Wednesday 27 September 2017

LTF MR2 (7-15 August 2017), Day 6 : Hansel and Gretel


With Mike and Ben at their resort
Breakfast at Mekong Riverside Resort and Camping
The geckos at the resort...
...alarmed the men...
...and the women as well!!!
Wendy on her mission!
Twin propellers over our heads!
Remember Love Loei!!!
Lovely couple at Chiang Khan night market
Personal key chains for 690 Baht

Sunset at Chiang Khan
Sunset at Chiang Khan
River walk
River walk


When your stay is as beautiful as Mekong Riverside Resort and Camping, it makes it all the harder to leave. After a wonderful breakfast of Khao Tum and a fusion breakfast spread of eggs, toast and grilled bananas, we were quite reluctant to pack up and leave. Seeing the mood of the day, Alvin decided to give us more time to mooch around.





This morning's breakfast was accompanied with a generous fruit platter, a thoughtful gesture from Mike who had listened well to his guests. Flashback to last evening, after Claudine made enquiries about getting fruits from the nearby village, a generous spread of fruits were served as after dinner desserts!

Following an extended farewell which saw Ben handing out little gifts of Buddha amulets to bless our trip, we left the resort reluctantly. Rolling out from the long driveway, we turned right onto Highway 211.

Right across the road, diagonal to the resort is a crematorium. It was a real relief it was not put to use throughout our stay or we may never look at roasts the same way ever again!





Stretching from the resort to as far as Sweet Bites Cafe and beyond, the road was going through expansion works. While those of us with face buffs were glad of the sheer screen, those without were literally biting dusts! Protection or no protection, everyone could very well be digging gold nuggets from the open crevices of their bodies by day's end!





As planned, we stopped at Sweet Bites Cafe, 8 km down the road. We were pleasantly surprised their apple pie actually lived up to its reputation though the crust were a tad too thick.



As we were chiseling our way through the thick crusts, a text travelled 8 km on the airwaves to Alvin's homing device! Mike had found a Garmin in one of the rooms!!! Seeking the help of our friend from Sweet Bites, Wendy hopped on the the rear seat of her moped, much to George's "chagrin" for being denied close proximity with a pretty young lass!!!

The mission took longer than expected. Bored, VT sieved through the earrings for sale at Sweet Bites and found one for Carolen. Celia went through the tedious job of rearranging the vanity corner, messed up by the strings of customers that came through the doors.



Finally, Wendy returned with George's toy. We were relieved we did not have to pay for her ransom. But noon was approaching and riding on in the heat was a real mental challenge! Even the passing sceneries of paddy fields against a backdrop of rolling hills did little to motivate us.



Up on a hill, under the shades of the forest, a pagoda shaped bus stop or look out was too tempting not to stop. The place looked dirty and abandoned but yet the lazy lot of us sprawled on the seats, oblivious to the bird and lizard poo!

Hoping to catch up with The Roscoes who had skipped Sweet Bites, Alvin pushed us on with the promise of an interesting temple not faraway. Reluctantly, we followed his leadership, treading on in the heat.



As we approached, the huge temple and monastery grounds on the left was hard to miss. But the phallus shrine on the right was more eye catching than any tom, DICK or harry tourists around the area!!! Such phallic symbols can only denote fertility and not a mean to reverse male erectile dysfunctions!!!



While some fell onto the tiled floor to seek refuge and to rest their tired bodies, none went down on their knees to offer fervent prayers. We have all been blessed with offsprings of our own.

Leaving the twin propellers, we had gone not more than 200 m when we bumped into The Roscoes at a mini market. They had just finished their ice creams and were getting ready to roll out when we arrived. Again, we had to let them go as we did at Sweet Bites as everyone were spoilt for ice creams as well!

Treading on, we lost touch with reality. We had been feeding on snacks and sweets the whole day, we felt like little Hansels and Gretels. Closing in on Chiang Khan, we were again munching on local junk food of crisps and preserved coconut flesh from a stall near to Khaeng Khut Khu.





The stall owner could tell we were exhausted as we had all collapsed on her floor. Taking pity on us, she offered us cold water from an eski container.



