Hedonism or Nature's Paradise?

Vang Vieng is a small town on the Namsong River which has capitalized on the free spirits of most travelers who brave the heat and bumpy roads to visit by creating an alcohol and drug fueled pocket of debauchery surrounded by beautiful mountains. We arrived famished and quickly found the famous organic Mulberry Cafe which grows all its food at a farm just outside of town. The mulberry shake and Pad Lao (not to be confused with Pad Thai) were amazing!

As the warnings from my family and the news detailed the dozens of deaths over the past year (most drug related but some from jumping wrong into the river), we realized that we have found the backpackers version of Spring Break. Except I'm not a dumb school kid anymore (disregard that I'm applying for school) so we didn't really feel appropriate trying to pretend like we were one of the drunk, body painted kids stumbling the streets. Though we did get caught up watching Friends the first night as many of the lounge restaurants play in constantly. Instead, we signed up for a caving and kayaking trip in which we were tuk-tuked to a local village then hiked over to the water cave where we donned head lamps and boarded tubes in order to float along the dark depths or the cave. When we all turned off our headlamps and were surrounded by the darkest dark you can imagine, it reminded me of dining in the dark restaurant in Cologne where your mind plays tricks and tries to fill in objects that your mind think should be there.

We then enjoyed fresh veggie and fruit kebabs before driving to our kayaking starting point. As we hiked out, we walked by two adorable boys with the smallest puppy ive ever seen in which they were eagerly tring to give it to Erika. Not the kind of souvenir we wanted however so we just gave them some candy and moved on.

As we leisurely paddled down the river, I was amazed by the karsts rising on each side of the river. It was so peaceful until we reached the tubing start point in which we were met with a blast of six loud speakers, all screaming different techno or dance music from their riverside bars. We did stop at one to take in the scene and enjoy an incredibly overpriced drink since we refused the ads for free shots and 10,000 kip ($1.25) buckets of who knows what.

The rope swing actually looked pretty safe and I probably would've had a great time if we brought a whole group of friends but in order to meet anyone else partying here, I probably would've had to get drunk, stoned or shroomed (all of which was on the neatly printed menus).

Yes this is a menu at the bar. Gangi garlic bread anyone?

So we moved on past the rest of the bars and finally arrived back at Vang Vieng. It was a great day, all for about $12! We then napped riverside on the multitude of lounge chairs with pillows before awaking for the amazing sunset.

We had a good laugh at the naked Lao boys who were welcoming in other kayakers.

The Germans next to us struck up a conversation and we soon made dinner plans. After cleaning up we met the two Germans, both of whom were working in Shanghai, and had a lovely Lao dinner and after-dinner drinks. Talking with them made me miss Germany!

Now we board another hot bumpy bus for the six hour stretch to Luang Prabang!