Vientienne, Laos

Jolie and Owain are either in Laos now or on their way there. As they are visiting the country at my biding, - although I never said go in the hottest month of the year - it seems a good time for me to sort through my Laos photos and memories.
I have said it before but will say it again. We loved Laos.
Vientienne is the larger of the two towns in Laos and is where the airport is sufficiently sized to support big planes from Cambodia and Vietnam. Nevertheless, Vientienne is not exactly a tourist spot but rather the way to get to Luang Prabang. It is a quiet town, colonial in appearance, whose chief claim to fame after the most impressive and very golden bhuddist temple and Carol Cassidy*, is the market.
The Vientienne market is hands down the most memorable market we saw in our all of travels in SE Asia. In addition to the typical stalls seen here, there were huge buildings devoted to gold
( ish ) and silver jewelery and ornamentation, clothing of all kinds, shoes, fabric and eletronics. Again the air was full of cooking smells and the place appeared to be the daily meeting place for a lot of people. More pictures from Laos will follow tomorrow.
*Carol Cassidy is a reknown weaver- had an exhibit as Asia Society in NYC recently - situated in Vientienne.