Conditioned to Perth's winter, the tropical heat was just too much for Carolen. She took her second shower for the day!!!



Finally, we arrived at Remember Loei Love, our stay for the next 2 nights. Located right at the old street where the night market is located, we were in for more junk food! Throwing our bags down, we immediately regrouped for a substandard "after lunch hour" Thai lunch.



Meeting again an hour later, stalls were beginning to occupy the streets, in anticipation of the night market. We tried the prawn crackers sold on the streets which received popular reviews on TripAdvisor. The size of dinner plates, the tiny river shrimps are fried in crispy but hard batter that will scratch the roof of your mouth!!! Served with a Thai chili sauce dip, they should go very well with beer!



Chilling at the hotel lobby with Thai fish cakes and iced cappuccinos later, Celia was feeling anything but chill! The air conditioning in her room broke down while she was taking a nap!


After the chaos, Fone (Suthasinee) and Man dropped by to meet us. They were members of Chiang Khan Cycling Club to which our friend, Ugrid had helped us get in touch with! Their thoughtful gestures made us feel so welcomed!



That night, we finally had the real Khao Tum we had been pining for since the start of the trip! Right across from our hotel was this shop that serves fantastically smooth rice congee with minced pork. Sue though had to settle for second best....her menu was a single choice of eggs!



We continued the evening, stretching our waistlines with soya milk in ginger syrup, assorted meat in skewers and betel leaf wrap. Now, if VT was Hansel, he would have been the first to go into the witch's pot! Not quite satisfied, he continued on with Pad Thai while the rest went on a fervent mission to save the Thai economy!!!


Photo Credits :
1. KC
2. Ped Al

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Remember Love Loei Hotel





















Monday 25 September 2017

LTF MR2 (7-15 August 2017), Day 5 : A kaleidoscope of events!!!


At Sangkhom Riverview Resort
Ethereal, Sangkhom Riverview Resort
When you travel with LTF, there's always time to have a pedicure...
...and a shower...
...transportations are varied from land...
...to water...
...sometimes you scale a building to rescue a princess locked up in the high tower!!!
...other times, you shiver in fear !!!


This morning, the whole scene at Sangkhom Riverview was covered in a blanket of mist. Across the river, Laos looked ethereal, masked behind the same cloak of water vapour. Sipping coffee from the cosy dining room of the resort, we took delight in watching the sun slowly lifts the blanket of mist away.




A latecomer to the dining room, Celia was not as delighted when she found out her much awaited breakfast of bacon and eggs does not come with bacon!!! A specially arranged and pre-ordered spread, the hotel only had 10 tiny slices of bacon for the 10 pork eaters in our group. When Sue was served the non halal meat meant for Celia, Carolen was quick to take over her's. That was when the ration ran out...

Oops!!!

They don't have anymore!!!!


We were all in a relaxed mood as we rode towards Pak Chom. A short 70 km ride, we were not in a big hurry to get there. Being playful, Alvin even started us off on an early morning butt lifting exercise as we rode along the quiet roads of Highway 211.


Plastic cups recycled as flowering pots
Coming down a mountain range one and a half hours later, we eagerly stopped at the first roadside stall we saw. After all, we've been huffing and puffing up the slopes and a cold Cha Ron was a good motivator to stop. The young girl manning the eco friendly stall was trying her very best to cope with our 11 orders of milk tea when Joy Napachnan came to her rescue in her brand new TOYOTA Fortuner.


An MBA holder from Bangkok University, Joy was the sweetest host we have ever met. Returning to her rural home, she is trying to make it big with this eco stall that also offers healthy egg omelette with unpolished brown rice. She shares with us her dreams of operating a home stay by the river. We can only wish her every success in escaping the rat race that she so wanted to leave behind!




Treading on, we were coming down yet another mountain range when we came upon a row of shops by the river. Meant as a scenic stopover, the whole place was closed, possibly out of business due to lack of visitors. It was noon and terribly hot by then. Carolen, seeing a tap by the corner of a shop decided to have a wash which later prompted Alvin to bless the others as well!!!

