It took me a long time to write this. Mostly because I really don't want it all to be over.
First, Siem Reap. I loved so much about the place. Of course, the temples were the big hit. My favourite, hands down, was Bayon. Bayon has hundreds upon hundreds of giant stone faces staring down at you from multiple four sided temples. It's awe-inspiring. Paul and I arrived early morning to watch the temple be slowly illuminated by the rising sun. We chose Bayon as our starting point in an attempt to avoid the insane temple crowds. It worked, we were two of only five people there. Everyone else was clambering for spots for their tripods outside of Angkor Wat.
We ended up doing eleven hours of templing on our second day. That was after about 7 hours on day one. It was worth it. We rented bicycles which kept us alert and allowed us complete freedom of travel. Highly recommended for the "outside circuit" as well as the inside circuit.
Siem Reap has a bustling night market that is fully geared towards tourists. Original art abounds whether it be paintings, sculptures or woodcarvings. Paradise right before Christmas. It is also a town of well adorned eateries and sharp night life, and cheap-ish hotels. We loved it. Vincent from Belgium, stayed at a hostel for $1US per night. He did say, "I think I know why it's $1," however.
For our final night Paul and I spleshed out on a fancy hotel. The Terrace des Elephants was easily the nicest hotel either one of us has ever seen much less stayed at. Wow. Our room included a lily pond with live lilies and two bridges to cross said pond. We invited our friends Kate (england, who we'd been travelling with for over a week) Vincent (who we met on the bus to Battambang) Josh (our new American friend who got to know on the boat to Siem Reap) and Rose (England, who we met through Josh) to our hotel to have a dinner at the swanky restaurant and a swim in the pool. After which we decided to give'r on our last night out. Although it may have ended in tears following a big Bollywood mash up dance, it was still pretty fun. We will miss you all. Kate, we will see you again. It must be. Josh, I can't wait for our personal tour of Boulder, Colorado.
This was the most of everything. The trip consisted of so many superlatives. It is hard to be back home and having to say goodbye to the friends, places and experiences.
Already planning the next trip. Kate, get your motorcycle license.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Friday, December 10, 2010
Kep--> Kampot --> Battambang
Creative titl, no?
We left rabbit island with our newly reunited friend Kate. The three of us headed off to Kampot for 2.5 great days. Kampot is a riverside town at the Tonle Sap delta. It's got loads of crumbling french buildings which adds a colonial charm to this city. It's also got the most fantastic remains of an old french casino/hotel, church and palace at the top of their little mountain. This is the bokor hill station. The view is breathtaking, and we were lucky enough to have a perfect blue sky day. The casino/hotel is super eerie with its old grandeur. Plus it was used as a shelter for shooting at Khmer Rouge soldiers holding up in the catholic church.
The casino is built on multi-levels so its easy to get lost and trapped. I was unable to get back out the front door at one point as the maze of staircases seemed to lead me in circles. This is the place horror movies and nightmares are made. The casino has a cameo in a Matt Dillon movie. 2000riel to whomever can name the movie (I've forgotten the name).
On the way to the hill station we trekked for about 2 hrs in jungle on our way to a three tiered waterfall. It was like being in a giant's play pen full of little building blocks. But to us the blocks are massive and tumbled all over. The water is the colour of rust. The guide was not able to tell us why, but Paul and I figure it's because the rocks have red in them and they appear rusted. Must be iron?
The next day Kate, Paul and I rented motorbikes and toured all over hell's half acre. This included a jaunt through some rice paddies where I was attacked by a dog and drove my bike off the (very) narrow escarpment between the paddies. We also headed out to a pepper plantation (Kampot is world famous for its pepper, some of the most expensive in the world) and to several villages. Loved it.
More on the pepper. I have now eaten pepper fresh off the pepper tree. It's powerful, flavourful and green. It's a teeny tiny fruit really. There is no question that Kampot pepper is the best pepper I have ever had.
