After two in quie many days of inner despair that Dong has decided it is time to abandon the Vietnam, no conflicts with my route south and then directly in Lao, Shavannakhet.
Let's start with a Bussetto packed with tourists, picked up by various agencies (who paid double the ticket) and a large number of premises that appear inexplicably.
arrive at the border that we are about twenty, and we share the bus is so packed as to require the inevitable stool in the hall ... oh, well.
The border is the border always one of those experiences "real" trip by land, continually materialize disorders.
People who pass by you without the slightest concern, passports stuffed money properly emptied by the local police, parcels and bags and fill that empty buses, tourist or not, mountains of bananas with green wheels, bikes and people that emerge in the middle of the 500 meters in the no man's land, those who usually go through when you leave a country and enter another, all under the eyes of the "law", a show just for that, serenity J .
The landscape changes gradually while maintaining a constant fullness of nature, the houses are "piles" of wood, with hammocks under (of course) and "platforms" of wood with families and Animal shelter from the sun.
Heat makes itself felt even here, you sweat standing buildings in the shade.
Sistematomi immediately around the town and despite several similarities with the previous country something changes.
Peace, silence, zero traffic and car horns, smiles and greetings.
several Buddhist temples, colorful, large and with the monks in orange and yellow seal.
I just walk along the Mekong and on the other side I see Thailand, is so close enough to touch.
also point out the bridges, those "friendship", which finally opened the Lao in the world and I do not mean the cultural one, now is the land between Thailand and China, trade and influences, in just 4 years already perceive what will happen ...
The main street of the city, then that country is a broader, already has undergone metamorphosis, restaurants and internet point for tourists, banks and atm, and think that I had been told of the near impossibility of communicating and of using cards, stains.
Fortunately they are few and despite the amount of SUVs, Mercedes and businessman western Bermuda, the population is very real , little children running naked, the largest bare, coated, adults under the houses, relax.
Even those who work in the street are "atypical" no stress you or try to raise prices, are calm and smiling, kind and helpful, lao .
For the first dinner I chose a modest but attractive vegetarian restaurant with lots of smoking ban.
I order a sublime laughed with fried vegetables , as good as ever eaten on the go, the "bible" on the house, water and lemon.
While enjoying this delicious harmony of rice, herbs, fresh mushrooms and spices tamed, I notice a ... presence in the center of the room "restaurant" a kind of festive decorations bacamostro juggler, I observe him running along the edge under the tables, arrived at the center of the room, I come from, has began to jump in on itself, a bit 'stupid.
initially seemed like a cockroach but it was too big, then I noticed that it was a kind of grasshopper, but always too big, like a hamster.
stop me from tasting and I point to the "manager" of the local who was walking barefoot in those parts presence, discreetly, as if to say that cute ... he looks at him, lies down, takes it with his fingers and his mouth ... then look at me and says, laughing we would eat here with us in many , and the rest where it was.
Well I think, this was the best rice ever eaten in six months ... but I finish quickly and leave the inn.
First impression of Lao? If you do not like insects to avoid, there are many, many and huge.
After 2 days of settlement for calving Thakhek to visit the surrounding hills and caves "unmissable", but the weather starts to do crazy and the morning of departure in it pours scooter terribly and considering that the roads are not roads but tongues of clay easily "fangabile" I decided to give up and not waste time, I am leaving for Vientiane.
on public bus within the reality, paradoxically is the largest ever lived out of my legs until now despite the average height of the premises, the stool is now a necessity, not without them, as the load in this case "hung" the roof of the bus exaggerated manner, furniture, food, bags, scooters, even if the top was the scooter next to the driver ... the bus stops are a lot more for hot exhaust from the engine and drain the residents, of course, in nature ... approximately every hour, then stop "autogrill" for lunch.
Naturally highways do not exist then the rest takes place in the country on the road, a cluster of coal merchants, all with the same dishes, whole grilled chicken glazed ( with a sublime sauce that I understand ... but I have to?), grilled whole fish, almost entire blocks of pork skewers, rice and meat wrapped in leaves, ect ... a show, there will be 10 meters 20 traders all with the same things and decide where to stay each culture ... no problem!
But we reached the top to stop at a small station in a nano second to materialize dozens of women with their hands full and below the bus waving skewers of chicken, rice bag, boiled eggs, beetles spit, spit giant frogs, soft drinks and sweets ... they impressed me .. anyway all the fellow passengers waved to the succulent snack, we guess ...
Arrive in Vientiane, and I am account of why now is the capital of the world more peaceful, not only because all over the country there are about 6 million people ... is really nice, quiet, well maintained and clean, full of temples and looking very relaxed.
begin to drive around the city but the heat is really unbearable, I decided to cool off by drinking a beer J , the famous beer lao.
Virtually the whole country is covered with advertising and yellow speakers who travel or reside everywhere, and soon understand why, is by far the most consumed drink from all lao .
After work, even before to be honest, many people gather in restaurants and bars open between fans and appetizers every afternoon we found them, men, women and children to stay together to talk and have fun, of course everything in absolute tranquility and serenity, as in many places visited until now.
I walk away from the main street and the individual a narrow street with many of these local and without foreign I choose a calm and ordered, sitting with my birrino, sheltered from the sun and cool with a fan to donate, a man begins to speak in front of the table making me the usual questions and immediately ah beautiful Italy, football, food ... the usual short, close friends speak to him and he "translates" between cheers and smiles, after 5 minutes comes another with an English friend who convinced me invites to their table and after a while I find myself in the group drinking lao.
We spend the afternoon with beer, ice buckets (the only drink so) and flat grass field dressed with something, sometimes fat meat; are drivers / guides who work for an Italian company (not really excited about the wages), in Lao, there are hundreds maybe thousands of these mini-van tourists who roam around the country (not just tourists to be honest) airport to the hotel or from city to city or agency hired by groups of tourists to see the country, we begin to talk about their work and wonder why everyone wants to go and see always the same places, the Lao is beautiful and they tell me there are actually more interesting and real rural to visit, did I say, but it is also true that to do so we must rent a car, even a minivan with driver, and not everyone can afford.
Travelling by public transport is cheaper and of course through the streets those goals, the country's major short, the best known and best organized especially for the DIY, it is true that something But for those who are lost on holiday and can not be three months is the only way to visit, then you can always make daily trips between the various villages.
Actually we also talk about these things because of their project, organize tours and open an agency in their own way in order to start his own business and help even the most isolated villages untouched by tourism absently , a noble project, but alas, the reality is that lack the finances (yes, as you understand) and so on throughout the evening talking about the conditions of the country, family life, opening to the outside world and the possible (probable) changes their way of life, even now they tell me that they all begin to dream the big house, the big car, the clock ... I note that in the city there are only suv, jeep, and tuc tuc mnivan, I think it's a start ...
Our chats Afternoon at the table were continued for the entire stay, we met in the following days and spent some really good times together for "a drink" or some hilarious as the market near the great stupa, the stall of pirated DVDs and CDs their friend (perfectly legal here) with the whole family (twenty), including karaoke lao and melodramatic Italian duets, sales of CDs on my part, dishes you've never seen (with the beetles have also tried to grill but I'm not ready yet), and speeches daily lives, more and more personal in a warm and human, really great match.
course the little town I lived, but the inhabitants have left me a great memory and above all given to understand something of the country, very far from it.
Is it really true that the French said ...
" the Vietnamese plant rice, the Cambodians watch it grow and laoitiani listen to him. "
Andrea, Vientiane
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