Lane Xang

Well, our week and a half excursion into Laos ended and we made it back to Chiang Mai for a third time! Laos was a whirlwind, and I really enjoyed my time there. The country seems to exude a sense of pride that is infectious. It's a poor country that takes it's heritage very seriously, there were many educational opportunities to learn about politics, culture and history in the region. The beautiful geography is one of the countries biggest resources (used both for sustainable tourism and devastating dam construction). The busses we took wound up huge mountains and jungles. The dramatic views came at the cost of 2 broken busses after endless switchbacks, curves and motion-sickness. The Laos people are very conscious of the impact the travel industry can have, being very open and generous while it hold strong to its roots.

Vang Vieng, however, was one exception. Although it is home to arguably the most dramatic and lush green mountains I have seen, there seems to be minimal development regulation or even consideration. It's a small town where every building is a restaurant/guesthouse/bar/motorbike rental/travel agent. It's interesting to see those places in low season, with so many empty seats around town it felt a bit like a ghost town. The busiest places being the "Friends" bars. Each one indistinguishable from the next, there are about 12 of them, sometime 3-4 in a row that sport low tables and lounge pads. Travelers recline to watch old Friends reruns. Reruns, from morning til night keep customers planted for hours, quite a site in the remote mountains of Laos. There were also some buildings that were only half constructed, waiting for another high season to afford more materials. It'd be great to see these places bustling in all their glory, but then I don't think I would understand the pros and cons to opening your doors/villages to tourism.

We enjoyed a morning cup of coffee an our patio overlooking the mountains, then boarded the bus headed to Vientiane, the capital city. We could only spent 2 nights in town, but quickly recognized its many positive attributes. Similar to Luang Prabang, it is home to many French colonial buildings. It's also one of the cleanest cities we have visited. It was easy to rub elbows with the locals at food carts, with there portable, plastic table seating which lined the Mekong at sunset. We spent one day out on a motorbike as it was too hot to walk comfortably. After visiting the 4 biggest wats/architectural attractions, we made one last stop. After a lot of research, I read a few things about a "cafe" at the BeerLao brewery. Being the only beer producer in the country, owned partially by the government, it boasts a 99% share of the Laos beer market. They were definitely not expecting us, and what transpired was one of the most enjoyably awkward experiences of the trip. Long story short, we got free beer and souvenirs! I'll elaborate later if you care to ask in person.

Then, back to Chiang Mai. We came back early Sunday simply to stock up at the Sunday night market. The following day Nick Sudheimer and Christine Anderson arrived. We spent time exploring town, eating great food, taking motorbikes to temples in the mountains as well as stopping for a hot cup of Joe at the most remote cafe I've ever seen. 2 days, a few Smirnoff ices and rooftop beers later and it was time to say good bye. After they hit the southern beaches, Nick will rejoin us in Cambodia to explore Angkor Wat and continue on from there. Also, Erin's mother arrives in Cambodia next week, it's like I drafted the perfect team of travel companions.