Mekong- Saigon

Vietnam- Mekong Delta followed by Saigon to Hanoi

The trip around the Mekong Delta was bought as it was actually the cheapest way of getting to Vietnam from Phnom Phen; the river and delta landscape was an added bonus. The towns we visited seemed to all merge into one as we headed up from the river to Saigon by bouncy bus. Getting into Saigon was great- the city for all of its reputation was no where near as seedy as Bangkok or even Phnom Phen, but it was certainly lively.

We arrived in the tourist section and went hunting for a place to stay and tickets to Hanoi by train. We found a great room in a place called Godmother which I would again recommend as a cheap, relatively clean and safe place with free wifi and entertainment. Our room overlooked the bar but they kindly turned down the music at midnight every night without fail. We think this was because of the tiny old lady who owns the place! Jen reckons that she was a spy in the Cambodian war & that she can secretly karate chop someone’s head if they so much as give the wrong glance – luckily we were in her good books, all receiving wooden keyrings as a gift! They also do some great pancakes with honey for breakfast by the way.

The Tet New Year celebrations were in full force, with food stalls in the flower markets giving us plenty of opportunity to spend our Dongs en masse with Crocodile, Beef and Pork skewers, Fried rice, vermicelli salads and more on offer. Naturally, we had to eat our way through the selection.

Crossing through the city on foot meant we got a good feel of the city- mad traffic which is very similar to that in Cairo- always moving (replace cars in Egypt for scooters in Vietnam) which makes crossing the road a bit of a game of chicken, as a gang of five we seemed to have enough presence to cross quite easily though. I presume it’s because knocking over five people would really damage their cars/scooters.

Coming back to trains and travel. Hadn’t really considered the effect that the Chinese New Year would have on our plans. Apparently everyone wants to be somewhere else for the celebrations and tickets for the trains (4 per day) are snapped up at least four months in advance!!! So we had to look for alternatives which brought us to the bus option. I hate bus travel. Sleeper buses – hmm new concept for my travelling.

So we booked five beds on a sleeper bus which was supposed to travel non-stop or so our ticket said to Hanoi in 42 hours. Not so it seems, and definitely for the better. To our horror, we were all put on the back seat lined up like 5 lemmings with no space in between and not enough room to sit upright. Jen got a case of the hysterical giggles and lots of jokes came out along the lines of imitating drinking cups of tea upside down and ‘don’t worry folks, only 41 hours to go’ etc. To our surprise, the bus stopped in the morning around 250 miles north of Hanoi in a sea side city called Nha Trang which has a great beach with a lovely promenade behind it. The city is a stark contrast to any other sea side resort we’d been to so far and with the bay shimmering turquoise blue and waves crashing onshore we decided it was high time to do sweet fa and sit on the beach all day, the city isn’t too badly plagued by touts. You want Sunglasses? … Pineapple, Pomelo, Mango? …. And then an 8 year old thrusts a basket of what can best be described as “stuff” in your face; “You BUY”. Sadly no suncream so we very kindly tell her to go away but this is refused so we do maths problems with her, play football shuttlecock and she keeps us entertained. Finally, she leaves and go’s off to hassle others, but returns for more YOU BUY demands later in the afternoon. It’s depressing that little girls are selling crap on the beach and it happens all over the world.

Moving on- our bus (a much nicer bus with individual seats – phew) left at 6, well almost...more like 8 and we find our way enroute to Hoi An where the schedule supposes an hour’s break. From there it’s on to Hue where we change coaches to Hanoi I think…

(MT)

Phnom Phen and then GOOOD MOOOORNING VIETNAAAAAAAAM

Cambodia –Phnom Phen to Vietnam man

Phnom Phen is a city worth visiting. Ignore the tuk tuk drivers who appeared to be trying out for a new job as a private investigator – trailing us around town for at least two hours while we (to his chargrain, looked for a hotel on foot, ate lunch, drank tea and generally laughed at him. Stupid man seemed to forget that he could possibly make some money off the other 3 million people in the city. The rest of Phnom Phen was busy. Markets, bars, restaurants… hotels by the dozen, and of course the usual white haired (crusty) Caucasians with interest in the culture of the younger generation kept the rest of the Cambodians very busy and us well fed and watered. Street cuisine experts, we can now almost eat whole chillies without crying, fish oil is drunk by the gallon and rice is swallowed by the 1kg sack. (MT)

