Vietnam (Assorted pics)

I (Heart) Hanoi. It's a cafe society with energy bursting at the seams and no structure to hold it all in. So, it spills over into the sidewalks and streets. It's not overly developed, but you can always find what you need. The Vietnamese don't speak English as well as the Cambodians (not a criticism, just an observation). So, I learned how to say "Hello" and "Thank You" in Vietnamese and you wouldn't believe how far that gets you. Any shyness that the local people have towards you completely melts away, and you start to have some fun conversations.

As with Cambodia, I hope to return some day....

Vietnam (Dawn in Ha Noi pics)

I woke up at 5:30am every day I was in Ha Noi. That's when all the action is happening.

Old people doing Tai Chi by the lake. Men doing bench presses on gym equipment from WWII. Women balancing burlap sacks of French bread on their head while walking. Cafes opening their doors and serving heavenly Vietnamese coffee. Locals stooped over small sidewalk tables eating pho (noodle soup), 2-on-2 badminton matches starting up on the courts which are chalked into almost every inch of sidewalk in the city. Kids all in school uniforms hopping on their ten-speeds going to class...and the list goes on.

Vietnam (Learning About John McCain pics)

On my last morning in Ha Noi, I took a tour of the Hanoi Hilton and tracked down the lake where an American B-52 went down. It was a John McCain-themed morning.

Only a third of the original Hoa Lo Prison (aka Hanoi Hilton) remains in tact. The rest of the site was torn down and became high-rise office towers. Regardless, the 1/3 that's left has enough creepiness to stand on its own. Built by the French to house and torture Vietnamese, most of the prison honors the country's struggle for independence against the French. The prison still has the original guillotine, with pictures of heads on the walls. The site is most famous in the U.S. for housing POWs, particularly McCain, whose parachute and gear are on display.

Next up, I decided to track down an American B-52 shot down in 1972, a chunk of which is still in tact and emerges from Hun Tiep Lake. It looked easy to find on the map, but as it turns out, it was anything but. It's off of the main streets and I had to walk in the narrow lanes of a city neighborhood in search of this lake; lanes so narrow that no cars are allowed. Kind of glad I got lost; otherwise, I would have never had the chance to see where the locals live. After walking down many of these lanes and having many kids scream "Hello" to me, I turned a corner and there was the lake (more like a pond) with a piece of the plane in clear view.

Surprisingly, if I had to name the most impactful sight of Ha Noi, it was this. An incredible piece of history surrounded by ordinary day-to-day life. There's a small veggie/fruit stand on one side, a primary school on another, and row houses all around. I could tell this wasn't a main attraction for tourists; I was the only foreigner there. I couldn't help but hang out and stare at it...

Vietnam (Crossing the Road in Ha Noi pics)

If there is one image and sound that I take away from Ha Noi, it's a motorbike. Actually, it's more like motorbikeS. Everywhere you look: parked on the sidewalks, driving down the street...you just can't escape them. They outnumber cars 20:1.

And one of the adventures of Ha Noi, is the sheer "fear factor" moment when you have to cross the street. There are few crosswalks and even fewer traffic lights so whoever has the louder horn or the momentum has the right of way. And, if you want to cross the street, you put your faith in the Hanoians and just step out into the traffic. Walk steadily and don't hesitate. The minute you try to anticipate where they're going, you're dead. They will drive around you and maybe, if they have to, will occasionally slow down. It sounds scary but in the end, becomes fun.

Vietnam (Ha Long Bay pics)

I went for an overnight boat ride in Ha Long Bay while I was in Hanoi. It's a 3 1/2 hour drive from the city. The bay has over 3,000 limestone islands that emerge from emerald green water. To sail around them is extremely peaceful and breathtaking. I kayaked to some lagoons and hiked through one of the caves.

Local legend says that long ago when the Vietnamese were fighting Chinese invaders, the gods sent a family of dragons to help defend the land. This family of dragons spit out jewels and jade, which turned into the islands forming a wall against the invaders. The people kept their land safe and formed what later became the country of Vietnam. Instead of returning to the heavens, the dragons decided to live in the Bay.

Ha Long Bay translates to Descending Dragon Bay.

