#i really wanted to do somethinggg for end of the year

[fakesimp]

HIIII I WANT TO REQUEST SOMETHINGGG

alright so i was thinking..luxiem separate reaction to shu practicing his magic ofc and he accidentally turns u into a baby. for like 24 hours. 😭 this ofc is sfw cuz..babies yk

if u have questions dont worry abt asking u can dm!! thank u in advance!! 🩷

Accidental Sorcery

Warning !

Fluff ; Crack ; Mentions of Confusion ; Established Relationship

Fic are made in medium form !

A/n !

Second ask checked on the list ! I hope this reaches your expectations !! <3

➶◜◝➴

Vox Akuma

This demon is stumped,

And this demon, is holding his laughter as he sees your little cute figure, he is stifling his laughter as he glance down at you in a certain sorcerer's arms before looking at up at the person who's holding you that is smiling in agony.

"I'm so sorry, this. This shouldn't have happened, it'll last for just 24 hours, so please. Make sure they don't get hurt"

That's what the sorcerer said, with an apologetic look on his face as he handle you to your Beloved Voice Demon. "24 hours, got it."

Or so he said.

He have no idea what does babies like, for thousands of years he had been alone, he had forgotten how to take care of babies. It'll took him quite awhile to finally be able to handle you.

So overall, he is kinda not too good caretaker, but hey he tried his best at least.

Though when you turned back to normal in his arms the next morning, you will get a clingy af Demon because he missed the adult you and he can finally rest without hearing a baby's cry for hours.

Mysta Rias

No.

Just, good God, I don't know how you'll live.

Just kidding, I believe he is even more scared than you, because he could barely take care of himself, and how exactly is he gonna take care a damn baby?

And the fact that the baby is you? Making him even more worried than he already is.

"Shu, what the fuck did you do" "I, It's an accident okay, this is not how it's suppose to go."

Mysta internally screaming when Shu told him to take care of you for 24 hours, and now here he is, having a staring contest with you.

But in the end, both of you had fun with each other, he'll made you laugh so many times because of his stupid thing he did either by accident or on purpose.

At night, you're definitely deadass asleep on the bed, because you're so tired.

He actually fed you well too, despite him not being able like to cook for himself, and don't worry he didn't cook the food he feed you. He doesn't really trust himself for cooking for you when your body is more fragile.

The next morning when you turned back, he is so relieved you're okay. Hugs and cuddles with him in the morning, lazy morning with him because he needed that rest <3

Overall, he is a good caretaker.

Luca Kaneshiro

"Omg, a, a baby!- Who, Who's this? "

"It's your lover."

"Oh, haha.

What? "

Luca was left speechless when Shu explained your situation, and now that he is holding a, baby you in his arms.

Shu is still feeling guilty for what happened, but Luca told him not to worry too much about it, he'll take a good are of you.

And he did! Literally.

He took a day off to take care of you, making sure you're safe and sound. Since y'know, his job is, not quite kids friendly.

A literal golden retriever, he knows what to do to make you laugh, your laughter will literally be echoing throughout his apartment. He would make his, lackeys, doing stupid thing to see you laugh.

Food? Don't worry, he'll get the finest baby food for you to eat! And he himself is going to feed you, and it is quite a challenge, but he did it.

He is not gonna sleep until you sleep first, and it took goddamn hours for him to manage to get you to bed, and what's funny is that he fell asleep first.

And you soon after followed him, into the dream world. In his arms.

The next morning he woke up first, and saw you had turned back normal, "Oh, BABEEE WELCOME BACKKK!!" Is the first thing he said as he hugs you quite tight in his arms.

A lovely caretaker honestly.

Ike Eveland

"Please tell me this is not who I think it is."

".... Yes it is who you think it is.."

"Oh my god... What happened Shu..."

Ike was in closing his eyes the entire time, he is having his moment as he process what Shu just said.

Shu is so guilty upon what happened, after he told Ike how long the effect will last Ike is internally sighing.

