I was 15 when I first came to this city and I remembered that when I got there, all I wanted to do was get out of there. In my eyes, there was nothing to do. All I wanted to do was just go shopping in Bangkok. Eight years later, I was back here and now I didn't want to leave. The city had definitely come a long way from when I first went there with my parents. There are more cars on the road than ever before, last time it was all jumbo’s or bicycles! Street lights were everywhere too. I remember when I was here initially; we stayed with some family who were celebrating the fact that there were street lamps on one of the main roads!!!

On my second visit, I had my friend Steph with me. I introduced her to Vientiane - the city where my mum and all my brothers and sisters were born and the city where my parents met and fell in love. This was the city where they all lived before coming to NZ in 1983 after living in a refugee camp for a couple of years because of the violence and danger ensuing from the civil war in Laos.

We stayed at the house of one of my mum’s old friends who lived close to the city. It was a large house with 4 levels, 10 bedrooms and a shop on the ground level which they still run today. We stayed in a room that no one had slept in for over 10 years. The sala, (the bathroom) consisted of a bucket of water and one of those squatting toilets. It wasn’t 5 star accommodation but it definitely gave us a sense of the lifestyle commonly shared by the people of Laos.

Getting around Vientiane was really easy. It’s such a laidback city, so we just hired bikes! I don't think there’s any other capital in Asia where you can actually do this, so if anyone is going there, I would fully recommend it! We checked out some of the cool sights in the city like Patuxay and the Pha That Luang, the golden stupa as well as Wat Si Sak temple.

The food there is great. I introduced Steph to this Lao meal called "pun koa bun" where you get some spring rolls or noodles, add cucumber, and coriander or any other herb and wrap it in lettuce before dipping it in a peanut sauce and munching into it. She loved it! The best place for it is on Samsenthai Road. Along the Mekong River, there are a whole heap of restaurants. Although it is full of tourists, it’s just so easy to relax by the river and soak up the atmosphere. We stayed there for hours just chatting away and watching the sunset.

Shopping wise, Vientiane isn’t the greatest. However, the best place for shopping is at Talat Sao (morning market). It’s a 3 story shopping mall where you can buy clothes, music, silk, silver, alcohol, coffee as well as souvenirs. We didn’t really buy much in Vientiane. All the “fashionable” clothes came from Thailand anyway. We did however, get some Lao coffee! It’s so good. For anyone who hasn’t tried it and likes a good strong but sweet coffee, it’s a must have.  

I recommend Vientiane to anyone. It is a holiday gem that many do not know about but will love once discovered. It is the one place you must visit before you hang up your travelling boots. You cannot help but be immersed in the culture, from the fresh tasty food to the amazing French style architecture and picturesque sceneries. Lao people are extremely friendly and being here in this city has definitely made me feel proud of my Lao origins.