches any passing songthaew that is heading to the Old City. I just told the driver that I’m going to Tha Pae Gate. The fare is usually fixed to 20-30B. Always be sure to ask the price before hopping in just in case. 

ABOUT CHIANG MAI เชียงใหม่

Chiang Mai is an important Thai culture, art and religion center and also the biggest transport hub in the Northern Thai area. The Chiang Mai metropolitan area (population more than 1 million people) is Thailand's fifth-largest city. The city has a much more relaxed atmosphere and cooling weather during the months and picturesque lush green landscape in the countryside. This has earned itself the name “Rose of the North".

    

Chiang Mai was founded in the 13 Century during the Lanna kingdom period. Chiang Mai, particularly the Old City, was once the capital of the kingdom. The historical center is the walled city (Chiang Mai, Chiang means City in the northern Thai dialect while “Mai” means new.) The Old City are built with red bricks, a square-shaped walled city that is surrounded by the moat (man-made river). During the golden era of 14th and 15th century, Chiang Mai had become a major religious and cultural center. The Lanna kingdom even expanded its territory towards northeast as far as Luang Prabang (currently part of Laos). 

The tourism spots and temples within the Old City remain the largest travelers attraction due to its mixture of ancient and modern landscape. The local government had banned the building of high-rise buildings within the Old City, this had resulted the Old City still remain its attractiveness.

Most Beautiful Buddha in Thailand @ Phitsanulok 彭世洛

HOW DID I GET HERE?

Once I took the songthaew back to the New City. It made a stop at the main bus terminal. Instead of going back to the earlier Old City bus stop, I got down from the songthaew. I purchased the one-way bus ticket to Phitsanulok for (43B) at the Wintour bus counter. I took the local air-conditioned bus and the trip takes about 1 hour (55km).

I reached the Phitsanulok bus terminal; it was located in the middle of the town, about 2-3km away from Wat Yai. According to the map, it was extremely far and time-consuming to walk so I decided to take the motorbike ride for (50B) one way. It was kind of expensive but it’s the fastest way to reach the temple and also possible to return back the bus station in order to catch the latest bus by 6pm!

On the way back, I took another motorbike ride back to the bus station for (40B) after negotiating. I managed to catch a bus back to Sukhothai bus terminal before the sunset.

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WAT YAI （WAT PHRA SI RATANA MAHATHAT）

TICKET         : NONE

TIME              : 08:00-18:00

WHAT TO DO HERE?

I was here to visit the well-unknown temple - Wat Yai (the official name is Wat Phra Si Ratana Mahathat). During my past trips to Thailand, I have visited many beautiful temples. However, this temple is said to house the most beautiful golden Buddha in Thailand. Once I have seen the picture of the gold plated Buddha statue, it just always stick in my mind. I found out the temple is in Phitsanulok. This temple is famous amongst the locals.

According to the book, the temple housed the Phra Phuttha Chinnarat, the most revered and copied Buddha image in Thailand. The famous Buddha is the second most important after the Emerald Buddha in Bangkok’s Wat Phra Kaew.

There were many sincere worshippers during the mid day hot sun. I did not stay here for long since it was extremely hot and I was starving. The day temperature according to Instaweather was 38 celcius degree!

I have to admit I came all the way to capture this beautiful Buddha.

While taking a photo of the Buddha, the photographer and the person must always show utmost respect to the God by kneeling down their body so that their body positions are always lower than the Buddha. 

I wasn't sure if taking photos of the prayers with feet showing up is a taboo.

After the visit, I walked out from the temple area to the nearest shopping mall Topland Plaza to cool down my body after the whole day of terrifying heat exposure under the sun. I had my late lunch KFC there watching over the much busy crossroad in Phitsanulok. Damn! It was the hottest day throughout my trip in Thailand!

NEXT DAY >> CHIANG MAI