Arrived at Vientiane after a tiring morning!
Airport transfer didn't appear but it was a blessing in disguise, cos the taxi was cheaper!
Vientiane Star Hotel with the brightest star of our solar system in the background
Checked into accomm, headed out to rent a bike and completed the cycling tour as suggested by lonely planet: That Dam, Wat Sisaket, and Royal Palace.
But first, a can of Beer Lao! Prime minister greeting us outside the palace
Took over the guards... who ponned duty apparently
It is an offense to just sell the heads of a Buddha structure in the region; if I'm not wrong, we're not supposed to just take a photo of the head as well, so... Head and shoulder here!
and resisted the urge to knock on this dong at Wat Sisaket
Had some time so went to COPE which makes prosthetics and orthotics for those maimed by unexplored ordinance. Pretty depressing considering how many of the post-war victims are just normal farmers who took the wrong step out. No less innocent than the Jews in the genocide.
This ironic statue greeted us; if this is some form of dark humor - using the mine shells to make a statue of a women and child in despairs - I really don't share their sense of satire.
But from a tourist attraction point of view, I guess there isn't much use of these shells anyway; much better than what they were originally used for in any account. But the paradox between what they need to do to "attract" tourists and what they should do in consideration of the local victims then sort of comes into conflict. But that's just my own version of deciphering the situation; maybe I'm just overthinking...
This was pretty insightful (yet depressing) though. Sometimes the hurt goes beyond physical and emotional, there's also mental consequences as well
Headed back to take a short break and headed out to the night market where we each bought some souvenirs and had awesome street food.
Back to my head-only goddess. Nah, not really chio but better than a plain wall.
The night market before the night
First thing we got is this tasty looking thing. Tasty indeed, but gets tired of it real quick cos it's just plain rice inside... So, it's a stick of BBQ rice HAHA
Very nice Mee Taimak. We suspect it's spammed with MSG but who cares, it's the first of many pig blood to come! And I must say we started off our trip with one of the best street food (and we're gonna end it with the best in time to come)
And this prata with condense milk was at the request of Phua, who did manage to finish the dish mostly by himself but I'm starting to worry about his risk of diabetes after. Pung refused to eat more than a small bite.
Night starting to fall and here is a row of Laotian flag along with the famous communist hammer and sickle flag (apparently 3 out of the 4 currently ruling communist parties in the world uses that symbol)
Dinner plan (yep, wasn't dinner just now) was a last minute decision to dabao road side BBQ and fried omelette back to hotel
Road side stall ftw. And that's our chicken hanging out with other buddies on the grill..
BPL was on its final day! Watched Chelsea vs Leicester before Mexican couple Christian and Luv joined us for a chat. Didn't manage to get a photo with them but I basically stared at the head-only lady most of the night and enjoying the atmosphere instead of focusing on the chatter nor the game.
Breakfast wasn't too shabby!
Next morning was Patuxai, or Laos' Arc de Triomph, and Pha That Luang, a stupa which is the country's most important religious structure.
Morning cycle to this place
And as with every arc de triomphe that I know, it's in the middle of an intersection. And evidently from this photo, the capital of Laos isn't exactly very developed in the landscape aspect.
Golden temple more gold than my failed white hair: Pha That Luang. Wat? That. That luang.
And the sleeping/reclined Buddha at a temple beside within the complex. This whole complex was pretty hard to reach, having to fight both the natural slope and the man-made vehicle traffic (especially when trying to negotiate the roundabout. But yep, definitely not the worst I've seen nor the worst of the three countries we visit). Also, despite the funny photos, I must set a disclaimer that I'm full of respect for the Buddhas; in fact, Buddhism is my most-inspired religion amongst the many that I don't really believe in. So yea!
Got back to bathe and deposited our bags in the hotel while we headed out for lunch.
And this happened. You don't wanna know what's going on HAHAH
Lunch was a recommendation by the receptionist and it was good to say the least, just need some time to readapt to the various leaves common in this region.
Came back, returned our bikes, and off we go!
Oh but before that is some Beerlao with the head-only girl cos we were slightly early. Had a mini scare when a tuktuk picked us up when we bought a ticket for a "minivan". Turns out, it was a transfer but the minivan isn't any much better. The stress position Brandon was put in after being displaced from our comfortable back seat for some goods was pretty much a running joke of the trip. In fact, the angmoh that set him up in that seat and selfishly hogged the center seat will cross path with us again before we leave the country!
And when we reached our next destination, I also realize I lost about US$160 worth of Laotian Kip. Zzz. First time losing such a big amount while traveling but oh well, it's a good thing it's just money and not anything more important...
