We had an easy border crossing on another of the Laos-Thailand Friendship bridges. There wasn't a clear linear path on how to exit Laos, but a kind local traveler helped point us through the multi-step process. Most people immediately board the train for onward travel, but we opted to stay a night as our train was very early in the morning. Early morning departures & border crossings are stressful enough no need to make them too dependent on each other. We had an extremely comfortable hostel decorated with very cool artwork & confirmed with the reception they'd be there at 6 am to finalize payment & help us with transport.

Shocker, there was no one there. We left as close to exact change as we could, hidden behind the main desk, and then walked the full 30 minutes to the train. We'd assumed we'd see a tuk-tuk if we kept walking; there had been a million out before we went to bed the night prior. Instead, we got a workout carrying our bags before the long train ride to Bangkok. 

We were lucky to pass an open breakfast spot & grabbed some extra sandwiches to-go to supplement our 7/11 stockpile. The only thing we were missing was some water. Unfortunately, we'd given all our small bills to pay our hostel & the market couldn't make change with our large bills. An extremely friendly French guy fresh off the night train witnessed the struggle & covered the costs of our cokes & waters. Bless him. 

The train was basic in accommodation, but the AC worked & we arrived in Bangkok amazingly right on time.

Reading

• Kyle: Elephant Complex by John Gimlette
• Kelsey: The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose