Hi All,
Our final stop with Beth was Vang Vieng which felt like a huge contrast to historic Luang Prabang we had just left behind. The neon clad bars and shops renting dune buggies/ advertising river trips felt extremely touristy. Yet the town lies in a stunning limestone valley so felt sort of out of place. We spent our first afternoon relaxing after a 5 hour bus journey, then exploring the night market before heading to an ‘authentic’ Lao pizzeria. This ticked the box for Ross and Danielle who had been craving one for a while yet still provided Beth with a delicious coconut curry.
The following day we took it easy on a tubing trip down the original 'lazy river'. We climbed into our tractor tyre inner tubes and floated away. No sooner had we set off, we were joined by a group of local boys who followed us laughing and bobbing up between us, even pushing us off rocks when we got stuck. After a small section of rapids we arrived at a riverside bar for a few beers and some barbecued skewers for lunch. After a go on their rope swing we set off again for the last couple of hours down the river; Ross got bored of just floating and spent as much time splashing the girls and pushing them into trees and rocks as actually relaxing! For years there was a sprawl of unlicensed bars along this river but after several inevitable accidents all but a couple were closed. Therefore, tubing has now returned to a relaxing activity opposed to the former drunken chaos.
Our final day was faster paced. We rented motorbikes so we could explore the caves and lagoons surrounding Vang Vieng. So far the roads in Laos have been pretty good, here however, they were a mess of dust and gravel - not much fun on two wheels! We crossed a rickety bridge and made it to the first cave, a small underwhelming Buddhist temple. The second was huge and continues into the mountain for 3km. It was dark, eerie and deserted. We went as far as we dared with iPhones and a head torch, probably managing around 300m before we posed for a picture and headed back out. We explored a couple more caves with impressive rock formations, whilst another had a huge cavern with a small crevice allowing light to reach a well placed golden reclining Buddha. We got back on the bikes, and headed for our first lagoon, stopping at a local cafe for a barbecued fish lunch. We had been warned this pool would likely be busy but had underestimated just quite how packed it would be. The lagoon was absolutely crowded with Korean tour groups and a queue around fifty people long waiting to climb a tall tree so they could jump in! We skipped this lagoon and headed to the next, this one didn’t quite meet Danielle and Beth’s expectations as there was lots of exposed concrete, not the natural pool they were looking for. The third was just right. Blue water with cabanas, rope swings, diving platforms and a dramatic backdrop. We stayed for an hour cooling off before heading back to Vang Vieng for one last night.
That evening, we ate at the ‘Happy Mango’ - some of the best food we’ve eaten in Laos. We tried: crispy pork belly, spicy duck curry, a sizzling beef steak and roasted duck with river weed (trust us it was yummy). Finally, we finished with mango and coconut sticky rice which has to be tasted to be believed!
The following morning we headed back to Vientiane for our flights that evening. When we arrived we made a detour to the hospital, that we had visited previously, to deliver some colouring books and pencils for the children waiting for surgery. The doctors showed us a recovery picture of the girl we saw go in for cleft surgery two weeks before; needless to say they had done an incredible job at improving her scar and lip profile. This meant so much to us all but especially Beth who both works for the charity that funded the surgery and personally knows how much this will mean to the little girl. We then enjoyed our final hours in Laos by the Mekong River drinking one last beer Lao and spending the last of our currency on dinner - leaving just enough for the tuk tuk to the airport!
Next stop Bangkok!
Love R, D and B xxx
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