A river runs through it

Last month, the Tourism Authority of Thailand organised an overland trip from Thailand to Laos. I was lucky enough to join the journey and enjoyed a perfect winter road trip driving crosscountry from Nan in northern Thailand to Northern Laos.

A bumpy, curving road plus countless streams awaited us during our 160kilometre ride from the Nam Ngern checkpoint opposite Nan province to Luang Prabang.

The red dust on the road hampered visibility as we drove through but much better the dust than a wet road. Rain turns the dust into nasty, sticky red mud, slowing down cars and causing major problems with mobility.

We spent about 10 hours on the challenging roads before reaching Chomphet, a small town on the banks of Mekong River and arrived on the outskirts of Luang Prabang in the early evening.

Although we could see the ancient capital on the other side of the river, there was n bridge, so we had to take the ferry, actually a contraption with two boats supporting a platform for two vehicles.

We relaxed during the crossing, our eyes drinking in the beauty of rosy sunset on the Mekong.

From Luang Prabang, we took the road again, heading for Xiang Khoang, our next stop.

The Americans came to Xiang Khoang in the 1970s, and bombed the small town into the ground during the Vietnam War. Today, it's young backpackers who head into northeastern Laos to see the enigmatic Plain of Jars. Nobody is sure why the mysterious jars are here. They are probably funeral urns dating back to around 500BC, say anthropologists, though others say that the jars were once used to store food. They are far too big to contain fermented fish though, at least in my view.

We backtrack onto Highway 13, the national highway, and head south to Vang Vieng, a peaceful riverside town and today a famed backpacker hub. With cheap Lao Beer, affordable guesthouses and friendly locals, carefree travellers stay here for months on end.

Our 1,000kilometre road trip ends in Vientiane - where we see traffic lights and wellpaved roads for the first since leaving Thailand. Vientiane is in full swing, as the capital city is hosting the 25th SEA Games.