Closing out Cambodia

The waterfall in Phnom Kulen National Park.  Although we didn't, swimming is allowed and several people were enjoying the cool water.

Our five days in Cambodia has come to an end.  It really must be true that "time flies when you're having fun", because our time went by very quickly.
Before flying to Laos we had one more day to see more that Cambodia has to offer.  We also got to celebrate a national holiday, the Cambodian Independence Day.  It was on November 9, 1953 that Cambodia declared their independence from France. We had left Phnom Penh behind, which is where the Independence Monument is located.    It is also there that they celebrate their independence with a huge fireworks and lighted boat display along the river in the evening.  In the Siem Reap area the celebration during the day consisted mainly of families picnicking and enjoying time with one another.  This was especially true at Kulen Mountain,  a huge national park which was about an hour and a half drive from our hotel.
We did a short hike to a very nice waterfall, visited a huge reclining Buddha and walked along a river that in the ninth century was considered sacred by the Hindu's.  They constructed thousands of sandstone statues in the riverbed to honor the god Shiva.  Time has worn most of them down to the foundation but the water was low enough and clear enough that several could still be seen looking up at us.  In a random act of kindness a large Indian family was picnicking along the river.  When we walked past they invited us to join them for lunch.  We told them we appreciated their offer very much but that we would have to pass for now.  They smiled and cheerfully went back to enjoying their holiday picnic.

Panoramic of the waterfall

The face of the reclining Buddha

Prayers being offered up to Buddha

These red bananas grow in the national park.  They're a little sweeter than regular bananas.  By the time we got back to Siem Reap the four of us (me, Beth, Bern and our driver) had pretty well wiped them out.

We flew from Siem Reap to Luang Prabang, Laos late yesterday.  I'm sure the celebration of Independence Day from the French picked up and continued well into the night.  The French may be gone but they did leave at least one gift behind, the baguette!
If you're going to visit Cambodia you're going to have a great time!  Here's a few tips that you may find helpful.
1. You won't need to exchange your money here.  US dollars are accepted everywhere and prices are usually listed in both Cambodian and US.  If you do plan to use US dollars make sure to bring small denominations like ones, fives, tens and a few twenties.  Also make sure they are in good shape.  They may not accept older bills or bills that are partially torn.
2. We didn't use one, but ATM's were everywhere in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap.  Credit cards are accepted in many but not all major stores and restaurants.
3.  Getting around where we were is very easy.  Tuk-tuks are all over the place in the two cities we enjoyed.  They are inexpensive, fun and the driver will usually wait for you at no additional cost even if it's going to be a few hours.
4.  Food and drinks are inexpensive and tasty.  With a little common sense you can enjoy some great Cambodian dishes.  Pizza and burgers are easy to find if you need a taste of home (we do every few days).  Beth has really developed a fondness for the fresh lime juice (limeade).  I've enjoyed it as well but have to have a coke every now and then.  If you're a beer drinker you'll think you've died and gone to beer heaven.  It's served cold and it's cheap.  I was so proud of my sixty one cent beer on Pub Street in  Siem Reap that I took a picture of the receipt.  As we walked around I realized I had grossly overpaid.  Most places were advertising it for fifty cents.
5.  Our hotel experience in both Phnom Penh  (Double Leaf Boutique) and Siem Reap (Pavilion d' Orient) were excellent.  We had great service, clean, comfortable rooms and plenty of hot water.  Both would be classified in the three and a half to four star range and they set us back around fifty dollars per night.
6.  There are tour companies and travel agencies readily available.  You can plan in advance or easily plan as you go.
7.  Be advised it can be pretty hot.  The temperature was like a Florida summer day, but it is starting to cool off some.  The hottest months of the year are March, April and May.  The best time to visit is November-February (prices might be a little higher, but probably not much).
If Southeast Asia is on your radar screen make sure to spend a bit of time in Cambodia if at all possible.  You'll be glad you did!
  

Day 2 in Siem Reap. Guess wat we did?

