Laos - 2007
I had a 4-week Indochina trip in May-June 2007.
(Melbourne – Bangkok – Thailand – Laos - Vietnam - Cambodia -Thailand – Bangkok - Melbourne)
After 3 nights in Vientianne on my IntrepidTravel tour we travelled towards the Vietnam border.
Rural scenes along the road to the Vietnamese border
Hinboun Village
This area is near the Ho Chi Minh Trail which was a logistical system that ran from the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam)
to the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) through the neighboring kingdoms of Laos and Cambodia.
The system provided support in the form of manpower and material, to the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam
(NLF or derogatively, Viet Cong) and the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) during the Vietnam War (1960-1975).
The trail was not a single route, but rather a complex maze of truck routes, paths for foot and bicycle traffic,
and river transportation systems.
The name, taken from North Vietnamese president Ho Chi Minh, is of American origin.
Within North Vietnam, it was called the Truong Son Road, after the mountain range in central Vietnam through which it passed.
It was heavily bombed during the war. The locals have converted the discarded fuel tanks from the bombing planes to good use as boats.
The petrol station
We walked across the bridge to our homestay
At dusk some of us went on a magical motorised canoe trip in one of the modified discarded fuel tanks.
Our local guide, Ky (Key), cooked our meal. Very nice. Pork balls, rice and
cooked vegetable dishes for the main course.
Pineapple pieces for sweets. (Yes, we bought them at that local market on the way here.)
Breakfast
The last few kilometres to the Vietnamese border
The border is on the top of a ridge
So after 7 nights in Laos we entered Vietnam.
We spent 11 nights in Vietnam and 5 nights in Cambodia before returning to Bangkok.
Of the 4 countries on this trip the Lao people were the friendliest.
I had a 4-week Indochina trip in May-June 2007.
(Melbourne – Bangkok – Thailand – Laos - Vietnam - Cambodia -Thailand – Bangkok - Melbourne)
After 3 nights in Vientianne on my IntrepidTravel tour we travelled towards the Vietnam border.
Rural scenes along the road to the Vietnamese border
Hinboun Village
This area is near the Ho Chi Minh Trail which was a logistical system that ran from the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam)
to the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) through the neighboring kingdoms of Laos and Cambodia.
The system provided support in the form of manpower and material, to the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam
(NLF or derogatively, Viet Cong) and the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) during the Vietnam War (1960-1975).
The trail was not a single route, but rather a complex maze of truck routes, paths for foot and bicycle traffic,
and river transportation systems.
The name, taken from North Vietnamese president Ho Chi Minh, is of American origin.
Within North Vietnam, it was called the Truong Son Road, after the mountain range in central Vietnam through which it passed.
It was heavily bombed during the war. The locals have converted the discarded fuel tanks from the bombing planes to good use as boats.
The petrol station
We walked across the bridge to our homestay
At dusk some of us went on a magical motorised canoe trip in one of the modified discarded fuel tanks.
Our local guide, Ky (Key), cooked our meal. Very nice. Pork balls, rice and
cooked vegetable dishes for the main course.
Pineapple pieces for sweets. (Yes, we bought them at that local market on the way here.)
Breakfast
The last few kilometres to the Vietnamese border
The border is on the top of a ridge
So after 7 nights in Laos we entered Vietnam.
We spent 11 nights in Vietnam and 5 nights in Cambodia before returning to Bangkok.
Of the 4 countries on this trip the Lao people were the friendliest.
