I will post more photos here and tell more about the trip as soon as I can.

http://travelblogasia.blogspot.com/2013/05/that-dam-black-stupa-vientiane-lao-pdr_26.html?m=1

http://travelblogasia.blogspot.com/2013/05/that-dam-at-night-vientiane-lao-pdr.html?m=1

http://travelblogasia.blogspot.com/2013/05/vientiane-night-market-on-fa-ngum-lao.html?m=1

http://travelblogasia.blogspot.com/2013/05/pha-that-luang-vientiane-lao-pdr_26.html?m=1

In my left hip pocket is 260,000 kip, the currency of Lao PDR, converted from 1,000 Thai baht. It is about $30 US. In another pocket is a dwindling stash of baht, and in my wallet is 3,000 baht to cover the cost of my visa. Checking in at Saylom Yen Guest House, I pay for two nights, expecting to check out on Wednesday, get my passport, then catch a bus to Udon Thani, where I will catch the last bus to Bangkok. It passes through Saraburi, my final destination. Everything is planned out, and I see a tight budget in front of me. 

This time around I am in Rm. 5, on the second floor. Last time it was Rm. 6, and the time before that was Rm. 1 on the ground floor near the front desk. The rooms I get are fan-only, no air conditioning. These are the cheapest rooms available. The rooms have a double bed, desk/dresser, and a shower with cold water. No hot water is available, even at some pricier places. Since my last visit the owners have renovated the rooms so they are brighter cleaner in appearance. Looks much better now that the dingy yellow has been replaced by a bluish-white wallpaper. 

I eat lunch across the street at a vegetarian restaurant, then return to my room. I read, I sleep, I wake up at 6:15 pm and remain so for eleven hours. I use both ipod Touch and a new Andro Pad to surf the Internet. I chatted briefly with one of my sisters and one of my nephews. Around 5am, I fall asleep and am back up just after 7am. 

On my last visa run I studied a map of the city, looking for a short cut to the Thai consulate visa section. I found what I was looking for, including one or two landmarks to use as way points. On the walk I forgot them, remembering only a dental clinic. I walked too far, but remembered a bank from a prior visit that I passed when I was walking back to the guest house. I retraced the route the best I could and botched it. I walked too far north and approached the consulate from the north-east. I should be approaching it out of the west. Go figure.

I get the guys in front to take care of my application form, and pay them 300 baht for the pictures and the service. They tell me that they have been handling paperwork for a lot of non-b immigration applicants like myself. Teachers preparing to apply for work permits came here, and face the backlog brought on by the three day holiday. I have time to wait, and my number in the line is 315. They are in the 250s when I get there. Hurry up and wait to find out that the cover letter is addressed to Immigration and not to the embassy. I am in good company, as English teachers from the Philippines and from maybe Hong Kong or Singapore also have problems with the papers provided them by their schools. I get my paperwork back and wander around town, aiming to find a PC cafe to request the proper document to be sent to me. Go to the bank, go to PC room, go to the Morning Market and Talat Sol mall, and then wander around town for a while because I need the exercise. 

I'm looking for an English language bookstore that I have visited three times before. It's been over a year since I last stopped in, and I never seem to remember where to find the place. First I come across a sporting goods store that I honestly do not remember from any of my other visits. I find some pads I need to practice kicking, and the price is kinda nice when I convert it to dollars. I don't make promises to return, though, but will keep it in mind to return there in a few months if things go right.

I overshoot the street I am looking for by about three blocks too far west, and I am two blocks north of the location. What hurts is my right knee, so I am not walking as quickly as I would like. I find the Monument bookstore right where I left it, I do not find the book I was looking for, but I do find another book on the subject that is affordable and make my purchase. Then comes another long walk. First, a bottle of water. It's the west end of town. I find two streets named after Hanoi and Hai Phong, two major cities in the northern part of Vietnam. I don't even want to think about history as I cross the streets. 

The wandering around continues until dark. I go to a PC room and find that the document I need has been sent. I get the print, pay up, and walk back to the guest house. Time to read. Time to sleep.