Two days of wats is a wat of wats!  But they are very interesting and unique, so no complaints here.
Today we ventured out a little past Angkor Wat to Angkor Thom.  The word "Angkor" means city or capital and the word "Thom" means large.  Put the two together and you have a large city.  It was established in the 12th century.
We explored three more temples.  First up was the Bayon Temple.  Although it is smaller than Angkor Wat, it turned out to be our favorite.  When it was originally built there were 54 spires.  Each spire represented one of the provinces of Cambodia.  Each spire has a large smiling Buddha carved on all four sides.  Although many of the spires have fallen since the construction there are 26 that remain standing.  Some are in better shape than others but you can still see Buddha smiling down on many of them.

Bayon Temple

Each spire had the face of Buddha carved on all four sides

Unlike Angkor Wat, the walls of Bayon Temple depicted "real life" scenes instead of mythology.  Note in this carving the man is carrying one sword.  The woman has a sword, a bag over her shoulder, she's balancing something on her head and has a child under her arms.  Our guide said "just like today, the women can multitask".

The ladies turtle is biting the man on the butt

Smiling since the 12th century

Our final two temples were the Preah Khan Temple and the Ta Prohm Temple.  We enjoyed spending time at both of them.  The Ta Prohm Temple was really different with the huge trees growing all over the walls, floors and spires.  This temple may also look a little to familiar to some of you.  It was where the movie Tomb Raider with Angelina Jolie was filmed in 2001.

Tomb Raider Facts

Preah Kahn Temple

Entrance to the Preah Khan Temple

You can't just look at wats all day!  Top-Fish Amok-It's served in a coconut shell.  Contains fish (of course), veggies, spices and coconut milk.  Bottom- Beef Curry   Both were very tasty!

Ta Prohm Temple

Downtown Siem Reap comes to life at night.  Pub Street, as the name implies is full of restaurants and bars.  There is also a night market a few steps away.  Our hotel (Pavilion d' Orient) is located in a quieter section of town.  Getting to downtown was by tuk-tuk ($3).

 No more wats are on the itinerary!  No more wat jokes, but we did amuse ourselves coming up with them.  If you enjoyed them...…...thanks a wat!

Wat we did on Beth's Birthday!

Banteay Srei Entrance

No, there's no typo in the title.  I'm sure you'll understand it as you read along.
First of all, yes today (November 7) is Beth's birthday!  This is her third birthday since I retired and we started this journey.  Two years ago we celebrated it in New Zealand, last year we celebrated it in Dubai (and a day trip to Oman).  This year, here we are in Siem Reap, Cambodia!
Siem Reap is located in northwestern Cambodia and has emerged in recent years as a popular destination for travelers.  It was actually the capital city of the country until the 14th century when the capital was relocated to Phnom Penh.  The relocation was due to Phnom Penh being at the confluence of two major rivers thereby making it more desirable for trade with other countries.  Wat's the main reason people come to Siem Reap?  Why of course it's the Wat's!
A wat by definition is a Buddhist Temple or Hindu Temple.  Our guide, who is quite talkative, funny and always laughing defined it a little differently.  He said that a Wat is the entire complex of structures enclosed within the outer walls.  It would include the main temple, other buildings such as libraries, smaller temples, courtyards and monasteries (living and working quarters for the monks).  Whatever the definition there are over 4,000 wat's in Cambodia, which is a wat of wat's!  There is a heavy concentration of them in the Siem Reap area since this was the capital city of the country for so long.  Not only is there a heavy concentration, the largest and most well know of them, Angkor Wat is located here.
Today we visited four of these impressive structures.  Which may not sound like a wat but it really was, especially since the "feels like temperature" for most of the day was hovering around 100 degrees.  First up, because of it's close proximity to our hotel, was the big one, Angkor Wat.  "Big one" is a literal term, since it covers over 400 acres.  The surrounding moat is 3 miles in length and the outer wall measures 2.2 miles.  It was built in the early part of the 12th century originally as a Hindu Temple and features many carvings telling stories of Hindu mythology.  Towards the end of the century it became a Buddhist place of worship.  Like Machu Picchu, it was abandoned for a period of time before being rediscovered.  The 200 yard wide moat around it is partially credited for how well preserved it remains today.  It seems as if the moat was so wide that while it was abandoned it prevented the jungle from encroaching too heavily on it.  Angkor Wat is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is such a significant part of Cambodia's history that it is the centerpiece of the countries flag.