He is a good caretaker, you're in good hands don't worry.

He knows how to take care of you, feeding you with proper food, playing with you for a certain amount of time. Also sleeping at the right time.

As messy as his sleep schedule is, he will not tolerate you sleeping late like him, so he will make you go to bed at reasonable time.

He is with you yes, but he's going to keep an eye on you, while he's looking at his phone too. Once you are asleep, he would gently pat your head as he laid beside you.

When you turned back in the morning, he will sigh in relief that you're okay, he'll pull you into his arms.

"Thank God you're okay."

Shu Yamino

The man who caused the accident.

He is having a staring contest with you, you're on the floor looking up at him, and him looking down at you on the floor.

"Oh no."

Is what he said before picking you up and tried to figure out how long does the effect will last. Once he found out it'll last for 24 hours, he doesn't really know what to do.

He could entertain you with his shikigamis, so overall, the one that's doing the care is his shikigamis. But he is going to be there for you,

One time you're pulling on the hem of his pants, he looked over at the small figure behind him. Humming softly, "Hm? What's wrong?"

If you wanted him to company you, he'll melt. The way you ask for his company is so cute. He would drop whatever he's doing and went to company you.

Knowing that as soon as you hit the bed, you're fast asleep. He was in awe when that happened, he'll pull up his blanket and look over at the clock, it is almost 11 pm and he felt quite bad for making you slept quite late.

He barely done anything as a caretaker honestly, but hey, he is going to be there whenever you need his company.

Once morning arrived, he is asleep next to you. You are the one that's awake first, you stared at his sleeping figure before snuggling close to him, he was quite surprised at the sudden movement, but when he realized it's you he'll hug you close to him. Chuckling away before whispering an apology.

"I'm sorry, It won't happen again, I swear"

©fakesimp . 2023

A/n !

There we go !! I hope you liked this <3 ! Thank you for requesting !!

( 2/10 )

[mekatrio]

the next game i plan to play is TWEWY. unlike the other games ive been playing recently i will not be going into this game blind bc that is impossible for me, cuz ive lived with the worlds biggest twewy fan who is my brother. literally have memories from 2009/2010 of hearing the twewy ost from his ds first thing in the morning. he has also told me the entire lore of this game multiple times. i also tried to play it before in like 2016 or 2017 cuz my brother rly wanted me to and he was like 'its shorttt you can do it'. He Was Lying. and i also watched like 80% of his neotwewy playthru.

so im going to try again now as a More Experienced Gamer. hoping to finish before the end of january cuz thats when i see him again and i wanna hv scholarly discussions abt it with him. and maybe ill play neotwewy if i feel like it (i doubt this). for fun i want to list down everything i know abt the game from my brother so after i finish it i can revisit this post and laugh at it

- "What's a meme?"

- i dont actually know what a meme is. i remember this gameplay mechanic confusing me

- everybody is DEAD and this is PURGATORY or something like that. i still dont really understand what the reaper's game is despite knowing abt twewy for like 16 years

- this game is not a week long my brother LIED. i thought the game would end after one week which is why i tried it back then LOL i know that theres three weeks.. i think..

- shiki doesnt actually look like that thts actually the appearance of her toxic yuri friend or something. i remember this Very vividly bc its like the biggest plot reveal from week one and i remember being like WOAHHHH and jaw-dropped and it was so awesome. its still so awesome! im excited to experience that again

- beat and rhythm are hit by a car but the cars look like sharks bc uh.. hm...

- i actually dont know why the enemies look like that. i know theyre like..... Negative Spirit Energy or SMTH LIKE THAT but why they take the form of animals... idk

- Calling..... Someone is Callinggg 🎶

- the music is really good

- EVERYONE IS SO SKINNY ITS ALMOST SCARY

- fashion fashion that mechanic is fun. you need bravery in order to crossdress which gives you epic stats. which i think is very fun!

