After another day of trekking in Sapa, I took an overnight train back to Hanoi and jumped on a flight to Vientiane, Laos. Things could not have been any better after I stepped out of the airport to a small throng of locals, buzzing with excitement about seeing their relatives that were visting from far-off lands. I was trying to look over the crowd to figure out where I could catch a moped to get into Vientiane - I needed to find a place to stay for the night. When I was about halfway through the crowd, I suddently noticed a sign that said "JEREMY IRWIN".

I hadn't arranged transfer from the airport prior to leaving for Laos; in fact I didn't even know where I was going to stay. The smiling faces behind the sign was Athith, his wife Phouvieng, and a friend of the family - Olay. (My apologies if I spelled that wrong!! I never got the spelling of your name!) To this day, almost two years later, I am almost moved to tears by the amount of generousity that they showed to a complete stranger, someone whom mentioned that he would visit them, an emigrated friend's co-worker's son. They had taken the entire day off of work to show me around their hometown. Now I'm going to be spending the night at their home. They've opened up their home with an open mind & heart; I still can't believe it while I sit on their couch and write in my journal.

Photo of a field near Athith & Phouvieng's home.


Phouvieng's sister's 4 year old nephew is currently dancing around the living room while we jam to a mix of Lao pop music and backstreet boys. I've already met the entire family - sisters of Phouvieng, cousins, nieces, and nephews. They all live at a dead end of a gravel road; each family having their own home. After taking some time to set my bag down and rest, Athith & Phouvieng take one motorbike, while Olay & I take his motorbike. Our first stop was a war museum which displayed information and antiques from the battles that Laos has been involved in over the past 100 years. The museum was very objective about all of the bombing that had torn apart Laos during the Vietnam war in the '60s. It was sad to see; this country of peaceful people suddenly pulled into a war because the Viet Minh took refuge in their country.

Honoring my vegetarian diet, they took me to a market where we had lunch at a vegetarian restaurant! The food had been cooked a few hours prior to our arrival, and was sitting out waiting for customers to eat. When we sat down, the food was cold and I imagined it being even tastier warm. Thankfully I was so hungry, that I didn't let that minor detail keep me from eating. After lunch, we went to the center of town where there stood a huge monument which reminded me of the Arc de Triumphe in Paris. We paid the 5000 kip entrance fee and climbed to the top. At 7 stories high, it was once Vientiane's tallest building, but it has now lost that title to a new hotel which was built exclusively for the ASEAN summit at the end of November.

We cruised over to to temples, Pha That Luang and Wat Si Saket. Pha That Luang is the golden wat that is the most famous in Laos. Wat Si Saket was a smaller wat, which was used exclusively by a previous emporer. Wat Si Saket was filled with different Buddha statues; it felt very serene inside. Although I have no preconceptions about Buddhism, I like it for its tranquility and pureness.

My trip to Laos, although one day old has been better than all of Vietnam, and I have Athith & Phouvieng to thank for the wonderful experience and hospitality. I sat around with their family this evening, drinking a Lao soda in the dusty lane in front of their home. Tonight Athith's daughter is performing (singing) at a bar in town. A bunch of the family is going out to see her, and I've already made plans to have a few drinks with several of their family members (I don't think this was my choice anyways...)

I can't say enough about today; this has been an absolutely great experience and another example of how honest and caring complete strangers can be. Time for dinner!