Day 49 - Bus Ride to Vang Vieng, Laos

Agus and I decided that we had seen all that we wanted to see in Vientiene and booked a bus ride to the next stop, Vang Vieng. The bus ride was a decent 4 hours in an airconditioned bus, which I can't complain about given some of the other transportation horror stories.

We arrived in the evening and walked around the city looking for dinner. The city itself is very small, and full of backpackers. I think this could be considered the backpacker Mecca of Laos, as it is sometimes seen as a backpacker “rite of passage” to go tubing (drunk) down the Nam Song river in this city.

The entire city catered to foreigners in the food it offered and the selection of entertainment at restaurants. There were numerous restaurants that had comfortable bed-like seating arrangements in front of two flat screen TVs either showing episodes of “Friends” or “Family Guy.” We didn't get to explore much since it was already late at night and would save it for tomorrow.

Chicken Pad Thai

Starchy Coconut Dessert

Watching Episodes of Friends at a Restaurant

Day 48 - Cycling Tour Around Vientiene

We would tour the capital city of Laos on our own time by renting bikes and following our Lonely Planet guides. The guide offered a 7km bicycle tour around the city's landmarks and we would get a chance to share the roads with the Laotians.

The traffic in the capital was not bad at all. Not at anytime in the day was there any serious traffic and it was relatively easy to make our way through the streets without feeling in danger. We searched the streets for some authentic Laotian food and found a small food stall that offered sticky rice and a melon dish to accompany the rice. I think it was authentic...

After brunch, we headed to the Presidential Palace, originally built for the French colonial governor before it was taken over by the Laotians. It was gated, so we went on to the next stop, which was the French Embassy and a Catholic Church...I swear, some of these stops recommended by the guidebook seem like filler recommendations...

The weather was unbearably hot (again in SE Asia), so we took a break and visited the Talat Khua Din - which was an open air market, hoping to cool off in the shade, but it was even hotter walking through the shaded stalls! Heading back out, we set out to see Patuxai, which is a gate/landmark/arc, also known as the Asian "Arc de Triomphe." It is dedicated to those who fought the battle to gain independence from France, and provides great aerial views of the entire city.

Continuing on the tour, we stopped by the U.S. embassy and That Dam, which is a giant stupa in the middle of a turnabout. Since we were already at the U.S. embassy, I decided to get additional visa pages here, hoping that it wouldn't take forever to get processed. Since no one was there, I got it done in 20 minutes! Since I was an American, we were led to an A/C'd room with comfortable seats to get all the processing done. In the room were pictures of Obama, Biden, and Clinton. Outside of the A/C'd room were the lines for foreigners, with fans and benches for them to sit on. We couldn't have provided the same amenities to non-Americans?

Afterwards, we headed to the Lao National Museum to learn a little more about the history of the country, much of which I don't really remember unfortunately...and I couldn't take pictures to remind myself... Before Dinner, we went to one of the temples, Wat In Paeng, which had really intricate and color pictures and doors to the temple.  At the end of the day, we went to a famous Herbal Sauna. It was the hottest sauna I had ever been in, and it was tough just trying to breathe inside, but my skin felt a lot cleaner after I sweated all the toxins and dirt off.

Taking in the nightlife, we met with our new CS friend, who took us to a couple of the popping clubs in Laos. We met some of his French friends who were in Laos for internships and schooling. The Laotians party hard with their BeerLao and Johnny Walker Black Label Whiskey until 4am in the morning...

Patuxai

Brunch - Some sort of Melon dish

Presidential Palace

What Lonely Planet calls the "towering Catholic Church"

City Views on the Top of the Patuxai

That Dam

Wat In Paeng

Inside Wat In Paeng

The Laotian Beer of Choice

Marina Club

After Hours Hotel Club

Day 47 - Arrival in Vientiene, Laos

I got to sleep in a little in Malaysia since my flight wasn't in the early hours of the day like most of my flights. The hotel included a buffet breakfast, so I was able to try a little more Malaysian food before heading to the airport. I had a Big Mac at the airport...My McDonalds cravings start again. Hopefully I don't choose McDonalds over something more authentic when the choice arises...but this time I had to grab something quick before boarding my flight.

I didn't have a strong intention of visiting Laos because I didn't really know much about the country, but decided to visit because I found a travel buddy, Agoes, who was also heading to Laos for about 10 days. I figured it would be easier to explore this new country with someone, and split the costs of the hotels and guesthouses we would stay at. Plus, through conversations with other people travelling, many recommended visiting this country.

When I arrived, we took a taxi to our guesthouse to settle in, before heading out in search of some authentic Laotian food. It was difficult trying to find it in Vientiene (the capital of Laos) because I think a lot of the restaurants catered to tourists. We saw everything from Korean to Japanese to Chinese food. We settled on a noodle shop, but I think it was more Chinese, than Laotian food.

Afterwards, we walked the night market in search of things to see and buy. We stumbled upon a carnival area that had makeshift bumper cars, some bounce houses, pop-the-balloon booths, and a bingo area. It was more for the locals than tourists, and it was fun to see the kids play around.

We met up with a CS local to grab some beers at the end of the night. Since the city is situated near the Mekong River (which I also visited in Vietnam), many bars and shops and hotels were built along the river. We met with him and his other friends at a bar that catered to locals as well as expats, and drank about 7 Liters of the local beer, Beerlao, which is super cheap here. You can get a 640ml bottle easily for about $1.25 USD. Probably the cheapest manufactured beer so far on my travels! So far so good in Laos...

Malaysian Breakfast - Wrapped in Banana Leaves and filled with Rice, Eggs, Sardines, and some type of spicy sauce.

Red Pork Noodle Soup in Laos

Night Market Food

Carnival

Various Dried Meats at the Night Market