Today I heard it again. My favorite Thai word: ALLOY. So it also exists in Laos! I don’t know EXACTLY what it means, but its best to be accompanied by a wide grin and a thumps up. It’s the perfect ice-breaker. When you like something you, just say ALLOY and everybody knows: the Falang likes it!
I heard it today at the market in Luang Nam Tha. Hungry I was hunting for some food and slowed down next to a stall where people were eating Noodle-soup, not too sure whether I like what I saw swimming in their bowls. A woman pointed at the empty seat besides her. I sat down. She gave me a spoonful of her soup to try and asked: ALLOY?? ALLOY!! I replied and ordered myself a steaming hot and very tasty Noodle-Soup.
With a bag full of sticky rice I left Luang Nam Tha and cycled towards Boten and the Chinese border. Only 30 km from the border I had the choice of cycling to China or heading towards Vientiane and the South of Laos. I took a right turn and headed southwards.
In a little village I tried to get comfortable on a stone, got out my sticky rice and was eyed by the villagers with curiosity. The road went up just to go down the other side again and went down just to climb up again. In the end it was a race against time because with every spin of my wheels the sky turned a little darker. As the first houses of another village appeared I was stopped by some people drinking beer at the side of the road. They filled a glass of ice cold Beer Lao for me and told me that I have reached my destination Oudomxai. After 2.5 month of alcohol abstinence 2 glasses of beer were a lot to take and before they got me completely wasted I bailed out and cycled to a guesthouse, a little tipsy.
The next day I encountered a road full of potholes and parts where the asphalt seemed to have gone missing. The road only went uphill. My legs were tired and soon I decided to try my luck with hitchhiking. I was on a road without much traffic, so I kept cycling till I heard an engine roaring behind me. I pulled on my brakes, held my thump out and the car came to a stop beside me. A friendly man gave me a ride to Pak Mong which was only 44 kilometers away. The many bumps in the road were too much for my bladder. I had to request a pee stop. He didn’t speak English so I had to sign it to him. As soon as he got what I asked for he stopped, I jumped out and disappeared in the bushes, praying he won’t leave me and take off with ALL my belongings…
The route from Pak Mong to Luang Prabang was a blessing: I was cycling along a gorgeous river, there were many kids that treated me like a superstar as I was cycling past them, I received a lot of “free kilometers” by long downhill roads, the sun was shining and the birds were singing….was I dreaming?
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| Drinking Beer Lao with strangers |
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| Hitchhiking to Pak Mong |
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| Nam Ou river |
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