Chill Out Capital

Trip Start Nov 19, 2005
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19
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Trip End Feb 10, 2006


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Flag of Lao Peoples Dem Rep  ,
Friday, January 13, 2006

I am now in the capital of Laos, Vientiane. At least Im told its the capital but its looks and feels more like a small provincial town. My guesthouse is right in the centre but even here most of the roads virtually empty and the main shopping street has only a small cluster of modest shops. There are no highrise buildings (virtually nothing above 3 stories) and (fortunately) no sign of KFC, starbucks or their ilk.

Being flat as well as quiet its a perfect city to cycle round so Ive been sightseeing by bike. Of course, this begs the question of how, since this city is supposed to be the seat of government for the whole country, does anything get done? Im beginning to suspect that the answer is that it doesnt. For instance, theres a large cultural centre near here that is supposed to put on music, dance and theatre. But the place is all locked up, there is no box office or information desk, no sign of a schedule A Monks Day Out
A Monks Day Out
 . According to the guidebook the centre doesnt even have a phone number. The tourist office had no idea when or what the next performance there would be. Indeed the tourist office didnt know of a single cultural or performance event of any kind going on anywhere in the city!

Just when you think the place cant get any more chilled, its 5pm and rows of tables and chairs spring up on the banks of the Mekong so you can sit back and drink a chilled Beer Lao as the sun goes down over the river. Lovely!

As for sights, there are a number of temples including the striking gold stupa of Pha That Luang, and another sculpture park by the same guy who made the one in Nong Khai. But mostly Vientiane is about soaking up the atmosphere and eating good food (the french influence means plenty of nice bakeries and restaurants plus theres good indian food too.)And, surprisingly enough, there are plentiful and cheap internet cafes!
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