Vientiane is the capitol of Laos and it is rumored to be the slowest and most laid back capitol of the entire planet. Some say it is outright boring. I do not agree with the latter. It is nice to recover from the fast forward traveling style I have been performing in the past four weeks. Now I have decided to stay here for a couple of days and check the area. 
There are tons of Wats scattered all over the place,(ie. Buddhist Temples) and outside of the town there are caves, waterfalls and the like to marvel about. There is however Luang Prabang in the north, a town that is described as the jewel of Laos´ tourist industry. However, if I am going to attempt to get there and back the same way by enduring a two-times 12-hour bus tour remains doubtful. I have had major back pain yesterday from sitting in far too bad bus seats for far too long…
Hence, for the moment it feels alright to settle down a bit here. Besides, I have come across this really lovely café just around the corner from where I live. A little piece of tranquility and home in a strange and foreign place, where they recognize you at your second visit already and greet you friendly (a bit like at “Cheers”, that magical place on TeVo… 
).
The owner must be French or heavily in love with the French café culture. The place is hidden from the view of the main street by palm trees and offers a wide variety of inexpensive local and European foods as well as free wireless Internet access, topped off with the best fruit-smoothy I have ever had the pleasure to try. Surprisingly it is much cleaner than your average French café. Well well, even Laotians can´t copy perfectly… 
