Vang Vieng...

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After a short bus journey we arrived in Vang Vieng and quickly discovered, to our delight, that is was a lot cheaper than Luang Prabang. It was this (and laziness) that saw us ultimately spend a lot longer is this tiny little town than we had originally intended, but for anyone who has been there before- you know that it is very easily done!!

Vang Vieng consists of two streets, each one lined with countless bars and restaurants, all of which are pretty much empty! So drink is cheap and the atmosphere is very, very relaxed. A river running parallel to the town provides an essential swimming hole and the perfect place to lie back on a hammock and have a few beers while sampling the local specialties. It also provides the tubing... and it is this that Vang Vieng is most famous for!........

Tubing involves inserting yourself into a tractor tire tube and floating leisurely down the river, stopping off at the riverside bars along the way to have a few drinks and to swim. They have there enormous and ridiculously high zip lines and jumping boards for the brave... and nice patios and sun loungers for the less so. I was unfortunately in the latter category but i regret that now. We went tubing on our third day and it was brilliant fun. It's really nothing more than a pub crawl on the water, but what with the gorgeous weather and the number of people out floating along side you, it is great craic. It seems crazy to make an 8hr bus journey for a pub crawl- but you would make the exception for this one!!

Sarah tried her hand at some rock climbing while myself and Dec renting a scooter and explored the nearby villages and caves. The scenery is beautiful and the town is surrounded by huge, imposing limestone karsts that are filled with caves and grottos. Unbelievably, the health and safety regulations in Laos are even more lax than in Thailand, so the caving was a slightly more arduous and terrifying experience than we had anticipated! But the nearby villages were really lovely and were a nice insight into the lifestyle of local subsistence farmers and their many, many children!

We met up with a couple of English lads we had met in Luang Prabang and ended up having a brilliant week in Vang Vieng and a great couple of nights in the "Smile Bar"- the place to be seen- and playing pool and watching movies in the bars on the main street.

I think it was a well deserved 'holiday' after that slow boat... and an excellent start to our few weeks in Laos.

Eventually we dragged ourselves off the tubes and booked bus tickets out...
-so next stop: Phonsavan & the Plain of Jars (the midlands)...

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Comments

[Fiona Parsons]

Hey
Hi Li, Glad your having such a good time, keep us up to date with your travels. Happy New Year be safe. Fiona.