Vang Vieng! We quietly think to ourselves what this little town would have been like before us tourists invaded it and unfortunately remoulded its personality. It's surrounded by the most breathtaking mountains with a beautiful turquoise river which runs through it separating the main town from "Party Island". One can't help but fantasise about being the only people there and having the river and mountains all to ourselves, but unfortunately we don't. The streets...

So there we where, back on the VIP bus heading down south towards Vientiane, the capital. This time round however the bus ride didn't induce involuntary body movements and ridiculous motion sickness. After a fairly pleasant four hours we were dropped off somewhere in the centre of the city, not too far from some hotels and the very pleasant river front were most of the bars, cafes, bakeries and restaurants are found. Vientiane has a fairly soft pace about it and ...

Luang Prabang! An absolute pleasure. Steeped in history but has also managed to preserve itself with unimaginable pride and dignity. The curfew for tourists is 12pm, don't be late! The streets are lined with small cafes and restaurants who's tables dominate the sidewalks . Young and old sit on cobbled streets and smoke cigarettes and drink red wine. Baguettes and crepes are on offer all over the town and are of a proper quality. This is a place one could get used...