The following morning we took the 12hour bus ride to Battambang. On the bus we met Vince from Belgium who is now travelling with us. Our first night in the hotel we met some young people wearing matching t-shirts. I, being the sociable one, asked what was with the outfits (I said it with better manners than that though). Turns out the are performers in a circus currently in town. This is an artistic circus, not the abused animal kind. We immediately headed out to the night circus to be amazed by the Cambodian act (Puthot) . The acts of athleticism and balance were astounding. The modern dance performance was interesting for 20min and then dreadfully boring for 25 more minutes. The final show was the young people we met in the hotel earlier. They are a brazilian drum group from Germany (yeah, we also thought this strange). They were super high energy and got the crowd just jumping along.
Today we hired 'Happy' the Tuk Tuk driver to tour us all around. Temples, vistas, the killing caves, fruit bats, a suspension bridge and a Khmer heritage house. Great. The best part though was the bamboo train. It's a bamboo platform balanced on two sets of attached rollers with a motor sitting on top the whole contraption. Not only does it go quite fast, but it is easily taken apart, removed from the track and reassembled when meeting other such devices. It was a load of fun and Paul was able to get the best haircut and shave of his life at the tiny village at the end. Paul was the barbers first ever foreigner and he told us (through a translator that his hands were shaking as a result). Fittingly, it was Paul's first ever outdoor haircut, and with a manual razor.
Tomorrow all four of us are taking the boat to Siem Reap. The adventure continues
Linds
We left rabbit island with our newly reunited friend Kate. The three of us headed off to Kampot for 2.5 great days. Kampot is a riverside town at the Tonle Sap delta. It's got loads of crumbling french buildings which adds a colonial charm to this city. It's also got the most fantastic remains of an old french casino/hotel, church and palace at the top of their little mountain. This is the bokor hill station. The view is breathtaking, and we were lucky enough to have a perfect blue sky day. The casino/hotel is super eerie with its old grandeur. Plus it was used as a shelter for shooting at Khmer Rouge soldiers holding up in the catholic church.
The casino is built on multi-levels so its easy to get lost and trapped. I was unable to get back out the front door at one point as the maze of staircases seemed to lead me in circles. This is the place horror movies and nightmares are made. The casino has a cameo in a Matt Dillon movie. 2000riel to whomever can name the movie (I've forgotten the name).
On the way to the hill station we trekked for about 2 hrs in jungle on our way to a three tiered waterfall. It was like being in a giant's play pen full of little building blocks. But to us the blocks are massive and tumbled all over. The water is the colour of rust. The guide was not able to tell us why, but Paul and I figure it's because the rocks have red in them and they appear rusted. Must be iron?
The next day Kate, Paul and I rented motorbikes and toured all over hell's half acre. This included a jaunt through some rice paddies where I was attacked by a dog and drove my bike off the (very) narrow escarpment between the paddies. We also headed out to a pepper plantation (Kampot is world famous for its pepper, some of the most expensive in the world) and to several villages. Loved it.
More on the pepper. I have now eaten pepper fresh off the pepper tree. It's powerful, flavourful and green. It's a teeny tiny fruit really. There is no question that Kampot pepper is the best pepper I have ever had.
The following morning we took the 12hour bus ride to Battambang. On the bus we met Vince from Belgium who is now travelling with us. Our first night in the hotel we met some young people wearing matching t-shirts. I, being the sociable one, asked what was with the outfits (I said it with better manners than that though). Turns out the are performers in a circus currently in town. This is an artistic circus, not the abused animal kind. We immediately headed out to the night circus to be amazed by the Cambodian act (Puthot) . The acts of athleticism and balance were astounding. The modern dance performance was interesting for 20min and then dreadfully boring for 25 more minutes. The final show was the young people we met in the hotel earlier. They are a brazilian drum group from Germany (yeah, we also thought this strange). They were super high energy and got the crowd just jumping along.
