Mr. Happy and I just returned from a fantastic trip to Laos. For the geographically challenged, Laos is a small country bordered by Burma, China, and Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand.
We flew from KL to the capital city Vientiane. Most people travel to Laos to visit Luang Prabang and we were no different. But we decided to spend a couple of days in Vientiane and were pleasantly surprised at the city's offerings. (Travel tip: the airport is only about 4km from town. Taxi rates from the airport are EXORBITANT. When you exit the airport just walk toward the street. You’ll be able to get a taxi or tuktuk there for about 20,000-30,000 kip).
We stayed at the Hotel Khamvongsa, a small boutique hotel that costs approx $30 USD/night. It was in a great location and we could walk everywhere from here. Ah, rules.
In our hotel “welcome book” in Luang Prabang it specifically said you could not “make love to people not your spouse” and you may not “film pornographic movies in the room”. Apparently, the state regulates that all hotels must publish these rules. Obviously, Mr. Happy and I didn’t know what to do with ourselves!
Vientiane is located on the bank of the Mekong River. Unfortunately, construction dredging is taking place so you won’t get much of a view.
Our second night, we walked about 2km to take in sunset at Sunset Bar away from the bulldozers. You head west and follow a bumpy, dirt road almost to the end and you’ll reach this little gem of a bar constructed from old boat timbers. A large Beerlao will run you 10,000 kip (a little over $1usd) and they had the best papaya salad in town!
A former French colony, the food in Vientiane is oh la la! We had some great baguette sandwiches, coffee, and pastries at La Croissant d'Or.
Our favorite dinner was at Makphet. It’s operated by an organization called Friend’s International. They provide jobs to “street kids.” There were a few language barriers here, but the servers were SO friendly. There’s also a fantastic gift shop attached to the restaurant. If you have an older Lonely Planet guide, Makphet has moved to a new location. It’s about 2 blocks away from the original. (main about 30,000kip)
Vientiane has some great galleries and shops. We bought some Laos Wood pieces (the sales people were unable to translate what tree “Laos Wood” is from).
And, of course, there are always Buddhist temples to fill your day.
Scaffolding gets creative in a developing country!
You can take in all of Vientiane's sights in about one day. If you're torn on what to do, I suggest skipping the market as it was the (sorry to say) junkiest outdoor market I've come across in Asia. Also, if you'd like try a massage, Lonely Planet suggested a place called Papaya Spa. Avoid it! It's a long walk and it turned out to be dirty and expensive. We just left and went to a bar for sundowners - much more relaxing.
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