After a 10 hour sleeper train ride, I arrived in the capital city of Vientiane, Laos (officially named Lao People's Democratic Republic). I had originally planned on visiting Siem Reap, Cambodia, but chose Vientiane since it seemed less touristy. The city is pretty small for a capital, and as such has a small town atmosphere. The people are very friendly, with many speaking English like in Thailand. The atmosphere is very relaxed, so everyone seemed care free. As a bonus, the city is even cheaper than Bangkok. The hostel I stayed in cost $5.50 per night! Therefore, money was not an issue while there, and I could spend without worrying.
I had a small lunch while waiting to check into my hostel, and after I checked in I walked down a street with a map in hand. I was aiming for the Lao National Museum, as it was close. I made it to the museum, and chatted with some of the people who were also there waiting for it to open. After it opened, I entered inside and began to see many historical artifacts, pictures, and the like about the history of Laos. I did not know a lot about the country, so most of the information was new. I saw Lao's ancient art and weaponry. I saw it's relationships with France and the U.S. With the latter, I saw how much war and strife the country had been through to become what it is today.
After viewing the museum, I headed back in the direction of my hostel with Chris and Kate from the UK, who had also viewed the museum. After deciding to save some attractions for the following day, I took their invitation to join them for lunch. I have no idea what the Lao dish was called, but it tasted pretty good. In general, the city offered a nice variety of good food. I ate Lao food, Turkish food, American food, and French food I believe. Since the city is relatively small, all of the places I ate at were close to each other. Highlights were the chocolate pancakes with Lao honey, and the strawberry pancakes with Lao honey that I had! I hung out with Chris and Kate for the rest of the day, walking around the city and heading the Talet Sao Mall to look around. We also visited Wat Si Saket, the only temple in Vientiane to survive the pillaging of the city by the Siamese in 1828. The temple contained a variety of Buddha images with characteristics unique to Laos: "the standing or 'praying for rain' Buddha; or the pose with the armps up and palms facing forward, the 'stop fighting' or 'calling for peace' Buddha. The pose in which the Buddha points the right hand downward signifies a rejection of evil and a calling to mother earth for wisdom and assistance. Lao Buddhas also have exaggerated nipples and square noses, to emphasize that Buddha is no longer human."
The next day, I rented a bike and rode off to view different attractions in the city. One of these attractions was the Victory Monument. The monument is dedicated to the memory of Laotian soldiers who died during World War II and the Independence War from France in 1949. It was built with American funds and cement intended to build an airport. The monument draws many visitors, and offers a nice view of the city upon reaching the top. I also visited Pha That Luang, a gold-covered Buddhist stupa. Even though it has several reconstructions, it is regarded as most important national monument in Laos and a national symbol. A short bike ride from my hostel was Anouvong Park. There were many people in the park, relaxing on its benches, walking around, and jogging on its long jogging trail. By night, it was mostly covered with a market. The market was vast, stretching out further than I dared to walk. Within it, you could find food, drinks, clothing, electronics, and so forth. Therefore, it was packed with foreigners and natives alike. One of my major visits for the city was definitely the COPE Museum. COPE, which stands for Cooperative Orthotic and Prosthetic Enterprise, is a not-for-profit organization that works in partnership with the National Rehabilitation Center and provincial rehabilitation centers to provide access to orthotic/prosthetic devices and rehabiliation services, including Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy. It hopes to cover the cost of mobility devices and rehabilitation for people in Lao P.D.R. who cannot afford it. Due to bombings by the U.S., there are many bombs that did not explode upon impact left in the country of Laos. To this day, there are still deaths and injuries that occur due to people accidentally triggering a bomb left in the ground. These people are the main targets of the COPE organization. The museum is dedicated to this mission, informing it's visitors about Laos history with the bombs, ways that visitors can help the organization, and about the organization itself. I had never heard of the organization before, and was glad I got to visit the museum. The national museum let you know what Laos had been through, and this museum let you know in part what Laos is still going through. Upon leaving Laos, I definitely felt I made a good decision in visiting the country. It isn't a rich country, but from what I saw a lot of people are still enjoying life there. I'm glad I got to be around it's friendly and laid back atmosphere and people.
For my winter vacation, I decided to head to the countries of Thailand and Lao P.D.R. Upon landing in Bangkok on January 12, 2013, I got my vacation off to a great start by making myself look like a terrorist at the airport. I hadn't actually made a hotel reservation because I wanted to check out some places first, and the head lady at check in wasn't too happy about that. I couldn't think of any hotel names off of the top of my head, and that made her mad even more. Thankfully, another guy just wrote on my departure slip that I was heading to Laos the next day. I ended up staying in a nice hotel 10 minutes away from the airport, and got some good rest so I could head into the main part of the city the next day.
