Monday, March 11, 2013
From Wats to Skyscrapers
So I left off at our sunrise initial view of Angkor Wat, and what a site it was. This temple is the oldest religious building in the world built in the early 12th century, first as a Hindu temple, later a Buddhist temple. We snapped photos as the sun came up, enjoying our "breakfasts in a box" and coffee. I was chased by geese who apparently were marking their territory by the pond which was hilarious. Our guide, Ra, again was fantastic. 37 yr. old Cambodian w/ a background of Vietnamese and Chinese heritage. He showed us pictures of his adorable children in their school uniforms and shared info. about his life in Cambodia. He was funny as he quoted what seemed to be rap quotes often or he'd say "let's go rock and roll" or say things that sounded Aussie or British before leaving the bus to tour a temple-very funny guy. The temple was huge and we hiked to the top for magnificent views (we caught this before it becomes closed for a yr. or 2 for restoration). We looked at walls and walls with intricate beautiful carvings telling all kinds of stories of the king and Cambodian/Khmer life. Then toured the "Tomb Raider" temple, where Angelina Jolie filmed the movie. This temple was really cool w/ all of the green moss and tree trunks taking over the buildings, although you could see the toll earth and time had taken on these ancient structures. Restoration was also in process. It was really great crawling in and out of the structures picturing these places once being filled w/ gold, jewels and royalty. Buddhas w/ incense and flowers were in each structure for prayers also reminding you of the magic that was once and still is present.
Afterwards we visited "New Hope" School. Started by a young Cambodian who grew up poor and wanted other poor kids in his village outside of Seim Reap to be able to get an education. This place was so inspiring and I encourage you to look it up and consider volunteering there/supporting the cause. I really would like to go back some day and volunteer in their medical clinic. We saw the original building and met the man who started it all, it's now used for a battered women's shelter, then visiting the new center which was just beautiful. An Australian man visited in 2007 and was so inspired that he supported the building of the new facility and helped them develop new projects to help sustain the school. They now have a restaurant there to train locals for jobs and the Cambodian man's wife is the head chef. We had one of the most amazing meals there (including fried snake which I didn't try;) and toured the school and clinic. Played w/ the kids on their new playground (none of them had ever seen a playground before this one was built) and Julia and I sat in on a class and helped some kids w/ their counting-a very special and touching day-tears were in my eyes on a couple of occasions.
Took tuc tucs back to our hotel for a pool party-Matthew made quite the pool drinks, and the gang played some games-had the whole poolside laughing and taking pictures of this pool fun competition-great fun! Ate an Argentinian beef burger that night (was so ready for some western food-or should I say Argentinian!?) and then to Pub Street (go out area for all the backpackers and tourists) to "Temple Bar" for some dancing w/ Jackie, Grace, Elaine, Bob and Matt. We didn't stay too late as Matt starting chatting in Mandarin to some Chinese people and they basically started hazing him-making him down beers and such, pretty crazy! Apparently a lot of them are big partiers when traveling throughout Asia.
Next day had some free time before temple touring. I went for a run, had a pedicure for $4, noodles and a lime juice for $3, and then toured Angkor Thom/Bayon-temple of faces. The diff. faces represent compassion, simplicity, equality, and serenity. This again was just so impressive, felt like you were stepping back into time and despite the MANY people there, was still very peaceful and calming. Climbed up stairs, in and out of quite little rooms and halls, came to a tall stupa where I could hear bats chirping. Afterward Julia and I had an ATV ride scheduled. Went over pastures, poop, dirt roads, holes, sand, bumps, lumps, through villages seeing farm animals (a calf chased my four-wheeler for a bit which was funny) and children playing/working. Watched sunset from an old rice field w/ young girls laughing nearby and saw people herding their cows and water buffalo. That night had dinner at a
place that a prior G-Adventure and Intrepid guy had started-enjoyed a pork and eggplant dish-yummy! Then to the local night market for a "Dr. Fish Massage" (fish nibble on your feet! for $2-1 beer included) and $1 leg and back massages on the streets-so fun! I think Julia had 4 massages, but opted out of the fish massage. It really was a weird feeling-brought back childhood memories of when you got scared when feeling something nibble on your toes in the lake, and here I was paying for it!
Next am was 7 hr. bus ride back to Bangkok, again, really not that bad. Countryside was nice and had private comfortable buses. Took a stop for lunch at the mega-7-11 on the way, ate street food, and also had a break at the border crossing. Had time to relax at hotel, then one last happy hour and cheap drink out by the train station sitting in the sticky heat watching the sun go down behind the buildings and the mangy dogs walk around you. Had dinner at a touristy joint just off Kao Son Road, Grace ate a fried scorpion on a stick, and saw lots of cooked bugs passing by on carts. It was buzzing w/ people, mostly tourists, but a fun site to see since we had missed it the first go around when we were in Bangkok 1 month prior. It was nuts to think about how much time had passed and all the ground we had covered w/in the last 4 weeks! What a trip it's been! We told Matt how wonderful he'd been, Ken gave a little speech, and we hugged it out w/ our group at a bar across the street w/ some live music in the background. People bought and wore funny hats from the streets and Matt bought and gave us all friendship bracelets, lots of pics and memories-heart warming, right?;) It really was sad to tell the gang goodbye...
Following day, little over 2 hr. plane ride to Singapore-and what a change! Talk about culture shock! We went from squatter toilets w/ no TP or soap most of the time to the cleanest BR I've ever seen at the Singapore airport. Julia's cousin, Steve, picked us up, and as we drove down the main road I noticed PERFECTLY manicured trees and shrubs, then huge lit up signs stating when the next tree pruning would be! He took us the the famous hotel, Raffles, and treated us to a Singapore Sling (the famous cocktail), through peanut shells on the floor, then home to their gorgeous home to meet his wife, Lisa, and their adorable little girl, Isabelle. Their home is in an old historic "shop house" and Julia and I are living it up! Hot shower that doesn't leak, clean floors, orchids in our room, birds chirping outside the window-such a welcomed change to be in someone's cozy home instead of another hotel. They live in the heart of downtown, Orchard Street, kind of like Chicago's Michigan Ave., surrounded by palm trees, jungle looking trees/vines, flowers and yest. saw two toucans land in trees right above our heads, PLUS all the skyscrapers and construction in this exploding city surrounding us, as well! It has really been built up over the last 30-40 yrs. and almost seems like a fantasy land. Everything is extremely expensive and they have strict laws/rules to keep the city orderly and clean (can't chew gum, etc). 80% of the original population live in gvt. supported housing or flats that apparently have been given to them. They are now "rich" w/ their property, but can't live like the remaining 20% do in this city (the rich expats)-which I just find very strange. I don't see how this over-the-top city will last w/ most of it's people having to live a much diff. lifestyle, but I know it's all of the outside money, too, that's of course been sustaining, and it's also a huge port city...still, has been a very interesting place to experience thus far...and I will say it is a beautiful place-called the Garden City. Approx. 5.5 million people here, 4 million locals, 1.5 million are expats...of the locals approx. 75% are Chinese, 15% are Malays, 7% Indian and remaining are I believe small Indian groups/tribes. That evening they treated us to yummy chicken curry at their house followed by a drink at the Fullerton Bay Hotel rooftop to take in the magnificent views of the city by night over the water and the hotel was just fabulous, as well. Julia and I realized we better grab a couple more dresses/cute things to wear for this leg of the trip and the next in AUS for these types of places!;)
Next day they took us to the beach-swam again in the South China Sea, drank a $17 bloody mary and had a $30 burger/truffle fries, and watched Isabelle have a ball in the pool and observed all of the expats and their cute families soaking up the sun. Steven then took us on a walk from their home down Orchard Street, oohed and awed at the huge upscale dept. stores, ate street ice cream bars wrapped in sweet bread, shopped at H&M (Helen, thought of you) for some decent clothes, and finished the day w/ dinner at the Botanical Gardens enjoying the jungle green, waterfalls, and rainfall all around us.
