Arrived in Vientiane, Laos

The day has finally arrived for us to fly to Vientiane, the capital of Laos. We bought our flight tickets as soon as we got to Siem Reap, and it cost us $115 per person. Our flight took off right on schedule at 10:05 AM. We arrived at the airport in a tuk tuk, which is really nice and modern. We had a layover in Pakse, a city in southern Laos, before we could land in Vientiane. They said the rainy season was over, but it was still raining when we arrived. Luckily, we’ve been told that the weather is supposed to clear up tomorrow, so we’re looking forward to that. Laos is supposed to be even cheaper than Cambodia, and it seems to be true. We’re staying at a lovely hotel for just $15 a night. It’s probably the best room we’ve had on this trip so far :) Our driver from the airport to the city was super chatty and just couldn’t stop talking. He mentioned that in a year, tuk tuks will be banned in the city center because the government wants to modernize the capital—meaning they want to raise the standards of hotels, restaurants, and infrastructure. It’s quite strange, but we thought Laos would be further behind in development compared to Cambodia, but that’s not the case. Vientiane isn’t a modern city, but it feels more organized. The buildings are nicer, there are no beggars, and no vendors. In fact, it can even be hard to find a tuk tuk. Usually, they chase us around the streets, but now we sometimes have to look for them. Since it’s still raining, we decided to check out a big fitness center that has tons of workout machines, a spa, sauna, pool, and a restaurant. You can buy a day pass for $6, which includes an hour of massage. When we got there, they had an amazing deal. For $35, you could get 4 hours of spa treatments, fresh fruit, and a super healthy fruit shake. First, we enjoyed a half-hour foot scrub and an hour of foot massage while munching on fresh fruit and sipping on the delicious shake. Then, we were massaged with a brown scrubbing cream that smelled like coffee for an hour. When it was time to rinse off, they turned on five showerheads above the mattress, giving us a water massage too. Finally, we were massaged with fragrant oils for an hour and a half. Afterward, we felt like two newborn babies.