Its a day spa...D-A-I-Y-E

Trip Start Apr 22, 2008

Trip End Sep 01, 2008

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Flag of Lao Peoples Dem Rep Vientiane, Lao Peoples Dem Rep
Sunday, June 8, 2008

India, India, India. Only 1 week there and I was feeling overwhelmed. The place makes you think about EVERYTHING: religion, development, poverty, human rights, globalization, vegetarian vs omnivore, etc etc. Amazing but exhausting, especially when thinking about these things leads to long hours spent trying to wrap your head around it by sitting around and drinking Kingfisher beers. I have never been somewhere that challenges you in such a way. Challenge schmallenge, I am on holiday and from India I headed back east to meet my old friend Kate, a relic of my Minneapolis era, who is currently living in Tokyo. The two of us will be making our way through Laos (pronounced Lao..fucking French and their unpronounced terminating consonants), Vietnam and then tuning in to Tokyo at the close of this journey.

We arrived in Vientiane, the capital of Laos, on the 8th and two things were immediately clear:
1

Arc du Triomphe (Putaxy Victory Monument)

. Neither of us had done any research or planning. This theme will stick with us in all of our time together. Most evenings or mornings will be spent thinking about what we are going to do the next day and trying to find a shop that would sell us a bus ticket or book us a flight at 10pm at night.
2. There is nothing that needed to be planned in Laos.

Point 2 should NOT be misinterpreted as "there is nothing to do in Laos". Quite the contrary. What I mean is that this place, similar to Fiji or Jamaica, operates on "Laos Time": the island je ne sais quoi that sees minutes slip into hours and hours into days right before your very eyes. So incredibly sleepy and relaxed that an entire afternoon can be spent watching the world pass you by on the banks of a river with a cold beer and some street food. It was the best thing that I could have hoped for! Just as no scuba diver would miss their 5m decompression stop, no trip to India should be made without a decompression stop in Laos.

Vientiane must be up there with the sleepiest capitals on the planet. The muddy Mekong River, flowing like a slow moving chocolate river through the center of town, mirrors the attitude and gentle nature of this town

Hall of Buddhas

. Its the only capital in Southeast Asia where when approaching a tuk-tuk driver to ask for a ride he will re-direct you to the driver that has been waiting the longest and give up his own fare. Its also the cheapest place I have ever been. An hour massage will set you back $3 USD, less than the cost of a value meal at McDonalds and far more satisfying. You don't find the time, you make the time to keep this part of your daily routine. Combine that with beautiful food of the French persuasion (3 course meal of foie gras, steak and a cheese plate) for $7 USD....and the food is amazing...and it makes you wonder why there aren't more tourists here. It does have the dubious title of "the most bombed country in the world" (thank you Vietnam War)...but from the look of it today you would have no idea. I can't wait to see the rest of this place. I've got a sneaking suspicion its going to be life changing.