Vang Vieng

Our next stop was Vang Vieng. A strange place in the middle of a wonderful karst landscape! Not too long ago, it was easier to find opium here than cold beer, but then the city changed its marketing concept a bit. Now there are all sorts of adrenaline-producing challenges and pastimes. And yes, if you want to see loads of Japanese and Koreans outside their homeland, this is the place to be... Somehow they all come here... You can ride down the rivers on old tractor tires while getting drunk, go on balloon rides, jump from trees into lagoons, and so on... We didn't try all of these activities, but we also explored the relatively neglected but scenic surroundings on a moped... And yes, we also jumped from trees into lagoons...

And apparently, Vang Vieng is like the Ballermann in Asia for the already mentioned Japanese / Korean guests... In the evenings, the companions known for their shyness and restraint really let loose... There's quite a lot of drinking, excessive use of the short-lived high from the laughing gas balloon, and dancing on the tables... That was unexpected...

All in all, the stopover was quite nice, but you don't have to go to Laos exclusively for Vang Vieng, to put it that way.