Today we hired 'Happy' the Tuk Tuk driver to tour us all around. Temples, vistas, the killing caves, fruit bats, a suspension bridge and a Khmer heritage house. Great. The best part though was the bamboo train. It's a bamboo platform balanced on two sets of attached rollers with a motor sitting on top the whole contraption. Not only does it go quite fast, but it is easily taken apart, removed from the track and reassembled when meeting other such devices. It was a load of fun and Paul was able to get the best haircut and shave of his life at the tiny village at the end. Paul was the barbers first ever foreigner and he told us (through a translator that his hands were shaking as a result). Fittingly, it was Paul's first ever outdoor haircut, and with a manual razor.
Tomorrow all four of us are taking the boat to Siem Reap. The adventure continues
Linds
Monday, December 6, 2010
Lost in Kep
We bought bus tickets to Kampot but thought Kep looked nice. So we got off the bus early. We had read that Rabbit island is pretty undeveloped and will not stay that way much longer. So we hired a boat to the island and checked into the tiny bungalow guest house overlooking the beach. We were pretty pumped to get into the crystal clear water and get rid of the heat and grime of Phnom Penh. When who should appear, shouting, "Hey that's my bikkini (which she had given to me a week earlier) but Kate, our dear friend from Englan. We met Kate on the bus to Luang Prabang and seperated ways when we left Vang Vieng. She ended up at this small remote island the same way we did. She got off the bus at a stop that looked nice. Knowing nothing about the area she took the advice of Marting, her current travelling companion, and headed over to Rabbit island. It's lovely, and we're so happy to be reunited with "our girl".
There's not much to report as Rabbit island is one of the places where everything moves real slow. We sunbathed, swam and splashed about (or, as Paul says "frolicked") for 2 days. I think we needed a touch of the slow paced. Kate had already been there 4 days, so was ready to leave with us.
We're now in Kampot. We just arrived at our awesome little guest house. It has 3 beds. Poor Kate ahs to share a room with us. Tomorrow we're touring the famed Bokor Hill Station. It's an old colonial French retreat that was bombed out by the Khmer Rouge. It remains a ghost town today. It sounds pretty cool. After that, not sure. Maybe some homestays and "Community Based Eco Tourism" a great catch phrase if ever there was one.
L
There's not much to report as Rabbit island is one of the places where everything moves real slow. We sunbathed, swam and splashed about (or, as Paul says "frolicked") for 2 days. I think we needed a touch of the slow paced. Kate had already been there 4 days, so was ready to leave with us.
We're now in Kampot. We just arrived at our awesome little guest house. It has 3 beds. Poor Kate ahs to share a room with us. Tomorrow we're touring the famed Bokor Hill Station. It's an old colonial French retreat that was bombed out by the Khmer Rouge. It remains a ghost town today. It sounds pretty cool. After that, not sure. Maybe some homestays and "Community Based Eco Tourism" a great catch phrase if ever there was one.
L
Friday, December 3, 2010
"Bit by a monkey" or "Fun monkey disease"
The 4000 Islands were, to be honest, a bit of a disappointment. They are beautiful, yes, but Laos as a whole is incredibly beautiful. We arrived late, haggled for a room and then wandered about. The following day we rented bikes and explored the two smaller of the inhabited islandes (Don Khon and Don Det). There was this great little Gibbon on a leash in the yard of a guest house. I carefully edged towards him and stuck out my hand (slowly) for him to sniff. He took my hand in his and shook it like a gently hand shake. He then hopped up in my lap. I was not expecting this but he was so gentle and human. He stroked my hand and picked at my shirt. In the blink of an eye he was on my head. I was a little less comfortable with this as I couldn't see him. "Paul, what's he doing, what's he doing." He appeared to be grooming me. He then took off my hat and tried it on. No joke. It fell off his tiny little gibbon head. I was in love. He lulled me into a false sense of security. He then grabbed my hair with his vicious little claws and bit down hard on the back of my head. I shrieked and shook him off. However, monkeys don't get shaked off. They're monkeys after all. He hung onto my tree limb forearm and bit down hard again. Yes, mom, he did break the skin. And no, I have not been to the hospital. There are non in Laos. Well, non that would be healthier than a monkey bite anyways.
