Blogs from Laos, Asia - page 6

We have arrived in Vientiane. It’s 7.30am so right on schedule. The tuk tuk drivers are there to meet us and the usual haggling match ensues. He starts off at 60,000 - a ridiculously inflated price and we finish up at 40,000. Still inflated but pretty much the best we can hope for as foreigners. It’s very telling that there is always one tuk tuk for foreigners and the rest are for the Lao. They do not want us to know what the Lao pay so always keep us separate but we know anyway. Our hotel is on the way to the centre of town, but our driver insists on going to the centre first, bypassing our hotel. In fairness, that’s where most other passengers are headed but it’s a ploy to make us think our ... read more

This morning we are up early - we need to make up for yesterday’s indolence! I think we are probably the first up for breakfast. We have a Plan A and a Plan B, depending on the availability of boat spaces for the river trip to the Pak Ou caves. Negotiation is key as the trips are highly inflated for all foreigners. We know the price should be around 10 dollars per person so we have a starting point. Our man starts at 40 dollars per person so we bargain hard. It would appear that he won’t do it for any less than 12 - that will do. OK, we agree with a handshake assuming we will be leaving soon. Not so. He jumps on a scooter, instructing us to wait five minutes, and disappears down ... read more

This morning we visit the Vieng Xai caves. We are sharing a taxi with three other travellers that we met yesterday on the bus. It’s a bit of a squeeze in the back but I am fortunate - for once it pays to be the fattest as I get the front seat! Our driver takes us through the mist covered karsts, along half made roads and up and down through the mountainous countryside. It takes 50 minutes and now we have arrived at the visitor centre. The Vieng Xai caves were the headquarters of the Pathe Lao Liberation Army between 1964 and 1973, the years when the American Air Force daily dropped tons of bombs in an effort to destroy the political leadership. Here, we see the massive war shelter cave complex. The area’s geology comprises ... read more

We start our day at the Chinese restaurant with a glass of tea and a fried egg breakfast. The tea looks like it has twigs floating in it. Tastes fine though. The eggs are great, but why do they serve them with a mixed salad? We eat the eggs and leave the salad. This morning we are heading to old Xieng Khoun, the region’s old capital city, but not before a trip to the SOS Children’s village. We have often been handed envelopes for donating unused foreign currency on return to the UK airline flights but never quite known anything about the charity. It turns out to be an orphanage with a modern, less institution-like approach. The kids (who are not all orphans), live in ‘families’ with a house mother. This village is aimed towards bomb ... read more

This morning we are up early. I could have done with another hour in bed but we need to be up and about before the sun gets too hot. We make our way to the bike hire shop. They want our passports as security. Fortunately our hotel isn’t far away so Ian is dispatched. :-) Bikes secured, we pedal our way up to the victory monument, Patuxai. This square, concrete monument has the look of a miniature triumphal arch. It commemorates the Lao who died in the pre-revolutionary wars and was built with concrete given by the USA to build a new airport, hence its nickname ‘vertical runway’. Patuxai is approached via a large dual carriageway which was practically under construction and little used on our last visit. Whilst the traffic here is not what would ... read more