Odds and Ends Cambodia Picture Collection

As I was looking through my pictures to pull out for each blog post, I realized lots of pictures didn't fit in but we're still worth a mention. Here are those photos from Cambodia.

Sunburn Recover and Overnight Buses

After finishing the daylong biking journey through Angkor Wat and suffering from a decent redneck looking sunburn, I decided to relax in Siem Reap before the overnight bus to Vietnam. Since I'd been abroad for almost a year, I felt that having local food for a majority of the meals didn't apply to me. This is how I found myself sitting in a bar eating fried bananas and drinking Beerlao. Through all of my travels through South East Asia, no beer compared to this. (Expect another post about this beer once I start writing about Laos.)

After finishing my drink and relaxation there was one thing left for me to try in Siem Reap, a fish massage. I'm horribly ticklish and couldn't stand it for more than a few seconds at a time. Writing this over a year later, I can still remember the feeling of the fish. With that in your head, I'll let the two pictures explain the rest.

One of the most testing parts about the journey was the overnight travel.  To begin with, I am a terrible sleeper. To make matters worse the bed was cramped, the entire ride was on bumpy dirt roads, light and noise constantly floated in from outside the bus, and the air conditioning was broken. With all that in mind, I hated every moment of the ride but left with a better appreciation for life and what it throws at you. Without going greatly into depth, I'll leave it at, enjoy the ride and don't take things for granted.

Angkor Wat: Part II

Taking a nap in the hot afternoon sun.

Pineapple snack in a bag.

Coconut milk for lunch.

The end result of too much sun and not enough sunscreen. 

Angkor Wat: Part I

For those unfamiliar with Angkor Wat, it is to Cambodia what the pyramids are to Egypt.  It is absolutely amazing and deserves a visit if you’re ever in the area. This part of the trip found its way to the top of our wish list and we made sure to make time for it. Once we arrived in Siem Reap we looked at the available tours. It looked to be about three days to see all of the different sites throughout the entire area or one day to see a select few sites. Not content with either plan, we set out to see everything there was to see within a day. We also said to hell with the tour and rented bicycles to make our own tour.

To ensure that bikes would be available we awoke extremely early, had a quick breakfast in the hotel, and then headed off to the rental shop.  It is lovely how cheap things are in South East Asia, once you get a plane ticket there isn’t much left to worry about and the bike were a typical example of this, costing only a few dollars for a full day’s rental. 

Lacking a tour guide, our next stop was to locate a map. Once we had this in hand, along with my compass purchased prior to the trip, we headed off in the direction of Angkor Wat. We arrived to huge lines of cars and Tuk Tuks [Link to previous article] waiting to get in. Luckily, since we were on bike, we were able to pass them to the non-car line.  Due to, what I’m assuming are ticket scalpers or something, we were required to get a ticket with our picture printed on them. Surprisingly, the process of getting a photo ID was relatively fast and we continued on the road leading up to the temple.

The road was lined with trees and continued on for some time. Eventually it opened up to an absolutely amazing view of Angkor Wat. A moat formed the perimeter,  so we rode our bikes around to the entrance, locked our bikes, and walked in. Since I couldn't possibly do justice to Angkor Wat with words, I’ll let the pictures do the talking.

Angkor Wat from the outside.

This was some of the art along the walls of the Wat.

Hallway of Angkor Wat.

Sitting on the steps leading up to one of the rooms.

The whole place was filled with beautiful architecture.

A view from the top looking down back towards the entrance.  

The wildlife are also welcome to hang out.

Once we finished up with Angkor Wat, we headed back out towards our bikes. About this time, the heat made it known that the rest of the day would be very hot.  The best way to see the other temples we deemed was with a giant loop along the path that would typically be completed over three days.  Along the way as we rode to the next Wat, we noticed many children dressed up on their way to school. One girl was very friendly and talked with us while we rode to the next destination. Her English was amazing, she learned only by talking to people as she went to and from class. We didn’t have much time to get into conversation before we arrived and she continued on to school.

My friend and the Cambodian girl talking.

Stay tuned for Part II.

Finishing up Phnom Penh with Pictures

After finishing up our tour of the grave site, we took the mellower route with the rest of the day and checked out some of the great architecture of the city along with our tour guide.

The Royal Palace

No shoes allowed inside

Pattern on one of the gates inside the Royal Palace.

This painting extended the length of the entire wall of the Royal Palace.

Stopping for a drink, we were not used to such hot weather after leaving the Shanghai winter behind.

