As our tuc tuc hotel transfer pulled in to the bus station we were surprised to see some rather modern looking local buses. All of them barring the old beat up red one hiding at the back were actually better than the tourist bus we had taken from Vietnam. We purchased our 35,000 Kip (£3) ticket and were directed to our bus...the red one at the back!

After hearing stories of local buses we had expected a small mini bus with no air con and one seat for 2 people and 2 backpacks. A beat up looking coach it may be but it was only half full and our bags would go in the underneath compartment after all so we were pleasantly surprised. The ticket inspector, who must have been taking part in non uniform day, was sporting an Everton shirt Blacky & Danny would have been proud of. He chuckled at us when we showed him our ticket which didn't instill a huge amount of confidence! A number of mosquitos then greeted us with a flurry of excitement at the prospect of western blood as we made our way to our seat. With the whole of Laos being a Malaria zone we were glad to have started our Malorone tablets the day before as well as layer on the mosquito repellant!

The 230km journey south from Savannaket to Pakse is only possible by local bus which in a strange way excited us, as although we knew it may not be the most comfortable it would certainly be interesting. After the easy tourist trail of Vietnam we were excited about escaping the tourists and doing some 'real' traveling again!

The driver who looked like he should still be in school told me it would take 5hrs to reach our destination of Pakse and we left on time at 9am. Almost as soon as we had started we made our first stop. After a 5 minute wait a truck pulled up and 3 large blue sacks were loaded onto our truck. I have no idea what it was but clearly an important cargo. 5 mins further down the road we stopped again, this time to pick up a parcel and additional passengers. This pattern continued for the first hour of the journey with regular stops for passengers, to fill up with petrol or more interestingly for a group of ladies clutching food to sell. Bags of small eggs, fruit or half chickens on a stick went down very well with our fellow passengers. We choose to stick with the slightly black tinged banana we had been carrying around for a few days!

Given that the roads are straight and quiet and the drivers go considerably quicker than the tourist speeds of 50km/h we could now understand how 150m could take 5 hrs!

The scenery, fascinating all the same was no different to the countryside we had passed through after crossing the border the day before. Rolling straight roads through dry dusty fields, small trees, stilted basic dwellings and chickens. A few water buffalo but again a surprisingly low number of paddy fields. It was this same fascinating scenery that provided one rather amusing stop. With only scrub land occupying the roadside it was a signal for 10 or so of the male and female passengers to stand or squat by the side of the bus with little to hide their dignity at what we then realised was our toilet stop!

Secretly I had hoped for a full Laos experience on the bus and this was almost complete when we made a stop to pick up a cage of chickens and ducks. It was probably a little too stereotypical to expect them to share the inside of the bus with us, instead they were secured tightly to the roof! Not wanting to hold up our schedule the Everton shirt wearing chap completed tying them down on top of the bus as we rumbled on to the next stop at which point he rejoined us inside.

With a few open windows offering the only air conditioning we were pleased to have timed our trip with a cooler morning start. Unfortunately this didn't last long as the sun broke through and we found ourselves stuck to the plastic covered seats. With toilet stops not exactly appealing, taking on additional fluids was an option we decided to pass up until our destination neared.

As we approached Pakse, some rather out of place grand detached houses and villas crept up alongside the road. It was as if they had been literally dropped into a stilted wooden shed housing estate by a Wizard of Oz Kansas style twister, such did they stand out from their neighbours. In contrast to the chickens or pigs roaming next door, there were a couple of sparkly new cars parked on the private driveway. One shiny new BMW sports car was even proudly displaying a door sized 'Liverpool- Champions of Europe' sticker. We then passed a modern office building with the name 'Lao Oil' emblazoned above the entrance and a few large tankers parked outside and suddenly the obvious disparity in wealth made perfect sense.

The last hour dragged a bit but eventually the bus pulled into Pakse on time...It was pleasing to see the rope had held our rooftop passengers in place even if their feathers were looking a little windswept. Having made it through this 'proper' traveling experience we headed off with a content smile to find another guest house for the night and hopefully some wifi, so that I could catch up with the mornings play at the 3rd Ashes Test. A 2pm arrival would also allow us to fit in a whistle stop walking tour of Pakse before continuing our journey south to the river of four thousand islands- Si Phan Don in the morning....