On arriving in Phnom Penh, something I was particularly excited about following a previously excellent experience in the city, I recommended to all that we must visit the hilarious Walkabout pub. Not the brash Aussie Bar, rather an institution with even less class. Feeling like quite the minority, as we did not have a school age Cambodian chick on our arms and we were not over 50, & balding with a 6 spare tyres, we proceeded to enjoy our Angkor beers, laugh at the scene and bravely gulped down some local concoction in the form of Mekong whisky. Next stop: THE HEART OF DARKNESS. Named loosely after Joseph Conrad’s classic, this place does not disappoint in being full of a bit of gore, lots of mystery & vast amounts of excitement. Gruesome coming mainly in the form of eclectic dancing styles and the unnaturally fluorescent cocktails. This really is a place where East meets West, on the dance floor. It is great fun. But not as appreciated as the bowl of noodles that we slurped down at 2am on the street.
To maximize our short time in the city, we bartered the use of one tuk tuk and a driver for the day. Getting five large people comfortably into a tuk tuk should appear as the next challenge on the Krypton Factor – it is no easy feat. I understand that Mark has recently regained the feeling in his left knee, much to my relief. Due to the relatively recent war in Cambodia, a number of tourist attractions are focused on the topic. We visited the killing fields just outside of Phnom Penh, which certainly emphasized the extent of the atrocity; however, far more informative is the Genocide Museum in the city centre. The old high school was occupied by the Khmer Rouge and turned into a ‘correction facility’ in 1975. In essence, this was the place where people were taken to be interrogated & tortured prior to being sent outside for execution at the killing fields. Shockingly, one executioner could conduct up to 300 killings in one day, the majority of which were executed through a blow to the head (bullets were expensive). Due to the unreliability of this method, many people were buried alive in mass graves.

The museum layout allows you to walk around each room used for torture. Photographs adorn the walls of the victims. In some cases the torture instrument is on the iron bed, along with shackles used for detainment. Some rooms still have the blood stains ingrained in the floor – huge patches which really give an indication of a) how recently this happened and b) the brutality used by the Khmer Rouge. There is a very interesting section explaining the history of the rise & fall of the Khmer Rouge & how the Cambodians are moving forward with their attitudes today. This eerie museum is not for the faint hearted, and while some may believe the photos to be distasteful, I believe it is important to maintain clarity and truth when telling the story. It was a moving two hours & certainly very educational for us all.
In need of some more light hearted relief, we visited the Russian Market and enjoyed pottering around sampling lots of the local snacks, the most delicious of which had to be the group favourite of a potato frittata style spinach and garlic thing – yum scrum! We opted not to buy a whole deep fried pig or bird, complete with its beak – lazily we opted for the street kebabs instead...! (JG)

Having spent 48 hours there, we decided it was high time to get moving once more, and booked a bargain trip inclusive two nights’ accommodation deep into the Mekong Delta- Boats and buses and more food feature strongly in this trip. First stop was the bus stop which took us down another eye opening bus ride to the river further south where we boarded a yellow boat that looked like it might have been designed to carry troops. The engine at the back had to be passed enroute to the “loo” and was any health and safety person’s nightmare... it was pretty amusing- if not a little risky... so like the “loo”, best avoided. Sadly, this meant we had to sit out the front on deck and enjoy the country side and river traffic to the border where we first disembarked for the Cambodians, then once more for the Vietnamese where we changed to another boat. The difference between the landscape use on river and land adjoining is immense between Cambodia and Vietnam. Unsurprisingly, the years of conflict have made Cambodia a desolate space and not overly exciting place, whereas Vietnam was positively buzzing all the way to our hotel. Our tour guide dropped us off at the floating hotel and we spent the afternoon relaxing on board, before crossing the river to sample pretty much everything the street had to offer. This was Chaudoc …. With the onset of the Chinese New Year or Vietnamese Tet festival, the streets are alive and well with a LOT of food. (MT)