So Paul and I are watching out for signs of rabies and aids. That's all.
The morning we checked out we discovered the guest house staff stole our laptop. I've lost 610 photos and no amount of crying and pleading with them would bring it back. It's gone. I'm now searching through the facebook profiles of the people I've met for any photos they may have that I lost. Unfortunately, we lost all of Tad Fan photos and no one was with us on the first day. Those photos are gone forever.
We are now in Cambodia. We had to bribe (a lot) at the border. But at least we were prepared for this, carrying a stash of american $1 bills.
We stopped in Kratie to see the elusive Irrawaddy Dolphins. Cambodia and Laos have the largest population left in the world and there are only about 200 in the Mekong. It's a staggeringly low number. We wanted to see them to support the efforts of the eco-tourism groups promoting their survival. Plus, Dolphins are cool.
Now in Phnom Penn. The bustling capital. It's a great city so far. Especially considering it was a bombed out and completely emptied (actually, all citizens were forced to leave except for those in torture prisons, check S-21 or Khmer Rouge online) only 30 short years ago. There are now 2million people here. And money is flying. Tourism, international funding, and everyone wanting a piece of the pie has led to loads and loads of construction. There is still abject poverty, but it is getting glossed up and over with glassed front stores and posh boutique hotels. It hasn't lost it's Cambodian flair though, it's not completely westernized. They've developed in their own Cambodian way. It's not all for the benefit of the rich either. There is a growing middle class here too. I don't mean to make it sound like paradise, it's not. But it is developing with the pros and cons that development has.
Yesterday was spent touring S-21 and the killing fields. It was something we felt was necessary and respectful to do. But hard. The killing fields has been privatized though. Which kind of makes you want to puke.
One more day in Phnom Penn and then we're off to the coast. Sweet!
So Paul and I are watching out for signs of rabies and aids. That's all.
The morning we checked out we discovered the guest house staff stole our laptop. I've lost 610 photos and no amount of crying and pleading with them would bring it back. It's gone. I'm now searching through the facebook profiles of the people I've met for any photos they may have that I lost. Unfortunately, we lost all of Tad Fan photos and no one was with us on the first day. Those photos are gone forever.
We are now in Cambodia. We had to bribe (a lot) at the border. But at least we were prepared for this, carrying a stash of american $1 bills.
We stopped in Kratie to see the elusive Irrawaddy Dolphins. Cambodia and Laos have the largest population left in the world and there are only about 200 in the Mekong. It's a staggeringly low number. We wanted to see them to support the efforts of the eco-tourism groups promoting their survival. Plus, Dolphins are cool.
Now in Phnom Penn. The bustling capital. It's a great city so far. Especially considering it was a bombed out and completely emptied (actually, all citizens were forced to leave except for those in torture prisons, check S-21 or Khmer Rouge online) only 30 short years ago. There are now 2million people here. And money is flying. Tourism, international funding, and everyone wanting a piece of the pie has led to loads and loads of construction. There is still abject poverty, but it is getting glossed up and over with glassed front stores and posh boutique hotels. It hasn't lost it's Cambodian flair though, it's not completely westernized. They've developed in their own Cambodian way. It's not all for the benefit of the rich either. There is a growing middle class here too. I don't mean to make it sound like paradise, it's not. But it is developing with the pros and cons that development has.
Yesterday was spent touring S-21 and the killing fields. It was something we felt was necessary and respectful to do. But hard. The killing fields has been privatized though. Which kind of makes you want to puke.
One more day in Phnom Penn and then we're off to the coast. Sweet!
Monday, November 29, 2010
And these so called vacations will soon be my death.
Pretty sure these lyrics were written about Vang Vieng. The return journey was made for two purposes only. To spend more time with the great people we met in Luang Prabang, and so Paul could go off a rope swing. Both goals were achieved.
