Vientiane - Experience history, understand the present

How do I summarize these 24 hours? Totally surprised, we explore Vientiane for hours. A city full of contrasts: old, dilapidated houses, overloaded power poles, shining glass facades of shopping palaces, morbidly charming villas, simplicity meets emerging luxury. Creatively designed cafés and pubs. We walk and marvel.

With the China-Lao Railway, we made it from Luang Prabang to Vientiane in two hours. Everything is thoroughly checked, personal details carefully scrutinized, and luggage spot-checked.

In the evening, we walk along the river, encountering billiard players in street restaurants challenging each other. Everything feels open, friendly, and politely reserved. The traffic is hardly noteworthy, few mopeds, no honking. Civilized.
The next day lets us drift, simply around the corners, our goal, a museum, we skip because the journey is much too exciting. At a corner, we see an old, decaying, yet beautiful house, we stop and spend hours there completely captivated. An old villa, the garden, and a room set up for a charming café, unassuming, to not disturb the charm.

Bus lanes, completely unknown to us here in Asia, shopping centers seemingly just opened, being filled with shops. The Central Market, a wholesale market with an incredible abundance of gold, fabrics, and other goods. Monks giving blessings, Christmas trees being decorated, it feels focused, a lively yet unexcited hustle. A colorful mix of tourists meets us, including some old and worn out :-/, influenced by Thailand. The border is the Mekong River, with Thailand on the other side.

I did say: 'how do I summarize this?' :-)