Laos - Vientiane - Part 4
We then rode on to Vientiane, the country's capital, situated again along the mighty Mekong River.
Omar and Jim are discussing the little clay barbecues. There is a considerable exchange of ideas on how they work, and mostly how can they be transported to Canada in Jim's luggage.
Fresh fruit, roadside in the back of a truck.
Dragon Fruit.
Street side dining with Bryan and Rosie, Ali and Omar.
Alison and Omar, once again swap their road bikes, for a scooter to explore outside the city with us.
We landed the Cadillac of scooters.
You know you are on an adventure when the road you are following…ends.
Gardens along the Mekong River.
Coffee stop…check out the scenery.
Ang Nam Ngum, the artificial lake that was created when the Nam Ngum River was damned for hydroelectricity. The forested islands are what is left of the former river valley.
Market shots
Your guess is as good as ours. Jim said it was a delicious barbecue.
These are pink, painted eggs. The reason…we couldn't determine.
The market ladies were enamoured with Jim, he even got a proposal.
Cabbage is a prominent vegetable.
It is the dry season, and everything is covered in the red dust of the earth.
Can't imagine that when it is wet it is anymore pleasant.
Sharing the road. We met cattle, goats, water buffalo, chickens, pigs, and children.
These logs are turned into...
charcoal.
We are dusty but still smiling. Roads seem to be under constant construction here. Development is growing financed by the Chinese yen.
Jim was quite the looker sporting the Go Pro camera on his helmet. The plus, he is finally as tall as Omar!
Another lunch stop. I just love to show the simplicity of the little restaurants,
icy cold water,
our food always prepared with many smiles,
a sink with soap boosts our confidence in the quality of the food,
and "voila", fried rice and soup, with a beautiful presentation.
Rice fields, mountains, and palm trees.
Dragons or nagas are prominent at the temples.
Each Buddha pose carries a different meaning.
A reclining Buddha.
The inside walls are painted with images telling the story of Buddha's life.
Patuxai is Vientiane's most prominent monument. Similar in name to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, it has four, rather than two archways.
Ali and Omar saddled up and ready to begin their ride to Bangkok. Jim is trying to tag along on his newly acquired wheels.
Monks along the shores of the Mekong.
They came over for a chat.
Monks cannot be touched by a woman…I am not touching.
Bathroom, complete with flip flops, why? Because every time you take a shower the entire floor of the bathroom gets wet. One thing I won't miss when we head back home:)
This beautiful, beautiful man was our final memory of Laos. He chatted with us while we ate a bowl of soup at a street restaurant. We then ran into each other on our way to the airport. His name was "Charlie". He said his real name would be tough for us to say. He was in his seventies, and said he had never been to the airport, but the tuk tuks would get us there no problem. He came out to check and make sure we were headed the right way.
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