Tubing on the Vang Vieng

For those of you that have traveled to Thailand or other parts of south east asia, you may have come across someone wearing a 'Tubing in the Vang Vieng' tank top or possibly shorts. You may wonder what is this 'tubing' and where is this 'vang vieng'. To see toilets from around the world click the link. When you gotta go

Vang Vieng is a small town in the province of Vientiane, Laos. Like many small towns in Asia, the locals have found a way to exploit the westerns via sunshine, cheap booze, cheap food, cheap accommodations, and did i mention the cheap booze? Some people feel as if the locals are being taken advantage of, or that there is a lack of local culture in Vang Vieng. To these travelers i tell them to head else where because i'm pretty sure that these locals are much happier making money hand over fist selling booze to drunk white kids then they would be working in the rice paddies. (just my opinion)

A typical first day in Vang Vieng goes something like this:
-Wake up and eat banana pancakes or a banana milk shake. Or some other sort of food you only eat in a tropical place when you are on holiday.
-Figure out how the tube mafia works and rent your self a tube
-jump in a tuk tuk with your new beasties and head to the river(that you just met on your bus to van vieng, or in your hostel, or at breakfast, or the bar last night, or while waiting in line to rent your tube)
-Arrive at the river
-take your first shot of 'whiskey'
-head to bar 1 (that means across the rickety bridge) and receive your first bracelet of the day
-drink buckets. Whats a bucket you ask? you haven't been to thailand yet have you? A bucket is literally a plastic sand bucket filled with a pint of cheap booze, a mixer, often some sort of energy drink and usually somewhere between 30-150 straws
-Jump in the raging river and float down stream, only to be pulled in at the next bar
-REPEAT at bar 2
-Jump in the raging river and float down stream, only to be pulled in at the next bar
-REPEAT at bar 3
-Jump in the raging river and float down stream, only to be pulled in at the next bar
-REPEAT at bar 4 if you make it there there's a water slide
-Get your tube back before dark!
-eat dinner while watching friends or family guy. Yes no check most of the dinner spots you can lounge around, eat a plate of spaghetti and watch episode after episode of friends or family guy.
-go out to the bar

Your second day as the old south east adage goes same same but different

-Wake up and eat banana pancakes or a banana milk shake.
-jump in a tuk tuk and head to the river - you'll meet your friends there
-Arrive at the river
-take your first shot of 'whiskey'
-head to bar 1
-drink buckets.
-Jump in the raging river this time with out a tube (or steal one)
-REPEAT at bar 2
-Jump in the raging river and float down stream, only to be pulled in at the next bar
-REPEAT at bar 3
-Jump in the raging river this time with out a tube (or steal one)
-you won't make it to bar 4
-Get back when ever
-eat dinner while watching friends or family guy. Yes no check most of the dinner spots you can lounge around, eat a plate of spaghetti and watch episode after episode of friends or family guy.
-go out to the bar

We met a lot of people that got stuck in Vang Vieng. Their wrists were loaded with bracelets that marked the number of days they had been down to the river. Some people even find work either at the bars on the river, or in western run restaurants. The scenery is beautiful with stunning lime stone cliffs, and the locals you meet are very kind. One women we met told us that the next time she saw us we would have 2 babies 1 time. We're convinced that this women for saw twins in our future.

The view of the lime stone cliffs from our hotel room

Qbar - if you can handle more drinking after the river this is the place to be.
please note the menu on the left listing all the delicious 'local' pancakes