Day 79! It was a nice full day in Vientiane! Instead of just sitting around relaxing, I decided to ride my motorbike to the Buddha Park just outside the city! I spent the day surrounded by great people which made the day superb!

It was a slow morning for me after a long night of card playing and free drinks. But I got up and had a nice long FaceTime with my friend Ryan before getting breakfast!

It was super nice to catch up and hear about what’s going on with him and back in Kansas City!

I finally ate the mango I bought in Paksan! The kitchen gave me a knife to cut it with and it was so ripe that the knife slid seamlessly through it! It was hands down one of the best mangos I’ve had so far and cheapest! It was a great addition to my breakfast.

I then sat by the pool working on the previous days blog post. Wannes came and joined me and we started chatting and eventually grabbed an early lunch together from the hostel.

After eating I desperately needed a nap, so I took a classic 30 minute Power Nap and a shower! I felt like a whole new person!

I took this newfound energy and hopped on my motorbike to go get gas and then pick up my friend Bahija for today’s adventure.

We decided the day before that we were going to drive 30 minutes to the Vientiane Buddha Park!

This park was started in the late 1950s and is an impressive display of concrete Buddhist statues of all different figures and sizes.

While at the park, we ran into two people Bahija knew, Sarah and Rachel from Toronto! We chatted with them for a bit before heading back to the hostel.

Google maps decided to take us down a road that didn’t exist so it took us a bit longer to ride back. But eventually it all worked out!

Once we returned, we headed back to the restaurant we ate at the night before to have an early dinner.

This restaurant is called Mrs. Thipsoumon Restaurant and I would highly recommend giving it a try if you’re ever in Vientiane! The food is great, the portions are big, and it is very cheap.

Across the street from the restaurant was a thrift store that we checked out before splitting ways for the afternoon and evening.

I then remembered I had an important errand to run! I was well overdue for an oil change so I went riding around the city to find a mechanic. It took three stores but eventually I found a place willing to do it for 60,000 Kip ($3)!

I met back up with my friends Kiwi and Jacob. We sat and chatted until Jacob had to go catch a bus to Pakse. Kiwi and I decided we wanted to go check out the nearby night market, so we set off to do just that!

This night market was huge! And crazily enough, it only had clothes and iPhone cases! I can’t wait to get back to Thailand where there’s ample amount of food stalls at the markets too.

We ended up wandering the entire market and then Bahija joined us and we walked around the whole thing again!

I was hungry again and I split ways with my friends to go find a testy meal. I found a winner and enjoyed a small plate of spring rolls and white noodle soup with beef!

While walking home, I saw a stand selling stickers. So I grabbed two of them to add to my water bottle!

I called it an early night as I’ll be riding to Vang Vieng tomorrow! There’s a lot more to do there and I believe I’ll spend much longer there chilling out as well! In Vang Vieng, I’ll get to see a friend from college who’s out traveling a similar route too!

Also tomorrow morning KU plays in the first round of the March Madness. Hopefully I’ll be able to watch it!

It was a very nice day overall! It doesn’t really matter what the activity is, but when you’re surrounded by great people, it’s almost always a blast!

Luckily tomorrow’s s ride is shorter than most I’ve done!

– Elie