I'm spending a few days in Vientiane, the capital of Laos. Most guidebooks describe this town as "sleepy" - their nice way of saying there's not a whole lot going on here. But it's a perfect town to wander/bicycle around, even if seeing all the "sights" takes only a day.
It's been really hot here, too! Much hotter than Northern Thailand or Luang Prabang. The ride here was interesting. While waiting for a bus in Vang Vieng, suddenly a sawngthew (pickup truck with benches in the back) pulled up and the driver shouted, "VIENTIANE??" He agreed to charge 40,000 kip ($5) for the four hour drive to Vientiane, so our backpacks were tied to the top and we set off. This was a very "authentic" experience. Most people along the route weren't going all the way to Vientiane, so we got to watch a revolving cast of characters riding with us. There was a woman stationed in the back to take payment, and the driver would typically pull out onto the road while new riders were paying for their journey, standing on the back bumper of the truck. Some kids rode the truck home from school. One man climbed in with a box from which concerned squawks emanate when we hit a bump. We finally arrived in Vientiane and I am now staying a guest house near the Mekong.
I am going to try to upload pictures but apparently Laos is still operating on the internet circa 1997, so I may have to be very selective in what gets uploaded. I looked at the pictures from Luang Prabang and saw that many of them did not upload correctly.
Okay, forty-five minutes later... not a single picture has uploaded so I guess you will have to see them when I get home!
It's been really hot here, too! Much hotter than Northern Thailand or Luang Prabang. The ride here was interesting. While waiting for a bus in Vang Vieng, suddenly a sawngthew (pickup truck with benches in the back) pulled up and the driver shouted, "VIENTIANE??" He agreed to charge 40,000 kip ($5) for the four hour drive to Vientiane, so our backpacks were tied to the top and we set off. This was a very "authentic" experience. Most people along the route weren't going all the way to Vientiane, so we got to watch a revolving cast of characters riding with us. There was a woman stationed in the back to take payment, and the driver would typically pull out onto the road while new riders were paying for their journey, standing on the back bumper of the truck. Some kids rode the truck home from school. One man climbed in with a box from which concerned squawks emanate when we hit a bump. We finally arrived in Vientiane and I am now staying a guest house near the Mekong.
I am going to try to upload pictures but apparently Laos is still operating on the internet circa 1997, so I may have to be very selective in what gets uploaded. I looked at the pictures from Luang Prabang and saw that many of them did not upload correctly.
Okay, forty-five minutes later... not a single picture has uploaded so I guess you will have to see them when I get home!
Have you had much difficulty with communicating? What languages are commonly spoken?
ReplyDeleteHahaha, I am imagining the squawking boxed creature really topped off the experience...
ReplyDelete