First Impressions from Laos

Bjarte says:

Ok, now we're settled in at the sports center in Vientiane, Laos. The center is located some 6-7km outside the inner city of Vientiane.Life in Laos is relaxed and comfortable.(If you love bugs, that is) The streets are filled with mopeds and surprisingly new SUVs. However, there is a strange inconsistence between the traffic and the relaxed pace and atmosphere that the town has to offer. People in the streets are relaxed and have no rush, but the drivers are... Stupid? No wreckless is a better word. The sight of a big truck backing up and blocking the entire Luang Prabang Street(The city's main road) is no rarity. The mopeds have to yield to the cars and the cars has to yield to the bigger cars. You could say Lao traffic is social-darwinism at its finest. It seems like there are no rules for yielding at all. Yield when you feel like it. The most scary part of it all is that none of the other drivers seem to worry about crashing, or anything like that. I have the feeling none of them know the effect of a 60km/h crash on a moped.(With no helmet of course, and maybe even 2 or 3 persons riding along with you)