Today was awesome! Lisa set up a driver to take us all over Singapore to see the hot spots. Started the day admiring hundreds of orchids, largest exhibit in the world, at the Botanical Gardens, then explored Little India (went into a mosque), the Arab Quarter (enjoyed a coffee, little veggie patty thing and dumpling at a local joint for 2.20 Singapore dollars served by a cute man wearing his turban w/ a long grey beard-had some old newspaper clippings outside the stall where it looks like his place had been written about at one point, so was fun to stumble upon it-and was all locals eating there) and bought some lemongrass incense (to take me back to all of our cooking classes and Thai/Viet. meals ;). Also found a cool piece of art of an Asian women w/ funky colors and designs and a small purse. We then explored Chinatown. The Chinese medicine shops were a trip-animal horns, beetles, some sort of animal legs w/ the hooves attached-all with magic healing properties, I'm sure. It's the year of the snake, so a huge yellow snake made up of lanterns lined the center of the street, and we toured a brightly colored Buddhist temple (not the first time we've seen this!;) and also passed another interesting religious temple covered in ceramic or perhaps plaster people and animals. I bought a camera as it wasn't much more than the money I would have had to spend on an extra photo card. We were then whisked to P.S. Cafe for a delicious lunch-neat old building w/ cool tile work, metal ceilings and a glorious bathroom filled w/ fragrant roses and cold A/C-again, much diff. then what we've been doing over the last month! Afterward we went to the top of the Sands Marina Bay Hotel and Casino to take in the sky deck views, then enjoyed the exhibits at the ArtScience Museum housed in the famous "Welcome to Singapore" building shaped like a lotus flower. Saw an interesting photography exhibit and "The Art of the Brick"-Lego art by once practicing attorney, Nathan Sawaya, which was very cool! (see pics) Last stop was to take in the river view, now home to enjoy some more home cooking by Bellie-can smell dinner now!
Next day they took us to the beach-swam again in the South China Sea, drank a $17 bloody mary and had a $30 burger/truffle fries, and watched Isabelle have a ball in the pool and observed all of the expats and their cute families soaking up the sun. Steven then took us on a walk from their home down Orchard Street, oohed and awed at the huge upscale dept. stores, ate street ice cream bars wrapped in sweet bread, shopped at H&M (Helen, thought of you) for some decent clothes, and finished the day w/ dinner at the Botanical Gardens enjoying the jungle green, waterfalls, and rainfall all around us.
Today was awesome! Lisa set up a driver to take us all over Singapore to see the hot spots. Started the day admiring hundreds of orchids, largest exhibit in the world, at the Botanical Gardens, then explored Little India (went into a mosque), the Arab Quarter (enjoyed a coffee, little veggie patty thing and dumpling at a local joint for 2.20 Singapore dollars served by a cute man wearing his turban w/ a long grey beard-had some old newspaper clippings outside the stall where it looks like his place had been written about at one point, so was fun to stumble upon it-and was all locals eating there) and bought some lemongrass incense (to take me back to all of our cooking classes and Thai/Viet. meals ;). Also found a cool piece of art of an Asian women w/ funky colors and designs and a small purse. We then explored Chinatown. The Chinese medicine shops were a trip-animal horns, beetles, some sort of animal legs w/ the hooves attached-all with magic healing properties, I'm sure. It's the year of the snake, so a huge yellow snake made up of lanterns lined the center of the street, and we toured a brightly colored Buddhist temple (not the first time we've seen this!;) and also passed another interesting religious temple covered in ceramic or perhaps plaster people and animals. I bought a camera as it wasn't much more than the money I would have had to spend on an extra photo card. We were then whisked to P.S. Cafe for a delicious lunch-neat old building w/ cool tile work, metal ceilings and a glorious bathroom filled w/ fragrant roses and cold A/C-again, much diff. then what we've been doing over the last month! Afterward we went to the top of the Sands Marina Bay Hotel and Casino to take in the sky deck views, then enjoyed the exhibits at the ArtScience Museum housed in the famous "Welcome to Singapore" building shaped like a lotus flower. Saw an interesting photography exhibit and "The Art of the Brick"-Lego art by once practicing attorney, Nathan Sawaya, which was very cool! (see pics) Last stop was to take in the river view, now home to enjoy some more home cooking by Bellie-can smell dinner now!
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Asia has been amazing, for Riel!
Continuation of Hoi An...
$3 bike tour seeing lotus flower, rice, corn, herb, veggie, and shrimp farming. Some of our group rode water buffalo! Spent afternoon at beach enjoying $1 Larue beer and a $3 squid and chips lunch. Swam in the refreshing South China Sea (Vietnamese call it the East Sea)...this has been one of my favorite days. Love the beach! That night some of our group played Vietnamese bingo on the streets and our whole group did a cooking class. Made squid stir fry, spring rolls, sweet and sour wontons, and banana leaf fish. Ate our meal on the rooftop over the river-enjoying all of the amazing flavors and our hard work.
Following day was one of the highlights of my trip. Julia and I went abseiling (repelling) on Marble Mountain. Went down 2 caves and a rock wall-the final cave was 55 meters down! It was scarier then I thought it would be, but absolutely loved it!-and we rocked it! We dropped down into a temple w/ Budda glowing and bats chirping with smells of incense-such a cool unique experience. The mountain was beautiful, too. Steps worn down where you cool see the pink and white marble, monks chanting, many caves, temples, pagodas, and lookouts to explore. Flowers and butterflies everywhere. I even passed by a probably 2 ft. snake as I hiked up to a lookout point; heard it slithering and flopping down the marble steps before I realized what it was. Just glad I didn't step on the little fella! Views of the ocean and Hoi An from the top were just gorgeous!