- also fuck im realizing that this is a squarenix jrpg meaning im gonna have to be planning members stats and all that shit again. and while i do miss doing that, i hope twewy's 2008 (2007?) design isnt too asswater and is actually functional

- THE COMBAT IS HARD i remember having to draw shit with my left hand while my right hand had to tap buttons! like what!!! according to my brother the combat utilizes every part of the ds, even things like the microphone and closing the screen, and is why he likes this game so much. i hope i can like it as much as him

- im nekuuuu and im rude and unfriendly and i cant remember anything and im mean but I'll Become Kinder as the game progresses

- neku chokes shiki??? i think he was trying to kill her??? so he could leave the game or something.. and she was floating? i have levitation powers???

- i dont remember if i get epic powers.. i feel like thats something i shouldve remembered

- i dont know what the math dude does in this game. i dont remember what all the dudes with the wings are called or what their deal is but ohhh i remember them all pissing me off

- THE FUCKING PIN GAME pins??? badges?? bottlecaps??? i dont remember but i remember that minigame pissing me offff. fuck im gonna have to experience squarenix minigames again

- there is so much dialogue wohfuisdhfjk Squarenix JRPG.

- shiki DISAPPEARS at the end of the first week.. for some reason.. and neku plays a second week so he can bring her back. and that happens again for the third week where i think??? beat and rhythm disappears at the end of the second week? but this time neku isnt just betting on bringing his friends back HES BETTING ON THE FAITH AND GOODWILL OF THE ENTIRE WORLD somethinggg like that

- joshua is the new partner for week 2 and he is such a gay boy.

- Mother and father calls me Joshua ohohohoho

- only dead people can enter the reaper's game and if you win you get another chance at life or something?? idk why tho..

- beat and rhythm entered the game bc they were running away from home cuz they have shitty parentsss and then they got hit by a car

- and shiki attempted suicide i think

- and neku can't remember how he entered the game.. oh... so mysterious....

- it was because joshua shot him with a gun

- and joshua is God because this is a Squarenix JRPG

- joshua wanted neku to show him humanity's worth or SOMETHING cuz neku was a kid who had lost faith in humanity or something like that??

- and joshua disappears in the ending i think very ambiguousss

- The World Begins With You....

[lilypixels]

End of Year Tag!

Rules: Find your fav pics of your story, your cc, or your blog in general and post in a collage! It can be 1 picture or 100 – whatever you want! Just reflect on your fav moments on your blog. It can be cute moments, milestones, edits, or cc you’re just really proud of.

I really want to do this so let’s goooo!! (*edit: @cyansimblr tagged me right after posting this so I’ve officially been tagged now ajdjd)

Number 1 is for sure my Victor and Yamachan gif but it won’t let me add to the post due to size TT

1-3: I picked these edits cause to me they’re like my peak sim edits,,like I’m really proud of them and it was like “ahh, maybe I do know a thing or two about editing now”

4-5: Playing Snowy Escape was honestly some of the most fun I’ve had with gameplay in awhile! I look forward to wrapping it up soon with the fastivals~ Victors many wipeouts was truly a highlight, I laughed so much the poor guy😂 And then when Morgyn led them on a hike, they were very very pleased and I chose this pic cause it’s just a nice shot (I have the blank saved still)

6: Victor being cute, my precious and clumsy bean, never fails to make me smile

7: The last two photos are my “chosen ones” from the story so far! The one of Morgyn was one of my first scenes and I’m really pleased with how I was able to get it lined up to look how I wanted! It’s truly the perfect shot and sets the next photo of Victor up perfectly~

8: The pic for Archers arrival is a bit funny to think about in a way cause he’s kinda like “finally! I have arrived!” And it took me longer than expected to post,,, but he’s here now! “Officially” revealed lol anyway, this pic took the longest to edit and I worked through many versions for how to get the whole summoning thing across (almost giving up and scraping the attempt) until a friend told me this one was good 🙈

