Hel-Laos!

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Geo: 17.97, 102.61

Our flight to Laos didn't depart until 5pm today and so we had the chance to have a final photography wander around the Old Quarter and have some last minute Vietnamese food before we entered the more Indian and Chinese inspired food of Laos. However, the morning did not get off to a good start after I managed to jam the pill crusher. This was a tragedy and disaster of international significance! Keeping this in mind, I tried the best I could to force the crusher open, and in the process I managed to pull the muscles in my right shoulder and could only lie on the bed in spasm for a while. It's still giving me gip, but hoping it will have abated by the time we have the chance to go kayaking on the river tomorrow.

So we rested and then headed out for our last morning in Hanoi. We decided to try and capture the ambience of the Old Quarter on film, although I have a suspicion that our photos will not do it justice. On the way, we passed our previous hotel and the staff came rushing out to greet us. It was a lovely further example of the genuine friendliness of the people here.

We then sat down for a final meal of Bun Cha on plastic chairs at the front of what looked like someone's house. There were a group of men inside, engrossed in Wheel of Fortune, and our gummy hostess served us the barbecued minced pork patties that had enticed us in from the side of the road, with another roasted meat and a warm broth. We added rice noodles and Thai basil and mint and it was DELICIOUS!

We then headed to the airport, amid further warnings of muggings and security. The flight was on time, simple and well-executed. Then we landed and were faced with the entry visa procedure for Laos. A French family decided that they wanted to be in front of us in the queue and so pushed in front of us. I take gret smug satisfaction in the fact that tey had not filled in all of their papers! So we merrily hopped in front of them in the line and left them furiously scribbling their details onto their entry forms.

As we were close to the exit, our tour guide told us to check our bags for drugs, in case one of the Laotians on the plane had decided to use us as a drugs mule. I explained that I had four locks on my bag, covering all possibly entry points but was told that we should be checking our bags at every point of entry into ay country. Our guide, it seems, knows someone who has had every possible awaful travel experience known to mankind. So, check we did, despite the empty border control behind us. And quelle surprise..... no drugs! So we continued on our merry way to Vientiane.

Our guide has told us may times of the poverty that the Laos people have to endure day after day. However, travelling through the streets of Vientiane, one could be forgiven for thinking it was a modern capital complete with the excesses blighting the Western world. Bright lights and 4x4 cars thunder through the streets, Lamboughinis and Porsches fly across intersections and people are dressed in designer clothes, laughing as they dine in fine restaurants. Although the traffic is nothing like the madness of Hanoi, we still found the streets to be bustling enough to befit a capital. Into this melee, our tour guide wished us to hire bikes and venture forth. Add to the traffic the torrential rain that was beginning to pour and 8 bikes between 12 and we were in for a great night. I couldn't ride the bike on my own, and with Stacey on the back, it was an impossibility! She now has a beautiful pair of matching bruises on each of her inner thighs! After half an hour of riding around the town, in the torrential rain, looking for the hotel which would lend us another 4 bikes for the morning, we decided to head back to the hotel and then look for some food.

WOW!!!! The food was incredible! We found a little local restaurant where the food on the menu was the food you ate! We asked if we could pay in dollars, since our guide had told us that the USD was king. Nope. Baht? Nope (thanks for the advice Messrs. Marks and Spencer!) So Ben and two of the other guys headed to the atm to find some Kip. The girls stayed behind in the restaurant and salivated over the menu. This is the hint for you future visitors of Laos. You can pay for everything in Kip, the national currency.... who knew?!

So, the food. Oh wow. The food was served in little dishes of Laos sausage (slightly spicy with hints of lemongrass... divine); rice paper, lettuce, mint, coriander and lime leaf; peanut dipping sauce and rice noodles. We guessed you had to wrap it all up in one of the rice papers and enjoy. It was fresh, tangy, fragrant and succulent all in one bite. It was quite simply perfect! We also sampled the local Beer Laos which was a perfect compliment to the food. The most perfect meal we have enjoyed so far.

So, how to top off the savoury food? With the sweetest dessert possible. We passed a local man who was frying roti on a hot plate, adding oil, egg, butter, banana and condensed milk (in a can with 4 holes punched in so that the milk could be sprinkled evenly across the roti) and then folded into a square and sliced. It was a heart attack on a plate but it was stunning!

And then, to bed, ready for a scenic bike ride around the city tomorrow!

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