Mekong route, Laos
SAVANNAKHETAnna's entry:
We were happy to leave Viet Nam, being too exhausted by never-ceasing rip-offs by locals, and a hunger for tourist dollars. Viet Nam has changed from being an exotic destination to an ever-so-greedy materialistic survivor country. Yes, we were ready for a change of pace, and headed out straight west, to Laos. We crossed the border in Lao Bao, and continued to Savannakhet, located on a shore of the great Mekong. Laos felt different right away – definitely more poor, and yet calm and soothing after Viet Nam.
We were happy to leave Viet Nam, being too exhausted by never-ceasing rip-offs by locals, and a hunger for tourist dollars. Viet Nam has changed from being an exotic destination to an ever-so-greedy materialistic survivor country. Yes, we were ready for a change of pace, and headed out straight west, to Laos. We crossed the border in Lao Bao, and continued to Savannakhet, located on a shore of the great Mekong. Laos felt different right away – definitely more poor, and yet calm and soothing after Viet Nam.
Savannakhet - our first stop - seemed a sleepy and relaxed town, a welcome change after Viet Nam. We walked along the old streets, and no one harassed us. One night we took a walk along the Mekong. In the evening hours local sellers would set up small tables and grills along the river shore, and a group of young guys asked us to sit down with them at a table. One of them apparently loved practicing English, and he asked if we could converse. We did, however, on the back of our mind we thought what else would be coming? That’s how Viet Nam had corrupted us – even an innocent offer for conversation triggered some doubts… We knew we had to let our accumulated in Viet Nam bitterness go, and return back to our normal selves. We finally began letting our guards down, slowly…
I went for a meal to a local café, and noticed a familiar face from the bus we’d taken to the border. It was a French man, in his early fifties. On the bus from Viet Nam he looked stressed and angry, however, that morning he looked quite the opposite. “You look happy,” I said. He smiled and answered “I am so happy to be gone from Viet Nam”, “I can walk here, in Savannakhet, and nobody cares, nobody chases me down the street”, “I am so happy today!”. "Oh boy, I guess he didn’t have a good time in Viet Nam either", I thought to myself…
Rob and I decided to spend a couple more days in Savannakhet – there wasn’t much to do here, but we needed a little quiet break. One afternoon we took a walk around a beautiful Buddhist monastery garden, and we were greeted by student monks. Many wanted to talk to us, share their stories, and ask some questions. And, we had some questions for them. One of the monks commented that he was happy to see foreigners take a sincere interest in the monks’ lives. I guess it was also unusual for him to see tourists not rushing to some silly landmarks away from a non-touristy place like Savannakhet, and just live their normal lives - taking a walk in a park, sitting down and chatting with monks, and just enjoying a peaceful sunny afternoon…
I went for a meal to a local café, and noticed a familiar face from the bus we’d taken to the border. It was a French man, in his early fifties. On the bus from Viet Nam he looked stressed and angry, however, that morning he looked quite the opposite. “You look happy,” I said. He smiled and answered “I am so happy to be gone from Viet Nam”, “I can walk here, in Savannakhet, and nobody cares, nobody chases me down the street”, “I am so happy today!”. "Oh boy, I guess he didn’t have a good time in Viet Nam either", I thought to myself…
Rob and I decided to spend a couple more days in Savannakhet – there wasn’t much to do here, but we needed a little quiet break. One afternoon we took a walk around a beautiful Buddhist monastery garden, and we were greeted by student monks. Many wanted to talk to us, share their stories, and ask some questions. And, we had some questions for them. One of the monks commented that he was happy to see foreigners take a sincere interest in the monks’ lives. I guess it was also unusual for him to see tourists not rushing to some silly landmarks away from a non-touristy place like Savannakhet, and just live their normal lives - taking a walk in a park, sitting down and chatting with monks, and just enjoying a peaceful sunny afternoon…
VIENTIANE
Anna's entry:
We took a long bus ride from Savannakhet to the Laos capital of Vientiane. It is situated right on the Mekong river, and you can easily see Thailand on the other shore. Some people hate Vientiane, I really liked it. If you are into a simple clubbing drinking life, it may not be the right place for you. If you are looking into a slower paced Asian capital, with perhaps less touristy traps and snap shots, but more substance and reality, this is a good choice.
We found a clean inexpensive hotel (that thankfully wasn’t listed in the guide books) run by a friendly local family. The place was just a few steps from the Mekong and a lovely night food market scene that is worth describing. Imagine dozens and dozens of BBQ grills set up by local families under the tarps cooking the freshest food you could pick, numerous tables with flickering candles set up on the airy terraces along the Mekong, refreshing breeze, starry night, and the whole meal costs you only $2. The prices were floating around depending on a seller (get used to it in Asia), but we found the family that was consistent, and we would always buy from them. Freshly grilled chicken with home-made spicy sauce, sticky rice, add to that a cold fresh Lao beer, and the sunset over the Mekong, and you feel that all the aches of a long day are all of a sudden worth it, and life could be good. And, if you are after something different in your choice of cuisine, for us that would be our beloved Indian food, we found a great inexpensive Indian restaurant. Even though it was a spurge ($3 instead of the usual $2), it was great to fulfil our nostalgic memories about recently travelled India. I think you are getting an idea...
Speaking about splurges... I found out that a local Buddhist monastery practised a great massage and herbal saunas right on their premises. After persuading myself that I would probably enjoy it, and spending the whole $5 would be worth it, I decided to give it a try. Anyway, the hour full body massage done by a student monk in the open air bamboo terrace surrounded by lush tropical trees was great, the steamy herbal sauna was interesting, and herbal tea in between sessions was refreshing. Yes, it was definitely a good splurge and worth the whole $5. Now that I am writing this being back to North America, I hear that a similar treatment in the Western world is around $250, that is if you are lucky to find one.
We found a clean inexpensive hotel (that thankfully wasn’t listed in the guide books) run by a friendly local family. The place was just a few steps from the Mekong and a lovely night food market scene that is worth describing. Imagine dozens and dozens of BBQ grills set up by local families under the tarps cooking the freshest food you could pick, numerous tables with flickering candles set up on the airy terraces along the Mekong, refreshing breeze, starry night, and the whole meal costs you only $2. The prices were floating around depending on a seller (get used to it in Asia), but we found the family that was consistent, and we would always buy from them. Freshly grilled chicken with home-made spicy sauce, sticky rice, add to that a cold fresh Lao beer, and the sunset over the Mekong, and you feel that all the aches of a long day are all of a sudden worth it, and life could be good. And, if you are after something different in your choice of cuisine, for us that would be our beloved Indian food, we found a great inexpensive Indian restaurant. Even though it was a spurge ($3 instead of the usual $2), it was great to fulfil our nostalgic memories about recently travelled India. I think you are getting an idea...
Speaking about splurges... I found out that a local Buddhist monastery practised a great massage and herbal saunas right on their premises. After persuading myself that I would probably enjoy it, and spending the whole $5 would be worth it, I decided to give it a try. Anyway, the hour full body massage done by a student monk in the open air bamboo terrace surrounded by lush tropical trees was great, the steamy herbal sauna was interesting, and herbal tea in between sessions was refreshing. Yes, it was definitely a good splurge and worth the whole $5. Now that I am writing this being back to North America, I hear that a similar treatment in the Western world is around $250, that is if you are lucky to find one.
As you can see, we had a good time in Vientiane. No major hassles, and locals pretty laid back. Yes, it was no longer Viet Nam....
posted by Rob and Anna @ 6:11 AM
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