Afterwards I rented a bike again for $1 and met Julia at the beach (she ran!) and relaxed for a bit. That night had sunset boat ride with the gang in little wooden boats paddled by sweet elderly Vietnamese ladies selling lanterns you could light and float down the river. Others were selling peanuts, coconut and dried sugar-coated bananas. Ate at a nicer restaurant called "Streets". Started by an American to keep kids off of the streets. They can work and train there for 18 months, then most are able to get jobs at 5 star restaurants and hotels. I had the local dish, Cao Lau (sp?), which is pork, fresh herbs over noodles and broth. We enjoyed Sangria and wine. Went to a garden patio with Norma, John, Orf, Sally and Elke and had fruity drinks under the stars and watched the moon pop up over us. It was a fine evening.
Headed to Ho Chi Minh City next day-1 hr. flight. City of 7 million. Much more cosmopolitan than Hanoi; it seemed more flashy and progressive. We had happy hour next door to our hotel which was the local beer house. Draft beer served on block ice or a bottle of the local Saigon beer-we chose the latter in fear of the probably bucket made ice;). Great fun with our group and also watching the locals interact. Grace sat with two older Vietnamese men chatting and one asked to be pen pals so he could practice his English. Snacks included rice type cakes, peanuts, quail eggs sold by ladies walking around with baskets overflowing with goodies. Dinner was at a cook-it-yourself nice BBQ joint-had diff. types of beef marinated in honey, lime, chillies, spices-yum! Jazz club afterward which was awesome! Ru Rung is one of the top two saxophonists in town and was fabulous! Played several diff. instruments including native flutes used in the past for courting rituals to playing two saxophone type instruments at once. It was such a fun night. We all danced and really enjoyed the covers (Patsy Cline, Ray Charles, Elvis, jazzy rendition of The Sound of Music, Moon River) and their original music. Made our own dance video (Matt's brilliant idea) on the walk home in front of the government house with the statue of Ho Chi Minh looking on.
First full day in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC, or the south still calls it Saigon City) was a range of emotions. We had an excellent local guide for the Cu Chi Tunnels. Hai (pronounced "hi") was the cutest little Vietnamese man, 66 yrs. old, and fought for the south and was an interpreter for the Americans during the Vietnamese War. He joked about how liked working with the Americans because they had better food (hamburgers and coke compared to tapioca) and they were all much bigger than him, so he felt he could hide behind them to be protected;). He was very open about his experience with the war and told many stories, shared many experiences and smiles. When asked if he felt any current anger or bitterness he replied "no-what good would that do now in my life". He was such a positive man with a sweet soul and stated he was very happy with his life in Vietnam. The north Vietnamese communists (named Viet Cong by the south Vietnamese and Americans) set boobie traps and hid in these tunnels just outside of Saigon during the war. We saw recreations of the traps and crawled through part of a tunnel which was surreal. Couldn't believe I was standing on ground and walking through wooded jungle-type terrain that was once a battle ground. There was a shooting range on the grounds, as well, if people wanted to shoot, so hearing gunshots in the distance made this experience especially chilling. Watched a video (war propaganda of course) that explained on these grounds that the villagers (who Hai explained a lot of the rural people were for the Viet Cong) made these traps and tunnels for protection "from the Americans". Went to the War Museum later that day, too, which was a bit upsetting. Here the war is called the American war and looking at all the exhibits and propaganda, the southern fighters were never referred to as such, always just said "the Americans". Main take home point though to me was it was war, and war has terrible consequences. Very hard to see it from this closer look, esp. from the other side. A whole wing was about the agent orange, as well. Heartbreaking to say the least. I had been so pleased and thankful to have had our time with Hai; and then the museum only amplified those unsettling feelings about war overall and I had such sadness for all of those affected...definitely has made my heart heavier since.
$3 bike tour seeing lotus flower, rice, corn, herb, veggie, and shrimp farming. Some of our group rode water buffalo! Spent afternoon at beach enjoying $1 Larue beer and a $3 squid and chips lunch. Swam in the refreshing South China Sea (Vietnamese call it the East Sea)...this has been one of my favorite days. Love the beach! That night some of our group played Vietnamese bingo on the streets and our whole group did a cooking class. Made squid stir fry, spring rolls, sweet and sour wontons, and banana leaf fish. Ate our meal on the rooftop over the river-enjoying all of the amazing flavors and our hard work.
Following day was one of the highlights of my trip. Julia and I went abseiling (repelling) on Marble Mountain. Went down 2 caves and a rock wall-the final cave was 55 meters down! It was scarier then I thought it would be, but absolutely loved it!-and we rocked it! We dropped down into a temple w/ Budda glowing and bats chirping with smells of incense-such a cool unique experience. The mountain was beautiful, too. Steps worn down where you cool see the pink and white marble, monks chanting, many caves, temples, pagodas, and lookouts to explore. Flowers and butterflies everywhere. I even passed by a probably 2 ft. snake as I hiked up to a lookout point; heard it slithering and flopping down the marble steps before I realized what it was. Just glad I didn't step on the little fella! Views of the ocean and Hoi An from the top were just gorgeous!
Afterwards I rented a bike again for $1 and met Julia at the beach (she ran!) and relaxed for a bit. That night had sunset boat ride with the gang in little wooden boats paddled by sweet elderly Vietnamese ladies selling lanterns you could light and float down the river. Others were selling peanuts, coconut and dried sugar-coated bananas. Ate at a nicer restaurant called "Streets". Started by an American to keep kids off of the streets. They can work and train there for 18 months, then most are able to get jobs at 5 star restaurants and hotels. I had the local dish, Cao Lau (sp?), which is pork, fresh herbs over noodles and broth. We enjoyed Sangria and wine. Went to a garden patio with Norma, John, Orf, Sally and Elke and had fruity drinks under the stars and watched the moon pop up over us. It was a fine evening.
Headed to Ho Chi Minh City next day-1 hr. flight. City of 7 million. Much more cosmopolitan than Hanoi; it seemed more flashy and progressive. We had happy hour next door to our hotel which was the local beer house. Draft beer served on block ice or a bottle of the local Saigon beer-we chose the latter in fear of the probably bucket made ice;). Great fun with our group and also watching the locals interact. Grace sat with two older Vietnamese men chatting and one asked to be pen pals so he could practice his English. Snacks included rice type cakes, peanuts, quail eggs sold by ladies walking around with baskets overflowing with goodies. Dinner was at a cook-it-yourself nice BBQ joint-had diff. types of beef marinated in honey, lime, chillies, spices-yum! Jazz club afterward which was awesome! Ru Rung is one of the top two saxophonists in town and was fabulous! Played several diff. instruments including native flutes used in the past for courting rituals to playing two saxophone type instruments at once. It was such a fun night. We all danced and really enjoyed the covers (Patsy Cline, Ray Charles, Elvis, jazzy rendition of The Sound of Music, Moon River) and their original music. Made our own dance video (Matt's brilliant idea) on the walk home in front of the government house with the statue of Ho Chi Minh looking on.
