callao

I may know someone that can help you and I'll be talking to him next week, pm me with more info as I am not going any further on the board here

There are people that can help get you a yearly work permit I'm told

Work permit and stay card is a yearly thing and is more expensive than a tourist visa

I finally got a chance to play Long Vieng golf course in VTE, its almost to the friendship bridge with its own private entrance, very nice place, nice practice facility, we just showed up around 1030 and were told all the caddys were out and would have to wait an hour to play, gave us free range balls , nice putting green, and they have something us americans love GOLFCARTS, very nice course nice true rolling greens its about $52 with a golfcart, but much more fun with a cart

that guy is thinking BFD

if theres not many people looking for a taxi from friendship bridge to Udon airport I've had to pay 800 baht to the airport so be prepared to pay or wait for more people to share the fare

I wonder how the US state department will deal with US guys wanting to bring their Thai ladyboy or gay friend to the USA to get married

thanx for the update on Long Vein, got to play that one when I go back next month

I understand that China is spending the money for high speed rail as part of a plan to have interconnected rail lines thru China, Viet Nam, Cambodia, Laos, Burma, Thailand, Malaysia for freight and container traffic so sooner than later you need to change over to what everybody else is going to have NO?

Yes but generally no.

China has offered to give Laos a US$6 billion low interest loan for the proposed standard gauge HSR line there which would link Yannan province with Thailand (Nong Khai). The line is very expensive for a country like Laos as it would require numerous tunnels and bridges. A Malaysian company wants to build a new metre gauge line from Savan across Laos to the Vietnam border and the hope Vietnam will build the link to down to the coast to link with the main N-S Vietnam line. (Thailand is going to build a new meter gauge line to Mukdahan). Another line from Hanoi to Laos is also tentatively proposed.

Vietnam was proposing their own HSR - they would never want the Chinese to fund it, too proud for that - from HCM to Hanoi with Japanese funding. It was going to cost some US$35 billion but it was canned 18 months ago. It will make a comeback in the future given the potential sums and corruption opportunities but realistically it is too much for Vietnam. The proposed meter gauge line from HCM to PP is being surveyed for the exact route with an expectation it will be built by 2020 (The Vietnamese state 2016/7 but that is unrealistic)

Cambodia has no HSR plans. ADB has funded - mainly with Australian money - the rehabilitation of the previous network which was unuseable save for the infamous 'bamboo trains'. The Sihanoukville line was completed late last year. The PP to Thai border line might be finished by mid next year (Thailand is rebuilding the missing 6kms from Aran to Poipet, work starting late this year). A Chinese company has proposed to build a US$1.5 billion north south line to a new port for a mine proposal but the whole project is very suspect.

Burma has no HSR plans. Still gradually expanding their meter gauge network. The 'death railway' will essentially be rebuilt with a new line into Thailand for the Dewei Port development. Still talk of a line from Mae Sot area into Burma but probably unrealistic.

Malaysia is well advanced is a double tracking program of their whole meter gauge network. The KL to Singapore HSR line is back on the agenda and will most likely get approved early next year - current feasibility study. No plan to build HSR rail to the north of Malaysia or link with Thailands proposed HSR south line.

Most of the plans are the fruition of the long proposed UN auspiced TAR (Trans Asia Railway) process, SE Asia section which has had the aim of linking all SE Asian countries by rail mainly for freight purposes. The infamous Beijing to Singapore line. The original aim was for connections to be completed by 2015. I think 2025 is the current timeframe.

More recent HSR line proposals are separate of this. (You can find more info on the TAR and proposed lines for each country at 2Bangkok.com site)

thanx for the info, spelled it out to where I could even understand it, sound like a lot of countries blowing a lot of hot air

extention of stays at $2 a day is double just renewing your visa every month, you can get a 1 year multi entry visa if you have a connection $35X 12 $420, not a lot of western style rooms and apartments available and those are somewhat overpriced, doubt if you can get anything close to what you pay in Hua Hin, and a monthly visa takes 1 1/4 pages per month so they fill your passport up pretty quick, no Tesco lotus 7-11 or any supermarkets so its different there, but good beer, good golf in Vientiane, and decent nightlife as well, but out of the bigger cities its quite primative

I understand that China is spending the money for high speed rail as part of a plan to have interconnected rail lines thru China, Viet Nam, Cambodia, Laos, Burma, Thailand, Malaysia for freight and container traffic so sooner than later you need to change over to what everybody else is going to have NO?

must be hard to find new 1 meter gauge railroad equipment

might be smart to build a third rail at standard guage and slowly change over to standard gauge at some point

tunnels in an area that is prown to flooding does seem kinda lame

And for us Lucky Canadian the visa fee is 42 USD.