There are actually five spires, however when you look at it from directly in front it only looks like there are three

Our guide had a great grasp of Hindu mythology and would stop along the way to share with us interpretations of the carvings.  I'll say one thing for the Hindu people of the 12th century, they had some great imaginations when it came to mythology.

Angkor Wat Entrance-Our guide knew all the places to get the best pictures.  This is between the moat and the outer wall.  It provides a great reflection

This is still a place Buddhists come to worship.  We passed this group of boys.  Some looked as young as 10-12.

The type of art carving is called bas relief.  It's the longest continuous work of it's kind in the world.  It covers over a mile of the wall

Angkor Wat

The back gate to Angkor Wat.  We loved this area because of the shade it provided!

We then drove a little further out of the city of Siem Reap to the Banteay Srei.  Unlike the other Wat's we visited today this one was constructed of sandstone.  It is known as the "ladies temple" because the king dedicated it to his mother.  It too was abandoned for a period of time before being rediscovered in the early 1900's. As with Angor Wat, the walls featured detailed carvings of the wildly imaginative Hindu's.

The entrance gate to Banteay Srei-The Ladies Temple

After visiting two more wat's and taking numerous more pictures we decided that was a wat of wat's for the day and headed back to the hotel.  We were both impressed at the rural scenery along the way out and back.

Practicing my Cambodian greeting with our guide at the Banteay Samre temple

Banteay Samre Temple the third of four temples we visited today

A Kardashian in Cambodia?

The fourth and final wat of the day!  Pre Rup Temple

When we got back to the hotel there was a nice vase of freshly cut flowers in the room.  I had e-mailed our great travel agent with Tonkin Travel to let her know about Beth's birthday but she had already picked up on it and contacted the hotel (great above and beyond service).  But there was one more surprise in store.  We had eaten a big lunch so we weren't very hungry.  We decided to just grab something small at the hotel restaurant.  At the conclusion of the meal all the lights were suddenly dimmed and the two nice servers came out with a birthday cake with candles and singing "Happy Birthday" with a Cambodian accent!

The Birthday Girl!

Tomorrow we have a wat more wat's to see!
One other thing, this is somewhat of a significant milestone as it relates to this blog.  According to the stats I get this is blog number 400!  Thank's to whoever is out there reading this thing.  I hope I'm providing a little education and entertainment.  Thanks for coming along with us on this journey!  

Phnom Penh

Along the Phnom Penh waterfront

Phnom Penh is a city with a lot going on right now.  Construction cranes dot the skyline, especially along the very nice waterfront area.  The city, with a population of over 1.5 million people is growing both out and up.  Phnom Penh was founded in the 14th century.  The site for the city was selected because of its desirable location at the confluence of the Mekong and Tonle Sap Rivers.  The parts of the city that we have seen have been exceptionally clean with numerous tree lined parks.

Yesterday we headed out around 8:00 am in the morning, just as the work week was starting for many people.  We quickly discovered that although calm, orderly and with far less horn blowing than in the cities of Vietnam, a few more traffic lights would be helpful.  

We stopped first at the Monument of King Norodom Sihanouk, who was beloved by many Cambodians who considered him the "Father King".  He passed away in 2012 and his son now serves as King.  His son is 67 so I assume he still has some good years remaining.  However, he never married so there is no one in line to replace him.  At the appropriate time there will be an election, not by the general population but by the parliament, which is referred to as the National Assembly of Cambodia.

The Independence Monument

Since we were in the area of the Royal Palace we made that our next stop.  It was quite an impressive collection of buildings including the Kings residence. The flag was up in front, meaning he was home.  Our local guide for the day was very good but I guess he's not well connected and we were unable to drop in for tea and a quick chat.

 

Inside the Royal Palace Complex

A Buddha Tree and a Buddha Statue (kind of a 2 for 1 picture)

The National Museum

My long lost twin!