First full day in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC, or the south still calls it Saigon City) was a range of emotions. We had an excellent local guide for the Cu Chi Tunnels. Hai (pronounced "hi") was the cutest little Vietnamese man, 66 yrs. old, and fought for the south and was an interpreter for the Americans during the Vietnamese War. He joked about how liked working with the Americans because they had better food (hamburgers and coke compared to tapioca) and they were all much bigger than him, so he felt he could hide behind them to be protected;). He was very open about his experience with the war and told many stories, shared many experiences and smiles. When asked if he felt any current anger or bitterness he replied "no-what good would that do now in my life". He was such a positive man with a sweet soul and stated he was very happy with his life in Vietnam. The north Vietnamese communists (named Viet Cong by the south Vietnamese and Americans) set boobie traps and hid in these tunnels just outside of Saigon during the war. We saw recreations of the traps and crawled through part of a tunnel which was surreal. Couldn't believe I was standing on ground and walking through wooded jungle-type terrain that was once a battle ground. There was a shooting range on the grounds, as well, if people wanted to shoot, so hearing gunshots in the distance made this experience especially chilling. Watched a video (war propaganda of course) that explained on these grounds that the villagers (who Hai explained a lot of the rural people were for the Viet Cong) made these traps and tunnels for protection "from the Americans". Went to the War Museum later that day, too, which was a bit upsetting. Here the war is called the American war and looking at all the exhibits and propaganda, the southern fighters were never referred to as such, always just said "the Americans". Main take home point though to me was it was war, and war has terrible consequences. Very hard to see it from this closer look, esp. from the other side. A whole wing was about the agent orange, as well. Heartbreaking to say the least. I had been so pleased and thankful to have had our time with Hai; and then the museum only amplified those unsettling feelings about war overall and I had such sadness for all of those affected...definitely has made my heart heavier since.
As Hai told us about capture of the Viet Cong and how they would ask about where the traps and other tunnels were, we asked if they were shot if not sharing information. He said no, they would be taken by the South to prisons, and a lot of times he would interpret to the Americans that the captured solider was hungry, and the Americans would give them chocolate. Who knows if he was just telling us nicer stories, but it was good to hear about simple acts of humanity and kindness.
Later that day enjoyed Pho street-side with Norma, John, Grace and Elke-then walked the city back to hotel after the War Remnants museum-stopping at the Reunification Palace, beautiful post office (had old phone booths inside and was grand like an old train station) and Notre Dame Catholic Church on the way. (Vietnam has Catholics along with Buddhism-the Vietnamese Buddha is the "happy Buddha"-big fat belly and smiling face, but still the long ears like the Thai and Laos Buddhas representing longevity).
That night was our last one with Sally and Elke :(, and we met Jackie and Carrie who would be joining us for the Cambodia and last leg of our trip. They are both RNs, around our age, from Canada. Lots of medical professionals on this tour! I ate Elephant fish (whole fish fried and brought to your table upright perched up on 2 little stands like it's still swimming happily along in the river) and all the fixin's to make spring rolls with it-yum! Bought a belt at the Ben Than Market (complete with staples and tape) as you sweat so much your pants fall off ya!-then home to bed.
March 2nd: Let's hit the Mekong Delta! Bus to boat to smaller boats to Unicorn Island to mainland to view of Turtle Island to people holding pythons, large shrimp, learning about fruit and coco trees, enjoying green tea and colorful fruit in the jungle with beautiful local music, instruments, singing performance to more boat rides, coconut candy and rice paper eating, snake-scorpion rice wine drinking to amazing lunch including Elephant fish spring roll and sticky rice puffed up like a balloon to more boats through the canals, under canopies of water coconut trees to drinking fresh coconut water out of what else but a coconut to falling asleep on the bus ride home-whew!!! Very cool and busy day! Finished it off with large beers at the local LARGE German beer hall (hilarious) next to the gay bar-good times!
March 3rd: Goodbye Vietnam. Approx 5 hr. bus ride to Phnom Penh via public bus. Not bad at all, although the Cambodians are quiet people, the Vietnamese are not;), and it took some serious strength to keep from bonking my head while using the bus bathroom. Other than that only took about 30 min. for the border crossing, etc. and enjoyed the Phnom Pehn Central Market upon arrival with Julia and Grace. Ate fried puffy sticky rice thingies while taking to a Cambodian with good English. He told us the Cambodian name for the tuc-tucs (although they still call them that here as that's what the tourists know them as) and local foods to try. He studied English as a monk in Siem Reap and was in Phnom Penh doing some research to extend his studies in economics and agricultural business I believe. He had just graduated university. Sweet guy. He was missing an arm. You see quite a few people here with missing limbs which I think many may be from the still present cluster bombs that we learned more about in Laos. Such a scary reality for them. Also had a sandwich made by a little lady on the street for less than 50 cents (here they use the Riel and the American dollar for their currency). Was the Dong in Vietnam, Kip in Laos, and Baht in Thailand-as Julia says "That Dong Kipped my Baht for Riel"-ha ha!;)
Cyclo ride that night through the city to see some sites-riverfront, Wat Phnom and Independence Monument (to commemorate their independence from France in 1953). Sun was setting and this city was alive! I was surprised by Phnom Phenh's size and development. May have enjoyed it even more than Bangkok, although our time was so short here. Bob switched with his cyclo driver which was hilarious. They zoomed by me and I realized he was driving! He lost his flip flops in the process!
Another very special home visit dinner that night just outside the city. Rode in tuc tucs basically on a highway-crazy! but at this point we're almost oblivious to it as this is just how you travel here!
(That or a family of 4 on a motorbike or by Lexus-LOTS of Lexus here-Matt says people here are either pretty well off or fairly poor). The family we visited seemed to be doing pretty well. All in the immediate family were very educated. Father works as a tour guide and pays a teacher to come in in the evenings to teach the kids English as they also want to be tour guides. We spent a lot of time speaking with the 18 yr. old girl. She was so sweet and a beautiful girl (I find the Cambodians to be very pretty people). She has been accepted to a yr. of the tourism program and will go to university thereafter. We sat on mats on the floor (same room where many of them sleep at night-30 live in the home!) and enjoyed chicken curry, beef kabobs, pork noodles, sautéed vegetables and fried spring rolls. Tarantula rice whiskey (can see the spiders in the bottom of the bottle!) was offered thereafter while we played outside with the kids, but I have yet to partake in drinking things with critters in the bottom! We've also seen a lot of cooked/spiced insects for sale to eat-Jackie and Carrie ate some. Just left a rest-stop also offering fried tarantulas (or you could have live ones crawl on you-I also deferred this;) and frogs. Anyway, after leaving the home visit a few of us checked out a local bar with lots of people watching. Phnom Penh is the capital city of 4 million and definitely a bustling place.
March 4th: Toul Sieng Prison and Choeung Ek Killing Fields
This was yest. and absolutely horrifying, depressing and chilling. Caution if you decide to read on as it is disturbing, but with this being my journal, I want to document some of what I saw and learned.
