Hello everybody, Due to popular demand, you will be pleased to note that we have finally got around to uploading some pics for your viewing pleasure. Unfortunately we haven't figured out how to rotate them just yet so you will have to crane your necks a bit! Sorry! We'll figure it out for next time - promise. Since our last report we have made our way to the capital of Laos, Vientiane. We travelled South of Luang Phabang and stopped off for a few days in the town of Vang Viang. The town itself is not much - a few unpaved streets lined with bars and restaurants showing a constant loop of 'Friends' episodes. What people come to Vang Viang for is the Nam Xong river which curves through a scenic landscape of mountains and jungle. You can swim in it, Kayak in it, float along the current for hours in an inner tube or just soak up rays on the banks. We ticked off all of these activities during our stay and we are feeling all the more relaxed, refreshed and suntanned for it. We experienced many "we could be at work right now" moments! However, our visit was wasn't entirely without incident. We experienced off all things a massive hail storm which followed a clear blue morning. We had to take refuge in a restaurant and waited it out while golf ball (honestly) sized hailstones threatened to batter through the corrugated iron roof. The restaurant owner said he had never experienced such a storm and the local kids seemed pretty impressed - collecting the ice up in buckets to play with. We also experienced a brief but traumatic brush with disaster when a bottle of water leaked in our backpack and Paul's ipod went for a little swim of it's own. When we rescued it from the treacherous waters it was showing no signs of life. Paul put his first aid training to immediate use, attempting to blow the water out and desperately pounding on the buttons. The pair of us were literally bereft, contemplating the impending months without music. However, with much prayer and many carefully dosed blasts from my recently and fortunately purchased travel hair dryer, Paul managed to coax first born back from the brink and our lives are once more enriched by music (that was a close one eh Britney?). We arrived in Vientiane yesterday and were not thrilled to find ourselves in another humid bustling Asian city. Perhaps we aren't being fair in our judgements and though we haven't made of an effort to scratch the surface, we have not found ourselves enamoured of the city. It lacks the charm and cosmopolitan air of Luang Phabang. The architecture is mostly dull and modern and there are an alarming number of open sewers around town which get pretty funky in the midday sun and are big enough to fall in. However we feel that Vientiane goes some way to redeeming itself in the availability of red wine, good coffee and pate. A welcome respite from noodle soup and beer! Our next stop is the Island of Koh Tao in the Gulf coast, via Bangkok. In the mean time, enjoy the pics. Lots of Love, Paul and Linda xxxxx