After these interesting stops the day took on a different far more serious tone.  In 1975 as the Vietnam war was ending a ruthless regime was emerging in Cambodia.  This regime, know as Khmer Rouge was led by a communist revolutionary named Pol Pot.  Within three days of seizing power all services such as schools, hospitals, banks and businesses were closed.  Families were run out of the city and ordered to work in the fields of small villages throughout the county.  Arrests, interrogations, torture and executions became a daily ritual.  We visited the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum.  Before the takeover by the Khmer Rouge it was a high school.  The campus had four main buildings.  Classrooms occupied at least two of the three story buildings.  I'm certain that just by looking at the structure it was a modern school providing an outstanding education to many young people.  Unfortunately it was transformed into a notorious prison where many were tortured into making false confessions before being executed.

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum
We then went to the Choeung Ek Killing Fields.  As the name implies this is were over 17,000 men, women and children were brutally executed.  There are 126 mass graves in the area.  86 of these graves have been excavated.  The largest contained 450 bodies.  The excavations have been discontinued because identification of the remains is almost impossible so the government has decided to let the others buried there "rest in peace".
It was difficult to see and hear the stories.  Our tour guide shared with us that his grandfather had been taken one night and never seen again.  As difficult as it was, I think it was important to help gain an understanding of the country and it's history.  It is hard to believe that this occurred relatively recently.  Cambodia is to be commended for it's recovery efforts.  Not only was the infrastructure of the city destroyed but many of those executed were doctors, lawyers, business and government leaders. It has been a total rebuilding effort.  If you come to Phnom Penh I highly recommend you visit these two sites.
After resting for a bit at our hotel (DoubleLeaf Boutique) we enjoyed lunch at a local restaurant called Eleven One Kitchen.  We had a new dish that had been recommend called Siem Reap Sour Soup with Beef.  It was excellent and for only $5 very filling.
Speaking of $5, after lunch we stopped for a one hour foot massage for the same price as a bowl of soup.  My hair was getting a little long (insert laughter here) so I popped in the local barbershop where a young man maticiously trimmed every hair remaining on my head for three bucks!
This morning we finished up our time in Phnom Penh by taking a tuk-tuk down to the waterfront for a nice walk.  It's packing time and later today we're off to Siem Reap and hopefully some more soup!

Waterfront Area

Tucker, the tuk-tuk driver and his tuk-tuk

  

Vietnam.........a final reflection

Currently there are 58,318 names inscribed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC.
Each name represents a young man or woman who died in Southeast Asia either during the war or of injuries received while serving.  In addition there are countless others who continue to suffer physically and emotionally.  Unfortunately the treatment that many of them received when they returned home was far from a hero's welcome.  Time doesn't heal all wounds but thankfully it has healed some of them.  I am eternally grateful to all who have served in our military.
The total number of casualties of the war vary widely.  Generally it is estimated that around 2 million people lost their lives, half of which were civilians.  It would not be appropriate to forget these lives as well.
Being in Vietnam for close to three weeks gave me plenty of time for reflection on that difficult period.  I didn't come to Vietnam as any kind of expert on the war.  I left Vietnam with more questions than answers and quite honestly, they're questions that probably have no answers.
The phrase "war is hell" has been traced back to General Sherman and the Civil War.  Truer words may have never been spoken!

Goodbye Vietnam, Hello Cambodia!

You can just call me "Party" from now on!  Our driver and his sign at the Phnom Penh dock

This morning we said goodbye to Vietnam!  It was an amazing and fast 20 days.  Obviously we only covered a tiny bit of what there is to see and do, but we did cover a lot of territory.  From Sapa in the far north to the Mekong Delta in the south.  It was very diverse, but one thing was consistent.  Everywhere we went we met incredibly friendly and welcoming people who were excited to share their history and culture.
We kicked off our last full day very early...……..5:30 early!  We met our local guide at the reception of the hotel lobby.  He smiled and said, "Hello I'm Phat (fat)"!  Had it not been so early I would have come back with a quick "no you're not", but it's hard to have a quick and witty response at that time of the morning.  Phat quickly ushered us to a waiting boat for a 20-30 minute ride up the river to a local floating market (Phong Dien Floating Market).  As I had mentioned previously, things start early in Vietnam.  The river was already full of boats transporting construction material, food and people up, down and across.
We reached the market shortly after 6:00 AM and it was already in full swing.  We were told this particular market was a "small, local market".  When we arrived there were around 15-20 boats anchored at a bend in the river.  Other boats would come along side and make purchases of fruits, vegetables and meats for the day's meals.  Like the land markets we had visited previously, this one operates everyday although the location changes based on tides and the flow of the river.  We bought some really nice "lady finger" bananas, banana chips and mango.  The total cost was around $1.30 US or $30,000 Vietnamese Dong.

