Vientiane - Laos, the land of a millions elephants

Vientiane (Laos)

Flying out of Kuala Lumpur about 1.5-2hrs north-east we were heading to one of the poorest countries on earth, and apparently, one of the most welcoming. Needless to say, on arrival, JJ (the one travelling without a Lao entry visa), somehow managed to get one in an instant, and in turn got by customers well in advance of Jase, Audrey and myself. Sometimes the road less travelled is the one that's far more favourable. Interestingly the way it worked out meant that I was virtually the last person through customers, at which time I received some relatively interesting questions from the customs officer checking out my passport, it went something like this
(Officer) 'Are you on holiday?'

(Henry) 'Yes'

(Officer) 'Why did it take you so long to come of the plane'

(Henry) At this point I wanted to say, 'well mate, it's your retarded process that had me waiting' but I just smiled and added, 'No, that wasn't very long'.

Then the officer said something very strange that had me jumping a little,
 (Officer) 'You got drug on?'

(Henry) 'No'...with a little amusement and apprehension

(Officer) Once again puts the same question to me, 'You got drug on ?'

(Henry) 'No, I don't', more forcefully.

The officer then points to my entry papers and then I realise what the hell he was talking about, we were going to stay at the Dragon (Dra-gon) hotel in the centre of Vientiane and he was doing his best to ask me as to whether I was going there but the way he was actually pronouncing it made me more than just a little paranoid. I thought all my Moroccan brothers had jumped a plane to Laos and where in cahoots with these lovely Laotian people by trying to work me over for another scam!

After surviving customs and resolving our quest for kip ( the Lao currency), we jumped a tuk-tuk and headed into town. It's usually at this point that I try and absorb as much as I can so that I can relate what I'm seeing to something familiar. I had expected, before arriving, that Vientiane would be very similar to Phnom Penh, a little run down, a little dirty, a little rough around the edges with evidence of that French influence in its architecture. Well, it wasn't really like that, and it wasn't really anything Vietnamese either, it was somewhere in between those poles. Relatively clean, a little dusty on it's outskirts and much more akin to a large town than a capital city, Vientiane seemed to be relatively unique as far as first impressions went.

A couple of hours after arriving at the (Do you have drugs on arrivals hall) we departed and ventured the streets of Vientiane. A couple of hundred metres from the hotel we found a small, outdoor/indoor dining area that did some great pork 'something or other' and delivered that with a healthy dollop of Beer Lao (the only way to drink in Laos). Of course I also undertook a silly activity (please read:'dare') of downing a spoonful of chili that head my head spin for a good 30 mins but hey, this was Vientiane and I am known to be an idiot at times. Needless to say we pressed on a little while longer before JJ and I left Jase and Audrey to their own devices and decided to make out way down to the Mekong in order to check out one of the mightiest rivers in Asia and also scan the banks of the opposite side of the river which just so happened to be Thailand. The Mekong just happens to split this countries just on the southern side border of the capital.

Like anywhere in the world, tuk-tuk drivers just like taxi drivers are in for a scam. Now JJ and I had been walking in the completely wrong direction from the Mekong when we decided to hail a tuk-tuk to take us to where the riverside action was (incidentally, the lack or orientation in this instance was my fault). Spotting the fact that he had happily come across tourists that obviously no clue meant straight away that there was going to be a significant 'mark up' on the normal price for the distance. Of course we later found out that the mark-up was 10 times more than what it should have been. No big deal in the grand scheme of things but infuriating never the less. It's the principle of getting ripped off that does my head in, its like there's an obligation to do it and its not isolated to poorer countries. It's that break from morals or honesty that gets under my skin, bah, anyway, whatever...

We cruised down by the Mekong on what was a relatively warm day and found the riverside just stacked with bar after bamboo bar built out over the grassy Mekong banks. Each bar having a great cushioned seating area (or laying area, which ever you preferred), and in turn promoting  laid back, chilled out,  languid type of vibe. I was liking the looking of this place already and could  imagine in advance  the type of activity that this area would inherit come sunset. The shot below is taken from one of the bars that we stopped in and had a drink at.

A common sight on the river in Vientiane - bamboo bar on the Mekong, Laos

One of the guide books that JJ picked up from the airport said, 'if you don't trust to drink the water then there's always Beer Lao!'. My response to that, 'Damn right there is'. One of the highest quality products made anywhere in Laos,  is Beer Lao. it's freakin' fantastic and ridiculously cheap, I mean so cheap that you couldn't buy a can of No Frills lemonade in Australia for the same price. After a few drinks at one of the fantastic bamboo bars JJ and I walked up one of the streets perpendicular to the main road by the Mekong and chose to once again partake in a Beer Lao activity of purchasing, bending the arm, drinking and then swallowing. I love those sorts of culturally significant moments whilst on tour!

Beer Lao, a source of Lao pride - Vientiane - Laos

Half a day in and we were already, 'kind of', starting to get the hang of Vientiane. The city is small, diminutive in comparison to other well recognised cities, there appeared to be a much slower pace to general activity, by comparison to their SE Asian neighbours and getting around the town only required a half decent map and the willingness to walk just a little.And as for the beer? Well, it was damn good, and as the menu shows,(after I explain the Kip conversion), more than reasonably priced.

Typical drinks menu - Xayoh cafe - Vientiane - Laos

Lets start with number one on the list, Draft Beer-Glass 330mi, 6000 Kip = $0.81 AUD. So a glass of beer equals just over 80 cents!! If you want a litre of beer, well my friends, that's going to set you back a whole $1.90 AUD. Oh yeah, this was going to be a very, very tough place to survive. Not only did the beer taste fantastic, but hey, you can do the maths in regards to the cost to hangover ratio.

Managing to drink our way into another early evening, JJ and I made out way down to the Mekong and none to surprisingly found these really quaint bamboo huts on the river bank. Cushioned up and ready to go we chatted and watched the sun drop over Thailand, gently painting the sky  beautiful hues of orange, red and light purple as it fell. It felt as though the sun was rolling out the welcome mat over the Mekong and almost straight to our door on the other side. As far as sunsets go, well this was spectacular and one that will remain as one of my favourites for some time, of that I'm sure. As the sun sank even further Jase and Audrey joined us for an early evening dinner as we drank and chatted a few hours away. Not an entirely bad way to finish up day one in Laos I'd say.

 

Sunset over the Mekong - Vientiane - Laos