Building inside of the Royal Palace with Beautiful patterns. Definitely my favorite building from traveling.

Motorcycles are the number one mode of transportation in South  East Asia. You can fit your entire family  on one, attach your entire shop to the back, sit your dog between your legs, etc. 

Several years ago I wouldn't eat anything, if you don't know read this. Now I'm eating frog legs...

and ox tongue with a side of red ants!

Phnom Penh

We woke early in the morning and headed downstairs to schedule a Tuk Tuk driver for the day. Tuk Tuk's have many different names throughout the world but they all refer to the same thing, a motor taxi with three wheels. Since we would only be spending one day we decided to get ourselves a driver to show us around the city. 

Before heading out we stopped to get some breakfast. We found a nice little restaurant that opened up to the street. Two things that surprised us when we started looking around the restaurant was that the prices were all listed in American currency and the menu was heavily based around American and French cuisine. (I would later learn that the French and Americans have had a huge impact throughout South East Asia. Also American currency is more more stable than local currencies so it is more popular.)

Street where we had our breakfast

Change from breakfast

Our Tuk Tuk driver

After breakfast we returned back to the hotel to meet our Tuk Tuk driver and then headed off for our first day in Cambodia. 

When I first decided to travel I thought that it would be best to find a book based in each country I was visiting and this book started us off on the journey for the day. For Cambodia, it was recommended that I read First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers (A great read, I recommend it) by Loung Ung which tells the real life story of Loung's childhood under the Khmer Rogue. By the time they were removed from power, they had managed to kill almost a quarter of the population. Mass graves are scattered all over the country and our first stop in Siem Reap was one of the larger sites right outside of the city.

Monument to those that died under Pol Pot's regime

Inside of the monument

During high school history, I read so much about different atrocities and I felt so desensitized after spending years learning about different atrocities committed throughout history. This was the first time I got a first hand look and it was incredibly moving. 

After taking a long break to digest what we had seen, we got back into our Tuk Tuk and headed off to our next stop.  

Oops

Our flight was set to arrive in Phnom Penh at 11pm. By the time we got our visa and passed through the various checkpoints it would be rather late. Quite possibly, too late to find a place to sleep. I sent two different guest houses reservation inquiries. I declared the matter settled and left it at that.

The next day, the day of departure, I checked my email and found no reply. At this point I became a little nervous. I had no idea what we'd be in for if we didn't have a hotel. With the use of Skype, I made a call to one of the hotels that I'd emailed the previous day. The connection was so bad but I managed to say I'd email him and he promised to reply. An hour later, I had no reply and in two more hours, I'd depart for the airport and have no hotel. I found a list of hotels and made inquiries to most of them. I finally got a response and confirmed the room.

I met my friend at the bus station and we headed off to the Airport. Along the way he asked me why I'd put down his number for the hotel. I did this because I wasn't bringing my own phone. This matter is insignificant but what is, is that he confirmed the room but the first hotel was the only one I put his number down for. Now we were confirmed for two hotels and two hotel pickups. I decided to remedy this situation by giving the second guy at the airport a few dollars for his troubles and apologize for the inconvenience.

After making our way through the checkpoints, we walked out to the waiting area. Three pieces of paper waited with my name on it. About this point my brain shut down. I got the guy of the hotel I confirmed myself and the three of us left the airport. I pretty much sprinted to the shuttle. As we sat in the van and my friend laughed at my failure I realized I didn't pay them any money. Sorry Cambodian people that your first impression of me was of an asshole.

Adventures in Portable Sleep

I've just finished up my first two weeks of travel through Vietnam and Cambodia. Don't have pictures yet since the internet is pretty slow here. Should have a few to upload by the end of the week.

If you're feeling in the mood to offer critiques or comments, please email at chickentochinablog@gmail.com.

 

After a plesent sleep in a guest house in Siem Reap, we checked out and left our bags behind the check-in counter for the day. Tonight would be the first encounter with an overnight bus. Until 11pm, when the shuttle would come to retreive us from the hotel, we were left for the day to explore the city. The sun was hot and ever present. The only way to escape it was in the shade of trees which were few and far between. After several hours of walking and dripping in sweat and covered in dirt, it was time for the shuttle. The downside of overnight travel is that generally you're looking at two to three days of dried sweat and caked on dirt before the next shower.

