It's time for a visa run. I'm getting sick of them, but it's just a fact of life for the time being.
Anyway, this time, I decided to try something different. Instead of going to Phnom Penh, Cambodia, where I've been far too many times lately, I decided to head up north to Savannakhet, Laos.
I woke up early on a Tuesday morning and headed to Mo Chit Bus Terminal to board the Nakonchai Air Bus to Mukdahan, the border town on the Thai side.
The 10-hour bus ride was surprisingly comfortable!
Like its name suggests, Nakonchai Air models itself after an airline, with uniformed attendants, reclining seats, USB power chargers, entertainment consols, and on-board meals.
I arrived in Mukdahan in the evening, grabbed dinner at the local 7-Eleven, and walked to the Hop Inn, my home for the night.
This morning I woke up early, checked out, and headed back to the bus station to buy a 45 baht ticket for the Thai-Lao International Bus, and by 8:45 we were on the road!
The Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge is just 10 minutes or so out of town. Upon arriving, we disembarked, passed through Thai immigration, and reboarded the bus to cross the Mekong. I'm not sure if Mukdahan is just a less popular border crossing than Aranyaprathet, but it was remarkably quick, easy, and comfortable.
The bus carried us across the Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge (technically the Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge 2, the first being at the crossing to Vientiane).
It was a cool, clear morning, and the wide river looked really beautiful.
Across the way, Laos was shrouded in an early morning mist.
I had already arranged an e-visa, so it only took another ten minutes or so once I was on the Laotian side of the river. I got my passport entry stamp and hopped on a ride to my hotel.
It was around 10am, and I had all of my documents ready to take to the Thai consulate. I was just leaving my hotel when the ground gave way beneath me and I fell down into a disgusting foot-deep drainage ditch.
Interestingly, I'm not the first person in my family to fall through a drainage ditch in the sidewalk.
I'm ok, but my right foot is a bit bruised, and my left leg got pretty banged up. Some guys working at a little mechanics shop nearby helped me up and offered me a garden hose to clean the gross black mud off of me.
My shin was bleeding a bit, so I navigated to a nearby pharmacy to get some Povidone-iodine (antiseptic). I can't speak Laotian, but I can speak a little Thai, and the languages are close enough to be moderately intelligible. I was able to ask for some Betadine, then went back to the hotel to take a shower, clean up, and treat my wound.
The Thai consulate is open in the morning to submit visa applications and in the afternoon to collect visas. Unfortunately, this mishap made me miss the morning window, which means that I will have to go to the consulate tomorrow morning instead, leaving me the afternoon to explore Savannakhet.
I've quickly realized that there is very, very little to do here...
Savannakhet is a sleepy little town of 125,000, which surprisingly makes it the second-largest city in Laos.
The city is home to a handful of Buddhist temples, some crumbling French colonial architecture, and a dinosaur museum, which I will try to check out this week.
As I was exploring (and looking for a minimart where I could buy shampoo and a new toothbrush), I passed the Savannakhet Museum, and decided to pay 10,000 kip to go inside.
The three-room museum contained a small but interesting collection of artifacts from the area's history, from prehistoric tool to modern pictures of Communist leaders.
I'm a little disappointed in how today turned out, as you can imagine, but I'm trying to stay positive. After all, exploring a new place is always an adventure! I'm sure I'll find something to do to pass the time while I'm waiting for my new visa, even if it's just cafe-hopping!
Wish me luck at the consulate tomorrow!
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