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עברית
January 18, 2007
I rented a light motorcycle that day to tour the area. On the way to Vang Vieng I managed to get the idea about the quality of the roads and knew I had to be careful. The main road that connects Vientiane and Luang Prabang (Vang Vieng in the middle) doesn’t have paved margins. There’s only one lane each way. From time to time there are holes and bumps in the road so you have to pay attention while driving. Along the road there is no street light and therefore it’s dangerous to ride there after dark around 6:30 PM.
The road from Vang Vieng To Luang Prabang
Even though I have some experience with ATVs, that was the first time I tried it with a light motorcycle. I paid $5 for one day without insurance. I didn’t look for an automatic gear but for a manual one.
I got a new motorcycle made in China that made a lot of noise in comparison to my last Suzuki. Its performance were weaker and maximum speed was only 80 km/h.
I passed by a book store and bought a map of the area for 15,000 kip and a used Lonely Planet of Laos for 300 baht.
I rode on the road which leads to Luang Prabang until I reached a sign who showed Tham Lom cave to the left. A dirt road with potholes took me to an improvised bamboo bridge on which a motorcycle cannot pass. A young boy waits patiently at that spot and gives parking services to guard your motorcycle or bicycle while your away for 3000 kip (20 cents). I’ve noticed the phenomenon first in Vientiane where the service is offered for locals in the markets. After parking I walked on the improvised bridge. On the other side sits a man who probably build and maintains it. He asked for 5000 kip to get pass him. Those who refuse can swim to the other side. I paid of course.
There was a huge swing there that was used by children for acrobatic jumps to the river. From time to time you could see tourists floating on their tubes peacefully.
Tham Lom Cave
A hunchbacked local guy who was 18 years old but looked very young (I forgot his name, like the rest of the Lai names after about five minutes) welcomed me with a smile and explained that in order to get inside the cave I have to pay 5000 kip. I told him that I already paid to get across the bridge, and he answered that it’s dangerous to go inside alone and that’s why I have to pay. He was right about the dangerous cave. After I paid, he took me into the beginning of the route that leads into the cave and turned back. I reminded him that it’s dangerous and asked him to show me the way. The hunchbacked kid, who was in slippers, quickly jumped on the rocks and the steep improvised ladders which were built on the mountain. It’s a very tiring climb of about ten minutes till you reach the cave. Inside the cave are bamboo ladders and improvised passages, but it’s dark. Very dark. I turned on my flashlight and thought how nice it would be if I had a headlamp.
The cave is slippery. Some parts are filled with mud and puddles. There are also many holes. Luckily I brought good walking shoes. Sandals are not ideal for this kind of cave.
The hunchbacked kid skipped with his slippers on the stones. It looks like he knows it pretty well. After fifteen minutes we came to a place where artificial light was installed. The cave went on and on deep inside the mountain a few kilometers more, but I was told that the escort stops right now. If I want to continue I have to pay, and quite a lot.
I asked the kid to wait a few minutes so I can check if there’s any point going deeper in the mountain. After a few meters the cave has gone completely dark. My flashlight started to dim and show distress signs and I remembered that I didn’t bring any spare battery with me. I continued to walk into the cave while thinking how will I get back if the flashlight stops working. The soil turned more slippery as I walked and small hills of mud filled the entire route. Puddles appeared and right after I climbed a couple of muddy stairs that had big holes around them I realized it would be irresponsible to continue alone with no alternative light, and I came back to the hunchbacked kid who waited for me patiently.
We went out of the cave, I thanked him and when we got back to the huge swing many tourists started to show. This spot as many others along the river is used as a stopping point for people who do the tubes tour.
I left the area and continued with my motorcycle with the road until I reached a sign which pointed left to an organic farm. I parked the motorcycle near the river’s bank and walked for a while in the area. There’s nothing much to look for there except the magnificent view. This spot is used as a starting point for the tubes tour.
