The minibus journey from Vang Vieng to Vientiane was miles better than the previous one, much roomier and far less of the perilous mountain roads. This in turn removed the sickness factor so although the roads were as bumpy as ever, this time as we flew right out of our seats we were able to giggle and appreciate the comedy of the situation. We arrived in Vientiane around lunchtime and found ourselves an absolute steal of a hotel, cheap, sparkling clean, friendly and best of all with free breakfast! We congratulated ourselves on our good fortune and after picking up a map set off for a wander.An hour later and sitting in a coffee shop the positive spirit had faded somewhat as we had discovered that Vientiane although a capital city is really not bursting with things to do and see. It appeared to be more of the administrative capital of Laos rather than the cultural one. Not to be disheartened though, on our rather snazzy pictorial map Tom had spotted a picture of some birds with a label that said Wetlands and decided that a nature fix was what he needed and we would spend the afternoon there. I was somewhat more skeptical particularly because when we asked for directions the man was pointing and saying 'old waterpark' with a rather bemused expression.Tom was decided though so we jumped in the tuk tuk and headed over there. Much to my own amusement when we arrived at the 'wetland' area it was indeed an old waterpark with slides and pools etc that had clearly fallen into disrepair with a field and some grass next to it. Tom was crushed that we couldn't do any exotic bird watching(I think he was expecting some sort of Welney style wildlife haven) but we walked the 40 minutes or so back to the hotel and got better acquainted with the city so it wasn't quite all a waste!

We were having a serious craving for Western style food and so guiltily ate dinner at an Ozzie run café where Tom had bangers and mash and I had pesto burger. My word it was beautiful and we couldn't stop ourselves from ordering cheesecake as well. I figured if we're going to do it we may as well go the whole hog! Luckily we bumped into our friends from the slow boat and arranged to go to the spa with them the next day as we were a little stuck on how to fill our day in empty Vientiane. First thing on the second day we booked our flight to Hanoi for two days time as we couldn't face the alternative of a 28 hour bus journey across the border which is known to be fraught with scammers and dodgy deals. Then we made our way to the spa. What a fabulous idea this was, for the equivalent of £5 we got access to an outdoor pool and sun loungers, sauna, Jacuzzi, gym and 1 hour Lao massage. Needless to say most of the day was spent doing very little which was more than fine by us. Just so we don't look like utter sloths though I will say that on our way back we made a detour to see one of Laos most famous and impressive temples which was covered in gold and looked beautiful under the setting sun. The evening was spent playing cards with Darren and Sophie as they were heading off to the south of Laos the next day so farewells were in order.

Day 3 and we followed the advice of Lonely Planet and visited the COPE Visitor Centre which is part of a rehab centre for victims of unexploded bombs that were dropped all over Laos during the Vietnam War in the 70's. Although not your usual tourist site this was a fabulous centre, incredibly informative with a little cinema showing documentaries about the problem and lots of exhibits and pictures about the victims and the work of the centre. Most poignant though was meeting Ponsavan who was 19 and just hanging around the visitor's area in between his classes at the centre. He had been involved in a bomb explosion 3 years before and had lost both of his forearms and the majority of his sight. He was super friendly and excited to practice his English and we chatted to him for 20 minutes or so as we looked around. He was particularly keen to show us his breakdancing moves and was fascinated by whether myself and Tom were married and if not whether we would have the wedding in June! Needless to say we steered him away from this conversation as swiftly as possible! Visiting the centre was by far the best thing we did in Vientiane and we both bought t-shirts to make a small donation to the cause.

Finally Friday dawned, the day of our flight out of Laos and into Vietnam. We were pleased to be moving on from Vientiane as it wasn't the most happening place but we had enjoyed Laos as a country particularly the laid back attitude of the people and especially Luang Prabang which was stunning.

Next onto Hanoi and the start of our Vietnam exploration!