During our shuttle ride, my travel companion and I joked that the bumpy and uncomfortable ride was actually our overnight bus. Upon first laying eyes on our bus, I realized there was little, if any, difference between the quality of the two vehicles. Tonight would be a long night.

When it comes to overnight buses, instead of seats, there are beds. These beds are split into three rows with two aisles. The beds are also set up in the manner of bunks so if you're on the bottom space is rather limited. Space becomes even more limited in the last set of seats where instead of aisles there are five beds across. I wouldn't have mentioned this back section of seats if it wasn't for the fact that this is where we got put. Even worse is that of the two tickets we had, we randomly chose which seat we got and my friend lucked out with the window seat.

Before continuing I must make note of the peculiarities of me and sleep. Excluding typical things on this bus trip that would prevent most people from sleeping, there were a few more that prevented me from sleeping. Never in my life have I been able to fall asleep on my back, it's just not possible. Luckily for me, the beds were angled such that it would be impossible to sleep any other way besides on your back. Also, any sort of noise that isn't of the white variety tends to distract me from sleep. For this trip, such noises included crying babies and the squeaking of the bus.

Every journey I've ever taken starts out with a transition period in which people put away bags, munch on snacks, and settle down in their seats. For longer journeys, this period usually ends with the lights shutting off, people dozing off and silence and darkness taking over. Just because silence and darkness come to the bus doesn't mean it also comes to the rest of the world. In Vietnam, paved roads are uncommon which means that every space of every paved road is vital and lacking of periods fields or forest, in other words, periods of calm. This translates to a constant barrage of lights and sounds coming from all the different buildings lining the road.

Severely lacking within the bus was a constant barrage of cold. The air conditioning vents were designed with only the outer most people receiving direct air. Maintenance of the bus was kept to a bare minimum so even though air was coming out, it was sputtering and not a formidable opponent to the body heat of all the occupants. While I'm a seasoned pro, having survived many summer nights without AC, I did so with the use of two vital weapons, a fan and a bed big enough to spread out to the four corners. Windows without openings crushed any chance of a breeze. There would also be no spacing out since my fellow travelers and I laid shoulder to shoulder. Without a means by which to cool myself, sweat began to emit itself from every part of my body. A secondary attack, almost like a Trojan Horse, lay hidden within this. The sweat off all the other unwashed bodies began to mix and linger in the air, assaulting the nostrils.

The final battle against attempts at sleeping came without mercy. Back in elementary school, I strongly remember the daily rush for the back seat so that every bump of the road could be enjoyed. There were two spots along the route where the bump would send you several inches into the air. It was almost like a free amusement park ride. Multiply the bumps and divide the fun and thats what the bus felt like. There was also an added perk not found on the school bus. Since my bed transitioned straight into the aisle, every time the bus driver slammed on the breaks, which was often since scooters were weaving everywhere, I went sliding forward several inches. If it wasn't for the uncomfortable columns of bars keeping the second layer of beds up, that I used to brace myself, I probably would have slid fully into the aisle several times. 

The combined onslaught on the senses led me to to give up any hope of a peaceful sleep. Packets of resistance throughout the night tried to make a stand and allow me to sleep. Different positions were tried. Music, silence, and white noise were all attempted. A strong ressistance came late in the night when another bed opened up and the guy in the middle bed, the bed next to me, relocated. The metal divider between our two beds dictated that this situation was barely any more comfortable. In the end, all attempts to sleep failed.

In the process fo writing this, I'd been sitting on a train from Da Nong to Hanoi. When I bought the tickets I saw that the train would depart at 11:50am and arrive 7 hours later. This was long but doable. After about five hours on the train I pulled out the map and realized we'd traveled about one-fifth the distance. Looks like the 7 hours later was actually 7am. Oh well, everyone is still celebrating the holiday  and the train is empty so we can stretch out in our hard wooden chairs and sleep peacefully. Twenty minutes later we pulled up to a crowd of people waiting to get on the train. 

I was going to conclude with some joke about bringing enough sleeping pills next time to knock out even an elephant. Instead I'll end with some words of wisdom from a good friend which I'm taking to heart more and more each day.

Shit happens.

What is the Next One?

My time in China is quickly coming to an end. Friday I turn in my laptop and work ID, Sunday I hand over my room key, and Wednesday I am on a plane to Cambodia. Since I will no longer be living in Shanghai, my writing will begin to reflect that. I have however opened an exciting new page and will spend the next few months experiencing South East Asia. My hope is that these experiences will be just as rewarding as my time in Shanghai and I can share them with you.