Bus from Saigon to Phnom Penh

After some extensive research, I decided to get from Saigon, Vietnam to Phnom Penh, Cambodia  by bus. This seemed to be one f the easiest and safest land crossings in SE Asia, and the bus ride was only 7 hours. I booked my tickets on the Mekong Express through Sinh Tourist in District 1.

I had to arrive at 6:30 in the morning for check in, and was told the bus would come at 7:00 to pick me up. Sinh Tourist is a popular travel agency, and there were buses coming to drop off and pick up people every few minutes. Soon, the small sidewalk outside the shop became chaotic.

Boarding the bus in Saigon

The Mekong Express bus I rode was a themed bus, and the theme was Mariah Carey. The entire bus was decorated like an 8-year-old girl’s bedroom, complete with a television covered in glittery stickers, which played a Mariah Carey music video complication lasting over an hour.

By the tme Mariah Carey finished singing, it was time to cross the border. The bus attendant collected our passports and $35 USD from each passenger and we all got out of the bus. This border crossing is a bit weird. Instead of waiting in line with your documents, everyone stands in a massive group in front of an immigration officer, who processes each passport, then calls the name on the passport. When your name is called, you go to the window and pick up your passport and visa, then hand it back to the bus attendant. We did this twice, once to get the exit stamp from Vietnam, and once to get the entry stamp from Cambodia. It was weird, but easy and brainless. It looked like a total clusterfuck but somehow worked out. After everyone had their visas we were on the Cambodian side of the border, which is full of sad-looking Chinese casinos, and people selling jackfruits.

A decorated bus

The first half of the journey was brutal. I finally experienced the horribly bumpy and unpaved roads that bloggers all over Asia have been writing about.  It was probably the worst bus ride I have had on this trip, with the exception of our epic delay from Kuala Lumpur to Penang.  The AC barely worked, our seats were cramped, arms and shoulders all over each other. We sat in the front row and had no leg room. But worst of all were the unpaved roads and the way the bus creeped and crawled over them.  I can still hear the wheels grinding against the rocks, like teeth gnawing on sand. I thought it was impossible to be going over such a road without shredding our tires. Mostly the roads made the bus jiggle and vibrate, but occasionally we would sway from side to side and one or twice we flew over a bump that made me leap from the seat. Our seats were on the south-facing side of the bus, which meant that sunlight beat against the window for the entire ride, making it hot as a frying pan. I kept the curtains closed the entire time, and wasn’t sorry one bit.

My view for seven hours

After the rest stop, the remainder of the roads seemed to be paved, and the ride passed enjoyably by watching The Interview. I remember thinking this was especially funny, because the North Korean government had recently asked the Cambodian government not to sell or distribute the movie, a request the Cambodian government shrugged off. They have no way of enforcing it. So we watched the movie on the bus. 7.5 hours later, we arrived at the bus station in Phnom Penh.

Tuktuk from Mekong Express station into the city

Chiang Mai to Huay Xai – VIP bus, local bus, tuktuk

Following a month in Chiang Mai, our next destination would be Luang Prabang in Laos. After researching some options, I decided that it would be best to take it slow, and enjoy many stopovers, rather than book some ungodly-long bus ride or take a plane. I would make my own way to the border then take the slow boat on the Mekong to get to Luang Prabang. 

The plan: 

Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai: by bus, 3 hours

Chaing Rai to Chiang Khong: bus 2 hours

Chiang Khong to Huay Xai: uncertain

Huay Xai to Pakbeng: slow boat, Shompoo Cruise, 8 hours

Pakneg to Luang Prabang: slow boat, Shompoo Cruise, 8 hours

Getting to Chiang Rai was the easiest part. I wanted to book a Green Bus and to do so, I simply walked into a travel agency near the Tha Pae gate and made reservations. They charge about 100 baht for issuing the ticket. Otherwise, you have to take a tuktuk to the bus station, which is pretty far, then wait in line and by it yourself. I decided to just pay the 100 baht to have the agency issue the ticket, since it would cost me more to get a tuktuk to the station anyway.

