More Gadgetry And Prep

Samsung S7 Edge, Bluetooth keyboard, & battery with Kindle and Innate waterproof bag in the background.

As we get closer to leaving (the trip being just over 2 weeks away), the gear is coming together.

My phone and other electronics are chargeable with my new 20000mah powerbank. That should provide lots of life on the flights, between wall plugs that work, and other situations.  I can connect easily with the Bluetooth keyboard or the camera, but (note to self) not both at the same time. I have a picture on the camera I just took and of course with the keyboard in use I can't transfer that image so will do that later.

We probably will end up taking our slightly larger packs as our man in Laos reminded us that last year it got pretty cold there and even snowed in the northern area, and with us planning to spend 2 days on an open boat (for example) we think discretion might be the better part of carry-on. Some warmer clothing will come along for the ride as well as my compact down sleeping bag. It's a barrel bag so can open like a blanket but still can compress well, probably down to about 3 litres.

It also won't hurt to have a little extra space for stuff we might buy along the way and allows us the space to bring along some stuff for our friend. So far that includes some underwear (!) and a bulb for his movie projector (!!). If he says he would like a jar of peanut butter or something to go with that I think we wll draw the line.

We have picked up a few of the other important travel commodities. Pills for the lower GI distress that sometimes happens, some bug juice and sunscreen, hand sanitizer etc. The Travel clinic had a visit where we updated a couple of our shots, we have the passports ready, the visa letters for Myanmar, the extra photos for other visas. Laos you usually get at the point of entry for example.

We are still itineraizing. The main points will be Bangkok, Yangoon, Mandalay, Bagan, and then on to Laos. The plan would be to fly if we can from Mandalay to Chiang Mai in Thailand and from there make it by bus to Chiang Rai and the border (name of the crossing escapes me) where will get the 2 day boat on the Mekong and travel to Luang Prabang. From there down to Vientiane and Savannakhet where Dave is. Leaving there for Thailand again we will bus across the border and back to Bangkok to fly home.

That's roughly it. We can't be sure from here if that will all work out as it's hard to see or book airfare on some sections from here and the travel times will be kind of rough estimates from here. Of course there will be side trips and other stops along the way and who knows what contingencies.