Special Mention: my first true post that started off 2020 (and must’ve been a sign of the year to come akdndj) which was of a toilet set on fire via Victors magical attempt at fixing the plumbing

[bitchesgetriches]

I am a young woman who has worked for two years as the assistant at a small office in a rapidly growing city. I want (read: need) to ask for a cost of living raise. My Big Boss is in sporadically—he’s a man in his seventies and spends a lot of time at his Florida vacation home—but insists on giving the annual reviews himself anyway despite never really being in to see anyone’s work. It is MARCH and I have not gotten my review yet, even though everyone else has. (1)

           We scheduled it twice and he “had” to leave early both times even though I overheard him say once that he was going to “read the newspaper in the bathroom”. What complicates this more is that getting my raise will be entirely dependent on whether he is feeling like “indulging the silly young lady who thinks it’s cute to ask for raises” or “How dARReeE this ENTITLED MILLENIAL™️ ask for MORE MONEY as though she needs is to LIVE or somethinggg” that day. (2)         

           I don’t want to make it look like I’m only reminding him about my review so that I can ask for a raise. I also actually do want feedback, and he is not in the best position to give it to me because he never really spends any time in the office. I’ve low-key asked my other boss whether he could do the review and he said only the Big Boss could (Big Boss also does the thing high ranking people do where he doesn’t acknowledge me unless he wants something). Any thoughts on how to handle this? (3)              

Wow girl, your boss SUCKS. Talk about a lazy, entitled Baby Boomer. /sarcasm

You NEED that cost of living raise, and it sounds like you don’t need to build up courage to ask. You’ve already got the courage... you just need someone to listen to your pitch!

I recommend two strategies, the first is rather blunt:

1. Next time the Big Boss gets to the office, wait ten minutes for him to settle in, then go walk into his office, close the door behind you, and say “I’m so glad you’re here today! Do you have ten minutes?” Look up-beat and eager, so he knows this isn’t about anything bad. Big Bosses love it when their minions look happy to be at work and eager for their oh-so-valuable time and advice. If he says no, tell him, “Ok, no problem, I’ll come back after lunch.” Rinse and repeat. If he says yes, sit down and say “Great! This won’t take long. I just wanted some feedback on my performance and advice on how I can do better here at the company.” You’re basically asking for an annual review without asking for an annual review. Then near the end of the conversation, say “One last thing. I wanted to ask you about a cost of living raise.” Then you hit him with your stats: the value you bring to the company, your personal accomplishments in the last year, and your goals for the next year. CORNER HIM AND POUNCE.

2. Go to your immediate supervisor and ask them for some feedback and advice. Again, you’re flattering them while simultaneously asking for an annual review without actually asking for an annual review. At the end of the conversation, enlist their help in pinning down the Big Boss. Ask them to pass along a summary of your conversation, or if they’ll ask the Big Boss for an appointment on your behalf. Make sure you tell them you plan on asking for your cost of living raise, specifically because you’re the only one who hasn’t had the opportunity to ask for one yet.

One last thing: a cost of living raise is something EVERYONE at the company should be getting once a year. It’ll be small (0.5-3% ideally), but it’s pretty fucking necessary. For those who don’t know, a cost of living raise means that your employer adjusts your salary a bit up every year to keep up with inflation in the economy. If you DON’T get a COL raise every year, it’s basically like your salary is getting lower every damn year.

So the fact you have to ask for one from this bloviating motherfucker is irritating as hell. I kinda feel like you should ask for a RAISE RAISE and make him EAT IT.

I’m Proud to Be a Millennial So Fuck You

The First Time I Asked for a Raise 

You Need to Ask for a Fucking Raise

Salary Range: Are You Asking for Enough?  

[hxrryspotter]

Could you and Faiza write headcanons on how Eskild and Even's encounter in the bathroom that Sunday went down and if Noora and Eskild talked about it and how Noora and Eskild met Even in episode 8 (did they wake up to his cooking?) and how they freaked out while "getting ready for yoga"? Pretty please? :D

you asked anon and @sanasevaks and i delivered. prepare for Mess and Feelings.

so oh my god … eskild bumping into even for the first time outside the bathroom. as faiza says, “he was faced with grace first thing that morning.”

