Vientiane: The Chillinest Capital City in SE Asia

Note:  We have just two weeks before we come home!  And we have this ridiculous notion that we'll be able to catch our blog up to date before we board our December 2nd flight in Bangkok.  We still want the posts to be good, but we're going to try to pack more into each post.  Hope you still enjoy the ride!

Enjoying b-fast at the Scandinavian Bakery

Even with just over 750,000 people, Vientiane feels more like a small, dusty town than a capital in SE Asia.  Friendly, relaxed, and compact, Vientiane turned out to be one of Jeff's favorite cities in SE Asia.  It had a certain level of quirk and authenticity you only get in a city that hasn't fully erupted with a full-fledged tourist boom yet.  There are good hotels and restaurants (including some wonderful cafes, like the Scandinavian Bakery, which we visited twice) and shops aimed at tourists, but Vientiane didn't have the same phoney gloss that made Luang Prabang feel at times like it could be any city in Western Europe.  LP had its own charms and little nuances that set it apart in the end, but Vientiane had a perfect blend of Western comforts and unspoiled Laos style that made it unique to many of the cities and towns on the beaten SE Asia trail - also known as the "Banana Pancake Trail." 

Even Buddha takes it easy in Laos

The Buddha Park outside of town, provided a nice half day trip and lots of photo opportunities.  The Buddha park itself is only about 60 years old, but since all of the sculptures are made out of concrete the place looks ancient.  The combination of Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist symbolism made for some very interesting sculptures!  An unexpected bonus at the park were the few young Laotian men who genuinely want to practice their English with us.  Jeff was approached by three total, and was initially dubious, but the Buddha park has become a popular place for English practice, as the tourists in town are too wary of strangers (due to hard sells on everything from tuk tuk rides to marijuana).  Jeff had two great conversations with these friendly young fellows, and even started corresponding by email with Lar (pronounced La-a), a young monk hoping to go to university in Australia or the US.  Apparently there is a very difficult English test that can make or break a young Laotian's hopes of going to university abroad and it was cool to chat with them and try to help them pass their tests.

There is a large expat community in Vientiane (well, it felt large since we saw them everywhere and ate at their restaurants), which made for some excellent eating.  But the food in Vientiane was a (distant) second place behind the few hours we spent at a temple outside the city.  We biked four kilometers to Wat Sok Pa Luang, often referred to as the forest temple, and the calm, green setting was welcome indeed.  We attended a meditation session, where we learned about and attempted to partake in some Vipassana meditation - a meditation style of monks and nuns all across Laos.  Our Vipassana session consisted of three parts: a sitting meditation and a walking meditation, finished with another sitting meditation.  Each of the three parts are twenty minutes, their end signaled by a small gong.  We found, unsurprisingly, that clearing our minds was extremely difficult.  Jeff found that the act of walking helped, which he didn't expect.  We were instructed to focus only on each step we took.  Having a task maybe helped Jeff clear the rest of the rubbish out of his skull.   We found the practice, overall goal, and teachings helpful, difficult, and totally rewarding.  We could really see, even from just that one session, how beneficial meditation could be to us both.  We were also lucky enough to have the founder of these weekly sessions, held every Sunday and open to foreigners, with us that day.  She was an old nun who, with the help of an interpreter, answered some questions and talked a bit about why she thinks meditation and Buddhism are so important.  

Also at Wat Sok Pa Luang, we got some traditional Laos massages.  The messages were a little like paying to get mugged, but Jeff really liked the back-cracking and rough stuff.  Annette was less of a fan, but her lady did hit a few really nice notes between handing out a royal beat down.  The meditation and message were a nice compliment to the temple, especially since the meditation type is common in Laos and we'd only read or heard about it.  (Check out the Macklemore song!)

The sleepy capital of Laos was a fitting place to do a little final shopping while contemplating the brief and splendid time we spent in the slow-paced, fast-developing gem of SE Asia.  There is a great non-profit organization called Mulberries in Laos that works with female artists to make beautiful handicrafts in a positive, sustainable way.  All of the items are fair trade certified, and the company is dedicated to empowering Laotian women and their communities by creating a strong collective of self-sufficient artists.  Naturally we loaded up on gifts (check your stockings and trees come Christmas time!) and were inspired by the mission and work of the Laotian-run organization.  Laos is a difficult place to live for many, and we feel strongly that groups like the one in Vientiane help the country grow and develop.  They are, in short, an example of how tourism can help a country like Laos, as tourists are the target market for the goods produced.

In a region of the world that is developing at a breakneck pace, it was refreshing to hang out in a city like Vientiane.  Laos is developing very quickly these days, and seems to be experiencing some growing pains in the process.  For now, Laos is still known for being super chilled-out, which is the opposite of what our next destination, Hanoi, is known for.  Loud, frenetic, passionate, and intrusive, Vietnam proved all around to be bizzarro-Laos in all the best ways!