As we only plan to stay in Vientiane (the capital of Laos) for 2 nights we really had to get out and about today if we wanted to see anything. So even though dark clouds threatened we had our first taste of Lao coffee and tea and set off to Patuxai.
This monument was built in the 60s with US money that was meant to be used to build a new airport, but clearly a strange, over-the-top "Arc de Triomphe" look-a-like was a much better spend! Well, at least it gave us some cover from the rain when the clouds finally opened, and while the rain fell down we gazed down over this chilled out city. 
From here on we played a game of hide and seek with the rain - sometimes the victors, other time the wet loser. Our first dash led us straight to lunch where we had a great vegetarian buffet and managed to sit out phase 1 of the storm. We then snuck into the markets for a browse around the mixture of goods - from traditional Lao clothing to tacky, plastic Chinese shoes. With our bellies full we skipped the street vendors that circle like predators to catch the shoppers as they leave, and made our way to That Dam. This is one of the oldest stupas in Vientiane, but not much more than that so we then marched onto Wat Si Saket built in the 1820s and believed to be the oldest surviving temple here. This temple is a beautiful old structure and houses thousands of various sized Buddhas - some dating back as far as the 15th Century. 
Here we were well and truly caught in a down pour and after waiting for half an hour for it to stop (at least we had plenty to look at as a religious army draped in gold watched over the aging temple), we braved the rain and headed for the shelter of our guesthouse.
We spent the rest of the day just listening to the pitter-patter sound of rain on the roof of our guesthouse before making a 20m dash to a nearby restaurant to dine of delicious Lao curries. Before long we were back to the same old routine of packing up our backs and readying ourselves for yet another bus trip and another location of fun!
Here we were well and truly caught in a down pour and after waiting for half an hour for it to stop (at least we had plenty to look at as a religious army draped in gold watched over the aging temple), we braved the rain and headed for the shelter of our guesthouse.We spent the rest of the day just listening to the pitter-patter sound of rain on the roof of our guesthouse before making a 20m dash to a nearby restaurant to dine of delicious Lao curries. Before long we were back to the same old routine of packing up our backs and readying ourselves for yet another bus trip and another location of fun!Adlibing rainy Vientiane.
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