Lone Rider
Blokes Who Can
The "Chan Choey Noi" Ride to Laos
Most of us who ride in Laos will know the experience of being made feel welcome by the awesome reception we receive from the local villagers. The hundreds of children running to the road side, waving their arms village after village is an exceptional feeling to experience. At the same time, while riding through these villages, we do see (and some may even experience it in case a bike breaks down in the middle of nowhere) the differences between life in the villages with barefoot kids running around in tattered clothes with runny noses and the way we spend our own evenings during such trips with the need for a good place to sleep, a hot shower, a warm bed and enjoying a good meal with friends.
While we realize that we cannot (and probably should not) change everything we think that should be changed, there are a few things which we could possibly change. To help to improve the basic life of these villagers in a small way towards comfort and health, a few riders with the help of their friends and acquaintances got together to buy and deliver some warm clothes for a few of the poorest villages (6-8 mountain villages) on the roads we travel from time to time. For this year we chose the area south-east of Pha-Oudom on the dirt road between Houayxai and PakBeng and east of Hongsa on the dirt road from Hongsa to Luang Prabang.
The plan is to make this an annual "happening" and anyone who would like to give something back to the people we meet on our enjoyable travels in Laos, please feel free to let anyone of us know or, in case you have suggestions on what else could be done, please let us know also.
We (Mark, Alex, Justin, Phil and myself) left Chiangmai on the 1st of December on our way to Houayxai, spent the day of 2 December delivering cloths to 4 villages on the Houayxai to PakBeng road and on the third of December doing the same in 3 villages on the road from Hongsa to Luang Prabang. From here we continued our ways in various directions.
Day 1. After a stop in Pha-Oudom for a bite to eat and discussions with the staff from the District Education Department it was off to the first village.
The four villages we visited between Pha-Oudom and Pak Beng: Ban Viengkham Noy, Ban Phouviangxai/Mokpon 1, Ban Phong Theung and Ban Moksatong
Discussing the itinerary and the villages to be visited with the staff from the Education Department
Enjoying a bowl of Lao Kao Soi noodles
All set to leave with 2 trucks loaded with the donations and 3 bikes for the first village to deliver the first set (we brought a total of about 2500 pieces of clothing consisting of T-shirts, jumpers, trousers, jeans, caps, etc.)
A house with a view
Dad taking care of his kids
Our very able assistant helped us a lot with the discussions with the village headmen about the clothing we provided with all donations by them
The school in Ban Phong Theung - The chairs and desks are all "home-made" while the building could use some better walls as well
The ladies enjoying a smoke
We tried to find out what happened with this girls eye but could not get an answer.
Fantastic views from the mountain ridges
Most of us who ride in Laos will know the experience of being made feel welcome by the awesome reception we receive from the local villagers. The hundreds of children running to the road side, waving their arms village after village is an exceptional feeling to experience. At the same time, while riding through these villages, we do see (and some may even experience it in case a bike breaks down in the middle of nowhere) the differences between life in the villages with barefoot kids running around in tattered clothes with runny noses and the way we spend our own evenings during such trips with the need for a good place to sleep, a hot shower, a warm bed and enjoying a good meal with friends.
While we realize that we cannot (and probably should not) change everything we think that should be changed, there are a few things which we could possibly change. To help to improve the basic life of these villagers in a small way towards comfort and health, a few riders with the help of their friends and acquaintances got together to buy and deliver some warm clothes for a few of the poorest villages (6-8 mountain villages) on the roads we travel from time to time. For this year we chose the area south-east of Pha-Oudom on the dirt road between Houayxai and PakBeng and east of Hongsa on the dirt road from Hongsa to Luang Prabang.
The plan is to make this an annual "happening" and anyone who would like to give something back to the people we meet on our enjoyable travels in Laos, please feel free to let anyone of us know or, in case you have suggestions on what else could be done, please let us know also.
We (Mark, Alex, Justin, Phil and myself) left Chiangmai on the 1st of December on our way to Houayxai, spent the day of 2 December delivering cloths to 4 villages on the Houayxai to PakBeng road and on the third of December doing the same in 3 villages on the road from Hongsa to Luang Prabang. From here we continued our ways in various directions.
Day 1. After a stop in Pha-Oudom for a bite to eat and discussions with the staff from the District Education Department it was off to the first village.
The four villages we visited between Pha-Oudom and Pak Beng: Ban Viengkham Noy, Ban Phouviangxai/Mokpon 1, Ban Phong Theung and Ban Moksatong
Discussing the itinerary and the villages to be visited with the staff from the Education Department
Enjoying a bowl of Lao Kao Soi noodles
All set to leave with 2 trucks loaded with the donations and 3 bikes for the first village to deliver the first set (we brought a total of about 2500 pieces of clothing consisting of T-shirts, jumpers, trousers, jeans, caps, etc.)
A house with a view
Dad taking care of his kids
Our very able assistant helped us a lot with the discussions with the village headmen about the clothing we provided with all donations by them
The school in Ban Phong Theung - The chairs and desks are all "home-made" while the building could use some better walls as well
The ladies enjoying a smoke
We tried to find out what happened with this girls eye but could not get an answer.
Fantastic views from the mountain ridges
