Round the world in 7 months How will you know, if you never go?

On Friday we sailed to Ha Long town and then drove back to Hanoi, which ended the Halong Bay tour. Today we flew with Vietnam Airlines to Vientiane, the capital of Laos, and then got straight on a bus north to Vang Vieng. We are kind of a bit over the cities so thought it would be nicer if we got out into the rural areas for a bit. Not that Vang Vieng is a good representation of Laos… this is the ultimate backpacker party town, likened to Khao San Road in Bangkok, where every other bar/restaurant has tv’s playing re-runs of sitcoms like Friends and The Simpsons, and alcohol and drugs are readily available. The town is set against a backdrop of beautiful karst limestone scenery… you just have to remember to look up from your beer once in a while to appreciate it  Anyway the ride on the local bus from Vientiane to Vang Vieng was interesting, although I’m disappointed we didn’t’ see any chickens or other live animals on the bus! But the locals were entertaining, and the trip was only about 4 hours. We arrived in Vang Vieng and found some accommodation down on the river… interesting location as we seem to be right opposite the most happening places in town: the Bucket Bar (playing cheesy but fairly recent top 40), another bar that was playing Indian music earlier and now just an odd combination of stuff, and the Rock Bar that plays rock music and has a big fire pit outside. We are listening to a combination of all three on our balcony right now, but it seems like the Bucket Bar is the place to be! Earlier we had pizza while watching Friends and drinking Beer Lao, which is exceptionally cheap (a 640ml bottle costs about AUD $1.80 – sweet deal!) and tastes pretty good! We then played pool on the crappiest pool table in the world at the Aussie Bar. Tomorrow we’re going to try tubing which, aside from the caving and kayaking, is what everyone comes here for - - basically floating down the river on a big inner tube and stopping off to drink at makeshift bars along the way.