Not needing to rush out today we slept in then began the descent down to ground level. We made our way to a bakery for breakast then sat in the shade people watching. We stretched it out for an hour before going to a book exchange so Jac could get some reading material for the next week. It was then time for a 2 km walk to the Cope centre. Set in the rehabilitation grounds of the hospital the centre explains the devastating effect that cluster bombs, or bombies as they are known, have had on the country & it's people. During the Vietnam war the Americans absolutely smashed this country to try & stop the supply of people & weapons by the Vietcong into the south along the Ho Chi Minh trail. They never really affected the Vietcong but the devastation on the Laos people has been horrific. Many bombs & bombies remain buried or hidden waiting for some poor Laos person to find it or even worse set it off. Unfortunately as a poor country the people find a bomb & see the dollar signs that they can make by selling it as scrap metal. Even when it is taken away by disposal experts the villagers are sad as they see it as money disappearing. Even worse kids often see the shape of something & think it is a toy or fruit & pick it up. After decades of lying dormant, most of the devices are just waiting for a bump to set them off. In fact Laos has been the most bombed country per capita in the history of the world. The Cope centre helps the people who have been maimed by these bombs & gives them a new hope in life. We stayed for about 3 hours & during that time saw outside the heaviest rain we have seen on this trip. We waited until it subsided then waded into the ankle deep waters that had formed. At the centre we found a place for lunch, well Jac did, my food never came, then headed back into town. When we arrived at the hotel Jac returned to the room as she hasn't been feeling well & I headed off to find the feed I never had. With that mission successful I returned to the room to kill a couple of hours. About 8pm we went to the night market for a cheap feed of chicken steaks & a walk along the river. Following this we returned to the fountain & watched the live music over some fruit shakes for a few hours. When they finished at 11pm we returned to the room. We had run into half a dozen people throughout the day we have met over the last few days. Everyone said the same as us, that it was a boring place & they couldn't wait to get out. Well our time had come, tomorrow we are free of Vientiane. Off to Thakhek which is meant to be a very pretty place.