Sunday, September 22, 9:45 am Hello dear peeps! I've been in Laos since Tuesday night, and it's been a bit of a whirlwind/blur/onslaught. I'm still amazed and grateful for this "I couldn't have dreamed up a better wish" of an experience. It was a 30 + hour door to door voyage -- from 3 am departure Monday in an Uber for LAX to 11:30 pm Tuesday arrival at the hotel in Vientiane. It's a good thing I didn't calculate the total time until today: it would have added to the fatigue. I arrived with another English Language Fellow (ELF) who was traveling via Dallas. We met up in ShangHai for the last leg. Transit in ShangHai took 3 hours -- going out and then in again through customs and needing to pick up and recheck your bags. Also standing in line for an instant visa. I mention all this detail for those who are hopefully considering a visit here! Avoid China if at all possible. The tourist visa for Lao PDR requires a passport photo which you glue on y...