The tubing was great. It involved absolutely no tubing. Actually, it doesn`t actually require entering the water. You can walk from one death trap of a bar to the next. Or, as Phillippe from Brazil put it, `It`s not tubing, it`s barring.``
We got out alive after dropping from trapeze swings 20m above water of questionable depth, dropping off a rickety diving board (I use that term loosely) in pairs and attempting to navigate oddly angled step ladders after one to many beer laos. It`s amazing what can develop when there is absolutely no risk of liability.
We, exhausted and ready for something more Laos like, headed out after two days for the Bolaven Plateau. This incredible area is home to the famous rich Laos coffee. It`s so dark and thick it looks like it was mixed with tar. It`s also home to some of the most beautiful waterfalls in the world. We were lucky enough to get one of the last rooms in one of the only hotels in the entire plateau. The Tad Fane Resort overlooks the twin falls of the same name that plunge some 120m into a cylincrical cavern. We hiked for hours and were rewarded with views from the top of these two falls. We both felt a bit terrified though. Standing in water that is about to careen off the edge of the biggest cliff you`ve ever looked over = vertigo.
The next day we borrowed a bike from the generous swiss couple staying at the resort and the four of us headed out to the Champee Falls for a swim. The water, in all our waterfall swims is frigidly cold, but the exhilaration of swimming at the base of a breathtaking waterfall is worth it. I even found a rotted wooden log to jump off. We were also able to swim to the side of the thundering falls and get up on slippery rocks to walk behind the falls. Very cool.
We are now sitting in the Kingfisher Ecolodge (a real ecolodge. they`ve undergone numerous per guest per night impact assessments.) It was easy enough to get here. We had to catch a ride outside the Tad Fane resort by walking to the main road and hoping someone would stop (someone did, almost immediately). Then get to the bus terminal and hope the tuk tuk leaving for the 4000 islands was late (it was, we are in Laos after all). The get dropped off at the turn off to KietGong village (at 12km walk from the drop off) and walk along a red dirt counrty road trying to convince the locals to start up their trucks and take us to the lodge. A family stopped and for 40.000kip let us ride in the back of their truck with 8 barrrels full of water (or something). Yeah, easy.
That`s it for now. We have wifi here, so maybe a bit more blogging consistency.
Linds and Paul
The tubing was great. It involved absolutely no tubing. Actually, it doesn`t actually require entering the water. You can walk from one death trap of a bar to the next. Or, as Phillippe from Brazil put it, `It`s not tubing, it`s barring.``
We got out alive after dropping from trapeze swings 20m above water of questionable depth, dropping off a rickety diving board (I use that term loosely) in pairs and attempting to navigate oddly angled step ladders after one to many beer laos. It`s amazing what can develop when there is absolutely no risk of liability.
We, exhausted and ready for something more Laos like, headed out after two days for the Bolaven Plateau. This incredible area is home to the famous rich Laos coffee. It`s so dark and thick it looks like it was mixed with tar. It`s also home to some of the most beautiful waterfalls in the world. We were lucky enough to get one of the last rooms in one of the only hotels in the entire plateau. The Tad Fane Resort overlooks the twin falls of the same name that plunge some 120m into a cylincrical cavern. We hiked for hours and were rewarded with views from the top of these two falls. We both felt a bit terrified though. Standing in water that is about to careen off the edge of the biggest cliff you`ve ever looked over = vertigo.
The next day we borrowed a bike from the generous swiss couple staying at the resort and the four of us headed out to the Champee Falls for a swim. The water, in all our waterfall swims is frigidly cold, but the exhilaration of swimming at the base of a breathtaking waterfall is worth it. I even found a rotted wooden log to jump off. We were also able to swim to the side of the thundering falls and get up on slippery rocks to walk behind the falls. Very cool.
We are now sitting in the Kingfisher Ecolodge (a real ecolodge. they`ve undergone numerous per guest per night impact assessments.) It was easy enough to get here. We had to catch a ride outside the Tad Fane resort by walking to the main road and hoping someone would stop (someone did, almost immediately). Then get to the bus terminal and hope the tuk tuk leaving for the 4000 islands was late (it was, we are in Laos after all). The get dropped off at the turn off to KietGong village (at 12km walk from the drop off) and walk along a red dirt counrty road trying to convince the locals to start up their trucks and take us to the lodge. A family stopped and for 40.000kip let us ride in the back of their truck with 8 barrrels full of water (or something). Yeah, easy.
