Social Butterflies

I can’t say our life here in Vientiane is exactly a social whirl of Hiltonian proportions, but it seems that we get out a bit more than we do back in the states. Perhaps it’s because neither one of us currently has an automobile! I think the "drive-everywhere" lifestyle we adopt in the U.S. actually depresses the frequency and quality of our social interactions there.

Aside from the fact that Jen and I both had cars that we drove in opposite directions every day, (racking up an average of a thousand miles a month each), we tended not go out much at night due to our avoidance of drinking and driving, and our paranoia about the sheer numbers of drunk drivers on the roads of our home state. Here in sleepy, friendly Vientiane, however, we have begun tapping into a modest and mellow social scene that finds us out and about (in tuk-tuks, mostly), mixing with locals and expats, in pursuit of a lovely time.

This past month was “birthday month” for Jen and me. My birthday comes first, and we decided to try the top rated French restaurant in town, Le Silapa. Foolishly, we showed up without reservations at a restaurant with four tables. Drats. We moved on to La Terrasse, which was good, but nothing special by Vientiane standards. On Jen’s birthday, we headed to our favorite dining spot, Mak Phet, but not before stopping at Sticky’s for a creampuff, a candle, and a heartfelt “Happy Birthday” to Jen from the bar crew.

Last night we went to a place called the Juke Box for a performance by a local band called Groove Factory. The brainchild of an expat (and Sticky’s denizen) named Pierre and his mates, the group is, believe it or not, a ten-piece funk/soul band that has a full horn section and plays a ton of James Brown, AWB, etc. Mind-bendingly, we were out in the jungle in an open air hut with a cement dance-floor grooving on a soul revue doing their best impersonation of Fred Wesley and the JBs. In Laos! Very nice.

Back in the daytime, the That Luang Festival, Laos’ biggest annual celebration (surpassing even October’s Mekong boat races, which was a great big party) , is going on right now, culminating tomorrow. Happily, but crowdedly, this festival takes place in our very own neighborhood and has been percolating for a couple of weeks already. Hope to be back with photos soon!