I  spent one night in Chiang Rai to explore the city and see the White Temple. It was worth it, but I wouldn’t stay longer. Chiang Rai is basically like a smaller, less-charming version of Chiang Mai.

The process of crossing the Lao border form Chiang Rai was both extremely difficult and stupidly simple.

Once I was in Chiang Rai, I wrongly assumed that we could purchase a ticket to Huay Xai on the VIP bus from any travel agency. There were dozens of places selling package tours which included a bus across the border, then two days on the slow boat for about 1,500 baht. Unfortunately, no agency was able to sell me only a VIP bus ticket. I would need to go directly to Bus Terminal 2 for that, which was far out of town, costing about 100 baht on a tuktuk to get there. I was also told that only 2 buses went to the border each day. It would be much simpler to just board one of the many public buses going to Chiang Khong and figure it out from there.

So that’s what I did. Buses to Chiang Khong leave every hour, one on the hour, and one on the half-hour. We bordered the bus at 12:30, which was piloted by a old-married couple. I paid 65 baht in cash on the bus. There was no bathroom on board, but we did make a short rest stop where I got out to use the bathroom. There was also no AC, but a nice breeze from the open windows took care of that. The couple was very kind, and when we arrived in Chiang Khong they dropped us off at the entrance to the Friendship Bridge, instead of driving all the way to the Bus Terminal, which was further away than the Bridge.

Public bus from Chiang Rai to Chiang Khong

At the Friendship Bridge, I met an Italian man who spoke Thai and haggled for a tuktuk to the border for 50 baht each. I read that the price is usually 100 baht, but I think 50 is fair since we were three people. After receiving my departure stamp from Thailand, I paid 25 baht to ride another bus to the Lao Immigration side. Once getting my Lao visa and arrival stamp, I had to take a tuktuk to Huay Xai pier. I read that they charge a flat 100 baht per person, and I was prepared to pay that, but the driver did not want to take off with only two people. He said we had to wait until 5 or 6 people got on. Well, after waiting for nearly 40 minutes, only one other person came through the border, so reluctantly, he drove us three people into town.

Tuktuk to the border in Chiang Khong

Beautiful view of Laos from the border crossing

View after clearing immigration on the Lao side

Immigration bus, to be taken internally from the Thai side to the Lao side

Tuktuk in Huay Xai

The summary:

Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai:

Green bus, 170 baht/person + 100 baht fee for issuing it at a ticket agency, 3 hours

Chiang Rai to Chiang Khong:

65 baht/ person, pay on board, no reservation deccessary, 2 hours

Chiang Khong to Huay Xai:

To Thai Immigration: Tuktuk, 50 baht/ person, 15 minutes

To Lao Immigration: Bus, 25 baht/person, 5 minutes

To Huay Xai: Tuktuk, 100 baht/person, 30 minutes

Elite Bus from Bagan to Yangon

View from inside the bus

I dreaded returning to Yangon. Not because I don't love that city, au contraire, it’s only of my favorite cities on earth. But I expected the journey to Yangon to be as bad as the journey out of Yangon, in which we subjected ourselves to 15 hours of torture on a train.  Because of my flight anxiety, I avoid planes at all cost and I assumed a 9-hour bus ride would be just as bad, especially after enduring an anxiety-educing 12-hour one in Malaysia.

But returning to Yangon was inevitable, so eventually I had to toughen up and buy a buy ticket, which I decided was the lesser of three evils. Since I was convinced that I could not sleep on an overnight bus ride, our hotel booked us a day ride on E-Lite and we paid 15,500 kyats per ticket. I had never heard of the company and was skeptical, but prepared for the worst.

At 8:00 am a pick-up truck got me from my hotel lobby, then proceeded to meander through town, picking up other tourists along the way. The bus pulled up and to my relief, looked brand new and clean. I boarded and departed at 9:00 am, exactly on time.