Chau Doc to Can Tho

After a 6am wake-up call we were very glad of the coffee/tea served on the floating hotel’s veranda. We still cannot believe how nice this hotel is for a backpacker place! Maybe my standards have just dropped to a worryingly low level?! In the morning we climbed a hill to a temple, which was interesting – heard all about the fat Buddha and made sure we gave his belly a good rub to bring us luck for the rest of the day – he certainly looked like he enjoyed the NY party season! Also visited a fish farm, whereby a family kept fish under their floating house & afterwards visited a village, which was a bit touristy and fake. Got a big boat down the river and we all fell asleep on the deck chairs which was blissfully relaxing. The bus to Can Tho, which is a friendly bustling little place, with life centered on the Mekong again. Mark and I visited the supermarket, which was full of Vietnamese goodies – all very exciting. (JG)

Our travel plans for the next couple of days include a mad rush to Saigon followed by a madder rush to Hong Kong via Hanoi; we have to get there by train before the 25th for the Chinese New Year!! (MT)

Moving on -Cambodia

Cambodia & Trip from Ko Chang 13-15Jan 2009

Moving onwards from Ko Chang to Siem Reap in Cambodia was the next phase of the trip; we pushed off from the Whitesands town by mini bus to a small harbour and probably missed our driver’s ferry- judging by the speed he has been driving up and down the steep (!!! ) hills, I assume so. It strangely didn’t make too much difference to our trip plans and we had a wait in the cold (22-23 Celsius) for the next ferry. Our little mini bus was a little on the full side and we were pleased when some of the passengers were reshuffled onto another bus. Amusingly we came back to find a French couple in our front seats, so we took position to the back – no problem surely? The French couple decided after all their seats at the back did have their names on, perhaps as they were more comfortable at the back and demanded them back, very effectively isolating themselves for the rest of the trip with a bus load of travelers who were a little bemused by somewhat infantile behavior! Sleep was the best option for the rest of the trip, avoiding watching the increasingly risky overtaking of pretty much anything else in the road and very hard braking which involved pulling the handbrake to assist… The scenery was absolutely stunning, with the hills rising out of plains surrounded by very organized agricultural activity. Rice harvest and what looked to be Yam harvesting were in full swing, making the road more interesting. Watching the traditional harvesting gave an impression of what back breaking work so many of the people have to deal with and provided such a stark contrast to the tourist centres and Bangkok.


The border was an interesting affair, working on the premise of don’t believe anyone we were slightly concerned when dropped off near the border into a Visa agency. However, without further charge or ado, we were filling in forms for the Cambodian Visa, sticking our passport photos onto them and then eating lunch and relaxing before being taken to the border for our short walk across. The town of Aryanthaqpath and Piot Phet on the other side were remarkable different. Various websites had warned of touts, but our travel service was effective in herding us through and putting us on a bus, although attempts were made to sell alternative services such as Taxis to Siem Reap. The taxis would be doing the trip in less time – 3 hours instead of 7. We stayed on the bus and a surprisingly good road for a while till we reached the out of town Bus Terminal, which is where we transferred onto a very similar bus for the rest of the trip. The bus we took was only for tourists travelling on what was apparently a government sponsored bus ride- later strangely this turned out to be utter tripe funnily enough. The road and landscape to Siem Reap was interesting. The devastation of 100 years of conflict and oppression make for fascinating travel. Our road was slightly bumpy- and was being raised to be usable during the wet season- the extremely flat land was great for rice growing, and more than once the bus avoided the threshing of rice at the side of the road. Sadly we didn’t get any photos of this. Bumping around a partially built road was interrupted by stopping at a dinner place and the arrival of a new guide. In good English, we were given a run-down of the more recent horrors and new government development work. The road we had been on is year 3 of 5, but things like border conflicts with Thailand can slow progress. On arrival two hours later the bus pulled not into the main bus terminal but a hostel called the Hilton Angkor and we were asked to have a look around- rates were 6 USD per room per night. They also offered tuk tuks to anyone who had booked elsewhere which we had. Our hostel had come with free pick up service so we took advantage and were picked up five minutes later from the main road around the corner. The Khmer Inn Hostel is where we stayed. Highly recommended: 7.5 USD each for a double per night.
Driving through Siem Reap on the way in gives an idea of just how tourism dependent the place is – there are countless very large hotels and double or triple the number of hostels. Dependency on tours tacked onto Thailand holidays spells trouble when internal frictions close airports in Bangkok! MT

