My Travels round the Far East: 37. Vientiane and south to Pakse

The bus from Vang Vieng to Vientiane the capital of Laos took about 4 hours. I sat next to a lovely British lady who lived in Spain, and we decided to stay at the same guest house. That afternoon she went to extend her visa and I went to the COPE centre.... Centre for Orthotics and Prosthetics... Artificial limbs... The result of the aftermath of war... This sculpture was made from metal from bomb casings...

It was very informative, and the sheer scale that the country is facing to rid itself of the UXO is staggering....

I then went to the banks of the Mekong.... Very difficult to actually get to as Vientiane seems to have turned it's back on the river and there is a dual carriageway to cross. However after 5pm one side is shut to traffic, the night market opens up, and things come alive. It does have a beautiful promenade to walk along by the river, and where people gather to do aerobics every night at 6pm.

The water level is very low at the moment, but they still manage to fish. These were ladies fishing... It's often the women doing all the work while, the men sit about and talk....

In my new tee shirt from the COPE centre...

This was the view over the prom and the river with the beginnings of the night market at sunset... From a roof top bar where else! The river seems very far away now, but I understand it comes right up to the prom wall after the monsoon rains...

While in Vientiane I also visited the Patuxay or Victory Gate, built in 1962 as their version of the Arc du Triomphe in Paris.... It was never finished due to their turbulent history... I climbed up the tower and got a good view of the city from the top

I also found this...

And this

And saw the Presidential Palace... You can't go in

Early the next day I flew Laos Airlines south to Pakse. I decided a one hour flight was better than a 12 hour bus journey... In a wonderful old plane with propellers....