Saw the Security Prison (S-21) of the Pol Pot Era (as the locals call it), also called the Khmer Rouge (1975-1979...Cambodians will quote the exact 3 yrs, 8 months and twenty some days of terror): a high school turned into hell when Pol Pot and his people forced the people out of Phnom Penh and to the countryside to man rice fields. He had some sort of crazy idea of a land with peasant life and those who refused, were too educated, etc were killed/put in this school now turned prison/tortured. No one can understand just what this person and those involved was trying to accomplish with such evil and cruelty to our fellow man. Many times during our visit I wanted to just break down and cry. We saw class rooms turned torture chambers (pics and blood on ceiling too much to bear), the old cells with small metal boxes that was meant for the prisoners' waste), art by prior prisoners depicting some of what they went through and rooms full of haunting prison photos of these people's faces. Could see the despair in their eyes-so chilling and so sad. At the end of the Pot Pol Era, only 7 prisoners were living, saved by their contributing skills of painting and photography. One was there on the grounds selling his book and allowing photos. Our guide (age 16 at the time) escaped death as his family agreed to work in the rice fields, although one day they took his father and said they were taking him to do some learning/class work...he never returned. He and his family were not allowed to show emotion, no one was allowed to cry, etc, again, so hard to wrap your mind around all of this...and so depressing that they were virtually helpless until the Vietnamese liberated Phnom Penh on April 17th, 1979. Our guide said no one would believe those that escaped on what was really happening in their small country. We all have our own ideas and as someone so fortunate to have been born where I was, I can't help but feel so uneasy about the fact that there wasn't significant help extended...and obviously this is not the only place where such tragedies have occurred. There needs to be continued and even more awareness of the world around us and we need to be thankful for our rights and safety-but at the same time of being thankful, my mind can't understand why or how these things happen, esp within such a recent time, so my heart breaks for all of those affected.
The killing fields was where the 17,000 people from the prison where brought to be put in large graves, usually bludgeoned to death to save money on bullets. Hundreds of graves were found at this particular site, some with 100 + bodies including women and babies. No one was spared. We walked through the Memorial Stupa (contained 17 glassed shelves with over 8000 skulls excavated from the land-17 to represent the 17th of April when the Cambodians were liberated) offering flowers and incense for those many many lives lost...a very heart-wrenching day.
Went to the Russian Market afterward for a local lunch of stir fry noodles with beef, veggies and a fried egg for a little over $1 and had a delicious needed (it was H-O-T hot in the middle of those little aisles and food stalls as we were deep in!) iced coffee and did some shopping. Saw Royal Palace afterward with Grace, Jackie and Carrie. Colorful buildings with the beautiful Cambodian style roofing, peered in open air windows to get a glimpse of the King's chair surrounded by chandeliers, lavish tile floor and rugs and intricate wall and ceiling murals. Next saw the Silver Pagoda (has 5000 silver 1 kg each silver roof tiles), also called the Wat Preah Keo meaning "pagoda of the Emerald Buddha", as inside there was a huge beautiful 17th century green Buddha made from Baccarat crystal. Down below and just in front of this was a life-sized gold Buddha covered in over 9,000 diamonds. The room was filled with Buddhas given to the king by royalty and common people, and admired diamond and emerald encrusted cigarette boxes, gold head pieces and other lavishes of royalty.
Last night Matthew took us to a great local restaurant with a smaller breed of cow on a spic inside! They would carve the meat and throw it on the grill. Also had pitchers of Angkor beer, french fries, seafood noodles, fried rice, fried corn and sautéed veggies. I'm definitely not losing any weight on this trip! Fun tuc tuc ride home and to bed.
This am had approx. 6 hr. bus ride and just arrived to Siem Reap. These rides haven't been bad at all as love watching the countryside and have now caught up on my journaling;). We stopped at the largest lake in SE Asia, Tonle Sap Lake, for lunch. Gonna relax by the pool perhaps before din. Great to have some downtime, but it's 3 am at home, so can't catch up with anyone and Internet not working in the room again! Oh Asia! Head to Angkor Wat and the other temples tomorrow for sunrise. Can't wait to see this-another site I've pictured for quite some time when thinking about this trip. Signing out--SNK
Friday, March 1, 2013
Loving Asia Long Time
2/23/13
Planes, trains and automobiles. We've done it all! Currently with my 3 bunkmates on a 14 hr. overnight train to the smaller Vietnamese city of Hue. We are living the life with pallets, a pillow and cover, 2 beds on each side with a little table in the middle stacked with chips, fresh fruit from the market and sweets. Ate a Vietnamese sandwich I brought from the train station as the food on the train consists of an instant bowl of noodles, some sort of grilled meats and/or almost full-grown chicks broken out of their shell for consumption-beak, feathers, bones and all. Quite the little snack around here. Did enjoy a couple of the local beers hoping sleep doesn't evade me too much on this trek!
Left Ha Long Bay this am around 9:30 for a 4 hr. bus ride back to Hanoi to catch our train. Scenery, again, fascinating. Mountains, bright green rice fields, farmers in their familiar pointed basket hats, and smaller towns with the modest store or food stall fronts with the narrow homes reaching high above. Land is expensive, so they build up. I read today most Vietnamese live in the rural parts and agriculture is the main way to make a living. Urban dwellers may make $100/month while many people will live on less than $1per day. Pretty amazing to witness this way of life. I, with some pals, walked through the 11 other cars to reach car one to get a coffee or tea. No such luck! After passing through cars with wooden crowded benches, iron-grid open windows, sacks of all kinds of cargo coming on and off the train with our stops, we realized we pretty much were in first class; and the dining car only had serious looking men in uniform sharing beers, some smoking. There was no coffee or tea to be had. This ride is much more barebones than our prior ride to Chiang Mi and definitely a cultural experience that I have been so glad to witness.
I believe I last left off at Vientiane, Laos, the capital city. (No Internet at the moment;). Had only a day there, and a somewhat nondescript place, so don't have much to say about it. We said goodbye to our tour guide Andrew as we were getting ready to converge with another group and leader. Before departing he did set us up on a songtheaw (pickup truck taxi) tour of the Patuxai (big French-looking structure made of concrete where you went to the top to get great city views) and Phra That Luang-temple with neon colored murals covering the ceiling. Also went to COPE which is a non-profit organization that raises funds for people affected by left over cluster bombs that are buried and can still explode from the Indochina war. They focus on prosthetic limbs, but also provide PT, OT, correction of babies with club feet, etc. Sad to learn of all of this, but was glad to be there to help the cause. (Please google it and check it out if you'd like to help!;). Afterward I went with Sally and Julia for another traditional Laos massage, this time a place recommended by our hotel. It seemed very local with men sitting around a table laughing and singing watching pool on TV. Pretty young women working the bar. Young girls in matching T-shirts w/ the name of the place screen printed on them (really the most professional joint we have been to thus far!) showed up and washed our feet before taking us back. It was the strongest massage we have all had! These gals were really digging down into the muscles, fascia, trigger points, popping/cracking fingers and back, squeezing the neck, stretching the hamies, wow! We definitely got a work out.