Just imagine eskild being like, “oh hellooo there…”

And even just responding back with, “halla, i’m even.“

and then eskild must have asked, “even???”

and eskild’s internally all like, “oh he’s … GOOD LOOKING. but who IS he? who did he come home with last night?” … and he’s like it can’t be noora … not linn either so that leaves isak?? maybe??

do you think even said he was a friend of isak’s and eskild Knew, or do you think he went to noora all like… “who’s that hottie in our bathroom? he yours?”

and noora’s like, “firstly… who? second, i’m still with william, eskild, of course not!”

i feel like he would of been pretty excited when talking to noora. “seems isak’s got a … friend over… a boy.” but i also think he’d feel a bit like ‘im proud look how far he’s come to bring someone over’ and i imagine him and noora exchanging this meaningful look bc they both Know that isak has been hiding and just Not Ready.

bc noora’s equally had her suspicions too, for the longest time, but she knew it wasn’t her place to pry.

and when isak acts all awkward and shuts the door in their faces they look at each other again with a small sigh of, “it’s ok, he’s not ready. give him time.”

and eskild would be like… “i have to say somethinggg tho.” and noora’s like, “eskild, leave it, if he wanted to talk he would.”

and then as we see a few days later he brings isak the air freshener and they have their Talk.

but oh my god listen, eskild’s face as isak starts talking… i felt exactly the same way. he’s looking at this boy, we’re looking at him. and we see him struggling for words, he wants to say them but it’s like his body is forcing him to shut up but he pushes them out with all his might, “even and i have a thing.”

and eskild is serious.

he doesn’t overreact or act like this is the most exciting thing ever. he knows how difficult those simple words were for isak to ever say, but he does say, “isak, isak, that’s great.” bc he needs to say something and he feels isak’s stuggles so keenly bc he Knows, bc he Understands where isak’s coming from, even if isak’s opinions turn out to be pretty ignorant.

eskild was super super respectful and he literally gave isak as much time as he needed. he lets isak speak and then validates his feelings and then isak does that little uncomfortable smile but you just know inside his heart is racing.

and eskild is such an important person for isak to have in his life?? He’s a little bit older, proud and unashamed of being gay, can be serious and really supportive when the people around him need someone, and just another gay person for isak to relate to and be able to talk to and ask advice from???

ok so now noora and eskild meeting even again in ep 8!

but this time it’s so obvious that even’s stayed the night with isak. eskild knew even was over before he saw him in the kitchen bc he came home and their clothes were everywhere.

but there’s something VERY different about even today than last time..even’s SO MUCH MORE  animated this time when last time he was so chill and somber.

bc eskild knew that if he implied ANYTHING in front of isak before he was ready, that isak would RUN A MILE, and so i think even very clearly was the one who began the convo with noora and eskild in ep 8.

bc i think even was … just, far too happy with everything? and eskild and noora, despite knowing what to say, wouldn’t just wanna assume anything until it got confirmed?

and even would just say hi whilst roaming and finding ingredients in the kitchen and cooking.

eskild probably walked into the kitchen first like half awake bc he was still in his robe, whilst noora was all fully dressed.

what a strange experience tho, especially after eskild saw all the pain isak went through in regards to even, imagine what was going through his head??

eskild would have been dubious at first, like … is even gonna hurt isak or is he still with his girlfriend of four years???

but at the end of the day i think he figured “well. it’s their business.” bc he never seemed pushy. like ever.

so noora most likely had to drag eskild away from eavesdropping on isak and even’s conversation but they most definitely eavesdropped at least until the part where even starts talking about sonja.

