Nong Khai

Nong Khai is a northeastern Thai province on the banks of the Mekong River. The provincial capital, also called Nong Khai, is a gateway to Vientiane, the capital of Laos, via the Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge. In the city’s east, Sala Keoku Park has giant concrete Buddhist, Hindu and Christian statues. Northeast along the river, the jungle-covered Phu Wua Wildlife Sanctuary is home to elephants, deer, bears and monkeys.

Nong Khai lies on the Mekong River, near the site of the first Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge, spanning the river to Laos. The Thai-Lao Friendship bridge was largely funded by a gift to the Lao government from the Australian government.It is the road and railway gateway to the Lao capital, Vientiane, 25 kilometres (16 mi) upriver, on the north bank opposite Thailand’s Si Chiang Mai District. Construction of a rail spur to Thanaleng outside Vientiane was begun early-2007 and opened 5 March 2009.