There and back again: Vientiane to Seattle to Vientiane in 6 days

BFFF's wedding is Sunday, and I am getting to go home for it! So incredibly jazzed :) 

But also keeping in mind that going home 'for the weekend' from Vientiane means :

1. 62 hrs of flight time 

2. 12 hr layovers in Incheon (S Korea- on the way there) and Hanoi (Vietnam, on the way back)

3. $1800 in airfare 

4. Taking off 3.5 days of work 

5. What I anticipate to be a helluva jet-lag

I'm so incredibly excited for this wedding! But if I'm yawning during the ceremony, I'm not bored; I'm jetlagged; and if I'm dancing weird at the reception, I'm not drunk, that's just how I dance. 

Nick seeing me off from Vientiane 

Heading to Seattle (getting on flight) in 2 hrs !

Ridiculous time crunch I am somehow avoiding at work. 

Little things

When you're homesick or mad at the crappy practically-nonexistent Lao Internet or stressed at an infinite workload or depressed that you really only have a two hour window to call home (9pm to 11pm) because otherwise everyone's asleep... 

It's the little things that get me thought the day. 

Like a burger that's maybe not as good as a normal American burger, but it's damn close 

(And this facial expression)

Or asking for one gimlet and getting two 

Or whatever narcotic they put in Thai redbull

Also it's leaking in the office

Not like, drop drop drop 

Like, downpour

More of the rainy season

It's so pretty when you're sitting inside, looking out the window...

And so comfy when you're falling asleep to the rain on your roof...

But it's a sonovabitch when you are hungry at lunchtime and you have to walk to get something to eat.

6th of July parties

 For our '6th of July' parties we first went to our boss' awesome house for a BBQ...

Durian was served (and the smell was sorottenly pungent). If you've never had durian, imagine eating a spoiled yellow onion, except that it smells like a dead decaying body. Nasty-

 

The increasingly popular spikeball was played 

And Jesse and I hung out and looked cute.

Later that night we went to an expat party with 200 expats from all over who've someone ended up in Laos. It was held at a beautiful house and was Mardi gras themed (which really just means the hosts threw beads from their balcony and jambalaya was served).

The girls

That tube is a hose - the Lao version of a beer bong, but with tequila

Belated 4th of July: America (Imagine Dragons)

I know it's already the 6th of July in Laos (only the 5th in the states though!) but we're having our 4th of July BBQ today... so it still kind of counts. And I didn't have a chance to post this on my FB page but this is such a great song, and I love the video :) 

Happy Independence Day, y'all ! 

If for some reason it doesn't load: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiO2-R8yKjE

Pool party

Finally our rooftop pool got put to good use- drinking Beer Lao and splashing around with friends! Fun way to start a Friday night before we went downtown :)

6pm

7pm

And 8pm...