I Wonder what Canada did to Laos in the past to get the higher visa price ?

i think it was something about allowing too many laos citizens to live there. was ages ago when canada was very easy to get into .for everyone.

Lao and Canada have no relations and no embassy so the steeper price for visa

the airport shuttle to Nong Khai and Friendship bridge is available to every flight at Udon not just Nok Air, and I agree that going back you get stung for at least 800 baht to get from the friendship bridge to Udon, add up the cab costs and flight costs and its hard to beat Lao Central direct flight to VTE from BKK airport for $92, and way less hassle getting thru immigration at VTE airport both ways

my directions to Inter Lao golf course is a little bit messed up, the left turn off Luang prabang rd is 500 meters past the right turn to the northern bus station not the road to the university which is a couple kms further

yes they have been building a new road from Luang Prabang rd out to tadmoon waterfalls and Inter golf course, so that way is much better on a bike, you have to go past Ban Champa (theres a sign in English) about a km or 2. if you see tadmoon waterfall park you've gone about 1/2 km too far, I blew a tire on Ban Mai rd last time on a bike, washboard ruts everywhere till they redo that section, theres a sign for Inter at intersection LP rd

the road to Inter is in ongoing upgrade, but the majority of it is much better than before, I'd go the Luang Prabang road way, the Kaowleio Ban Mai way is still pretty messed up but eventually that will be new road all the way back to town too, I heard theres a new Tesco Lotus being built off that road by the fishponds, we played up there again in March

that's more than the Oklahoma Federal building bombing and look what that did

the newest golf course in VTE is the vietnamese course (I forget the name) if you look at google earth and find Lao CC (km 14 youth gardens) and pan to the right you'll see it about a km or 2 towards the friendship bridge new road to the left (450 rd?) haven't played yet, we like playing at Inter Lao golf course north of town, 200000 all in, but hard to get to if you don't have wheels, Lao CC is great, SEA games course is nice but since my leg has been bugging me I wanted a cart only to find out ALL the carts are reserved a week in advance, hence not available althou there were about 20 unused carts there so they pissed me off, Dansavanh is nice in the wet season too

back to the topic, this is nothing new , North Koreans have been taking this route for a long time but they know they must make it all the way to Thailand or be sent back, North Korea and China have relations with Laos, what do you think they're going to do

What out she could be married to Dudley Do Right

there are hotels that are not going to allow you to bring girls there, Lang Xang and Lao Plaza, are gov. affiliated, Don Chan palace used to be OK but is under new ownership and so no more disco till 3am and stricter policys, I know I've seen girls staying at Sengtawan hotel and Vansana riverside, my partying friend stayed at Orchid for months so that's OK, hard to know with other hotels, some Laos are very strict on this and some not at all, never heard of joiner fees, and if you do, remember you don't have the relative safety? of having the hotel ask for and keep a girls ID card so be extra careful with your stuff, don't think that because you are in Laos that the same precautions you would take in Pattaya or Phuket don't apply in VTE, Luang Prabang is much more sticky on this, not really doable up there unless you check in together, never a problem travelling with and staying together with a lao girl in Laos, and people hook up everyday in VTE

if you like discos theres one at Mercure Hotel (old novotel) , 1/2 block up LP rd from there is Future disco, and Marina disco with bowling alley is further up the street, Meena disco is on the same road as Khop Chai Dou bar about 2 km downstream on the left and Romeo disco is another 1 km on the right, Sornedith Club is a disco with more Gays and ladyboys, look on a hobo map for Sornedith Hotel, but all these places require some sort of transportation as they are not walking distance from downtown, maybe Novotel and Future are, the other bars I mentioned are all in the same area and easily walkable