Vientiane Laos



Jerry at the Mekong, photo by Maliwan

Visa runs, they are the plight of the ex-pat. Where to go, what to do, how long to take are all questions that get put into the visa run formula. My old visa was expiring so I needed to go to a country with a Thai Embassy or consulate and apply for a new visa. I decided to go overland to Vientiane Laos; the timing worked out so Maliwan and I went right after the Nang Rong visit – see the Tamboon article below.

The trip involved a bus trip from Nang Rong to Nakhon Ratchisima (Korat) and then another one from Korat to Udon Thani and finally to Nong Kai where we crossed into Laos. I can tell you right now I enjoyed Laos and will return; just not by 2nd class bus from Korat. Allow me a moment to vent. On the bus from Nang Rong to Korat the seats were terrible. They played a movie, that could have been good news, but the movie was “Snakes”. I have to tell you dubbing it into Thai and blurring out the one or two tittie shots did nothing to improve Samuel L Jackson’s worst movie. Thankfully the movie player didn’t work on the bus to Udorn Thani. However, the loudspeaker did and would blare the next stop just about every time I started to doze off.

The next morning we got a bus to Nong Kai and then crossed into Vientiane. The Lonely Planet guidebook (Gad, I’m such a tourist) tells you that it’s a waste of time and money to have a driver get your Laos visa. Just go to the border and do it yourself. There is no up charge and it’s actually faster. Besides, I’m not all that much into surrendering my passport to a tuk tuk driver, here or in any other country.



Another country with a workable drug enforcement policy!

Vientiane is a great little city. I hope to return in the not too distant future. To me the city has a feel just a little bit like Siagon in 1965, but without the insane traffic. There are wide streets, lots of French architecture mixed with traditional Lao.



Basket Vendor

Coming out of the cafe I noticed that this tuk tuk driver has a hammock in his vehicle.  Talk about a relaxed life style, I love it! 



Lao Relaxing

 It did take me a minute to adjust to the flags. The cycle and hammer flag was everywhere; a reminder that Laos is indeed a communist country. For a moment I thought I would have a flash back to the 60’s when we thought communism was the root of all evil. After a few minutes I was again comfortable in my own skin. Today I see it as another form of government, not as efficient as our democracy, and perhaps a bit more corrupt but that’s a totally different subject for another time.

The flags of Laos and the communist party

Lao food is good. It’s actually quite similar to Isan style Thai food. I had tried som tom (spicy papaya salad) a couple times in the past. The first time it was spicy but not to my liking. The next encounter was just nasty! Armed with this prejudice I was very reluctant to try it again. However, Maliwan wanted some and found a vendor at the Patouxay. It was delicious!

Som Tom Lao

Vientiane is famous for it’s French bread, sandwiches and Lao coffee. The Lonely Planet guide recommended a place called Sticky Fingers and with no better idea I decided to try it. It’s great! Another two meals were taken at the Full Moon Café. I really like this place. The food is good, the portions are ample and the people are gracious. When they give me my bill it was in Lao Kip, THB, USD and Euros; quite clever I thought.

The visa run is in two stages. On day one you go to the Thai consulate in the morning and make application. On day two you return in the afternoon and pick up your passport and new visa. It’s quite efficient and there is no need to pay the tuk tuk drivers to fill out your forms and make copies. All that can be easily done at the consulate. We spent the waiting time seeing a few of the more famous temples and enjoying the city.



Patouxay

I  find the temple architecture to be fascinating. It’s a bit like Thai with an extra kick! I just love some of the mythological characters that are hanging around the temples.

Temple Guard

There is often a bit of humor in life and I leave you with this little thought. A throne is not always a throne unless you decide to use it as such.  



My Laotian throne

 Many of you know that I really enjoy some of the odd usages of the English language that we find along the way.  Many signs in America are funny, even more so in Asia.   I'll close this chapter with the warning below:

The lawn near Patouxay

All the photographs from this trip are posted at http://s935.photobucket.com/albums/ad200/jnelson1944/Laos2010/   Enjoy them, but remember they are not for print without my permission!

Abundant Blessings,