Vientiane, Laos

After 4 days in Luang Prabang, we loaded up and headed south via one of the new Chinese high speed trains to Vientiane, the capitol of Laos.  What was until just a few years ago a 6+ hour bus ride or a short flight, is now an easy 2 hour train ride through gorgeous mountains. 
Vientiane, however, was for the most part rather disappointing...  It is the capital of Laos, but has no museums, and the grand architectural statements common to many seats of government were a bit underwhelming.  Maybe that's a good thing, given the statw of government back at home?! 

Generally speaking, from an architecture and design perspective, there isn't a lot to recommend. Oh, there were a few interesting temples, and a kind of cool southeast Asian interpretation of a French Arc d'Triumph (celebrating the end of French rule of course!). , and a few remnants of the distant colonial past, but mostly a lot of really mundane, unkempt, modernist mid-rise concrete blobs.   C'est la vie...
On the plus side, Vientiane was a foodie paradise :-) Lots of really good French influenced cafes and restaurants at bargain prices.  There was a place on the same block as our hotel that we ate at twice where each meal cost less that $20 (combined, including drinks!).
Yum!
So... After 2 days in Vientiane, we hopped a short flight and headed to Vietnam!    We'll be the next two days in Hanoi, then off on a 2 day cruise on Ha long Bay. Stay tuned for more soon!
Cheers-


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