Last time I left Vang Vieng, I recall making a vow with my cousin that we would never to return this ludicrous little apple. It was a town of complete debauchery and like everyone else I was swept up in the madness. Psychedelic bars lined the Nam Song river, selling every drug your heart could desire. Most bars would supply you with your first bucket free, the standard bucket would consist of 250 ml of tiger whiskey, one bottle of M-150 energy syrup, rumour was they contained amphetamines and lastly some coca cola to top off this potent chemical elixir. Needless to say a town with the majority of the inhabitants being tourists dosed up on varying chemical concoctions resulted in utter insanity.
Now I can’t deny the fact I enjoyed this insanity, but it is in the interest of tourist safety that this place is not what it once was. End of times type stuff I swear, ahhahaha :). The old Vang Vieng in my mind is summed up by a scene I witnessed when I was there back in 2012, I shall describe it for you…. A scraggy one-armed bar tender, uncouthly seizes a bottle of local whisky skulls (drinks rapidly) half the bottle, then proceeds to vomit violently into the Nam Song river, once said vomit is completed he then performs a front flip into his own retching, quite a touching moment, very dramatic and almost beautiful in its absolute grotesqueness.
The Vang Vieng of the present is so strikingly different to its past self, it is in need of a new passport. Tourist groups still meander the town clinging to the remnants of the past; strutting around in their tubing gear and struggling to keep the party going. The party has moved on and now the once abject natural beauty of Vang Vieng can be appreciated and used by a more sober population. Explore the eerie caves, take a dip in the revivify waters of the blue lagoon; or just explore the wide open fields dotted with grazing cattle and bordered by monstrous mountains.
The fruit is no longer forbidden, let yourself be tempted, sample this delectable town.
Vang Vieng of the past:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwxH91Cn0Ns
babasimmons 