Slowing down the Pace

Vientiane, Laos

I'm sitting here in a little computer cafe relaxing in the AC (the heat index is 100F/38C) with a grin on my face from ear to ear. It's been a fabulous day, and its only 1:30pm. Penne and I got up early this morning had a gorgeous cup of coffee made with sweetened condensed milk and baguettes before renting bikes. We were determined to leave our laziness back at the beach and get out there and explore a bit more. We spent the morning getting ourselves lost around Vientiane and managed to find our way to the Golden Pha That Luang (Sacred Stupa) and the Laos version of the Arc de Triumphe - Patuxai. By then we'd worked up an appetite and after a few minutes of R&R back at the guest house we hopped back on in search of lunch.

The day before while eating our sandwiches at a local cafe we caught a glimpse of what the locals were eating, a steaming bowl of noodles with a massive plate of greens and a bowl of chilies and limes. Forget sandwiches that was what i was looking for. We weren't going to make the same mistake twice. So we headed over to one of the main roads which had plenty of food stalls to choose from. We opted for a little one with tables set under a canopy. Luckily for us there were some Laos women eating lunch and all we had to do was point. And a few minutes later came out a steaming bowl of rice noodles with some foreign but yummy meat, a plate full of mint leaves, bean sprouts, and string beans, and a bowl of chilies and limes. Before adding all the extras I took a sip of the broth. It was sensational! But you know me, couldn't stay away from the chili paste and lime juice for too long. One of no doubt several fabulous meals I'll be having while in Laos, my first bowl of foe will have to be remembered as one of my TOP 10 favorite food experiences while traveling. The 7,000 Kip price tag is just an added bonus (less then $1)

Oh and I almost forgot, if you take a look at the picture above you'll see a bottle of BeerLao sitting there. In every country I've been to I've made it a priority to try the local brew. There was Bintang in Indonesia, Tiger in Singapore & Malaysia, and Singha & Chang in Thailand. With a smooth flavor, and no bitter after taste, hands down BeerLao has got to be the best beer in Southeast Asia

Some other dishes I'm looking forward to trying:
khao pun - white flour noodles served with sweet-spicy sauce
laap sin - minced meat tossed with lime juice, garlic, powdered sticky rice, green onions, mint leaves and chilis
and for dessert khao niaw maak muang - sticky rice in coconut cream and ripe mango (Cara I'll be thinking of you when i try this!)

So i've realized i've been a bit slack in my postings and really didn't right much about meeting up with Penne in Koh Tao, going to the full moon party or our Big day Out in Bangkok... so i'm going to continue being lazy and instead point you in the direction of Penne's Travel Journal
Koh Tao
Koh Phi Phi
Bangkok

I've posted up new pics forMalaysia, Thailand and Laos