That night met our new leader, Matthew, a 34 yr. old French-Canadian who owns a home in Ho Chi Minh city and studied Mandarin in China for several years. He loves this part of the world and is very knowledgable. He's more confident and helpful than our last tour guide, and much more playful which is a refreshing change. He makes us all laugh and is teaching us some Vietnamese. He took us to a local big open air food stall where swimming and BBQed fish were out front and women were cooking in plane site in the back. Enjoyed spring rolls and red curry. Hit the night market along the Mekong, bought a piece of art (gold Budda painted on a leaf mounted on paper), and then went bowling. This time the bowling alley was in town and much more calm.
Next day finally relaxed at the hotel all morning and was able to face-time with the fam, then off to the airport to catch our hr. flight to Hanoi, Vietnam. Arrived in Hanoi around 5 pm and oh what a change! Very busy city with noisy dirty streets and a lot going on everywhere you look (women selling fruit/snacks from baskets hanging from their shoulders, young and old men/women sitting around miniature tables on the curb eating the street cooking, shops w/ all kinds of junk to beautiful HANDMADE cheap clothing for sale). Motorbikes were in even more abundance than I think Bangkok and unlike our last several cities, they lay on the horns nonstop as there doesn't appear to be any traffic laws here. It's like they are all playing chicken and you're watching a video game of dodge cars! Loved all of the craziness in this capital city of, I believe, 8 million!
We took a motorbike tour all around town the following day that was awesome! We each were on the back holding on with our little Vietnamese man zipping all 14 of us over the Red river, by Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum and to the site where Sen. John McCain's plane was bombed down, Hoan Kiem Lake and West Lake, military and war museum, the French colonial opera house, and the old quarter (busy compact area of French architecture where our hotel was located). It was cold and drizzly-a welcomed change from hot humid Thailand and Laos! We also stopped at the Hoa Lo Prison (the "Hanoi Hilton" as they call it; the exhibits there suggest that the US pilots and PO W's were treated very well. There were pics of John McCain being medically treated, pics of them playing BB and enjoying a Christmas dinner complete with a Christmas tree. McCain's flight bomber suit and boots were also on display.) They dropped us off at the famous water puppet show-puppets maneuvered by people behind bamboo screens standing in waist-high water-the stage is water and it was magical in it's own way and loved the lessons included of Vietnamese culture, the live music of very interesting instruments and beautiful singing of the very pretty Vietnamese girls. Enjoyed a warm Dutch chocolate drink and a chocolate croissant on the lake afterward, and then a beer while sitting with the locals and backpackers at our Bia Hoi on the corner across from our hotel (draft beer house-which is basically an open air stall on the busy street where they throw out your miniature plastic chairs and tables on the curb and all gather for a locally brewed draft beer-snacks available, as well, including snails, frog, meat snacks, French fries, peanuts, etc).
Met our new group members that night which all seem amazing thus far! Older couples: Ken (sweet smart gentleman-reminds me of my Uncle Stat;) and Barbara, Norma and John (he looks like Michael Douglas), from Ireland, England and Scottland, and Robert and Elaine from England. Orf is probably in his 40's-50's and from Sweden, Grace is 34 from Ireland and Katie and Mike are newlyweds, our age, from Canada. She's a nurse practitioner, like Julia, and he's a pediatrician, so we have a lot to talk about!;) and they were so fun at karaoke!
The following day we were off to Ha Long Bay (4 hr bus ride from Hanoi-means "where the dragon descends into the sea"). This is was what I've pictured since booking this trip. Approx. 3000 limestone islands arise from the aquamarine waters of the Gulf of Tonkin and it was just absolutely beautiful. We spent a lovely evening on the boat w/ a beautiful seafood presentation of lunch, dinner (including cut out pineapples luminated with candles brought in the darkened room surrounded by our "squid cakes" on the platter) and breakfast the next morning. We did some squid fishing;), bought Halong Bay pearl earrings for $15, sang karaoke and slept while the sea rocked us gently hearing the water splash softly against the boat. Our guide, Thuy (pronounced "twee") was just great! He was so enthusiastic and loved to tell the history of Vietnam, jokes, and laughed all of the time.
The next am we were back on the bus to Hanoi to catch this overnight train to Hue. Scenery included bright green rice fields with palm trees, motorbikes, food stalls with all the Bun w/ Bo, etc you could want, with a mountainous backdrop.
Welcome to Hue! I loved this little city on the Perfume River. We arrived to a cool drizzle and only had a day and a half there. I liked all of the green and parks seen around town, and again, tons of motorbikes zooming around. I ran for maybe the second time on my trip around the river, then walked through town, stopping for Pho at a street stall. The table of elderly women next to me were looking at me curiously as I was with them. After they left their miniature stools, a young good looking family sat there for a breakfast of noodles, as well, all riding up on 2 motorbikes-loved witnessing all of this. Welder shop was across the street, with sparks flying, with the bridal dress boutique next door. After cleaning up I sat at a touristy bar/restaurant down the street from our hotel to do some business, look at my budget, enjoy the rain, had a banana blossom salad and a local "Hue" beer. The down and alone time was much appreciated and I watched perhaps the owner wave incense throughout the place, sprinkle coffee on the grounds and offer money and food to the spirit box-very cool to see this ritual they do to "feed the spirits".
That afternoon we had a wonderful guided tour of the Emperor's tomb a little outside of the city. Perfect setting seeing this huge outdoor compound in the drizzle w/ a lovely pond and flowering trees surrounding us trying not to trip on the old brick paths and admiring the beautiful wood-carved designs in the structures and the Emperor's prior perches;)
That night we took cyclo rides (man takes ya on a bike-pulling you on a seat behind him) through the drizzle across the bridge to Matthew's friend's restaurant who has been written up in Lonely Planet. He is deaf and mute, along with most of his family (they think perhaps from agent orange), and was a sweet man. His trick and claim to fame (other than his sweet personality) was lining up several beer bottles and using these make-shift bottle openers to pop them all open at once with a karate chop motion (they were made with a piece of wood, screw and nut-we were all given one;) and he has pics sent from people all over the world w/ their bottle openers and smiles!). Had yummy roll-them-yourself spring rolls. Later enjoyed chocolate mousse with the gang at another more touristy spot, then bed!
