8/26/10 – 8/28/10 (luang prabang)
Annie Lin
Luang Prabang – Vang Vieng – Vientiane
Getting sick is never fun especially when you are traveling. Everything seemed fine when we arrived in Vang Vieng. But the next morning Jon woke up with an upset stomach that took him out of commission for the day. We are not sure exactly what caused it but we think it was a tuna sandwich he had for breakfast before we boarded the bus to Vang Vieng since we both have had the same thing the last few meals. We were planning on tubing down the Nam Song river, a popular activity among the backpackers but it was raining throughout the day so I guess it was a good day to get sick.
We stuck to our original plan of staying in Vang Vieng for two nights since Jon was feeling well enough to walk around and eat some food the following day. We boarded our bus in the afternoon headed to Vientiane. The bus ride to Vang Vieng and then to Vientiane was windy and slow but the view was often spectacular. There were acres of green rice paddies and some of the most magnificent mountain ranges we have seen yet.
The bus ride to Vientiane seemed to be going smoothly until we heard a clank on the side of the bus. It sounded like a rock had hit us. The bus driver stopped and his assistant hopped out to see what happened. There didn’t seem to be any reason for alarm as we continued on the road but at a much slower pace. Then all of a sudden the driver stopped the bus again and more people got out to examine the exterior. We were then told the bus was broken and we would have to wait an hour by the side of the road before another bus can come pick us up. People were on their way to Bangkok, Hanoi, and Chiang Mai and were likely going to miss their connecting bus. There wasn’t much we could do except wait. The other bus did finally show up and we all hopped on for the hour ride to the capital city.
We arrived in Vientiane at 7pm and were dropped off near the guesthouses. About a block away was The Pizza Company, a popular chain in Asia and we decided to grab dinner before looking for a place to stay. After a very full meal we settled into a hotel.
We felt fortunate that is was our first transportation hiccup considering how many planes, boats, buses, trains, and other modes of transportation we have been on during our travels.
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