Bus from Hell: Surviving the 24-Hour ride from Luang Prabang to Hanoi

Patience is a funny thing. It is that one trait that for the longest time I had wondered whether or not I possessed. While I have no patience with incompetence and other annoyances, I have no problem waiting. part of the reason is that I always find a way to spend my time wisely. I use waiting time to read books, write blog posts and poetry, and even build a life plan for the rest of the year. in that sense, I believe I am patient. but then, it had never been tested. until this bus ride.

There was only one bus that plies the Luang Prabang-Hanoi route per day. It was already my fifth day in Luang Prabang, Laos and it was time for me to move on to Vietnam. While my original plan was to spend a day in the cities of hue and Vinh each, I realized that the little time I had left (one week before my flight back to Manila) won’t be enough to really experience Hanoi, the Vietnamese capital, and Ha long Bay. I decided to just go straight to Hanoi. but there was a caveat — the estimated travel time was 24 hours. Yes, my friends, one full day sitting in a bus.

The good news was, my friend Josephine would be going with me. Josephine is a lovely French lady I met in Chiang Mai, whom I coincidentally bumped into again in Luang Prabang seven days later. We decided to take the same bus to Hanoi. It was probably the best decision I made in this entire trip.

WHAT’S covered IN THIS GUIDE?

The Bus From Hell
Food and Water
Earphones/Headset
Books and Gadgets
A Neck Pillow
Jacket or Scarf
Hånddesinfeksjonsmiddel
Sosiale ferdigheter
Tålmodighet
Flere tips på YouTube ⬇ relaterte innlegg:

The Bus From Hell

Many a traveler who has taken this ride called it hell bus or bus from hell not because of the bus itself but the long, agonizing duration of the ride. I had read so many horror stories about it but I took them with a grain of salt every time. After all, I had endured hours of bus rides here in the Philippines, and there were times that I thought I actually enjoyed them. but this was different. The 24-hour travel time they promised became 25, then 26, and when we finally reached the city center of Hanoi, 27 hours had already passed. Forestill deg.

Luang Prabang, Laos
Our trip started at the Luang Prabang bus terminal at 6 in the evening. My friend Jo was already waiting for me there when I arrived. We purchased tickets, reserved seats, and boarded the bus. The bus was the sleeper type with seats that can be reclined so low if it weren’t for the constant motion, it could pass as very comfortable. We shared it with twenty something other tourists, mostly from Europe, and half a dozen Vietnamese. A small TV was installed in the front area of the bus and was showing Vietnamese TV shows the whole time.

I can tell you what happened within the 27 hours in great detail but to make this post useful, allow me to narrate what happened in the form of things to bring with you if you’re taking the same trip!

Food and Water

I had two big bottles of water with me but the biggest mistake that I made while preparing for this ride was not to bring food. since all the buses that I had taken in Laos all made a stop at a good restaurant, I was counting on this doing the same. I was soooo wrong. In 27 hours, we only made one stop at an eatery in Vietnam. The problem was, the place was so dirty that NONE of us (except for the bus staff) decided to eat there. We ended up buying biscuits from a nearby sari-sari store, which did not have much either. how I survived eating only a pack of biscuits was astonishing, given my voracious appetite.

Thank you, Marie! You’re a lifesaver! The only food I had in 30 hours.

Earphones/Headset

I thought it was just me but other tourists noticed it as well. As soon as we entered Vietnamese territory, the driver turned crazy with the honking! The ride across Laos was smooth and quiet (other than the loud music) but the moment we crossed the border, they just kept on honking every 20 seconds or so. eventually they switched drivers and I thought that would be the end of it, but the other driver also did the same as if honking was their national sport. thank God I had earphones on!

Books and Gadgets

I finished a 400-page Neil Gaiman-Al Sarrantonio compilation book during the ride. and mind you, I am a slow reader. If reading is not your thing, bring your iPod, iPhone, iPad, whatever other tablet or player with you and beef them up with as many movies and songs as you can. Anything that would keep you busy. You will need them.

A Neck Pillow

I have a neck pillow but it was not with me on this trip. My neck really ached after the ride because I couldn’t find a good position to make my head comfortable. many other travelers on the bus had theirs. good for them.

Jacket or Scarf

It can get really cold inside the bus. It was especially cold at the border that early morning. You might also want to bring a smaller bag that you can carry around with you becauseDen store vesken din blir lagret i bussrommet nedenfor.

Hånddesinfeksjonsmiddel

Jeg tror en håndrenser er en essensiell om turen er lang eller ikke. Mange av toalettene som vi stoppet på var ikke pene i det hele tatt. Hold en håndrenser hendig.

Sosiale ferdigheter

Jeg var heldig at jeg reiste med Josephine, som jeg hadde vært veldig nær med. Jeg la merke til andre gutter som alltid var alene og stille, og jeg kunne ikke forestille meg at jeg ble sittende fast i en buss i 27 timer uten at noen skulle snakke med. Hver gang jeg la merke til noen alene, ville jeg henvende meg til dem og lage små chatter med dem. Jeg var ikke sikker på om de bare var den ensomme typen eller de bare var sjenerte. Uansett var det ingen skade i å prøve å nå ut.

Tålmodighet

Hele turen var mildt sagt en test av tålmodighet. Den tilsynelatende uendelige ventetiden, mangelen på mat, den konstante honking – de ville komme til deg og utfordre buddhisten i deg. Selv da vi ankom bussterminalen, hadde vi vanskelig for å komme til hotellet vårt. Det var en kamp for å takle drosjesjåførene fordi de ofte ville belaste så mye høyere enn vi ble fortalt. Vi endte opp med å ta en skyttelbuss med de andre turistene som vi delte bussen med. Det tok oss ytterligere 2 timer å endelig nå hotellrommet vårt og ha en fin, varm dusj.

Hanoi operahus
Det var ikke en utmerket opplevelse, men det var fremdeles noe jeg er fornøyd med at jeg hadde opplevd, ikke at jeg ville gjort det igjen. Det er en av de tingene at når du hører andre mennesker snakke om det, sprekker du ubevisst et slu smil i ansiktet ditt bare fordi du hadde vært gjennom det og overlevd det.

Jeg antar at nøkkelen her bare var å glede seg over hvert øyeblikk av det. Ja, det var tider da jeg ville treffe noen bare så jeg kunne føle meg bedre (Wahahaha), men hvis du lar det komme til nerven din, ville den eneste som taper være deg. Det hele koker ned til hvordan du forbereder deg på turen. Kjemp mot den ultimate kjedsomheten ved å ha de rette tingene – en god bok, en god dings, god mat og godt selskap.

Flere tips på YouTube ⬇

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