Life in Vientiane, modest capital of Laos, flows along as
languidly as does the Mekong River on the banks of which the city
is situated. Resembling more a sprawling series of villages than an
inter-connected urban metropolis, Vientiane is a sleepy place
dotted with a mix of Laotian temples and French colonial buildings,
most of them crumbling into decay. Paddy fields still dot the
outlying suburbs and even intrude into the city centre in places.
Downtown is characterised by narrow lanes that run off the main
streets, where bakeries sell croissants alongside vendors touting
noodle soup and sticky rice.
Most of the city's places of interest are concentrated in a
small area in the commercial district, easy to explore on foot,
between the bamboo and thatched beer gardens on the riverbank and
Talaat Sao, the morning market. There are some fine Wats (temples)
to visit, like Wat Si Saket, one of the city's oldest, surrounded
by a lush tranquil garden. Other grand buildings are the unfinished
Patuxai monument, resembling the Arc de Triomphe, and the new
Chinese-financed cultural centre. The Lao Revolutionary Museum is
worth a visit simply because it is a now rare example of a
communist propaganda collection, while the Kaysone Phomvihane
Museum is dedicated to Laos' post-war leader.