It was when I was in the airport shuttle service van that I met M and Da, a Thai couple vacationing home from there studies in China. We chatted on the way to and through the airport, and shared the skytrain into inner city Bangkok. It was with them that I first discovered that many Thai people speak great English! I didn't study the language before going to Thailand, but that was fine. No Thai? No problem! Therefore, we had nice, humorous conversation. As I rode into inner city Thailand, I saw how the infrastructure of the city consisted a wide array of tall buildings. I was hard-pressed to find one normal sized. Upon reaching another city line, we parted ways.
I walked down the stairs on the train station, and began to walk aimlessly up a city street. I had a map in hand for when I wanted to aim for a destination. Things that caught my attention were the many motorbike users on the streets, the street and clothing food vendors lined up throughout, and the smog that ran through the city. I came upon a mall complex named Siam Discovery, which I later discovered was only a section of this huge shopping mall. I walked around for a bit, looking at the various stores, and heading up to the top floor to have lunch. I headed back down and took a metered taxi to an popular tourist area with many temples. I took in the meter price at my stop, which proved to be useful later. I ended up getting persuaded into taking a Tuk-Tuk to explore different temples, drawn in by the cheap price... I really didn't know what I was getting into. Guess that's how tourist get scammed, eh?
After making it back from the Laos trip, I checked into my hostel and went off to explore various places. I visited the Grand Palace, which has been the official residence of the Kings of Thailand since 1782 (although the present king resides in a different palace). It is the most important tourist destination in Bangkok, and was therefore a tourist trap. Still, I enjoyed walking around the palace and viewings it's beautiful structures. The palace also houses the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, a beautiful chapel often incorrectly referred to as a Buddhist temple. It was beautiful inside, with no photos being allowed. I also visited the Buddhist temple Wat Pho. It houses the Temple of the Reclining Buddha, and is known for being the birthplace of the traditional Thai massage. After viewing the temples, I headed back to the Siam area. This is when I realized how big the mall complex really is. I was heading towards the movie theater (shouldn't be a surprise) in Siam Paragon which was a separate building from Siam Discovery. Both buildings held many shops and many floors, and together are called the Siam Center. Walking through Siam Discovery and Siam Paragon I saw many brands that I had never heard of before. I thought, "This must be where rich people shop." I headed up to the Paragon Cineplex and saw just how nice it was. It had many screen options, restaurants, bowling alley next door, and even an IMAX. I ended up seeing two movies that night. ^^
The next morning I headed to the Golden Buddha temple with Merlin, a German that I met during breakfast in the hostel (who is already traveling at 18). I once again saw how the temples try to make their ceilings and walls have beauty that matches the beauty of the main object being displayed. The Golden Buddha itself was great see, especially being solid gold. When we got back to the hostel, we were planning the next leg of our exploration when Sarah, from Canada, asked to tag along. The three of us spent the rest of the day together. We first headed to Jim Thompson's House. Jim Thompson is famous among Thai people because of what he did for the Thai silk industry. His house is so interesting because it is custom built to accommodate Thai and Western tastes. There is also an museum and many artifacts throughout the house. Next, we headed back towards the Siam. We went down to the food court of Siam Paragorn, and saw the impressive food court. I had many great options to choose from! After that, we walked back to the hostel, and that was the end of my day out. I had to get plenty of sleep so I could head out early to Koh Tao island the next morning, where I did my Open Water Scuba Diver course!
The course took place over 3 days with a small group that consisted of my instructor, sven, and cristina, and myself. We started by being filled with diving information through video. Then the next day, we practiced setting up the gear, and practiced different techniques in a swimming pool. Thankfully, I did these techniques well. By the end of the session, I told the assistant instructor that I was ready to see some sharks! We went for two dives later that day. I was doing fine in the first, and then my ears gave me trouble! I was unable to complete the 2nd dive due to pain, but thankfully was able to complete it the following morning. Even though my left ear gave me trouble throughout, I was able to complete the 3rd dive (where we went down 17 meters) and the 4th dive. It's a crazy feeling swimming around in the deep, but a feeling I loved! I saw a variety of fish, and we found these life size statues of a shark and octopus. Unfortunately, another group booked the videographer. Therefore, my group didn't get any video or pictures. I didn't see a real shark, but that is another reason to dive again! During my stay on the island, I walked around exploring and spent a lot of time with my diving group. I got to chill out on the beach and listen to good music by DJs. Overall, I enjoyed my time there!
After getting back from the course, my last few days were filled with Muay Thai fights, searching for souvenirs, eating more Thai food (delicious, but spicy!), and relaxing. Overall, I enjoyed my time in Thailand. ^^