when even tells isak he’s ‘never felt like this before’ and isak’s like ‘neither have i’ and then noora must have been like “ok nope this is private, we’re intruding, eskild - no - you’re coming! we’re going!” bc that’s when it started getting a bit too … deep tbh, and she’s whispering harshly and eskild’s like, “aw just, one more second noora pls they’re so cute.”.

but yeah, i think them hearing that confirmation, well, especially eskild hearing it, must have made him feel a little more confident that even isn’t here to purposefully hurt isak??

and when noora and eskild left for ‘yoga’, they probably just went out to eat breakfast or something, if even hadn’t already fed them.

imagine them talking about it, having a chance to debrief.

noora isn’t one to talk about this to the girl squad, she most likely didn’t even talk to eva about it bc she had eskild who already knew, and also it wasn’t anyone else’s business. 

and fast forward a little to the christmas party- when eskild calls even over to help with the mistletoe and how, by now, he’s starting to realize just how kindhearted and imperfect even actually is

that even’s just such a pure soul who’s so up for making people happy and that he just has this thing about him where he’s such a natural charmer.

and sometimes eskild looks over at isak and HE’S SO HAPPY for isak to have found someone like even, bc he Deserves to be happy and unashamed and Loved. 

[aaronandnikasadventure]

Laos

So although it was never remotely on our agenda - we couldn't resist, I mean it was just across the border...so we fit in a quick pittstop in Laos! On our travels people seemed to talk most highly of this South East Asian nation so we wanted to know what it was all about.

Nika

Luang Prabang:

We took a flight into Laos' northern region and were met with thick forests and hillsides that stretched on as far as the eye could see - we were so taken aback with how green it was. On entering town we were surprised again - a clean, chic haven when compared to the dusty roadsides of Siem Reap! It turns out much of the town's French colonial style buildings were protected by UNESCO which explained the impeccable up-keep. The frangipan-lined streets and their charming villas had me, it was easy to see why the classy French tourists were flocking here (that's the only language we heard while we were there!) The Laos people themselves seemed happy and laidback which fit in with what we had read about the Laos mentality of avoiding stress at all costs (we could do with some of that back home!) It was even evident in the atmosphere of the night-market we had to pass through on our route home every evening - if you've been to this part of Asia you might be thinking what a pain to be constantly harassed with 'buy somethingggg?' 'Lady want pantttt?' (You've got to put on the accent too!) but no, not here, not this market - things were different - you could stroll right through without anyone saying anything to you - they really didn't mind whether you did or didn't buy somethinggg! Stress-free living!

The town still had a strong Buddhist touch to it and we explored unique temples with their own style of mosaic, we also stumbled across some very guilty looking young monks who had been enjoying a cheeky cigarette around the back of a temple!! Intrigued by these pious monks, one morning we attempted to get up at 5am for the alms-giving ceremony, where the orange-clad gang parade the streets and are given offerings of food for their day by locals hoping to receive some good karma in return. 5am? You're thinking no chance - they slept in, well you'd be wrong there we actually got up, got changed and were ready to roll until we saw the battering rain. At this point we wordlessly went back upstairs, into pyjamas and slept again until a more earthly hour! We did make it our mission to undertake a final holy challenge though - to climb atop their sacred Mount Phusi where a temple and many a golden Buddha sit looking over the two rivers that wrap around this city the mighty Mekong and the Nam Khan. Hiking boots were once more out from the bottom of our bags and we braced ourselves for what we had read was to be an arduous ascent. 20 minutes later, more than a little confused, we were at the top...Either we have now developed the speed and stamina of a pair of Swiss mountain climbers or people on trip-advisor were exaggerating a lot.. I'd like to think the former ���

