Laos surprise

my first day in laos

and the people who smile all day are not in evidence!

the trip to the border is relatively painless

as i have found about many things in thailand!

its when you get thru the silly passport checking on the thai

side that the fun begins.

the friendship bridge that runs from nan khia to

laos is very long so you have to pay the busman

to get you over in the rediculous heat!

then when you land in laos a sign greets your to say

you are in LAo pdr. then its another sign saying our taxes?

then you re thru to the immigration.

i needed 1 passport $35 and then i was  supposed to be in?

i got the forms filled them in and waited in line

to be told that i was in the wrong line!

don't you love lines?

i then went to the small dark window and gave

in my money to a woman who looked like

she was wearing a 1950's russian uniform. a closer

look identified them all as che guavara look alikes!

then i was told to pay the overtime?

overtime?

yeah. apparently you have to pay overtime 

of $1 as the stae shouldn't offer this revise on the sunday!

hmmm

walking through the other mean looking border areas

iw as greeted by thirsty cut throat hawkers trying to

get my to Vientiane the capital.

two minutes of bullshit and a nice american couple had

scored the ride, a huge took took appeared and we blasted off to the city

talking about blues guitarists and the silly heat in lao.