Hello all,
the trip has gained a lot of velocity since my last post. I have traveled by train, boat, plane, bus, motorcycle and tuk-tuk in the past week. I am currently in western Cambodia in the charming town of Siem Reap near Ankor Wat.
Last Sunday I left Hanoi by overnight train bound for the central coastal Vietnamese town of Hoi An. The train pulled out of the station around midnight and I settled into my sleeper car with a British couple and a Vietnamese girl. When we awoke from a peaceful sleep the verdant Vietnamese countryside was galloping past our window. We wound thru mountain passes shrouded in clouds, past cliffs over looking the coast, stopping occasionally in small towns to pick up more passengers. The train was a mid century model running the "reunification express"from Hanoi to Saigon. Noodles and tea for breakfast on board was nice. Made more field recordings of the train running the rails.
Arrived in Hoi An via Da Nang after a 14 hour ride. Checked into my room, rented a bicycle and rode out to the beach. Diving into the water I felt all of the stress of the City wash away and I came back to shore renewed. The beach was populated with Vietnamese families swimming and lounging under palm leaf huts. Large hotels lined the coastline.
I immediately noticed the difference of Hoi An. People dressed well, many girls in the traditional long dresses, people using turn signals on the road and obeying traffic lights. But I really fell in love when I went into the old quarter of town. It was like walking inside a Indochinese music box full of 18th century French and Chinese architecture illuminated by hundreds of Vietnamese lanterns swaying in the warm breeze.
The entire town is a UNESCO world heritage site and for good reason. Sublime beauty everywhere. Fantastic restaurants line the slow wide river with balcony views. Hio An is also the silk capital of Vietnam and there are hundreds of tailor shops through out the town. So after a fine French meal I got fitted for a fabulous Italian silk pinstriped suit, two Chinese silk shirts and picked up a lovely Chinese silk cocktail dress for Rebecca. All for less than $100. The suit alone is worth $500. So fun, living large in Hoi An.
After a couple of days here, I left Hoi An with a heavy heart and flew to Saigon(Ho Chi Min City). the flight was fast and our pilot was a female with a sexy British accent. We were in good hands.
While waiting for Rebecca to arrive in the airport (mid 70's design, Asian intensity), sitting on the floor listening to Zaman 8 on my Ipod, a small Vietnamese boy ran over to me and jumped in my lap and began pulling at my headphones. I gently placed the earbuds in his tiny little ears. I think it was the first time he had heard recorded music. He was transfixed. We shared a moment together with him and his family. Rebecca arrived safely and we headed off into the crazy traffic on Saigon.
After checking into our deluxe hotel we cruised the vibrant District 1 area, eating, wandering thru back alleys, poking our heads into shops. Good to be together. It was actually an adjustment for me to have a travel companion after so many solo experiences on the road.
We spent the next day or so exploring Saigon on foot. Checking out trendy shops selling high end clothing and home design stuff. Saw many Hindu temples in town, to our surprise. A full day of walking left us tired and we had some Italian comfort food near our hotel and went to bed.
Left the next morning for Cambodia. All of the stories we had heard from friends and family about Cambodia are completely untrue, it is great here! The bus ride and border crossing was totally smooth, the only sketchy part of the whole trip was a ferry crossing somewhere in the countryside before Penom Penh. We all cued up waiting to get on the ferry, buses, flatbed diesel trucks full of villagers and migrant workers, tons of poor families and many animals. We all got packed onto the same ferry. Had a similar experience in Istanbul, felt much safer outside the bus so we got out and were immediately descended upon by the kids. This was my first experience with this level of poverty combined with the multitude of birth defects from Agent Orange and US carpet bombing campaigns and amputees maimed by landmines. It was challenging and heartening at the same time. The kids were actually having fun taunting us. The best solution was to laugh and smile and play the game with them.
Back on the bus we bumped along the muddy road to Pemom Penh and missed our connection there. We were somewhat stranded for a moment in the capital of Cambodia. There was a difficult moment when 10 or so ab drivers and tuk tuk drivers were literally pulling Rebecca and I in different directions trying to get our business. We jumped in a tuk tuk and sped off thru the capital of Cambodia towards the backpacker district with promise of cheap accommodations. You may be asking, dear reader, what the heck is a tuk tuk? A tuk tuk is a motor scooter with a cute little carriage attached to the back and they are everywhere in Cambodia.
We landed well at a fine bungalow style hotel near the lotus covered river dumped our bags and jumped in another tuk tuk to see the City. We ended up at the riverside were all of the large palaces and government buildings are. It is a swirling urban riviera scene of hotels, balconies, street food, the river all set against the backdrop of the regal Kemer architecture. We saw the weirdest thing so far on the trip here. Street stalls selling giant fried spiders, giant ants and all other huge bugs for delectable munching. Crazy!
The people in this city seemed really happy, modern and content. we wandered in and out of on bar after another cafe and spent the evening here by the river.
We left the next day for Siem Reap and the Ankor Wat temples. We arrived safely into a fine guest house by another beautiful river in the center of town.
I will post another update about our jungle temple explorations in a day or two but suffice it to say it has been unbelievable here.
thanks for reading.
photos will go up online when we get back.
more soon
Jef
photos at
http://flickr.com/photos/jefstott/sets/
photos at
http://flickr.com/photos/jefstott/sets/
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