One of the best things about travelling is being pleasantly surprised by a city. When you read about a destination you can usually gage whether its going to be your cup of tea, and its hard to not go there with these expectations.
I will happily admit that I wasn't excited about going to Vientiane, Laos. It was more of a transit, connection destination, a stop-over since there was no direct flight from Luang Prabang to Bangkok.
We arrived in the rain, exhausted after a sleeper bus and as my boyfriend rented a bike and cycled to see some temples I settled into bed with my ipad and HBO thinking I could take this opportunity to relax after a month of non-stop travelling.
The city looked pretty gloomy, there were barely any people around and I felt like my suspicions and expectations had been affirmed, but when we ventured to the river to try and get some cheap dinner we found that the city had completely come alive...
What seemed like an abandoned city had become full as the night market at the river had drawn in the city's population. Tourists had been pulled in to buy souvenirs, clothes, food and jewellery, and I could finally see that we weren't the only travellers in Vientiane. Rather than just clothes aimed at tourists- the obligatory elephant trousers and beer vests the market was full of clothes the locals wore, light silk shirts and flowing dresses, cute camisoles and tailored shorts. I could have replenished my wardrobe from them but i settled for a dress and a bracelet.
Staff beckoned us into restaurants, recommending their prideful Laos dishes, but nothing makes you feel more at home in a city than negotiating the price of your dinner on a market stall.
Locals had been pulled in by the huge group exercise routines on the river. Scores of people dressed in pink dancing in unison. Not something you'd see at home where women are usually too embarrassed to run in public and to put their body and rhythm on show without a drink!
The sense of community was grand and the sunset was the cherry on top.
Vientiane may have looked boring by day but by god it's not by night.
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