Vientiane Laos

---

Today we travelled from Vang Vieng to Vientiane the new capital of Laos, most of the morning was spent on the minibus. The scenery not quite as spectacular as the previous journey to Vang Vieng. On arrival in Vientiane we checked into our hotel and then went to the COPE centre which is supported by Intrepid (the tour company). The centre supports victims of bomb accidents, yes after more than forty years since the Vietnamese war people are still being injured and killed by unexplored bombs in Laos. There were thousands and thousands of cluster bombs dropped and there is a team working today to try and remove them from villages some are buried under the ground and younger people today do not realise they are there and may build houses above them. The task of removing the bombs is enormous as it covers such a large area most of which is remote villages. Also despite the dangers people are prepared to risk their lives trying to move the bombs so that they can get the money for the metal. Children often find the bombies as they call them and play with them not realising the dangers, children are still dying because of this. The stories in the centre were so sad if you feel like donating to this worthy cause please visit the intrepid website for further details.

---