Vang Vieng

---

After a 6 hour nauseating minibus ride up and down windy mountains and through low clouds which you could see your own breath in, we arrived in Vang Vieng. As it was the night before my birthday when we arrived Tom had secretly booked two nights at a swanky hotel so that we could enjoy the pool and facilities whatever the weather. As it was still a bit cloudy on my birthday we made the most of the cheap pampering in Laos and had a full body massage and gouged ourselves on food and drink.

Luckily the next day we had blue skies for 'Tubing' (which comprises of giant rubber rings that you float down a river on stopping off at bars either side along the way) and headed to the river. The Tubing is cool and some of the bars are pumping out decent music and crazy people are jumping and swinging off ropes into the river avoiding the rocks by a few feet (one of them being Tom). After a few buckets at a bar you jump on you ring again and float drift down the river until a guy from one of the bars throws a bottle on a string at you in order to anchor you in... it's quite good fun! The main draw, and only real draw to Vang Viene is the 'Tubing', otherwise it is quite a tacky little town (think Blackpool).

The river itself is surrounded by stunning jungle and rock formations which look strangely like they have been dropped in random places. So we took to the air in a Hot Air Balloon following the river below us, skimming the tree tops and watching the sunset all before landing in the the Local Primary School's playground as a birthday treat from Mum and Dad. It was a very strange sensation being held in a basket a few hundred feet above the ground by some hot air!!

After a few days in Vang Viene we headed off for Vientiene, the capital of Laos.

---

Photos

Our journey to Vang Vieng
Look carefully and you can see our bus!

Comments

[Pauline]

Good evening from London
Looks exactly like Philippines!!! Emz, that balloon is sure BIG! HAPPINESS in the air balloon :) xx

[Liz]

Fun times!
You guys look like you're having way too much fun...can you please tone it down a little bit for all of us back here working our butts off?!;)