Next day toured The Imperial Citidel-just beautiful. Built in the early 1800's and home of Kings, Queens, and mistresses. A lot of it had been destroyed during the Vietnam war (the Vietnamese call it the American War). Elephants were on the grounds and admired all of the Chinese inspired art, design and architecture. The last building that was added in 1923 was French in style. Walking through the gates was like walking back in time. Just magical. Also toured Thein Mu Pagoda that day. Again, beautiful grounds and gardens. Rubbed the large stone turtle's head for longevity and witnessed monks young and old chanting, then saw them getting ready for lunch afterwards. Grounds were covered in bonsai trees, flowering plants and vines, including gorgeous orchids. Our local guide, Vang, was a young gentleman, recently married, who shared how the war had directly affected his life. He also shared interesting information on Vietnamese beliefs about spirits of those who have passed, ghosts, superstitions, etc. (they burn fake money and offer food, incense, gifts to the spirits to keep them tended to and happy-witnessed this all over town and found it beautiful and fascinating). His grandmother and brother were killed trying to escape bombing. His uncles fought, one for the North, one for the South, and his father told him "if you hate America, then you hate Vietnam"...therefore he really didn't seem to have any bitterness toward America, but I think obviously bitterness towards the war in general; I'm sure like so many people. It really has been surreal touring Vietnam. It is an amazing country to witness after all of the horror they encountered not that long ago.
Back on a bus! Four hours to Hoi An and again amazing scenery-some of the best! Rode the coast line, A/C shut off to be able to climb through the mountains so ocean breeze in your face, iPod on, eyes gazing upon all of the sites-near misses w/ trucks, bicycles, motorbikes, people, cows, dogs, saw ferns growing on the mountain side, fishermen's huge nets draped across the sea, waves crashing, women on side of the street selling Tiger Balm, etc....we stopped for a bowl of noodles on the lagoon-lovely wooden bridge there-John made it out just fine for a photo-Bob broke through a slat;) as he walked out-ha!
Arrived to Hoi An...pretty touristy but still quaint cute city, approx 80,000 in size, on a river surrounded by French style buildings housing tons of restaurants draped by lanterns, people selling stuff (crap;) that wouldn't leave you alone, shops, tailors, and LOTS of people. Matthew walked us around the city, then drinks with Julia, Elke, Sally, Nora, John, Tracy and Orf. Found a quite place for sunset with John and Norma as they treated me to a drink-watched a rat scurry by;). Dinner that night with the group under the stars-yummy BBQ shrimp wrapped in mint and papaya and beef w/ curry in a clay pot.
It's now March 1st-had the rest of my journaling done, but somehow it's been erased!!!:-/. Will update more later and add pics...in HCMC now, head to Mekong Delta tom, then Cambodia!
Planes, trains and automobiles. We've done it all! Currently with my 3 bunkmates on a 14 hr. overnight train to the smaller Vietnamese city of Hue. We are living the life with pallets, a pillow and cover, 2 beds on each side with a little table in the middle stacked with chips, fresh fruit from the market and sweets. Ate a Vietnamese sandwich I brought from the train station as the food on the train consists of an instant bowl of noodles, some sort of grilled meats and/or almost full-grown chicks broken out of their shell for consumption-beak, feathers, bones and all. Quite the little snack around here. Did enjoy a couple of the local beers hoping sleep doesn't evade me too much on this trek!
Left Ha Long Bay this am around 9:30 for a 4 hr. bus ride back to Hanoi to catch our train. Scenery, again, fascinating. Mountains, bright green rice fields, farmers in their familiar pointed basket hats, and smaller towns with the modest store or food stall fronts with the narrow homes reaching high above. Land is expensive, so they build up. I read today most Vietnamese live in the rural parts and agriculture is the main way to make a living. Urban dwellers may make $100/month while many people will live on less than $1per day. Pretty amazing to witness this way of life. I, with some pals, walked through the 11 other cars to reach car one to get a coffee or tea. No such luck! After passing through cars with wooden crowded benches, iron-grid open windows, sacks of all kinds of cargo coming on and off the train with our stops, we realized we pretty much were in first class; and the dining car only had serious looking men in uniform sharing beers, some smoking. There was no coffee or tea to be had. This ride is much more barebones than our prior ride to Chiang Mi and definitely a cultural experience that I have been so glad to witness.
I believe I last left off at Vientiane, Laos, the capital city. (No Internet at the moment;). Had only a day there, and a somewhat nondescript place, so don't have much to say about it. We said goodbye to our tour guide Andrew as we were getting ready to converge with another group and leader. Before departing he did set us up on a songtheaw (pickup truck taxi) tour of the Patuxai (big French-looking structure made of concrete where you went to the top to get great city views) and Phra That Luang-temple with neon colored murals covering the ceiling. Also went to COPE which is a non-profit organization that raises funds for people affected by left over cluster bombs that are buried and can still explode from the Indochina war. They focus on prosthetic limbs, but also provide PT, OT, correction of babies with club feet, etc. Sad to learn of all of this, but was glad to be there to help the cause. (Please google it and check it out if you'd like to help!;). Afterward I went with Sally and Julia for another traditional Laos massage, this time a place recommended by our hotel. It seemed very local with men sitting around a table laughing and singing watching pool on TV. Pretty young women working the bar. Young girls in matching T-shirts w/ the name of the place screen printed on them (really the most professional joint we have been to thus far!) showed up and washed our feet before taking us back. It was the strongest massage we have all had! These gals were really digging down into the muscles, fascia, trigger points, popping/cracking fingers and back, squeezing the neck, stretching the hamies, wow! We definitely got a work out.
That night met our new leader, Matthew, a 34 yr. old French-Canadian who owns a home in Ho Chi Minh city and studied Mandarin in China for several years. He loves this part of the world and is very knowledgable. He's more confident and helpful than our last tour guide, and much more playful which is a refreshing change. He makes us all laugh and is teaching us some Vietnamese. He took us to a local big open air food stall where swimming and BBQed fish were out front and women were cooking in plane site in the back. Enjoyed spring rolls and red curry. Hit the night market along the Mekong, bought a piece of art (gold Budda painted on a leaf mounted on paper), and then went bowling. This time the bowling alley was in town and much more calm.
Next day finally relaxed at the hotel all morning and was able to face-time with the fam, then off to the airport to catch our hr. flight to Hanoi, Vietnam. Arrived in Hanoi around 5 pm and oh what a change! Very busy city with noisy dirty streets and a lot going on everywhere you look (women selling fruit/snacks from baskets hanging from their shoulders, young and old men/women sitting around miniature tables on the curb eating the street cooking, shops w/ all kinds of junk to beautiful HANDMADE cheap clothing for sale). Motorbikes were in even more abundance than I think Bangkok and unlike our last several cities, they lay on the horns nonstop as there doesn't appear to be any traffic laws here. It's like they are all playing chicken and you're watching a video game of dodge cars! Loved all of the craziness in this capital city of, I believe, 8 million!
