Vientiane

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I still wasn't one-hundred percent today, but I had remembered the rehydration sachets that had been packed into my bag before leaving home. Although they didn't taste particularly pleasant they had started to have the right effect on me. I half packed my bag before heading down for some breakfast. One by one, as I sat eating my cooked breakfast, Nick, Lisa and Nicky all came down to join me with varying degrees of hangover. They were all up a lot earlier than I expected. Nick was probably the worst as he had stayed out the latest trying to out Scouse another Scouse girl, but like a trooper made his way through the plateful of food. They were all generally in one piece with the exception of a few impressive bruises that had started to appear as a result of their airborne acrobatics yesterday.

I left the guys to finish packing my things and to give my phone and camera a quick charge. After a final sweep of the room I took my bags to reception to store before going to keep myself occupied for a couple of hours. I couldn't go too far so I headed back to the restaurant where I had whiled away most of last night and perched myself in front of the TV again. Before I knew it, it was time to head back to collect my things. Nick, Lisa, Nicky and Tim had come to say goodbye - we were all a little sad to be going our separate ways and as Nick put it, it felt 'like our little family was breaking up'. I had enjoyed my time with the gang, although I hadn't enjoyed Laos much, but I was looking forward to some lone traveling again. I boarded the already crowded bus with my heavy bag and waved them all goodbye.

Once all the weary eyed party goers were aboard the flowery looking coach, we set of for Vientiane. The landscape was much the same as yesterday, winding through the sun covered hills and past small wicker hut villages. As we got to the flatter part of the countryside we began to pickup speed and I was glad I sat closer to the front of the coach this journey as I heard the screeches emanating from the back of the coach. Although most of the roads are sealed there is still the occasional pothole that throws the back of the bus into the air. I managed to catch up on some sleep after a few digs in the ribs from the guy next to me and we eventually made it to Vientiane. The bus northern bus terminal here was less friendly than the others I been to in Laos. Rather than the massed ranks of tuc tuc drivers people were simply herded onto the buses that they needed to be on, no questions asked. Those people continuing to Bangkok were sent to one bus whilst the rest of us staying in Vientiane were pushed towards a small bus and for a fixed priced ferried into the city centre. As much as a bit more communication would have been good, at least at the heart of the communist state there was no chance of being ripped off...too much.

We were dropped off at the Nam Phou fountain and after asking directions set off on foot towards my guesthouse. It was only a small walk and I didn't particularly want to sit in the back of another moving vehicle today. After a lot of sweating I arrived at the Naphavong guesthouse. It didn't look much from the outside and I was concerned that I'd booked a rather expensive dud. Thankfully the owner was delightful and the room looked fantastic. I dumped my bag and slumped onto the bed underneath the air-conditioning. After a cooling down and watching 'The Santa Clause 2' (yes, I know not a conventional choice, but with lack of English programming I had to make do) I was ready to go for a wander. My host gave me a card with the address on and pointed me in the direction of the night market and food stalls.

The market was on the edge of the Mekong giving passers by the usual two feet to get past one-another as well as the market stalls. There wasn't a lot to see in the way of merchandise that I hadn't already seen in Laos, so I headed straight for the food. There were a couple of stalls offering chicken feet, chicken livers and chicken on sticks but I needed something more substantial. I wandered up to one of the seating areas and was greeted by a lady speaking very good English. After getting over the shock I had the different offers explained to me and gladly accepted a seat. I ordered the BBQ chicken with sticky rice and papaya salad. The sticky rice was very sticky and dry, almost like play-dough, so I added it to the juice of my salad to loosen it up. The salad was really spicy and full of fresh crunchy bean sprouts, cherry tomatoes and other greenery. Although I had my reservations about the level of spice in it with my stomachs present condition, it was really tasty with the rice mixed through it. The chicken was served in slices and there really wasn't that much meat on it so after my meal I went to find some more.

I happened upon the wonderfully named 'Pricco Burger' a couple of streets over from the guesthouse. With a name like that I couldn't resist a wander in for a closer look. I ordered one of their 'Tall Burgers', which was obviously a take on the Big Mac but far tastier and freshly cooked before my eyes. I spotted that they had received an award from the young communists movement of Laos for business as I waited, so I felt assured that my burger would be of the highest quality. Satisfied with my food consumption for the evening I retired to the hostel to chill out in front of the TV and prepare for the next day. I wanted to do as much as I could on my last day in Laos.

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