Vientienne - The Capital

This blog by Lucas:

Vientiane brought our time in laid-back Laos to a close. We spent just one night in this sweltering, riverside (the Mighty Mekong) city which may be the world's sleepiest capital. We got to witness a Lao pop video being filmed down on the Mekong, we had a great dinner of fried beef jerky, and we got up at sunrise to see Laos' most famous monument, Pha That Long.

As for Laos in general, there are two fond sayings we picked up along our travels:

Laos is like the world's dollar store. You can get a room for the night for a $1, a meal for a $1, a beer for a $1, a massage for a $1, a bike for a $1.....

The Vietnamese plant the rice, the Cambodians watch it grow, and the Laotians listen to it grow .

Laotians are some of the friendliest, most laid-back people in the world, which is a bit surprising given their status as the most bombed country on earth (more than Vietnam, courtesy of Air America). They are in no hurry to join the frantic pace of globalization, and why should they -
they have amazing scenery, plenty to eat, decent shelter, and super-friendly inhabitants. We loved our time here and would rank it up with Nicaragua as one of our favorite countries on earth!

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