Laos

Paul Theroux describes Vientiane, capital of Laos, as "exceptional, but inconvenient. The brothels are cleaner than the hotels, marijuana is cheaper than pipe tobacco, and opium easier to find than a cold glass of beer." I can't speak for the first, although I was approached at a bar by a Lao woman in Luang Prabang, asking if she could hire two prostitutes for me, and let her videotape the whole event. I haven't yet gone back to that bar. The other two claims are definitely still true (30 years later), despite a lot of warnings about the use and transport of narcotics. According to the sign posted at the border, punishments include fine, execution, and imprisonment, in that order.

Vientiane would have been really boring, except for the ASEAN Business Forum on Energy, a conference attended by all of the Energy Ministers of SE Asia, with some representatives from China and Japan. In other words, a lot of suits and metal detectors. Some of the talks on renewable energy sounded interesting though, so with the help of a newfound friend, Caroline from Yale, we rolled in to the front gate on our rented bicycles. After about 30 minutes of haggling with security, we managed to negotiate an hour of time inside the hotel. Later, when we left five hours later, the guards smiled and waved, handing over our bicycles they'd been vigilantly protecting. Although the talk was in Chinese, and the translation system wasn't working, the snacks were delicious.

Despite what Theroux says about Laos, it's really quite nice. People are much less jaded by tourism, like in Thailand and Siem Reap, and there are tons of whitewater rivers, mountains and caves to explore. Reminds you a little of Oregon. I also got to pet a tiger the other day. Tonight I'm on an overnight bus further north to Luang Namtha, then I have to start thinking about getting to Vietnam.

I don't really have a lot of pictures to share, just a novice monk I caught napping yesterday: