"First Day in Bangkok"
The flight from ICN to BKK went very quickly. We both slept most of the way (about 5 hours). Upon our arrival, we made our way through "immigration" without much fuss. Customs was basically non-existent, and before we knew it, we were in the crazy world of Bangkok. Thanks to Derek, we avoided the over-priced "Airport" taxi service, and used the "Public Taxi" stand outside the airport. After about a twenty-minute drive from the airport, we arrived safely (although somewhat freaked out after our taxi driver raced through the city streets) at Majestic Suites in Central Bangkok.
The hotel was very nice, although slightly above our budget at 1500 baht. The hotel room had this neat central control unit near the bed, which controlled the A/C, lights, and TV. Breafkast was included in the price, and this morning we enjoyed a traditional American meal of eggs, bacon, potatoes, and toast. Hopefully, no Avian Flu for us. haha
We're currently en-route to Khao San Road, the primary backpacker area of Bangkok. This area also contains the popular tourist destinations, such as the temples. The weather is very hot & steamy, but not a lot of sun at the moment. We found some cool sunglasses for about 400 baht (about $10 USD) for two pair. There's tons of street vendors, selling almost anything you can imagine.
Until our next post, "good-bye".
-Jeffrey & Rachel
[Central Bangkok - June 15; 11:00am (BKK time)]
"A day in Bangkok"
Well, it was not as splendid as we would have hoped for. If you thought traffic in Minneapolis or Chicago was bad, try hopping in a tuk-tuk (3-wheeled motorbike with a "carriage" on the back) in Bangkok! haha And on top of that, these tuk-tuk drivers have arrangements with multiple local services & shops. They receive "gas cards" or some other type of commission for bringing tourists there. Despite our simple request to go across town, we ended up at a tailor, travel agent, and long-tail boat tour. haha
To make matters worse, the long-tail boat was coasting along through typhoid-invested water which continually splashed us. haha We're joking...somewhat. It wasn't that bad, however, we wouldn't recommend it to anyone else. It did give us a chance to observe some of the local housing, which was actually quite sad. As Westerners, we are very, very lucky people to have as much as we do. The saddest part was these young children playing in this heavily polluted river, while sewage pumped into the river upstream.
We did have some delicious green curry chicken w/rice in the Kho San Road area, even though it took us most of the day to finally arrive there. haha We had to eat quickly, because we had to head back to the tailor to have my suit fitted. The tailors were very kind people from India, living & working in Thailand for the last 30 years. The price seemed fair, and the material & craftsmanship was amazing. We're picking it up today at 3pm.
By the late evening, we ended up back at the Majestic Suites hotel...and passed out around 9pm. We were completely exhausted. Between the heat and the culture shock, it was a lot to take in for one day. Our plans are to fly out to Siem Reap tonight or early tomorrow morning, depending on the timing after the tailor.
Not all the people were as keen on selling us various services & good. We met some very kind people that helped us by going out of their way. One man in particular helped us find the tailor, whom was nearly impossible to find (remember, the tuk-tuk driver dropped us off there earlier). The shop was tucked back in a small corner of a side-street, and the address they gave us didn't provide much guidance. This kind man used his cell phone to call the store, gather directions, and then proceeded to walk us all the way to the store! It was probably a 10-15 minute walk, clearly out of his way. We were lucky to find such a kind stranger in a time of need.
-Jeffrey & Rachel
[Bangkok - June 16 - 11:15am]
This message comes from Siem Reap, Cambodia...next door to the Red Piano Bar. For anyone concerned about the situation here in Siem Reap, all seems to be well. We flew into the small city with a bunch of photographers & reporters scurrying to find the "story." Despite the sadness of the event, we felt a little excited to be in the "rush" of it all.
Anyway, our second day in Bangkok went very well. Especially compared to yesterday. I guess you could call it a learning curve...the tuk-tuk drivers were avoided like the plague. haha And as a result, we were free to do what we pleased. We also found a much cheaper internet cafe, charging only 1 baht per minute (about $1.50 per hour), compared to 3 baht per hour yesterday. The shop also served us complimentary tea...and offered inexpensive bottled water (10 baht).
We picked up the suit from the tailor this afternoon. It looked amazing! The suit fit perfectly, and the proud tailors showed me the craftsmanship & quality of their stiching in the suit. They are holding it for me during our time outside of Bangkok, until I pick it up the day prior to departure for the States.
We flew into Cambodia at 7pm, after an hour flight from Bangkok. We flew on a two-engine plane, holding about 50-60 passengers. Surprisingly, they served us a meal (although not spectacular). The charges & costs to fly to Siem Reap hurt our budget a bit, but we figured avoiding the 8 hour bus ride filled with various "stops" at restaurants and shops was worth it. The flight was about $145, plus a $12 "airport departure" tax. Oh well. That's life.
Upon our arrival, we had a driver from the Red Piano Hotel pick us up. He had a sign with Rachel's name, and we double-checked his authenticity by asking him to call the hotel. These were the instructions from the hotel...and as planned, it all checked out. He also had very good English, so we booked him for the day tomorrow to show us around the temples.
The hotel seems nice...but we could only get into a room designed for 3-4 people, so we had to pay a little extra ($28 per night). The other rooms are full...and possibly the entire hotel is full tomorrow. We may have to relocate for the next two-three days.
From here, we plan on stopping at the bar for a drink or two, then heading back to go to bed. Siem Reap is very different from Bangkok. It's a small rural town in the countryside, while Bangkok is a major metropolitan area (6 million people). We'll see what we think of Siem Reap after we've been here for a few days.
Goodnight,
-Jeffrey & Rachel
[Siem Reap, Cambodia - June 16th - 9:34pm]
As we walked across the stone bridge that crosses the moat surrounding Angkor Wat, the unyielding sun beat down on us. The heat was incredible. It felt like entering your car for that first minute on a hot, humid day...except there was no relief. However, the heat could not take away from the pure magnitude of the incredible temples that stood before us. Built nearly a thousand years ago, the ancient temples of Angkor Wat (the primary temple within the Siem Reap area) showed the meticulous craftsmanship of the stone cutters. Countless intricate carvings adorned the walls, although many of them had become worn over the centuries.
About a half-hour later, we stood atop one of the towers. The view over the surrounding jungle & other temples was breath-taking. It's hard to imagine building something this massive so long ago. Not to mention in this incredible heat! An unofficial guide (aka - a young man looking for a quick tip) told us that elephants carried the cut stone 53 km from a nearby mountain. On a side note, it turned out that only "official" guides are allowed in the temples area. As we were standing by one of the temples, our supposed guide spotted men armed with M16's, and immediately took off in mid-sentence. We were confused and somewhat startled. Thankfully, it was the police...and not some random bandits or something.
We're exhausted from the day in the sun, heat, and hiking around the temples. So goodnight. We'll be in Siem Reap another two days, then on to Phnom Penh (capital city of Cambodia). It feels like we've already enjoyed a week or so over here...but in reality, it's only been 3 full days! How cool is that? :)
-Jeffrey & Rachel
[Siem Reap - June 17; 11:31pm]
"Last day in Siem Reap"
The last three days, we've explored the countless temples that surround the town of Siem Reap. From the massive temples of Angkor Wat & Bayon, to the much smaller ancient temples far from the town, each has a uniqueness that is simply amazing. To think that the dominant Khmer Empire had built such intricate, beautiful structures so long ago is very interesting.
At night, we enjoyed a variety of restaurants in town. The "Famous Siem Reap Restaurant", a Chinese/Cambodian eatery, offered delicious hot-chili-pepper chicken ($2) & cinnamon-flavored fried spring rolls ($2). The "Kappachino", recommended by our driver, had incredible wood-oven baked pizza for about $6. At the "Soup Dragon", a Vietnamese restaurant, we had some great fried rice and a fruit "shake". The "shake" had mango, papaya, orange, and pinneaple juices. Mmmmm!
This afternoon, we're relaxing before we head out tomorrow morning for Phnom Penh. The bus leaves at 6:30am, so we'll be getting up very early! It's about a 6-hour drive, and costs $6/each. The ride is air-conditioned, and the road was recently built with Japenese and American donations to the country. Many have told us it's the smoothest road in Cambodia.
-Jeffrey & Rachel
[Siem Reap - June 19; 1:30pm]
Hey finally got this thing running. Hope you two are having fun. I just got back to the cities and have been working since. Gotta work tommorow morning so I am going to keep this short this time. Again have fun.
~Mike Buss
This will be quick. We arrived in Phnom Penh safely, and found a good place to stay just off the river by the National Museum. Tomorrow, we'll see the Killing Fields & a few other places related to the Khmer Rouge. It will be a tough day, emotionally, to see all of the horrors that took place only about 30 years ago. For anyone that's been to the concentration camps in Germany, these sites should be very similar...yet even more graphic.
Have a good night from PP, Cambodia,
Jeffrey & Rachel
[Phnom Penh, Cambodia - June 20; 4:55pm]
"Horrors of the Khmer Rouge"
After a day of studying the horrible events of the Khmer Rouge regime, Rachel & I would like to share a brief summary of what occured during this time. This is a summary from Wikipedia, an online encyclopedia. Please read this entry to gain a better understanding of the atrocities of the world's very recent history in Cambodia.
During the Vietnam War, the Nixon-led US began to bomb the border of South Vietnam and Cambodia, targeting secret Vietcong camps and supply routes. The Vietcong sought refuge in nearby villages, and the United States began to bomb these villages as well. The neutralist government of Prince Sihanouk could do nothing, and when Sihanouk began to send supplies to North Vietnam, a civil war began.
In 1970, while Prince Sihanouk was away in Beijing, General Lon Nol seized power in a military coup d'état and declared the Khmer Republic. Immediately a civil war began between this military regime and the xenophobic and communist Khmer Rouge, which had gathered much strength because of support by the communist North Vietnamese and the Vietcong.
Led by Pol Pot, who later became the Prime Minister of Cambodia, the Khmer Rouge captured the capital Phnom Penh in 1975 and renamed the country to Democratic Kampuchea. The Khmer Rouge ideology included:
closing schools and hospitals;
abolishing banking and currency;
outlawing religion;
confiscating private property; and
relocating people from urban areas to collective farms where they were subject to forced labor
The Khmer Rouge justified its actions by claiming that Cambodia was on the brink of major famine due to the American bombing campaigns, and that this required the evacuation of the cities to the countryside so that people could become self-sufficient. It had the effect of converting the entire country into a re-education/labor camp. During the rule of the Khmer Rouge, about 1.7 million people were killed, or one-fifth of the country's population of the time. The Killing Fields and the S-21 prison at Tuol Sleng shocked the entire world as the government committed brutal autogenocide. In addition to death from work starvation and exhaustion, the regime killed anyone suspected with connections with either the defeated Khmer Republic government or the previous Sihanouk government, as well as intellectuals (Pol Pot defined anyone who wore glasses as automatically an intellectual), professionals, and also ethnic Vietnamese, Chinese, Chams, Laotians, and Thai. If this wasn't enough, Cambodia broke into Vietnamese, Lao, and Thai territory and massacred entire villages of border provinces. Even the royal family was brutalized. Prince Sihanouk was put under house arrest and many of the Sisowath branch of the family were massacred. The Tuol Sleng museum is a good authority on this period.
In 1978, a newly-unified Vietnam invaded Cambodia after repeated Khmer Rouge raids into Vietnamese territory and drove the Khmer Rouge to the western border with Thailand. A civil war between the Vietnamese-sponsored government of Phnom Penh and the Khmer Rouge continued until United Nations sponsored elections in 1993 restored stability. Prince Sihanouk became King again, and a coalition government between the conservative-royalist Funcinpec party and the pro-Vietnamese Cambodian People's Party was formed in 1998. That year also saw the surrender of the remaining Khmer Rouge troops and the death of Pol Pot. Nonetheless, none of the Khmer Rouge leaders have been tried for their war crimes. Cambodia now attempts to rebuild itself after years of horror.
*
Our driver, nicknamed "Black" by his friends for his dark skin, was very cool. He helped us a lot, guiding us through the chaos of Phnom Penh. His English was very good, perhaps even better than our driver in Siem Reap. He was an intelligent, friendly 29-year-old man from a village near the Cambodia-Vietnam border. Coincidentally, he'll be traveling on holiday in Thailand during the same time as us. We exchanged emails, and maybe we'll meet up for a drink in Koh Samui.
We have our bus tickets to Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Vietnam for tomorrow. Over the next 10 days or so, we plan on visiting HCMC, Mue Nei (a nice beach just outside HCMC), Dalat (a popular mountain retreat), and Nha Trang (another nice beach in Cam Ranh Bay). Should be fun!
-Jeffrey & Rachel
[Phnom Penh, Cambodia - June 21; 6:20pm]
"Arrival in HCMC, Vietnam"
After a pleasant dinner at Happy Herb Pizza on the Riverfront, we strolled back to the hotel. It was about a 5-10 minute walk. To our surprise, the clothes we had turned over to the hotel laundry service were apparently missing. For the next few hours, the hotel staff searched frantically for the missing clothes.
Meanwhile, in our room, we watched "When We Were Soldiers," with Mel Gibson on a TV channel that was connected to a DVD player within the hotel. We were fairly certain that most of these movies, if not all, were probably purchased on the black market (commonly referred to in Phnom Penh as the Russian Market). At this market, you can find nearly anything you are looking for...from recently released movies pirated onto DVDs to GAP clothes to name brand shoes to Prada purses to fresh snake meat.
Anyway, we finally received our laundry at around 11pm. Thank goodness...considering most of Rachel's clothes were in that load.
The next day, we left early for Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The bus was older and hotter than the one we road to Phnom Penh. To make matters worse, the road was also in need of repair. It took about 4 hours to get to the border. Crossing the border itself was a very, very slow and trying process.
Although there was only about 30 people in front of us, it somehow managed to take us nearly an hour to pass through into Vietnam. Strangely, there seemed to be a dozen workers, but only 5 were working. In addition, there was a fair amount of "corruption" within the process itself. For one reason or another, groups of 3-10 people (mostly of Asian decent), would hand all of their documents to one individual. This individual took the stack of documents to the front of the line. All of these papers were put through before those of us waiting in a hot and steamy line. Oh well, we got through without incident. At least we had ice cream bars waiting for us on the other side.
Currently, we write to you from the Empress Hotel in HCMC, District 1. It's a very interesting city from what we have seen so far. For example, we recently returned from the supermarket. The brightly lit building was full of energy...pumping out dance-like music as hundreds of Vietnamese were bustling about purchasing goods. As we walked through the aisles searching for a bottle of wine and some M&Ms, many people indiscretely looked at us with curiosity. It felt like we were movie stars or something...as they monitored our actions, goods in hand, and conversation. Very interesting.
HCMC also does not have the same level of people hoping to provide various goods and services. Meaning, there were no tuk-tuk drivers outside of our hotel, there were no children selling little trinkets, and no beggars hoping for a donation. Although we have not spent a great deal of time in Vietnam, it will be interesting to see if this is the exception, not the rule. Perhaps we are staying off the main tourist path.
-Jeffrey & Rachel
[Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam - June 22; 9:20pm]
"From the Cool Mountains of Central Vietnam"
Last night, during our search for a place to eat, a very kind Vietnamese man approached us with a few friendly words. Shortly thereafter, we found ourselves walking to a restaurant as he eagerly spoke with us about our thoughts & experiences. He was very interested in practicing his English, mainly because he was an English teacher, and also to learn more about the US. We learned that many Vietnamese in the South generally like Americans. Our new "friend" told us that this was primarily due to the strong ties with the US for so many years. However, the North is apparently a bit different...with a fair amount of dislike for us.
Anyway, dinner was good - a bit intersting though. Our friend ordered us a "traditional" Vietnamese dish of steamed fish, various veggies & spices, and noodles...all wrapped in rice paper (much like a fajita...but Asian style). They were fairly good, although nothing we'd probably order a second time. Another dish was grilled sesame venison. This dish was very tasty with a good amount of kick to it.
After dinner, he insisted we stop at his favorite massage parlor. This place was unknown to tourists, usually only serving locals. For $10 each, we received about a 45 minute full-body traditional Vietnamese massage. Some intersting notes...they were fascinated by Rachel's appearance, from her blonde hair to her blue eyes to her ghetto booty. Both massage girls were giggling at her...which we found amusing as well. We have to say, this was the best $10 spent so far!
***
We left for Dalat around lunch today, arriving around 6pm or so. Compared to the balmy, hot tempetures of Cambodia & HCMC, Dalat was refreshing 65 degrees when we arrived this evening. For the first time on this trip, we were a little cold as we rode on the back of a couple motobikes to our hotel.
Dalat, a relatively small city (130,000) in south-central Vietnam is a mountainous tourist destination. Unlike many of the other places we've visited thus far, Dalat is primarily filled with domestic travelers...not Westerners. As we walked the streets, most people turned to look at us...intrigued & curious (much like our experience in the supermarket @HCMC). The area offers beautiful hills covered with lush jungle vegetation, majestic waterfalls, and a variety of places to dine & shop. There's also a world-class golf course, which we've been told is the best in the country. It's no wonder Dalat is Vietnam's #1 honeymoon location.
We plan on spending about 3 days relaxing in the mountains. On Monday, we'll head off to the beaches of Nha Trang. That'll be nice too...some good "sun" time.
Goodnight,
-Jeffrey & Rachel
[Dalat, Vietnam - June 24; 9:45pm]
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