Laos: Vientiane

Well, Vientiane does not receive any glowing reports from me. After a wonderful, adventurous time taking in the beauty of the rivers and enjoying the laid-back lifestyle of Northern Laos, Vientiane does not have much to offer.

On Monday, I just wandered around town with Aimee, taking care of my visa and puttering about on the internet. We then found a table by the river where we watched another beautiful sunset. That night, we girls met up with Tom and Dom in search of a place for dancing. Unfortunately, most establishments in town close at 11:30 pm or earlier, so after amusing ourselves at a little Laos club with a painfully earsplitting singer and band, we decided to relax at a table outside our guesthouse. The boys headed home around midnight, but soon came back to crash in our room, as their guesthouse had locked them out.

This morning, Erin, Aimee, and I took a tuk-tuk to the public pool on the edge of town, relaxing and swimming (but too scared to go under the water!) until it was time to head back into town to catch up on internet before boarding our bus south.

Vientiane was boring, but it did serve its purpose, however, which was to obtain a visa for Cambodia. Amazingly, I received my visa just one day after applying for it, so Erin and I were able to catch tonight's overnight bus out of town. We have decided to check out Si Phan Don, aka "Four Thousand Islands" for a few days of relaxation before our 15-day visas expire and we begin our journey into Cambodia.