It starts simple enough in a line at the Hua Lampong station of the State Railway of Thailand, in Bangkok. It was a short line with a long wait as the guy in front of me asked his questions. My turn was not as long. 

Me: Nong Khai.

Ticket agent: Second class sleeper. Leaves at 8pm.

Me: No third class coach?

Ticket agent: No. 

I pay 688 baht and a korp koum kap for my second train ride in second class. My first time in second class sleeper was not pleasant. I was awake over half the night unused to the jostling of the car as it shook its way to Ubon Ratchathani in May 2010, the night a general who supported the Red Shirt cause was shot. The delay that night was nearly two hours. Round two was delayed 40 minutes. 

The other problem I have is that I am in the top bunk. The ladder is narrow, and I have a wide foot. Putting two feet on one rung is rather inconvenient when climbing into the bed. Climbing out of the bunk is also a hassle when needing to use the toilet. At least in third class coach I can lean against the window and use my arm as a pillow. It is comfortable, and the sway of the car does not bother me. The bunk comes with a blanket, thiugh, and Issan nights on the train can be cold enough for a jacket. I used the blanket around my shoulders and tried to sleep.

When not able to sleep, I read Assassin's Creed Renaissance, a novel based on the popular video game series. It tells the story of Ezio Auditore's quest for revenge against those who killed his family, only to find that it is part of a bigger game of control being fought by the Knights Templar and the Order of Assassins. Maybe I should have gotten that Tom Clancy novel. 

Up and down and up and down. I cannot sleep second class sleeper, and can't wait to have a real seat to sit in. I checked the time once during the night. It was 4:12 am. It was the third time I woke up during the trip. Then I remember one financial detail that would cost me dignity. The entrance fee at the Lao border is $35 or 1,500 baht. I'm an idiot. My budget is shot. I am thinking I will need 3,000 baht for my non-b immigration visa. Money gets tighter and tighter with every border hop.

The sun is shining through a window. No idea what time it was. The steward tells me I can get out of the bunk and move to a seat. I grab the book, sit down, look out the window and try to guess which side of Udon Thani we are on. A guy named Ramsey from Chicago is across the aisle. We talk briefly, then return to our stuff. He's got his iPod. I got my book. The iPod Touch in my pouch is over two years old. The headphones for it work fine with the iPod Nano, but the audio from the Touch is bad. Regular speakers are clear, but the connection with the jack gives lousy audio. No podcasts this time around.

We chug on. Breakfast is three cheese half sandwiches, coffee, orange juice, and a Coke. I pay up 210 baht for it. Might have ben worth it if there were two whole sandwiches hot off the grill. Could have used a second Coke, as well. Back to the book. Look out the window. Think. Book. Window. Think. Window. Book. I've had better sleep deprivation.

Every tuk-tuk driver in town appears to welcome us to Nong Khai, home of the naga fireballs (like the Marfa lights, but these come out of the Mekong river). Ramsey and I share a tuk-tuk to the border. The line is short. There are no questions. The line is smooth. Over the Mae Khong we trade 'sawadee kap' and 'korp koum kap' for the 'saw bai dee' and the 'kawp jai' as we enter Lao People's Democratic Republic. 

Off the bus and back into line. Arrival cards to fill in, baht to turn into kip, lines to wait in but are rapidly processed. Every cabbie in Vientiane is out to greet farang and offer them rides into Vientiane 20 minutes away by car or van. Ramsey gets us a deal on a cab, 300 baht for the one way trip. I tell the driver we are going to Talat Sol, the mall on Lane Xang Blvd., about half way between the Presidential Palace and Patuxay Park. I give Ramsey 150 baht. He needs to convert currency and connect to the Internet so he can contact his friends already in town. We part ways, and I leave for the Saylom Yen Guest House, where I plan to spend the next two days. Its Coronation day in Thailand, so the consulate is closed. Time to chill. 

frangipani tree

yellow-white glow

against green I see

your scent I know