The road goes by stunning mountain view that looks like as if it came out of a fairy tale. It’s hard to describe the landscape around Vang Vieng without actually seeing it, and especially the one that surround the river. At some point I turned from the main road to a steep incline. I came to a small farm on a hill and discovered another viewpoint on the area and the near village.
I drove through scenic villages while cow herds are passing by the road, and I’m on a motorcycle a few meters away. The advantage of a motorcycle over an organized trip or even a car or bicycle is huge. You can get almost anywhere quickly and stop everywhere and when you want to take a photo. You don’t even have to get off your bike. You just sometimes have slow down when cows are crossing the road, which isn’t a rare sight.
The four caves arena
I reached another sign pointing to the left toward more caves. Again I had to pay for parking and for crossing the bridge and of course pay entrance fee for the caves. Before the bridge I saw young ducks playing on the river bank. In the river some local women were fishing with their hands. A weird monkey was tied to a tree and played with a dog who appeared to be his friend. At that time I found out that I got to the place I wanted to see and even more. In one area, 30 kilometers from the city, there are four different cave: Elephant Cave, Tham Loup Cave, Tham Hoi Cave and Water Cave. After my previous experience I didn’t want to get inside alone. I looked for a guide.
People referred me to a local Lai girl (whose name I forgot after five minutes). She explained that a tour to the four caves costs $8. After some bargaining the price dropped to $5 and we started walking. The Elephant Cave is the closest and smallest one. It’s a big hole in the mountain more than it’s a cave and you don’t need a flashlight to see it. Inside the cave a Buddha statue and a rock stone in the shape of an elephant.
From there we continued to Tham Loup and Tham Hoi, twenty minutes walk from the beginning. Without a guide it’s hard to get to all of these caves. I haven’t noticed any marking on the routes while walking in the fields to the cave.
The two caves are located side by side. You have to pay 5000 kip to get inside. For your money you also get a useful headlamp. The caves in this area are made of limestone while some are stalactite caves. We’ve seen attractive stalactites and while walking my guide showed me the more impressive ones. One of the caves was a few kilometers long. I was told it’s three hours walk to the end and back so at some point we went back because we didn’t have much time. In order to take photographs in the cave you need a tripod, and if you don’t have any you’ve got to stabilize your camera so the photos will not turn out blurry.
After these two caves we walked to the water cave. You get a headlamp and a tube for 10000 kip. It’s not a necessity to pay. Even the sign says that people can swim for free but it’s much more fun with a tube. Inside the cave the water was very cold. There’s a rope along the cave which helps you to advance with your tube. We swam until the point where there was no more water, then we parked our tube and started crawling on the ground with no shoes in a passage which was 50 cm high. For the small girl it was much simpler than me. We came to a big natural pool. I couldn’t see the end of it because it was too dark. I swam to the place where the light from the flashlight didn’t reach and then we came back.
On the way back my guide showed me the village she was living in. It’s a quiet place with chickens, cows and other animals who walk through the unpaved roads. She went to her house and I got back to my motorcycle. In the improvised parking place the local guy still waited near my bike after the many hours I spent inside the caves.
With the road to Luang Prabang
I continued to drive north toward Luang Prabang. I went through more villages, while cattle and cows showed on the road. Sometimes trucks passed by and disturbed their peace. The villages are located along the main road whose length is hundred of kilometers. Nearby children are playing,men are working and you can look directly into the locals’ life without putting any effort.
Back to Vang Vieng
After half an hour it started to get dark. I did a U turn and started going back to Vang Vieng. I had only a short sleeves T shirt, I was in a hurry and it was very cold. Most of the way I drove in 70-80 km/h. It looked like a huge amount of mosquitoes flew directly toward me. Luckily, the plastic helmet I got has a wind shield that took a substantial amount of hits. And so, by the sounds of the smashing mosquitoes I went back to Vang Vieng just after it got dark.
In Vang Vieng business is as usual. Tourists are stuck to the television, pancake sellers stand on the street like every other day, and the good life keeps going on.
This article was originally written in Hebrew. It was translated to English at a later time.
English
