everything in vientiane is peaceful and quiet. the mekong always there, the mytical river that has so many literary references for me, it looks… understated. it’s just there, big and slow, and it sets the pace for the whole city. very few cars, very few people, but overall so so so lovely. old colonial buildings here and there, nice restaurants on the river, cute shops and the market (which is very good for silver and fabrics). i loved it. i loved the mixture of colonial, western and eastern, baguettes sold by old women on bycicles of the kind you only see in this part of the world, motorbikes ridden by schoolgirls wearing typical lao skirts, etc. and of course, beer lao! and french cuisine! and silk!
it’s a good place to stop for a couple of days before going on to the rest of laos.