Tuk Tuks (dook dooks)

TukTuks (pronounced like 'dook dooks' with a hard 'd' like sound for the 't') are the mode of transportation in Laos for those who don't have motorbikes. Larger vehicles are simply hard to get around in (although much more comfortable with A/C and an escape from the dust, grime, and noise). Bikes are another option...but that requires exercise, and we are lazy Americans, right? (ok, speaking for myself, but in this heat it is at times exhausting work that sucks the energy from you).

So, tuktuks are the transportation answer!!! There are a couple types of these... some are called "Jumbos" but I don't understand what the difference really is. The small ones are simply a motorbike that is adapted to pull a metal carriage behind it. See picture below:


Another kind of tuktuk is the motorbike attached to sidecart... Its like one of those old motorbike and sidecar except more a cart. These are usually the same price at the other tuktuks but they go just as slow if two or more people are riding (and believe me, I've seen up to five people and a driver crammed onto one of these...hafta get a picture for y'all sometime). One person can ride behind the motorbike in addition to the two seats and the extra standing room behind the seats. The passenger in this picture is demonstrating the common reaction to the heavy smoking fumes from some tuktuks (like ours). The idea is that you will receive less fumeage and poison if you cover your mouth...at least I do it too (makes me feel better)! See picture below:

The last popular kind of tuktuk is the small truck adaptation. This one is actually fast and can haul a lot more stuff (when we shop or need to transport larger things... like an oven or washing machine). One strange difference to these is that the driver is often sitting in the middle at the front, with a seat on either side of him for passengers. I rode at the front on our first day in Pakse when it was raining (and we were all very tired) because all our stuff was in the back... needless to say, I got wet riding because its not really under cover. See pictures below.
This one is really packed because of the Water Festival:

This one is more like a plain truck, but during the Water Festival, EVERYONE comes down to the river and lots of people make money transporting people. I have never seen tuktuks SO loaded with people... its like sardines! This one is actually waiting for a MORE people to get on:

Overall, you can expect to pay anywhere between 5,000 and 20,000 kip (or about $0.60 to $2.40) for a ride depending on what kind of tuktuk and how far you need to go. The larger ones are usually more expensive, but you can bargain for cheaper if there are more people in your group.

I am still really really really pumped about getting a motorbike and having freedom to drive to and from places when I want. Gas here is fairly cheap... or rather, transportation by moto is cheap, costing about 40,000 kip a month (or roughly under $5) for gas.