After leaving the small market we headed for a second and larger market (Cal Rang Floating Market).  Instead of taking the most direct route along the main river we were treated to a more scenic route through smaller canals.  As we got close to the larger market it was clear that it was significantly larger than the first market we visited.  There were larger boats loaded with pineapples, pumpkins, cabbage and more.  Some of the boats were so full that it looked like with just a couple of more pineapples, pumpkins or cabbage the boats would turn to submarines.  Our first stop at this market was for breakfast.  We pulled up to a small boat, tied up and enjoyed a bowl of Pho (a tasty rice noodle soup) and Vietnamese Coffee.  A makeshift table was set up for our bowls.  Every time a large boat would pass Phat would yell "hold your bowls"!  After breakfast we cruised through the market for a while before getting off our small boat and on to a larger boat selling pineapples.  The pineapples they were selling were smaller, sweeter and expertly carved about 30 seconds before hitting our mouths.

Cal Rang Floating Market.  The sellers would raise a sample of what they were selling on the poles

Cal Rang Floating Market

Fresh cut pineapple is sure to put a smile on your face

After the markets we reconnected with our guide and driver who had been with us since our arrival in Ho Chi Minh City.  We stopped briefly at the local land market for a quick walk through.  It was the usual assortment of food items with the exception of one booth in the meat section that had a nice bowl of freshly cleaned rats.  We didn't try any but I'm sure it tastes like chicken!

Fish and a hearty bowl of freshly cleaned rats for sell at the market

We were delivered to our hotel in Chau Doc (about a four hour drive)  On the way we stopped for lunch at a place that was a combination crocodile farm & restaurant (you can't make this stuff up).  It was better to have lunch than to be lunch.  Oh by the way, we did have some nice grilled crocodile as part of the meal...……..tastes like chicken.

Part of the welcoming committee at the Crocodile Farm/Restaurant 

Grilled Crocodile Strips

This morning we had breakfast on the hotel balcony.  The hotel was on Sam Mountain overlooking the rice fields surrounding Chau Doc.  It was a fitting end to an amazing 20 days in Vietnam!

From the hotel balcony in Chau Doc

There are several ways to get from Chau Doc to Phnom Penh, Cambodia.  It would be a short flight but we chose the more scenic route which was by "fast boat".  The boat was fast but the journey along the river took around 7:00 hours total.  Part of that time was spent at the border.  First exiting Vietnam and then entering Cambodia.  There were no issues for us.  I didn't have to drop my pants for a strip search like I did crossing back from Jordan to Israel a few months ago (check out the May 8, 2018 blog for details).  However, one nice elderly lady from the UK was denied admittance into Cambodia because her passport was going to be expiring in less than six months (this is a common requirement in many countries).  She and her traveling companion were going to have to make their way back to Saigon and cut their trip short. Check for passport requirements and make sure your passport is in good condition with plenty of empty pages!
In spite of the length of the boat ride it was very enjoyable.  Thanks to Tonkin Travel making all the arrangements we really hadn't read too much about Phnom Penh in advance.  It has a very nice waterfront with numerous markets, Buddhist Temples, the Presidential Palace and parks.  We're looking forward to exploring it over the next couple of days!

Waiting at the border.  At least I got to keep my pants up this time!

One of dozens of Buddhist Wats along the route

Cambodia's version of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge

Our "fast boat" from Chau Doc to Phnom Penh

New Construction going on along the waterfront of Phnom Penh