Lak Sao to Pho Chau

Thursday November 9, 2017, 50 miles (81 km) - Total so far: 1,650 miles

(2,656 km)

We had a bit of an audience as we loaded the bikes this morning. I found it a bit uncomfortable until the English speaker arrived and asked us a few questions, then everyone started smiling!

The ride starts off flat and passes through lots of more basic villages. We timed it perfectly to see hundreds of kids riding to school on their bikes. Very cool. Lots of shouts and waves. A few more barky dogs today - not sure why.

We could see cloud over the hills as we approached them and, sure enough, as we started climbing, it started raining. And didn't stop! The border itself is an odd experience. The Lao side is ok, a bit tatty and run down but nothing too odd. Then, there's a long gap until you find Vietnam immigration. They seem to be building a new building, but it's still very much a work in progress. Lots of people but no signs to tell us where to go - and it was so foggy by this point, we could see a thing. We finally found where we were meant to be and it was equally weird. Lots of officials not really doing anything, totally run down and confusing, and TERRIBLE road surface. That said, it went completely smoothly and no one charged us for anything.

The road down the other side is pretty dire. It was still very foggy (and wet) for us, which made things slow going. We were also freezing cold - a sensation we haven't experienced for a while!! As it started to clear, we enjoyed the new scenery - so much lusher than the Laos side.

We had lunch at a tiny little place where, surprisingly, the lady spoke English AND there was a menu on the wall, with pictures. Delicious fried rice that was very different from anything we've had so far. Massive portion with pickled cucumber and a bowl of broth for $3 (for two!)

We continued to Pho Chau, which is a lot bigger than I'd expected, and really bustling. We're staying at the Ly Ha hotel which is great - a range of rooms and prices, but we were seduced by a nice big room away from the road, 300,000 dong (£10). Have to say, it is a bit smoky which I didn't notice when I looked around, so have a good sniff if you check it out. We have a bath which is great, although very small - and we're highly amused that it empties onto the bathroom floor! It's a bit alarming that they keep your passports, but we'd been forewarned.

The guy on reception is really friendly and basically insisted on helping us sort out breakfast and dinner - in exchange for us spending some time speaking English with him later. Fine with us!