LAOS - Vientiane

When the inside is full , theres always the roof.
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Laos is a smallish landlocked country , about the size of the U.K . Driving across it feels almost empty as we pass endless miles of greenery. Mountains and plateaus cover over 70% of the country ensuring some fantastic scenery.

The bus ride to Vientiane from Hanoi , Vietnam  was both tortuous and fun. Tortuous?  Well , the bus was 2 hours late to start with., then we found it was a local bus pressed into service , not built for Westerners bigger bodies. I'm only a short arse but my knees were  crushed by the seat in front. Reclining the seat  meant you would be in the lap of the unhappy  person behind you. We also made many diversions and unscheduled stops to pick up locals and cargo.  And it's a 20hr trip. ..( Did I say travel was too easy in my last blog ? ) On the fun  side , we all got on well and it was nice to chat to the largest group of Brits I've met since S.Africa.

Not so bustling city centre.
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We all stuck together too when they tried to dump us 10k from town and we had a little mutiny! Finally , we all found lodgings in various places and met up for a much needed drink that evening.

The following day i explore the quietest capital city i've been in . It feels like a small genteel town of coffee shops , restaurants and guesthouses.I'm guessing this as bustling as Laos gets , so it's deserving of it's reputation of a laid back place.The next  evening  we have a lowkey celebration of Dans' Birthday before heading off the next day to Vang Vieng .