A ride out of town took us to some beautiful, aquamarine coloured waterfalls - which you could swim in! Aaron took it one step further and found himself a spot to sit and have a free, natural fish spa - yes the little fish in the pools rather enjoyed the chance to work away at his feet which have seen quite the battering over these last few months of walking!!👣 🐟 We eventually dragged ourselves away from the nature to do a bit of cultural learning. We went to a museum detailing the ethnic make-up of Laos - and had some good fun trying on some hill tribe gear (we've been good sports and added in some photos for you to laugh at us!) We also went to an after-school drop in to talk to local kids who want to practice their English - interestingly some of the kids had come from far and wide for this chance - so we really felt like it was 2 hours well spent. I felt quite humbled when I was complimenting one of the boys' English asking whether he's improved it by watching English speaking news/programmes/movies and he proceeded to tell me that's not possible as his village has no electricity. It made me realise we were only going to see the tip of the iceberg in Laos because these towns were hardly representative of the countryside. Crossing over the river to the village on the opposite side of Luang Prabang was contrast enough, the villas were replaced with wooden shacks and the paved streets were instead muddy, dirt roads and rather than preened children playing on iPhones we saw mismatched, grubby kids idling their time away in the jungle - it was a bit of a lottery, which side of the river would you rather be born on? We decided to do another sobering trip to learn about the impact of the Vietnam war here...understanding more and more that this should've been called the 'South East Asian war'. As Aaron mentioned in the last blog, Laos was the most heavily bombed country and unexploded mines (UXO) continue to prove an ongoing problem. On a wider scale, it makes their progress in daily life very difficult - for building new roads, new homes, for farmers tilling the land - it's a long process to find out if an area is safe. Sometimes the benefits outweigh the risks and locals actively seek out the bombs for their metal which can be sold to provide a decent income. 40 years on from this secret war they estimate at least one casualty a day still occurs 😔

Aaron

Vang Vieng:

So from Luang Prabang we boarded our cramped minivan and set off for Vang Vieng. Now Vang Vieng is historically notorious on the SE Asia backpacking trail as it was once one of the craziest places to party along with the likes of the full moon party etc. The main draw was and still is tubing on inflatable hoops down the vast river where you will be pulled into numerous bars along the way finally reaching the end many hours later. Back in the day there were endless bars and everyone would get high-as-a-kite and well obviously if you put 1000s of young backpackers, high and drunk on a running river in tubes what’s going to happen...multiple deaths of course...Anyway eventually, secondary to western pressures, Laos reined in the craziness of Vang Vieng. Only 2-3 bars at a time were allowed to be open along the river, drugs were cracked down on and Laos set about making Vang Vieng about family fun and adventure seeking...

We deliberated for a while whether to pick Vang Vieng on our mini Laos trip, but much like when we picked Nha Trang in Vietnam, we thought no matter what, the nature is said to be spectacular so that’ll always make up for any other downfalls. Also it helped that it was very conveniently placed on our route to the capital from Luang Prabang!

The bus journey itself was quite a little adventure there as it shot at lighting speed along narrow mountains roads that at some points seized to be a road at all converting into a rubble pile or a river... A young English couple sat to the left of us spent the journey panicking, praying and repeatedly expressing their hatred for all things South East Asian... to top this off at one point our van was stopped by the military and as we all stood round eagerly awaiting the reason why, we heard a massive explosion go off in the far distance and smoke rising from the top of the mountain - I presume a controlled detonation of a bomb after our UXO lessons (see above). Needless to say the English girl couldn’t handle this turn of events and upon discovering I was a doctor subsequently latched herself onto me....much to my dismay. Not really sure what she thought I’d do in the face of a bomb anyways?!?

When we got to Vang Vieng two things were immediately clear: 1. It was indeed picturesque as-can-be 2. It was still a backpacker's party paradise. As we checked into our hostel called the ‘army barracks’ with camouflaged bedding we were a little apprehensive as to what would await us over the next few days but were ready to roll with the punches (the army vibes must have had an effect 😜). As the town was ready to party we thought on our first night we’d join in the fun and made our way to a bar where they served free drinks for an hour. As we arrived we were a little surprised to see teenage Koreans sat around on their mobiles and fretted whether we had missed the memo and the backpacking crowd had gone elsewhere...Being judgemental n all we didn’t expect the Koreans to party too hard given that they were all glued to their phones so we decided we'd make make the most of our free drinks and then bail. Suddenly at around 9.30pm the DJ threw out the first Korean song of the night and in a lightning flash all mobiles were dropped and the Koreans were mounting the tables and throwing out some serious moves. It turns out the Koreans were ready to party like it was their last day on earth! At this point we learnt that the only other people visiting Vang Vieng, apart from the backpackers, are Koreans who stay in flash 5 star hotels on the river front, spend their day driving quad bikes around the town or staring in delight at the tubing backpackers and then in the evening swarm to one club to go mental!