That`s it for now. We have wifi here, so maybe a bit more blogging consistency.
Linds and Paul
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Just a typical day in Laos
My first full day in Laung Prabang (my favourite place so far) was spent with a the group of people met the night before. Kate and Dan from England and I were on the mini bus together. Through them I met James (Perth), and Florian and Oliver from Germany. The group of us decided to rent scooters and take them to the most famous waterfall outside of town the following morning. A plan was hatched and meeting times were made. Perfect.
We picked up our scooters at 8:30am and James immediately drove towards a metal barrier. We all decided it was better if I went on the back of a scooter of a more experienced driver. (These are fast manual drives, and my insurance does not cover me if I`m driving one, so a passenger was a must). Flo and I paired up and at the very next T-intersection James drove into us, knocking over our bike. All were fine.
In the middle of our 1hr ride James got a flat. A really fast flat. He then meandered with the bike back to the previous town in the hope we could leave the bike there. However, flats are so common that the little town had a little shack to change our little tire. We hung out in the village for the slowest tire change in history, 1 hour. But the village was great, and the children very excited. They definitley have had some well meaning but uninformed tourists giving them money as this great little village was full of small children obsessed with begging. Side note: don`t give money, it doesn`t help, it creates a culture of dependency ans erodes the local culture. If you want to help, donate to the local school.
Once back on the road we smoothly and uneventfully finished our trip to the most beautiful waterfall. It is the picture of paradise. We went swimming in the pool at the bottom and hiked all the way to the top for spectacular views. If you`re ever in Laos, check it out.
On the way back a stranger pulled over directly in front of James causing his second crash of the day. Again, no injuries.
James, being quite a bit more conservative in his driving lagged behind us and missed the turn to the next waterfall. I waved him down where he promptly got pulled over by the local cops. They took his keys, helmet and bike. He was `fined` 500000kip, but the `fines` in this country have a middle point. He managed to barter them down to 300000kip.
Back on the road again. We never did find the second waterfall. But no one was hurt and no one went to jail. almost but not quite. I`d say that`s succesful.
L
We picked up our scooters at 8:30am and James immediately drove towards a metal barrier. We all decided it was better if I went on the back of a scooter of a more experienced driver. (These are fast manual drives, and my insurance does not cover me if I`m driving one, so a passenger was a must). Flo and I paired up and at the very next T-intersection James drove into us, knocking over our bike. All were fine.
In the middle of our 1hr ride James got a flat. A really fast flat. He then meandered with the bike back to the previous town in the hope we could leave the bike there. However, flats are so common that the little town had a little shack to change our little tire. We hung out in the village for the slowest tire change in history, 1 hour. But the village was great, and the children very excited. They definitley have had some well meaning but uninformed tourists giving them money as this great little village was full of small children obsessed with begging. Side note: don`t give money, it doesn`t help, it creates a culture of dependency ans erodes the local culture. If you want to help, donate to the local school.
Once back on the road we smoothly and uneventfully finished our trip to the most beautiful waterfall. It is the picture of paradise. We went swimming in the pool at the bottom and hiked all the way to the top for spectacular views. If you`re ever in Laos, check it out.
On the way back a stranger pulled over directly in front of James causing his second crash of the day. Again, no injuries.
James, being quite a bit more conservative in his driving lagged behind us and missed the turn to the next waterfall. I waved him down where he promptly got pulled over by the local cops. They took his keys, helmet and bike. He was `fined` 500000kip, but the `fines` in this country have a middle point. He managed to barter them down to 300000kip.
Back on the road again. We never did find the second waterfall. But no one was hurt and no one went to jail. almost but not quite. I`d say that`s succesful.
L
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