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Laos
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Yes, hitching in '''Laos''' is pretty hard, especially in the north, that was [[User:Worldhitch|Worldhitch's]] experience. It takes ages to be picked up. A few cars drive on their 'high' way. Which is a dirt road, paved if lucky. Only one lane each. Looking at the amount of cars (in January 2011) there are '''around 1 (pick up, car, truck) per 6 minutes'''. Very different then hitching in Thailand. Near the border with Vietnam, the road 7 are many logging trucks, coming from China. They speak no English most of the time. Try the pickup trucks and point that you want to sit in the back. Most of the cars are open trucks with a roof. It seems sometimes cheaper to go with these busses. Because from the 10 hitches, you need to pay 3 of them. [rule of thumb: 20-40.000 kip per 100 km for a real hitch, or 10.000 per person (per 30km) for a bus-truck.
Still, if you are determined to hitchhike for free through Laos, it can be done, even in the north (the south is very easy, similar to Thailand). Since almost nobody can speak English, and they will expect a payment for the rides, it is essential that you get yourself to be understood: a [[hitchhiking letter]] may help you a lot with that, and will also help you to get helped by the locals in order to find free rides to your destination. Aside from that, be prepared for the long waits, have lots of patience...!
In the 80's a lot of people went to [[Russia]] for their studies, and these are often people who cars these days, so you might be able to use your Russian skills.
