Vientiane


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Asia » Laos » West » Vientiane
June 16th 2008
Published: June 27th 2008
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PatuxaiPatuxaiPatuxai

Big concrete tower
After a long but very comfortable bus journey, we arrived in Vientiane around 7am. We quickly jumped into a share taxi and headed to the centre of the city. Our first impressions were that it seemed fairly quiet and we enjoyed the general atmosphere we were presented with!

On arriving in the centre, we get 'bagged' up and headed out in search of a hotel! Everywhere seemed pretty similar and feeling slightly fussier than normal we finally accepted a spacious room around 45 minutes later! As usual, we jumped back into bed and took another few hours sleep so we were fully refreshed for the day!

After a nice relaxing sleep, we got up and headed out for some foe and tasty egg balls! We then attempted the walking tour. This had become the normal task everytime we visited a new city, however with Mark as our guide rather than Dale, we knew we may actually be able to complete this one! First, we ambled along the banks of the Mekong River before passing some interesting and very colourful Wats. After many months of temples, they no longer were of any interest to us and we quikly took some snaps and moved along. Next destination was the Presidential Residences. There was a rather small fence around the perimeter and casually strolled through the back gate to get a better photograph. This apparently was not allowed since we were stopped by a security guard who really didnt seem interested in his job at all! Luckily, the perimeter wall was low and so we obtained some good photos by just leaning over the top.

The weather was very hot and we decided to take a break for quick drinks. Coincidentally, strawberry milk was a very bad choice on such a warm day! Next stop was Patuxai, a large concrete edifice with very good views of the city from the top. The building itself was left unfinished due the war and so the inside was now simply a market for 'tat'! Following this, we headed for the market where we slowing wandered around with no clear intent of ever buying anything!

The final stop on our tour was That Dam (a Buddhist Stupa!). Basically just a large stone tower which apparently had a giant'naga' living beneath it. Fortunately, we were not eaten and stopped for some very tasty juice shakes our route back to the hotel!

In the evening, we wandered to the river and enjoyed some very cold Beer Lao and watched the sunset. Enjoying the atmosphere, we moved further along the river and stopped in another waterside hut for a large meal. In the mood for a couple of drinks we went to a rooftop bar for some pool and couple of drinks. Although we liked Vientiane, we decided we had seen everything it had to offer and with the prospect of making the most of the follwing morning, we booked our bus for Tuesday afternoon!

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