Vang Vieng

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Took a VIP bus to Vang Vieng the following day - VIP implies air conditioned comfort and pleasant journey - this bus didn’t quite fit but we got there in one piece and checked into luxurious hotel with the works. Millionaires remember. Head out to find a place for dinner and walk by countless bars showing ‘Friends’. Find a place that’s offering a roast lamb dinner and Joel can’t resist. Lorna and Nathan order carbonara and I decide to show them all up and order some Lao culinary feast.

Food poisoning all night and next day. But I’m not alone, Joel and I are fighting each other for the bathroom.

Over the poisoning - am on new diet of Oreos, pringles and Lipton tea (only kind they have here). We head to the Namsong River for the much anticipated tubing. Have all heard all sorts of stories about the dangers of tackling the rapids and rope swings intoxicated - sounds hilarious so off we go!

So this is how it works - you float down the river on a tube and there are bars on each side for you to choose from / work your way through. Someone on the bank will throw out a rope and pull you in and hand you a shot of Lao whisky and welcome you to their bar which will probably be playing “No Woman No Cry”. Each bar has its own rope swings which are scarily high and rickety looking but it didn’t phase Nathan who was straight up there. I was still feeling a little delicate so had a very tame day but the others were flying through the air on swings and shooting off giant slides into the muddy river below. Awesome.

Made a run for home after dinner and “Friends” to escape a huge storm which lasted right into the night. Cows and chickens were taking shelter under our bungalow which was swaying in the wind. Very good storm 10/10.

The next day we hired some bikes and went off to find the caves and lagoon. Was the most refreshing swim yet - cold water that had flowed through the caves and out to join the Namsong, it was perfectly blue and clear and very, very welcome.

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