TUBELESS IN VANG VIENG

TUBELESS IN VANG VIENG

Well not exactly, because tubing still exists in Vang Vieng, just not on the scale of drunken & drugged-out debauchery as it did before.

Gone is the infamous 'Smile Bar,'  a bar sitting on the island in the river, burnt to the ground by the authorities. As well as the 9 or so other bars perched along the Nam Song river that sold multi-mega litres of Beer Laos as well as 'happy' shakes & cocktails laced with dope.

I was there in Sept 2012 when it was closed down. It was my birthday & l was so disappointed that my party day was ruined. Not only were the authorities clamping down on raging & raving  parties on the river, they were restricting it in town as well.

Vang Vieng is a picturesque town, strikingly dominated by the view of the magnificent mountain kaasts. It is situated about 4 hrs north of the Laos capital, Vientiane. It has grown over the last decade or more by the influx of backpackers who have made Vang Vieng one of the 'must do' stopovers in SE Asia. Hundreds & sometimes up to two thousand people were pub-crawling or pub-tubing their way down the river.

 I have to admit it was alot of fun. Each bar was unique in its own way, either offering mud volley ball, swinging trapeze out over the river, flying foxes, slides or high dive boards. Loud music & laughter boomed from every bar. Every night the streets were littered with passed out bodies and staggering & spewing drunks. The Laos people saw Westerners on their worst behaviour, night after night.
But unfortunately deaths were becoming more common as more & more people were visiting Vang Vieng. Mostly from drownings, head & spine injuries and over-doses. Not to mention all the minor injuries of concussions & cut feet. There were two deaths every month. And the Australian Government stepped in & pushed the Laos Government to shut it down.

The town has survived as people are still visiting Vang Vieng & enjoying the simple pleasure of tubing slowly down the Nam Song past the stunning view of the beautiful kaasts. Costs about $7. And there is also so many other adventurous actviities to do in the area. The caving is exceptional & it's so cool floating down through a dark river cave. Rock climbing up the lime-stone kaasts offers world class challenges as well as basic climbing, costs $25 for half day. Trekking is great & visiting the local hill tribe villages of the Hmong & Kamu. Some people prefer to kayak down the Nam Song. During the dry season it is possible & well recommended to hot-air balloon over the kaasts, costs about $75, at dawn & sunset. I went hot-air ballooning there for the first time and though l was scared spitless, it was an awesome experience, like nothing else.

A few days ago when l was there, l noticed that the bars along the river are beginning to open up again which was inevitable. There are 4 at the moment but they are not always all open every day, sometimes only 2. The first being the Nam Song View Restaurant which is walking distance from the starting point. Hopefully it will be policed better this time. I fear it will keep growing until there is a death again.


Meanwhile 'Friends' is still the feature in Vang Vieng, that has been running for at least 10 years that l can remember. It all started with someone opening a bar at the main corner T-intersection and calling it the Friends Bar & showing episodes of 'Friends.' It became so popular with backpackers that all the other bars & restaurants needed to follow suit. And now it is almost an institution in Vang Vieng. And it is such a catch, l have wasted so much time there, sitting mindlessly after dinner watching episode after episode. And lm amazed that every time l go back, l always see an episode that l havent seen before. How is that possible? Maybe they are still secretly making them just for the Vang Vieng market.

Guesthouses are very competitive & generally range from 60,000 kip to 100,000 kip ($7.50 to $13) per night per room, depending if you want air-conditioning or a fan. There are a couple of cheaper dorm rooms & some more up-market hotels with a pool.

Laos is lovely. The people are openly friendly & curious of where you are from. Hospitable & funny, their population is much smaller than neighbouring Asian countries and so less competitive for your dollar. They are 'less in your face.'

Vang Vieng is now becoming more of an adventures' town for tourists that may want to try something out of the usual. Or something requiring some skill or strength. Or just hire a bike & tootle around the kaasts, stopping off to buy exotic fruit from the locals, enjoying a relaxed chat with them and then heading for the Blue Lagoon for a swim. Whatever you prefer to do in Vang Vieng, it has to be better than just getting wasted.