Cambodia (Roadside pics)

Cambodia (Tonle Sap pics)

Cambodia (Angkor pics)

Cambodia (thoughts, Siem Reap pics)

Cambodia was sensory overload for me.  I loved every minute of it; to the point of almost being giddy.  I was even tempted to buy an "I (Heart) Cambodia" t-shirt just because, but my good taste kicked in and I passed, despite the tireless selling of the shopkeeper- a young girl who kept saying, "Only one dolla sir , only one dolla, one dolla, one dolla..."

 

I traveled everywhere by tuk-tuk - a cart with cushioned benches pulled along by a motorbike.  The hotel assigned a driver for my entire time there; his name was Twan - a gentle, happy-go-lucky kind of guy who puts his hands together and bows his head whenever he gets a tip.  He is 28 and we got along great. On the second day, I asked him a question about the land mine situation in Cambodia, for which the U.S. is partly responsible, and this is what he said: 

He grew up on a farm.  When he was 14, he was in the field when one of his cows stepped on a land mine.  The cow blew up, and then shrapnel also hit him, entering his stomach and leg. His mother took him to the hospital, and made a promise to the local monks that she would send him to live in a pagoda (Buddhist monastery) if he lived.  

Now, Twan wears leather, has long hair, and honks at every cute girl on a bicycle.  He's a G-rated, Cambodian player. Still, I was completely taken aback by this.  Twan, a former monk?  Yes, indeed.   When he finished telling me this story, he pulled up his shirt to show enormous scars across his stomach from the shrapnel.

You'll see a picture on this blog of Twan, eating a silk worm - something I stayed away from since it came out of a pot of Cambodian tap water.

Other memories: 

- Motorbikes everywhere.  Occasionally, there's a car.

- Siem Reap has 1 million people, 2 traffic lights, and zero stop signs; yet, all drivers and pedestrians figure it out.  No accident reports. 

- Frequent tributes to Angelina Jolie (given her adoption of a Cambodian kid and her filming "Tomb Raider" here).  There's an Angelina Jolie invented drink, cleverly called "Tomb Raider" and cafe called Angelina's.

- 1 motorbike = family of 4 with the baby riding shotgun

- Two kids living in a dilapidated water village speak in pitch-perfect English and show off their school work.

- The surprisingly very tasty restaurants in downtown Siem Reap, which also has a gay bar with a prominent rainbow flag in front. 

- Dusty, dirt roads are everywhere.

- Cows with leashes attached to the nearest tree graze by the side of the road.

- A 6 year-old salesman, who would've been at home in David Mamet's "Glengary Glen Ross," hawking bracelets outside a temple.  Here's an excerpt of our exchange: 

6 year-old: Bracelets?  4 for a dollar.

Me: No thank you

6 year-old: Bracelets? 4 for a dollar.  Look.  Only one dollar.

Me: No thank you

6 year-old: Why not?  Only one dollar, sir.  One dollar.  Four bracelets.  Sir.

Me: No thank you

6 year-old: Alright, make it 5.

- A double arm amputee joyfully screaming "Welcome" to passer-bys, encouraging them to stop and listen to his band - all maimed in some way by land mines.

- Children in the town of Kampong Phluk, running up to our tuk-tuk to wave and scream, "Hello!"

- Imagine shelves containing liter bottles of vegetable oil sitting roadside.  That's what a typical gas station in Siem Reap looks like.

- A tiny Cambodian woman in an outdoor food market squatting over eels with an enormous butcher knife.  Surrounding her is a combination of the beautiful (fresh fruit, veggies) and the grotesque (dried fish hanging from a string, bloody chicken on the floor).

- Eating amok for lunch - a local dish consisting of chicken, veggies and curry, all cooked in a coconut.

- Watching the sun rise at 5:30am over the fantastically beautiful Angkor Wat... and, then proceeding to overdose on Hindu and Buddhist folklore for the next 8 hours.  Go ahead, ask me about Rama and the monkey king.

...and the list could go on forever, but for now, I hope these pictures will do.

  

 

Macau

While in Hong Kong, I took a day trip with my two travel buddies - Anand and Bianca - to the island of Macau (the "Vegas of the East").  

It's an old Portuguese colony - and many of the signs are still written both in Portuguese and Chinese.  We spent a fast and furious 3 hours roaming around the colonial ruins as well as the casinos.

Overall, I'm glad I went, but Macau isn't much to write home about...so I'll stop now.