500m away from the shops by the river

The Roscoes though, were smarter! More observant, they spotted a tap and sink at the other end of the row where they could properly wash without having to bend over!

All this while, we have been traveling along the river. The route though is not flat, as we were no where near the river delta. The Mighty Mekong starting from Lasagongma Spring on the Tibetan plateau has to wind its way through 6 other countries before making its final dump in the South China Sea!

Close to 1 pm, we finally caught up with The Roscoes who had pushed on after the "baptism " of LTF's two loveliest ladies. These 2 veterans had rode on steadily, taking shorter rest stops than the rest of us.


United again, we rolled into a village and spotted a lunch stop. But again, The Roscoes carried on!!!

By Day 5, Sue was resigning herself to eggs! Most meals in this region serves pork with no choice of chicken or fish. Every single time, she had to settle for eggs and raw vegetables!!!

Leaving our lunch stop, we were taken aback when we spotted a nice looking cafe further down the road. It was puzzling to see a modern outfit sandwiched between dilapidated shophouses in a village with no more than 20 visible buildings. But we soon understood its economic viability as we spotted the golden backs of twin dragons curling its way up a staircase to Wat Si Chomchuen, a Buddhist temple up the slope.

We took on the challenge of more hills as we journeyed on. Even Carolen was exhausted, using her hand to pump her bad leg occurring from a freak bike accident in late 2015!


Stopping midway up a hill for regrouping, we noticed what looked like a funeral pyre. The land near the riverbank was cleared and in the center was the burnt remains of a rectangular structure made out of banana trunks. An open hall with asbestos roof and toilets could only be the reception area!

Leaving the sacred place to perform the last rites of passage for Thai people, we continued scaling to the hill top. Rolling down was a breeze, until we reached the bottom of the hill...

Coming down fast, the ones ahead had long disappeared. "Which way?" Claudine slowed down and shouted. Just then, Carolen shot ahead and veered to the right. She was about to question her when she spotted the sign board for Pak Chom and followed suit! Meanwhile, George and Wendy took the left turn....returning later by instinct to see Alvin waiting at the fork!

A few kilometers ahead, we came upon a bridge reconstruction works. Planks were placed temporarily on the deck to facilitate crossings. KC was first to roll past. Following behind was Claudine, Sue and VT...

Now when Captain Hook made Wendy walk the plank, she went right to the edge and fell over. Away from the lost boys, Sue fell as well!!!



Following the story of Peter Pan, Wendy was caught by Peter in midair. Sadly, Sue went crashing down!!! Shaving off a few milligrams during her earlier pedicure at Joy's could have shifted her sense of stability. We were beginning to wonder if she is Brompton's appointed crash test dummy crashing twice in less than 48 hours!!!!

With less than 10 km more to complete our day's toiling, we pushed on. Midway, we bumped into The Roscoes who were having a water break by a paddy field. Nope, they have not had lunch!



Rolling into Mekong Riverside Resort and Camping, we were greeted by the loud barks of their 2 resident dogs. They were harmless, even turning friendly when Mike stepped out to meet us. A Canadian married to a Thai; Mike and Ben were the perfect hosts in this tropical paradise resort. 

Located in a shady rubber estate, just next to the river, their four chalets were all beautifully decorated with modern amenities. Every unit has glass sliding doors that opens up to a patio with wooden deck and armchairs, making it a perfect place to enjoy a sundowner.

While we took turns to shower and finish the day's laundry, The Roscoes were spotted on the patio, celebrating their years of matrimony over a cocktail. The Lees were soon to follow, packing us off on our boat trip on the Mekong River.

We felt like children, conned into a summer camp so the adults could have some
"ME" time. So it is that while we baked in the hot evening sun with nothing to see other than water, trees and long grass, the Lees were on "fantasy island", all enjoyed from the comforts of their air conditioned room!



That night, we were treated to a lovely dinner cooked by Ben. Her best dish could very well be masaman curry. Cooked with exotic spices that tingled our tongue, it also reacted with our brain receptors. Feeling euphoric, we had a wonderful time reliving past LTF tours and hiccups!



Photo Credits :
1. KC
2. Ped Al

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Mekong Riverside Resort and Camping :