Angkor Wat & Angkor Thom 14th Jan 2008

Bright and early we collected our pedal bikes and headed off like the famous 5 weaving in and out of the traffic on the dusty roads. The sun was shining and with possibly the oldest and funniest bikes ever, complete with granny basket and ding dong bells, we had a blast cycling the 6km to the temples. It was nice to feel like we were transporting ourselves in the same way as the locals, rather than sitting like deities on top of tuk tuks or air conditioned buses. We arrived at Angkor Wat and proceeded to get surrounded by some extremely ballsy and cheeky kids demanding we buy their inflated price water/pay to leave our bikes there, buy bracelet, etc, etc. Entertaining for about 10 seconds then very annoying! We found somewhere to have a quick breakfast, and then entered Angkor Wat. Even though I have been before, the experience was equally dramatic and the place really does seem to have a feeling of calmness and serenity. At least it was peaceful until we got out the tripod and experimented with group pictures, the funniest which included Oli on Bart’s shoulders, making him about 7 foot something…
Back on the bikes and off to Angkor Thom, which covers the largest area of all the temples. It is amazing to think that the area covered by the temples is bigger than Siem Reap itself. And to think it was only rediscovered in the 1850s by a Frenchman – what a feeling that must have been walking through the jungle and coming across such a treasure. We stopped off at another temple on the way and walked up the hill to see the spectacular view from the top. Unfortunately you can no longer climb the steps going directly up and there has been much erosion, however the path was pretty and we spotted many spiders’ webs which were obviously of the much denser variety, like the type you get for a Halloween party. Despite looking very closely we could not see any tarantulas, which was partly a relief, partly a disappointment! At the top, we also discovered bullet holes in some of the rocks, which we imagined to be from the Khmer Rouge era.
Before entering Angkor Thom, we ate a delicious lunch of noodles and fresh tea cooked on the side of the road for 1USD. It seems that you pay in dollars and get reel as change as their currency is pretty worthless except for small exchanges. The highlight of Angkor Thom was undoubtedly admiring and climbing over the huge tree roots that were slowly overtaking the temples. Also the setting for the Hollywood movie, Tomb Raider, we were amazed that you could climb into the decrepit ruins and scramble over the world heritage site. Parrots squawking in the trees overhead and the chirping cicadas added to the exotic ambience of the temples.
We cycled home (about 40 km in total for the day) and went out for Chinese food as we were all starving. I had a massage in the evening, the others went to a bar and met this very funny Cambodian waitress who had no qualms in expressing her exact thoughts, i.e. shouting out people’s sexuality and laughing out loud. I should also mention that the previous night we saw a moped with three people on it – one in the middle bleeding with bandages, the front one driving and the back person holding the drip which was attached to the poorly passenger – mobile ambulance galore – amazing. JG

More Ko Chang

Sat here after my thai massage, drinking a nice cold beer on the beach, i am feeling extrordinarily relaxed. I've had some time to reflect on Ko Chang before heading off to Cambodia, its great fun. Its been an outstanding 5 days here, sitting on the beach, driving around on scooters and well just pissing around.
We took scooters around the island and found loads of little beaches and a "floating" village in the south, where we ate some delicious sea food at a great little restaurant with live food near the front. The roads to get there are steep and frankly pretty perilous by car or scooter, steep and bendy, but driving around on a second day the scooters helped take Bart to the ferry and then Oli and I to the little restaurant for some more great food. Food has been great overall here.. from the vendors to the restaurants, but then this is Thai food.


