Getting into Thailand from Houay Xai was dead easy. We walked down to the ‘immigration checkpoint’, got stamped out and took the ‘ferry’ over to Chiang Khong. A seven hours bus ride brought us into Chiang Mai. That town feels a bit like home by now, after all that travelling it’s nice to come to a place where I now the hotels and eateries. I had a bit of time to catch up with Samart and Palm and then it was already time to go again.

The culinary offerings in Pakbeng made me dislike the place even more. The noodle soup I had for breakfast was total and utter crap and the sandwiches we picked up for late breakfast were plain disappointing. The local market shed a bit of light on the situation, here we got ourselves some sticky rice and various dishes in small plastic bags for lunch. The eggplant/chilly paste was a clear winner for me.