24 hours in Laos

I took a short trip to Vientiane, Laos in July. This was the first time I had been there and it was only to be for 24 hours (almost exactly!) to meet a client to sign an agreement. It was quite last minute so I didn't know quite what to expect.

We took Thai Smile Airways to Vientiane, transiting in Bangkok as there was no direct flight to Vientiane. In Bangkok, we met up with our translator who would be making a day trip just to help us out. Reached Vientiane around past noon and the client's driver was at the airport to fetch us to our hotel. We stayed at Mercure Vientiane which was quite an old hotel. Nothing fantastic, but it was decent and clean. Here are some pictures of the hotel and the room.

Lobby: 

Even though the rooms were old, the next morning we were quite pleasantly surprised to see that the dining area for breakfast was new and modern. And the food was quite delicious too.

 Outdoor bar by the pool:

It was raining that morning so there was nobody swimming in the pool.

Okay, so rewind to the day before, we had a late lunch/tea before meeting the client. Our translator who travels quite often to Vientiane recommended this coffee joint which has outlets in Laos and Cambodia. They don't have Starbucks or Coffee Bean in Laos, but this outlet Joma serves good coffee and that salad was really yummy!

In the evening, we had dinner at this restaurant called Kong View which offered fantastic views of the Mekong River (hence the name I suppose!). Again, our translator was the one who brought us there.

 Laotian food is quite similar to Thai food. That tomyam kung really packed a punch!

The atmosphere of the restaurant as the sun began to set:

We were there early enough to watch the sunset, which was quite spectacular. All in all, I must say that this was the highlight of the trip.

Since we were there for such a short time, there wasn't any time to do any sightseeing so I don't have pictures of any touristy spots - maybe next time!