Vientiane, Lao

After our Christmas and New Year's celebrations we made our way to Vientiane via kayak. From Vang Vieng, our crew - Brad, Esther, Neil, Hari, Sarah, and I - hopped into our boats and headed 2 hours south on the Mekong River. Kayaking is not only a lot more exciting than sitting on a bus, but we thought it was only appropriate to get in one more Mekong journey. We had spent a considerable amount of time on the Mekong River during our time in Vietnam and Cambodia and wanted one last trip.

The scenery was beautiful and we stopped along the way to jump off some cliffs and go swimming. We successfully made it through one Class 4 rapid (the water level was quite low for that time of year so it was not as intense/dangerous as it would be when the water level is high) and the daring boys all showed off their adventurous sides by jumping into the water and going through the rapid sans kayaks. Thankfully they all made it through safely, and yes, they were wearing helmets.

Vientiane, the capital city of Lao, is a charming, quiet city with a lot of French influence. There are tons of French bakeries, coffee shops, and restaurants. Several times I even forgot that I was in Lao and felt a bit like I was in Europe, as French is spoken rather frequently. Vientiane is situated on the Mekong River with Thailand on the opposite side.

We spent most of our time in Vientiane relaxing and just taking in the sights. We had to say goodbye to Neil, who headed home to the UK, and to Brad and Esther, who were going back home to Sydney. On our last night together we feasted on delicious French food (at Lao prices) and drank wine on the rooftop of our guesthouse. During our little gathering one of the funniest events of the trip occurred - we were chatting when all of sudden we hear a loud 'POP' and see pieces of plastic flying everywhere. Then I turn and see Neil lying on the ground, the small plastic chair that was made for small Lao people, not muscular Englishmen, exploded from underneath him. And I mean exploded, pieces of the legs of the chair were all over the rooftop. Neil sat on the ground like a trooper while we all laughed hysterically for several minutes, it is an image I will never forget.

We were sad to be leaving Lao, so far it is my favorite country. It is so rich in culture and is just stunningly beautiful, from the 4000 Islands in the south to the mountainous jungles in the north. We encountered so many friendly people who were just as interested in learning about us as we were in learning about them. I will never forget the conversations that we had with some of the locals, Lao will always hold a special place in my heart. While we were sad to be going, we were also extremely excited to be heading to Thailand. It had been built up by so many people that I was anxious to see it for myself...first stop, Changmai.