Escape from Vientiane

We had been in Vientiane for close to three weeks until Monday when we flew to the town of Pakse in Champasak province, located in southern Laos, for a five-day visit. A few days before our departure Thipp commented that she was really looking forward to going to Pakse. I responded that I was looking forward to going anywhere. If I had stayed in Vientiane much longer I might have re-enacted Thipp's childhood departure from Laos by getting myself an inner-tube and swimming across the Mekong to Thailand.

Vientiane is actually a pretty nice spot. It certainly beats-out many of my previous MSF home bases...Islamabad has nothing on this place. However, with not much for me to do here and not knowing anyone here besides Thipp who can speak English you could say that my life right now is uncomplicated. So while Vientiane may be a nice place to visit or work, I wouldn't want to retire here.

Thipp and Alex are both enjoying their time with Thipp's family. Pretty much everyday they are over at the house shared by Thipp's mother and various other family members. I visit semi-regularly, but due to the language barrier I'm mostly left to my own thoughts, such as contemplating whether Laos strives to be known as the land of uncomfortable furniture? Everyone is very nice to me and I know that the kids are talking about me when the say something that sounds like "Nyuk nyoy," which I am told translates to "Big Giant." The fact that three years ago they just called me "Giant" is a sad reflection of my current level of fitness.