The bus ride far exceeded my expectations to the point that it was memorable. First of all, we had a bus attendant who was very professional and provided us with snacks, waters, blankets, and announced upcoming rest stops. The seats were so wide and comfortable, and the journey so smooth that we slept almost the entire time. The AC was at a comfortable temperature, unlike the freezing trains and buses I had ridden before. There was no bathroom on board, which had been a source of concern for me, but we stopped every 2.5 hours for a bathroom break and this was fine. The bathrooms at the rest stops on the side of the road were decent. No toilet paper, but that is typical of Myanmar. We even had lunch at noon at one of the Feel restaurants. We arrived at Yangon bus terminal precisely on time at 6:00 pm. The only negative is that the bus terminal in Yangon is far from the city, further even than the airport, so it took over an hour in traffic to reach our hotel.

 Overall, I am so grateful for not taking the train from Bagan to Yangon, and would highly recommend E-Lite buses. 

Restaurant at the rest stop

Lunch at Feel Restaurant

Bus From Kuala Lumpur to Penang

Beware: The Alisan bus!

The train from Kuala Lumpur to Penang was sold out for the day I wanted to leave, so I decided to make the journey by bus. The bus had many advantages. Unlike the train, which would leave at 3:00 pm and arrive in Butterworth station at 10:00 pm, the bus leaves nearly every hour. I could ride it in the morning and check into the hotel at a reasonable hour. It also takes less time, only 4.5 hours, as opposed to the train, which takes 7 hours. I heard that the bus rides were comfortable with AC and even wifi. It was also possible to book them a day in advance, or even right before travel (though I don’t like to leave things to the last minute). Unfortunately, my bus ride with Alisan Buses was not what we expected.

The night before I went to Puduraya Bus Terminal and bought my ticket from the Alisan counter. There were many scalpers trying to sell tickets at the elevators but I ignored them and proceeded straight to the ticket counter on the top floor. I booked directly at the Alisa counter. At 38 ringits, it was less than I expected.The bus was scheduled to leave at 10:45 the next morning.

Inside the bus 

I arrived at the platform at 10:30. The bus rolled up right at 10:45 and by 11:04 we departed. Things seem to go smoothly, until the AC kicked out and it because miserably hot. The windows couldn’t be opened, so after only a few minutes, I was literally dripping sweat onto the seat cushion. I didn’t even want to lean back into my seat because my back was so wet with sweat. At 11:45 we stopped at the Batu Caves, not the touristy side, but an unremarkable dirt road with nothing around. The bus driver said we would take “a 15 minute break.” I wondered why we needed a break when we weren’t even an hour outside of KL, but I was hoping they would fix the AC. We disembarked the bus, hoping to find a bathroom or a drink stand, but there was nothing but car lots and temples. When I circled the block, I saw the bus turned around and was driving away!

I ran behind the bus, it was moving slowly so I could catch up with it. After 10 minutes of following the bus, it stopped near a gas station. I used the bathroom and got back on. The AC still didn’t work and it was even hotter in the afternoon sun. 20 minutes passed. More people got on. The bus then drove back to the point where it dropped us off, and more people got on. All but one. We were missing someone. The bus started circling the block, looking for the missing person. And the AC was still out. After nearly an hour of this slow painful drive, the bus pulled in front of a McDonalds and the driver told everyone to get out “for 30 minutes.” He offered no explanation but I figured they were going to look for the missing guy and fix the AC. That was 12:45, two hours after we departed the bus terminal in Kuala Lumpur.

I should have been mad. I should been worried. But somehow I focused on the positive: At McDonalds, we are indoors, shielded from sunlight, mosquitos, and smog. We have AC and I was able to dry my sweaty body. We are sitting at a table with chairs. There are free bathrooms with toilet paper and soap and working hand drivers (that’s more than I can say for the vast majority of bathroom in KL). There’s food (and it’s sanitary at that). There’s even wifi. At least we are not squatting on the dirty ground outside in the heat.

We are at a McDonalds.

That’s the positive.

The negatives is that  we were at that McDonald’s for 4  hours.
Eventually we got back on the now freezing cold bus and made it to Penang. Just after 10:00 pm. Cruelly, it was the same time I would have arrived by train. 

My view for 4 hours

My other view for 4 hours