The next morning still feeling the buzz of our party antics we signed up to join the tubing fun in the afternoon and took the morning easy. As soon as we hopped on the river ready for our ride we were anticlimactically pulled into the first bar situated about 1 metre down the river from the starting point! On the whole, the tubing experience was far more enjoyable than we had anticipated with the 3 bars all having their own vibe with the first place all about the games to get the 30 or so group of people chatting and mixing. The second bar was like a Latino party (great music!) in the jungle where everyone danced like crazy and the third bar the place where all the paralytic drunks made their way home or lay in a bush whilst the rest of us carried on dancing and winding down. Interspersed between this all was an exhilarating ride down the river with some rapids and then some slow patches of water where you could take a peaceful interlude and lay-back to admire the incredible mountains and jungle surrounding you. I think we much preferred the contained and more good-natured fun of modern day tubing in comparison to how it used to be. Also there’s just something so much more enjoyable about a party with a smaller group of people in a surreal setting as it just makes everyone so much more willing to have a good time and drop the negativity you tend to find in clubs back home.

The next day, after one or two coffees, we decided to walk to one of the many caves around Vang Vieng. The cave was surprisingly big and impressive but the highlight was the blue lagoon at its bottom. Strangely it seemed only locals visited this spot, probably as all the tourists were nursing hangovers...If you look closely at one of the pictures below you’ll see the amazing blue stream from the lagoon making its way into the big brown river making for an impressive colour change! Nika and I quickly swapped our sweaty sticky clothing for our swimming garments and dived right in - indescribably refreshing! That night we said our farewells to Vang Vieng by dining in style at an Italian restaurant (actually we ate there the night prior too...) run by an Italian expat, where we had the best pizza of our lives hands-down (two nights in a row!)

Vientiane:

We were super excited to make our way to Vientiane - not sure why but probably because it’s got a cool name and our lonely planet guidebook make it sound like the world’s greatest capital ever visited. When we arrived we were a little underwhelmed as it all seemed surprisingly small. There was no obvious centre of activity other than the bars and restaurants situated around the backpacking corner. On the first night we visited the night market along the Mekong river front which was interesting in the fact that it was ridiculously big and only attracted locals - but the actual items being sold had much to be desired. The next day we hit up the main spots and did our usual trick of endless walking hoping to absorb the atmosphere of the city. The COPE visitor centre seems to be a top destination for Vientiane tourists (Obama seemed to enjoy it on his trip...). It’s found within a hospital and explains all about UXO and then the work the organisation does making prosthetic limbs for people and their impressive outreach programmes going to super rural areas and transforming the villagers lives with their prosthetic arms, legs etc. The work done by the group was obviously beyond impressive but we were a little underwhelmed by the centre, this was however most likely due to the fact that we knew most of the UXO information already from our trip in Luang Prabang. Next up we visited Vientiane’s own version of the Arc de Triomphe, which they call their vertical runway, as the materials were actually donated by America for a runway but somehow became this monument (see pic below). This area was actually very beautiful but Vientiane really did need some more garden areas etc to live up to lonely planet's picturesque descriptions! After a couple of hours spent eating, drinking and shopping we made our way to the Airport for our evening flight to Bangkok. The airport itself was probably the worst capital airport we’ve ever seen, they didn’t even have air-con and the flight was casually delayed an hour without a single announcement or apology but never mind we made it to Bangkok safe-and-sound and...tired!