Laos - definitely my favourite Asian country. It is totally different from the other 3 we went to - none of the hecticness (is that a word?) of Thailand and Vietnam, and with a seemingly much better infrastructure than Cambodia. It has such a relaxed feel to it and is as yet unspoilt by tourism although I'm sure that will change soon enough unfortunately. We spent most of our time there just kicking back our heels in the relaxing towns. Since we left Hoi An in Vietnam, we have been travelling with 3 other people - an English girl & her Spanish boyfriend & an Australian girl who are all great fun and an endless source of amusement. After a couple of days in Halong Bay in northern Vietnam we all set off on the 24 hour bus journey to Vientiane, the capital of Laos. This was without a doubt the worst journey I have done on this whole trip, and not just because it was 24 hours long. Before any of the passengers had even got on the bus it was loaded from top to bottom with cargo. There were huge packages on the roof, under & above every seat and filling the whole of the back section of the bus so those seats weren't usuable. We were in the row furthest back, just in front of all these packages. Within half an hour an unidentifiable red liquid was running from the back, down the aisle, soaking all our bags that were on the floor by our feet. As we went along more and more people were being packed in and sitting on stools in the aisle while more cargo was loaded through the back windows and in the end the spare drivers they have on all these journeys were sleeping on top of the cargo - one of them with his legs over my shoulders and his arm round my neck where it kept resting against my ear! Despite me digging him in the ribs and constantly asking him to get off he remained there for about 2 hours before eventually deciding he would move. We finally arrived in Vientiane which we had heard wasn't that interesting a place but we actually really enjoyed our couple of days there, renting bikes and cycling by the river. We then moved on to Vang Vieng where things got a bit messy! Vang Vieng is a pretty little town in the middle of the country which has become well known on the traveller grapevine for the activities you can do there such as rock-climbing, kayaking etc. The only one we got stuck into though was tubing... You get taken upstream from the town in a tuktuk and then given a 'tube' (an inner tube from a tractor) which you float downstream on back to Vang Vieng. All very innocent except that there are bars all the way down the river where a local will haul you in from the river, give you a free shot of Lao Lao whisky, throw you off one of the many ziplines over the river and then invite you to buy a beer or three from the bar. By the time you finally reach Vang Vieng again you can barely stand up from the booze and are bruised and battered from flying into the river. We mis-timed it the first time we went and ended up doing the last hour of the river in the dark! Not ideal as we could have easily missed the finish and ended up on our way back to Vientiane. It was really good fun and led to lots of partying and not much culture but it was a really fun few days and a great place to just chill out. After Vang Vieng we went further north to Luang Prabang which is similar to Hoi An in Vietnam - a beautiful, well preserved town with pretty buildings and winding streets. We were there for 3 days, again cycling out into the countryside and just enjoying the Laos atmosphere. Finally we had to leave Laos and are now back in Bangkok, still with the people we have been travelling with. Today is my last day!! ARGH! So I'm quickly writing this up before we go and celebrate like mad. We were planning to go to a 'ping pong' show (not the sport) but in the end have rejected that idea in favour of one last night of phad thai & chang beer. I really can't believe I am coming home tomorrow. I've had the most amazing 6 months and have loved every minute of it although it's gone far too quickly. I'm really looking forward to seeing you all soon though and hopefully will catch up with everyone soon (before my tan fades). Photos to follow, probably once I am home as I won't get round to doing it now. Right, got to get out of the internet cafe and get on with enjoying the last 24 hours. Lots of love Bex Over and out!!