For the last few days we've been lounging around the capital city (read: small town) of Laos, Vientiane. It's really lovely! Actually, when we first arrived I was still in Vang Vieng mode (read: cranky) and wasn't so enamored with the place. I mean, there isn't much to it. And our room in our guesthouse kinda smells like... poo. In Vang Vieng we had such a beautiful guesthouse, with hammocks and delicious breakfasts, and it was only 40,000 kip a night! That's like, six bucks. Here, we're paying 70,000 kip a night, and our room is really dumpy. Vang Vieng has gorgeous scenery as well, which Vientiane sorta lacks.
At this point you may be asking yourself why exactly I think Vientiane is lovely. Well... the day we arrived we only planned on spending a maximum of two nights before heading back across the country and into Vietnam (where we're meeting my univeristy/Korea friends, Genevieve and Scott!!!!). Unfortunately, what we failed to realize is that this is a long weekend. Labour Day weekend! Even in Korea! We should have known better. We arrived Thursday (late afternoon) and were told that we could not get our visas for Vietnam until Monday.
Super bummer! I was so angry. I told Pat that we should just go back to Vang Vieng and count our losses- returning to Vientiane on Monday to get our visas and get the hell out (hopefully in one day). At least in Vang Vieng we had a great room. And we could go tubing during the hottest parts of the day. And watch The Simpsons at night.
Pat said no. What a narc! Actually, he was making more sense than me, saying that with travels times we would only have one full day in Vang Vieng before having to come back to Vientiane. Damn his logic and good looks!
The first night was fun. We were with some friends we had made in Vang Vieng and we went out to eat at one of the fancier French restaurants in the city (town). I had a lovely Cordon Bleu and the ratatoile (sp?) was delicious. We enjoyed some wine and then went out for a beer and listened to some live music. Slowly, I was starting to like the place...
The next day we went for breakfast at one of my favourite Laos establishments, The Scandanavian Bakery. I had some delicious quiche for breakfast, and enjoyed reading a real live newspaper imported from Thailand. OK. Maybe Vientiane isn't so terrible...
After that, we went straight to one of the fancier hotels to make use of their pool facilities. This is what won me over. I wanted to be in Vang Vieng because the river would be able to keep me cool. Laos is really, really hot. Luang Prabang was crazy hot, Vang Vieng was much nicer and cooler in the morning and evenings but crazy hot in the afternoon, and Vientiane is... well... hotter than both places combined! I need to swim to get through my day here!
So this is what our days in Vientiane have looked like:
Wake up around 10 AM; watch BBC World News at our guesthouse (their one redeeming quality).
Eat a yummy breakfast which usually includes a baguette.
Go to the pool for the hottest parts of the day; read, sunbathe and soak in the kiddie pool (alternating for longer swims in the big kid pool).
Do something cultural in the late afternoon (today we meditated with some Buddhist monks!).
Eat an amazing dinner. I have had French food, a delicious Belgian-inspired chicken kebab with french fries inside and delicious curries.
Go out with friends for some Beer Lao- the national tasty brew.
You see now why I think Vientiane is lovely? Here are some pictures to convince you further.
The main drag: empty, as it were.
I love how social the people in Laos are. We get to see a lot more of that now that we're away from the more backpack-ey areas.
So colourful and European...
Where I've been spending the majority of my days...
Vientiane may want to start rethinking their wiring... it looks a little cluttered up there (not to mention low-laying!).
A walk along the Mekong at sunset.
Laos is the land of doggies. We have a beautiful Golden Retriever puppy at our guesthouse! That's their other redeeming quality.
As is the norm in Laos, there are wats everywhere. I like this pic.
And cool antique shops.
And kittehs.
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