Our hotel was initially slightly pricey, all of £10 per night each; faaaaaaaaaaar to much, now we are living in an awesome little hut on a hill that overlooks the hill. Beach life has its advantages swings on palm trees, little thai ladies and the northern white male.. are amusing to watch. Possibly one of the best places we've been hanging out in has wifi.. (essential sadly) is an English Pub fundamentally a great time. The beaches are also great space for having piggie back racing and swings with thai compliments like "hey big lady get off swing"- although the 90 kg male under her was a good 40kg heavier.
its been great, tomorrow's bus ride is 11 hours.. will be fun.

11th Jan - elephant bathing

Getting in the water with these gorgeous creatures and bathing them was absolutely amazing. There does not seem to be any decorum around safety, with the guides allowing you to ride them and crawl all over them as much as you want. Nelly seemed to enjoy a good scrub behind the ears, but then who doesn't?! Check out the video...

Ko Chang 9-10th

After a sleepy 5 hour bus journey and a breakfast of pad thai (we were all slightly put off bananas from the night before in Pat Pong), we were all very excited to jump on the ferry to Koh Chang, a beautiful tropical island. We took a very full open air taxi (about 12 people) to White Sand Beach and dumped our rucksacks to have a fresh coconut and make an executive decision about where to stay. After asking in about 10 hostels, which were all a bit more than we wanted to pay, we found two great rooms on the other side of the road, which was the cheapest & actually very clean/spacious. It seems that all the bargains are to be found on the non-beach side of the road, which makes sense! The first thing we all did was put on our togs and swim in the sea, which is crystal clear & very warm. The beach is beautiful with gently shelving sand & palm trees full of coconuts. There are some great bars and restaurants along the beach front with all the tables in the sand. We chose our freshly caught red snapper & enormous shrimps for cooking on the beach BBQ - they made Waitrose's lobster look insignificant. There are a few places which have mats and cushions & candles on the beach with live bands, which is possibly one of the most relaxing ways to spend an evening. Although White Sand is a little touristy, the touts are all very polite and do not hassle you at all - the people seem very friendly & are definitely helping Thailand to live up to its reputation of being the Land of Smiles.

Bangkok 6-8th January 2009

Bangkok is our first stage of the trip, arriving from a not so sunny and warm England after a 12 hour flight to 30 Celsius plus and a very pleasant light breeze. How English of me to start off with the weather. Doing our first bit of bargaining at the airport for a private cab, we opted for the bus into town - the AE4 which is highly recommended to get into hostels or hotels around the main rail station. After a 12 hours flight and 2 hour transfer- traffic- we headed out for a nice long walk and explored at random. Eventually we got to the Khao San Road which was full of likeminded (?) travelling folk, but did thankfully also cater for our urgent need of Phad Thai. 25 bhat for a very decent feed from a street vendor, who collectively sell pretty much everything you'd want to eat. Chicken liver grilled isn't going to be hitting my all time favourite food list.Next day was a quick and dirty trip around Bangkok looking at the Grand Palace and neighboring temple complex which had we listened to touts we would not have had time to see...as Robert so eloquently put it, don't trust anyone in Bangkok. The sites are really worth seeing, the temples and Buddha's are lovingly kept and grounds maintained...well worth the 50 bhat for the temples and 350 bhat for the Grand Palace. Heading off to see Bangkok from the river we found the best option was to jump onto a river ferry for 13 bhat and took a trip for miles and miles upriver before jumping off and catching a boat back to near the hostel. Catching up on much needed sleep and perhaps fighting a little jet lag, we then headed to the Pat Pong area for some obligatory ping pong and beer. The hostel- the Cozy Place hostel I can only recommend, clean and tidy - seemingly very secure and in a good central location but away from the humdrum of the tourist city areas. Off to jump on a bus to Koh Chang and do some relaxing :-) Jennifer will write the next entry..MT