The bus ride south to Vang Vieng was no different to any other long trip we’ve had so far. Uncomfortable and time consuming… but one makes the best of it and puts up with the cramped seats and strange smells. Ipods and sleeping pills help a fair bit! Wil’s journey was even less fun than usual… only half an hour into the drive, the guy in front of him obviously felt fairly average coz he to puked suddenly out the window of the bus. It was a pathetic attempt by all standards and a decent portion found it’s was down the side of the interior of the bus and onto Wil’s leg and bag. As he always does Wil took the situation in good humour and after wiping some deodorant onto his hands and face to kill the smell he popped a sleeping pill and dozed off for the rest of the trip. I must admit a had a quiet laugh and thanked fate that I hadn’t chose the window seat!
We arrived in Vang Vieng at around 3am and were the only people to get off the bus (the rest were going on to Vientiane). Still dazed from the sleeping pills and without a map of the town (smart move Lonely Planet) we wandered around the deserted town hoping to find an open guesthouse. After almost an hour and on our forth attempt we managed to wake up the owner of one who handed us a key, pointed to a bungalow, and stumbled back to bed, all without saying a single word.
Vang Vieng is a river side town about 250km south of Luang Prabang. Although it’s not so far as the crow flies, the road between the 2 towns is very steep and mountainous, hence the 8 hour bus trip. The town was probably smaller than Luang Prabang but far more active. A bigger night-life and no curfew allows for more travelers and later nights. Being riverside and surrounded by spectacular mountains also makes Vang Vieng a must-see destination for any backpacker in the area.
On our second day Wil and I went Kayaking down the river (I can’t recall the name) that passes through the town. There were no rapids of much interest but the scenery was breath taking! The mountains around Vang Vieng are so big and beautiful… there really are no words I can say or write to describe them! I only wish my pictures did them justice. But if you ever go, you’ll know what I mean…
Further along the river we stopped and did some caving. It wasn’t madly interesting, but feeling our way through a semi-submerged underground cave on a tube was a bit of fun.
After the cave we were back in the in the kayaks and heading off down the river again. More amazing scenery and a stop at a flying fox later, we paddled our way back into Vang Vieng around sunset. After some food we relaxed with some Beer Lao (God I love that stuff), and prepared to leave Vang Vieng for Vientiane the following day, again by kayak.
I really liked Vang Vieng and was sorry to leave. Although the town was fairly quiet the mountains surrounding it are so visually captivating you could stay there for weeks! The only negative thing I can say about Vang Vieng is all the episodes of ‘Friends’ I saw. Every restaurant/bar plays it non-stop all day...horrible horrIBLE HORRIBLE!!! If I hear that theme music one more time...
|  | 
|
