Rain, Rain Go Away, pt. 2 - Vientiane, Laos

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The capitol of Laos - Vientiane is a nice enough city to stroll around for a day or two and that is precisely what I did for my time here. Not a whole lot to write about. I found an overpriced guesthouse for $80,000kip. The rooms here are all overpriced and demand far outweighs the supply so I considered myself lucky. I walked about the city took in the various Wats that dot the streets, went to the museum, and made friends with some locals. All pretty standard stuff. The museum however was a little odd. The first floor had a couple of dinosaur bones, but the second floor was dedicated to the "glorious rise" of the People's Party and the resounding defeat they handed to the "American Imperialists". Commie propaganda at its best. The city is orientated right on the banks of the Mekong river with Thailand to the South and Laos on the North. It was a great place to watch the blood red sun drop into the horizon.

The real highlight for me in Vientiane was a visit to the COPE Centre. COPE provides prosthetic limbs and rehabilitation free of charge to not only survivors of UXO accidents but to anyone in need in the country of Laos who could otherwise not afford these services. So basically everyone in Laos. The services are all funded by donations and International Aid Groups. The information centre was very informative and again brought back some of the feelings I had back in Phonsavan. The last thing I needed was another black T-Shirt, but I went ahead and bought one. At least the money goes to a good cause.

A few days in Vientiane and I again was on the move. I've taken a bus eight hours to the South to a small town called Thakhek. I was needing some adventure so I've come here to rent a motorbike and ride into the rural mountains of Laos to the East. I plan a two night, three day journey on the bike. It should prove to be epic.

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Photos

vientiane
Vientiane Street Scene