I have had had some very good reports about 400 islands so I was looking forward to them lots! I came from Vientiene in the middle of Loas (the capital) and stopped off for one night on the way in a town called Savanakhet. Savanakhet was pretty small and unremarkable but still it was good to break up the journey! I met a cool guy from New York in Savanakhet who was making the same journey! Unfortunatly the bus from savanakhet to 4000 islands broke down! The bus w...

Vientiene Vientiene is the capital of Laos but you can be forgiven for thing that barnstaple on a Saturday is actually busier. No one appears to be doing very much most of the time! Its a very pretty city, with lots of french architecture, a mini arc de triumph (pictured) and nice squares. It makes you think that it would have been better if the french had colonised more places. Laos seems to have ended up very pretty for it!

Vangvien Well, there 's not much else you can say about Vangvien other than its mental. Arriving from the tranquility of Luang Prabang it is quite a culture shock to see 1000 drunken europeans running around an area that looks like something from the Krypton factor that got dropped in a river. The event is called tubing and it happens every day here! Before you can go tubing its important that you look like an idiot! To do this, friendly people at your guest h...

Luang Prabang From Pai in Thailand we bagan the long bus journey to Laos! After a couple of stops along the way we reached the stunning old world capital of Luang Prabang! Set on the meeting point of two huge rivers, the Mekong and the Nam Song, it is a truely breathtaking place! Add to that the French colonial architecture and you have a really beautiful scene. It feels like you're in a film all the time! One of the most enjoable things to do is just sit in ...