I'm in Love with Laos!

Honestly... I can't even begin to tell you how amazing Loas is. It's like breathing in a breath of fresh air after leaving Vietnam. I didn't realize it then, but in Vietnam my blood pressure must have been through the roof! Haha. I was constantly stressing out about trying the cross the road, avoid people trying to sell me cigarettes and postcards constantly, and say no to a ride from moto drivers. Ah! But Laos is a whole different story. Even as we ascended higher into the mountains over the pass, I could feel the difference. It was just quieter. The honking subsided, and the scenery changed. We drove along side a gorgeous little river with giant waterfalls spilling into it, and huge trees wrapped in vines all the way to the tops. It was stunning!

Once we passed over the boarder, we got a new bus driver and a guide for our first few days in Laos. His name is Tue (pronounced "Twee"). After giving us a brief introduction to Laos... Tue started to tell us that he really enjoys singing... and that we were all going to sing his favorite song together. Before we knew it, Tue busted out in "My Heart Will Go On"- yes... the theme song to Titanic. We were cracking up... but Tue persisted and low and behold, the entire bus was singing Celine Dion by the time the chorus hit. Tue gave me a good taste of what Lao people are like... relaxed, fun-loving, and warm. He never stops smiling. And that's how everyone here is! I get smiles from the locals everywhere I go... and motorbikes actually slow down for pedestrians! I went on a quick run a couple of mornings ago, and as I was crossing the road I didn't see a motorbike behind me... but he just slowed down, waved and yelled "hello!" I was shocked. I got used to getting one giant honk if I ever got in anyone's way. But that's not the case in Laos.

Our first stop in Laos was Vientiane, the capitol city. I can't believe it was the capital... it was so quiet and peaceful compared to Saigon. I probably should just forget about Vietnam and comparing the two, though, because they are just radically different. So I'll stop haha. But anyways, it was great! We went on a walking tour of the city to see an old temple filled with thousands and thousands of Buddha statues- they covered the walls everywhere. It was gorgeous. Then we went to the Victory Monument which is smack dab in the middle of the city, and it's comparable to the Arc De Triumph (spelling?!) in France. It looks really similar. I climbed to the top of the monument where I could see an incredible view of the city... I could even see the Mekong River in the distance (on the other side of which is Thailand). I also visited the day market... it is really similar to all of the other day markets, so there isn't anything special to tell there.

Vientiane was just a quick stop on our trip... now we're in Vang Vieng, which is incredible! It's settled in a valley surrounded by mountains on all sides. The mountains are indescribable... they are giant. And Vang Vieng is a tiny little city with one main street, but it's absolutely fantastic! All along that street are a bunch of restaurants, but for some reason they are all set up to watch "Friends". The tables are all facing TV's, and you sit on giant benches covered in pillows so that you can just lay down with your food on your lap and watch Friends. How funny! I don't know what it is about that show, or why they play it, but it's everywhere. We also visited the "Blue Lagoon", which is a little swimming hole about a half an hour outside of the city. The 17 of us piled into the back of a truck that had benches in the truck bed, and endured the bumpy ride out there... but it was so fun! We just wound our way through tiny little towns and by simple local homes. Then it opened up to the swimming hole (which is actually a river now that I think about it). The water was such an amazing color of turqouise and there were hundreds of bright orange fish swimming around. There were rope swings and a tree that we could climb up and jump off of... it was a treaturous climb up (giant fire ants everwhere!), but worth it for sure. There was also a cave tucked away in the mountains that we climbed to... it was a steep climb... and flip flops were definitely not the ideal shoe choice haha, but I made it in once piece. Whew. It was well worth the climb, too.

I'm just so enchanted with everything about Laos. I can't get over how relaxing it is here, how gorgeous the landscape is, and how beautiful the people are. It feels good to go somewhere and have a conversation with a local, knowing that they are just as excited to talk to me as I am to talk to them. It seems like they smile brigher here and laugh louder... they are just an incredible group of people. Everywhere I go people say "subaydee! subaydee!"- "hello". And I can't get over how relaxed they are... lines don't bother them, traffic doesn't bother them... if someone is in their way they will just wait for them to move without saying a thing. And eventually they get to where they're going... I could learn that lesson. It's just not worth the stress, is it? You'll get there eventually. So to make a long story short, I love it here and I can't wait to see the rest of the country! We have a big day on tap for tomorrow... so I need to get some sleep. I love you guys!