VANG VIENG, Laos — The young man kicks back a free shot of whiskey and begins to make his way up the towering bamboo ladder. He falters on a slippery rung — there’s a breathless moment before he regains his footing and continues up to the platform overlooking the river.
The crowd of backpackers, their half-naked bodies spray-painted neon and smeared with mud, lift up their bucket drinks and cheer him on. It’s 11 a.m.
"Jump, jump, jump," they chant loudly over the pulsating music. "COME ON! You only live once!," his buddy yells.
The young man hesitates, then leaps and lands with a hard splash in the murky waters of the Nam Som river. The crowd whoops and hollers.
Welcome to Vang Vieng.
Four hours north of Laos' capital city Vientiane, and nestled amid beautiful karst mountains and tranquil countryside, is Vang Vieng, a backpacker mecca of hedonism. Young travellers flock to the town to partake in what is considered a Southeast Asia traveler's rite of passage: tubing