We took a motorbike tour all around town the following day that was awesome! We each were on the back holding on with our little Vietnamese man zipping all 14 of us over the Red river, by Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum and to the site where Sen. John McCain's plane was bombed down, Hoan Kiem Lake and West Lake, military and war museum, the French colonial opera house, and the old quarter (busy compact area of French architecture where our hotel was located). It was cold and drizzly-a welcomed change from hot humid Thailand and Laos! We also stopped at the Hoa Lo Prison (the "Hanoi Hilton" as they call it; the exhibits there suggest that the US pilots and PO W's were treated very well. There were pics of John McCain being medically treated, pics of them playing BB and enjoying a Christmas dinner complete with a Christmas tree. McCain's flight bomber suit and boots were also on display.) They dropped us off at the famous water puppet show-puppets maneuvered by people behind bamboo screens standing in waist-high water-the stage is water and it was magical in it's own way and loved the lessons included of Vietnamese culture, the live music of very interesting instruments and beautiful singing of the very pretty Vietnamese girls. Enjoyed a warm Dutch chocolate drink and a chocolate croissant on the lake afterward, and then a beer while sitting with the locals and backpackers at our Bia Hoi on the corner across from our hotel (draft beer house-which is basically an open air stall on the busy street where they throw out your miniature plastic chairs and tables on the curb and all gather for a locally brewed draft beer-snacks available, as well, including snails, frog, meat snacks, French fries, peanuts, etc).
Met our new group members that night which all seem amazing thus far! Older couples: Ken (sweet smart gentleman-reminds me of my Uncle Stat;) and Barbara, Norma and John (he looks like Michael Douglas), from Ireland, England and Scottland, and Robert and Elaine from England. Orf is probably in his 40's-50's and from Sweden, Grace is 34 from Ireland and Katie and Mike are newlyweds, our age, from Canada. She's a nurse practitioner, like Julia, and he's a pediatrician, so we have a lot to talk about!;) and they were so fun at karaoke!
The following day we were off to Ha Long Bay (4 hr bus ride from Hanoi-means "where the dragon descends into the sea"). This is was what I've pictured since booking this trip. Approx. 3000 limestone islands arise from the aquamarine waters of the Gulf of Tonkin and it was just absolutely beautiful. We spent a lovely evening on the boat w/ a beautiful seafood presentation of lunch, dinner (including cut out pineapples luminated with candles brought in the darkened room surrounded by our "squid cakes" on the platter) and breakfast the next morning. We did some squid fishing;), bought Halong Bay pearl earrings for $15, sang karaoke and slept while the sea rocked us gently hearing the water splash softly against the boat. Our guide, Thuy (pronounced "twee") was just great! He was so enthusiastic and loved to tell the history of Vietnam, jokes, and laughed all of the time.
The next am we were back on the bus to Hanoi to catch this overnight train to Hue. Scenery included bright green rice fields with palm trees, motorbikes, food stalls with all the Bun w/ Bo, etc you could want, with a mountainous backdrop.
Welcome to Hue! I loved this little city on the Perfume River. We arrived to a cool drizzle and only had a day and a half there. I liked all of the green and parks seen around town, and again, tons of motorbikes zooming around. I ran for maybe the second time on my trip around the river, then walked through town, stopping for Pho at a street stall. The table of elderly women next to me were looking at me curiously as I was with them. After they left their miniature stools, a young good looking family sat there for a breakfast of noodles, as well, all riding up on 2 motorbikes-loved witnessing all of this. Welder shop was across the street, with sparks flying, with the bridal dress boutique next door. After cleaning up I sat at a touristy bar/restaurant down the street from our hotel to do some business, look at my budget, enjoy the rain, had a banana blossom salad and a local "Hue" beer. The down and alone time was much appreciated and I watched perhaps the owner wave incense throughout the place, sprinkle coffee on the grounds and offer money and food to the spirit box-very cool to see this ritual they do to "feed the spirits".
That afternoon we had a wonderful guided tour of the Emperor's tomb a little outside of the city. Perfect setting seeing this huge outdoor compound in the drizzle w/ a lovely pond and flowering trees surrounding us trying not to trip on the old brick paths and admiring the beautiful wood-carved designs in the structures and the Emperor's prior perches;)
That night we took cyclo rides (man takes ya on a bike-pulling you on a seat behind him) through the drizzle across the bridge to Matthew's friend's restaurant who has been written up in Lonely Planet. He is deaf and mute, along with most of his family (they think perhaps from agent orange), and was a sweet man. His trick and claim to fame (other than his sweet personality) was lining up several beer bottles and using these make-shift bottle openers to pop them all open at once with a karate chop motion (they were made with a piece of wood, screw and nut-we were all given one;) and he has pics sent from people all over the world w/ their bottle openers and smiles!). Had yummy roll-them-yourself spring rolls. Later enjoyed chocolate mousse with the gang at another more touristy spot, then bed!
Next day toured The Imperial Citidel-just beautiful. Built in the early 1800's and home of Kings, Queens, and mistresses. A lot of it had been destroyed during the Vietnam war (the Vietnamese call it the American War). Elephants were on the grounds and admired all of the Chinese inspired art, design and architecture. The last building that was added in 1923 was French in style. Walking through the gates was like walking back in time. Just magical. Also toured Thein Mu Pagoda that day. Again, beautiful grounds and gardens. Rubbed the large stone turtle's head for longevity and witnessed monks young and old chanting, then saw them getting ready for lunch afterwards. Grounds were covered in bonsai trees, flowering plants and vines, including gorgeous orchids. Our local guide, Vang, was a young gentleman, recently married, who shared how the war had directly affected his life. He also shared interesting information on Vietnamese beliefs about spirits of those who have passed, ghosts, superstitions, etc. (they burn fake money and offer food, incense, gifts to the spirits to keep them tended to and happy-witnessed this all over town and found it beautiful and fascinating). His grandmother and brother were killed trying to escape bombing. His uncles fought, one for the North, one for the South, and his father told him "if you hate America, then you hate Vietnam"...therefore he really didn't seem to have any bitterness toward America, but I think obviously bitterness towards the war in general; I'm sure like so many people. It really has been surreal touring Vietnam. It is an amazing country to witness after all of the horror they encountered not that long ago.
Back on a bus! Four hours to Hoi An and again amazing scenery-some of the best! Rode the coast line, A/C shut off to be able to climb through the mountains so ocean breeze in your face, iPod on, eyes gazing upon all of the sites-near misses w/ trucks, bicycles, motorbikes, people, cows, dogs, saw ferns growing on the mountain side, fishermen's huge nets draped across the sea, waves crashing, women on side of the street selling Tiger Balm, etc....we stopped for a bowl of noodles on the lagoon-lovely wooden bridge there-John made it out just fine for a photo-Bob broke through a slat;) as he walked out-ha!
Arrived to Hoi An...pretty touristy but still quaint cute city, approx 80,000 in size, on a river surrounded by French style buildings housing tons of restaurants draped by lanterns, people selling stuff (crap;) that wouldn't leave you alone, shops, tailors, and LOTS of people. Matthew walked us around the city, then drinks with Julia, Elke, Sally, Nora, John, Tracy and Orf. Found a quite place for sunset with John and Norma as they treated me to a drink-watched a rat scurry by;). Dinner that night with the group under the stars-yummy BBQ shrimp wrapped in mint and papaya and beef w/ curry in a clay pot.
It's now March 1st-had the rest of my journaling done, but somehow it's been erased!!!:-/. Will update more later and add pics...in HCMC now, head to Mekong Delta tom, then Cambodia!
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