Northern Thailand - Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Northern Thailand - page 875

At the border The border is open from 6am to 10pm; Lao visas are available on arrival.
Moving on Tha Khaek's bus station, about 3.5km from the centre of town, has buses bound north to
Vientiane (70,000K to 85,000K, six hours, hourly 4am to midnight) and south to Savannakhet
(30,000K, two to three hours, every 30 minutes), Pakse (70,000K, six to seven hours, hourly) and At-
tapeu (85,000K, 10 hours, 3.30pm and 11pm).
If you're heading to Vietnam, a bus for Hue (120,000K) leaves every Monday, Tuesday, Wednes-
day, Saturday and Sunday at 8pm. There are also departures for Danang (120,000K) every Monday
and Friday at 8pm, and for Hanoi (160,000K) at 8pm on Tuesday and Saturday.
For more information about crossing this border in the other direction, Click here .

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Nakhon Phanom

042 / POP 35,000
In Sanskrit-Khmer, Nakhon Phanom means 'City of Hills', but it refers to the hills across
the river in Laos. The fabulous views befit this somnolent town, as does the scattering of
graceful French colonial buildings.

Sights

Nakhon Phanom's temples have a distinctive style. This was once an important town in the
Lan Xang empire and later a vivid Vietnamese and French influence added to the mix.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand office ( Click here ) has a good city map for a DIY ar-
chitectural tour.

Ho Chi Minh's House
( 0 4252 2430; entry by donation; dawn-dusk) The Vietnamese community in Ban Na Chok
village, about 3.5km west of town, has built a replica of Udon Thani's Uncle Ho's House,
the simple wooden house where Ho Chi Minh sometimes stayed (1928-29) while plan-
ning his resistance movement. There are more displays, some labelled in English, in the
Ho Chi Minh Museum ( 08 0315 4630; admission free;

MUSEUM

8am-4pm) , a bit to the northwest at

the community centre.

Former Governor's Residence Museum

MUSEUM