Laos - Vientiane & Vang Vieng

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On Thursday after writing my last blog we got our sleeper train up through Thailand to the Thai/Lao border. The journey was fine and we slept most of the way before arriving at the border at 10AM Friday morning. A short train journey across the friendship river and we were in Lao and filling out forms for our visas into the country. While in the queue a British couple, our age, in front of us hadn't enough money for their Visas so were essentially stuck at the station, we stepped in and lent them the 10 Dollars needed and shared a taxi into town where they paid us back. We arranged to meet them for a drink later in the evening.

After checking into our hotel which was really nice but a little out of the town we went for a walk around. Vientiane is Laos capital but very small and there isn't loads going on. We visited some religious sites and got some lunch on the river which is beautiful. We then went out for a drink with the British couple who were really good fun and ended up having a lot to drink in a bar and then a restaurant which sold a 3 litre gumball machine full of Laos beer. After a great evening Yasmin walked me home!

The next day we went to the morning market in town before catching a bus up to Vang Vieng, Laos Tubing capital! After finding a hotel we had an explore of the town, everywhere is full of westerners and there are bars everywhere you look. We found a bar showing Friends on repeat so had a couple of Laos beers there and chatted to some PE teachers from London who were out here on there hols. We then went to meet 3 brits who we'd met on the bus journey up. The bar we went to, called Q Bar gave out free whiskey and buckets for less than a pound...after an hour or so we took a walk to bucket bar which was a really cool place, absolutely full of westerners and not dissimilar to what you'd find in Kavos this time of year! Armed with more buckets we played some drinking games and Yas was chatted up by men from various countries and we had a dance before walking back to the hotel around 1! This morning we've come into town to book a bus journey up to Luang Prabang for tomorrow and find out the Palace score! We're going tubing at 1 with the people we were with last night which will be a lot of fun. You just rent a giant inflatable doughnut and go down the river for a few hours and there are bars along the way!

Will try write again once were in Luang Prabang!

Jamie and Yasmin xxx

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Comments

[Granny]

Staggered holidays
You sound to be having a wonderful time and I'm so glad to hear you are not dying of thirst! Now I know the meaning of staggering your holiday - you stagger from one bar to another...