Summer Travel 2023 #1: Layover in Kunming, Adventure in Vang Vieng, a Night On The Town Vientiene June 23-26

My trip has begun and is well under way.  I am having fun so far but wish I had a travel companion.  Faye came over for two nights before I left on my trip.  We booked our flight to Thailand for August and got in some much needed snuggling.  I miss her a lot already. Even thought she had a couple days off for China's Dragon Boat festival she gave me reasons why she didn't want to visit Laos. After seeing the pictures and hearing the stories I think next time she will be easily convinced to come to here. 

I flew out of Shenzhen Bao'an Airport on Friday and landed in Kunming, where I only stayed one night and did not do much but drink in my hotel room and eat some snacks.  My only intention in Kunming was to treat it as an overnight stopover so I could get a fresh start the next morning as my flight was scheduled at 10:50am.  

Upon landing in Vientiane Laos I exchanged currency and got a sim card before meeting my driver from TMark Resort Vang Vieng.  The ride was 1.5hrs.  It was raining on arrival, and rained the whole time I was there, but that did not stop me from having a good time.  The hotel even provided free shuttle service around town.  

My first stop after checking in was Jaidee's Bar.  I went there for their happy menu and got some herb.  I considered something stronger but even with the low quality of the smoke after a few puffs with my lowered tolerance I was already pretty stoned.  The atmosphere of this bar was not all that great and the service was not all that good. The place was a bit dirty, a couple dogs got into a fight in the middle of the bar, and the staff was too clueless to attend to their patrons. The bar tender did not greet me when I came in, and he wasn't even at the bar. I sat there for at least 5 minutes before walking to the bar and asking for a few joints.  The bartender had been sitting at a table completely oblivious to a customer walking in.  I smoked and had a beer Lao, then wandered around for a bit and went to a much nicer bar next door called Full Moon where I smoked and had a drink.

Here are pictures of the hotel.  I forgot to take any of the room.

Here are some of the views from Jaidee's Bar.

Here are the photos from Full Moon.

Here are some more from my hotel.  I got a massage before dinner. 

Yesterday I woke up early and went Kayaking on the Nam Song River. 

After Kayaking I went to Tham Chang (Jang Cave).  This spot was only a 10-15 minute walk from my hotel room.  Here there is a cave with a spring that comes out of it.

When I got back to my hotel I ate a late lunch.

Then I was back in on the road heading to Vientiane. 

Here is the view from my room at Crowne Plaza.

I took a walk to get some food but found that many businesses close early on Sundays.  The restaurant recommended to me by the front desk was closed. 

I bought a nice bottle of wine and ordered a cheese board for room service. 

Then I sat by the pool and recorded a timelapse of the sunset while enjoying a drink and took a nice swim.

 

While I was lounging poolside I got into a conversation with a pair of Laotian women.  Their names were Noutnouy and Pipo.  Noutnouy is a night club employee and Pipo a PE teacher in a secondary school.  When they found out I was only spending one night in Vientiane they offered to take me somewhere to eat and grab some beers.  I was suspicious at first and a bit wary but took them up on the offer and am glad I did.  I now have two awesome friends in Vientiane.  We got some spicy Chinese hot pot at Justice Pao Chinese Mala.  Then we went to Ohlala Bar and had a couple beers.  We were all very full with spicy food and I got a little tipsy (as I had been drinking since 2pm).  I told them I was getting tired so they offered to take me back to my room. They dropped me off at my hotel room at around 11:30pm.  It is super cool that I made new friends.  We added each other on WhatsApp and I will certainly be contacting them the next time I am in Vientiane.  

Before anyone jumps to any conclusions, I am happy to report that this was just a friendly night out. I did not even consider anything sexual and I would assume neither did they.   Things did not get any spicier than the food. And, to be clear, I am glad.  If I were younger, dumber, and single things might have gone differently but probably not.  I am committed to my relationship with Faye and have a conscious.  As such, I behaved myself haha. 

Laos has been a lot of fun.  Two nights was fun but I could see myself spending more time here.  Ideally, next time I will be here with the GF. Hopefully the pictures and stories can convince her that the place is well worth a visit. 

This is the end of this post but the just the start of my vacation.