Down the Tonle Sap

We arrived from Siem Reap in Phnom Penh today. We took the 'fast' boat - a five hour journey following the Tonle Sap lake. It was great. On deck we watched floating villages (schools, stores, you-name-it all afloat); down below they played The Italian Job and the French Connection and sold knock-off Pringles. Perfect.


Our last day in the north was spent out birding with the Sam Veasna Centre - a conservation and eco-tourism group named after a local biologist who died tragically of malaria at the age of 33. It took us into the countryside and, in addition to the birds, gave us a unique look into how the vast majority of the country lives: simply.



Tomorrow we are delving into this country's more recent history and visiting the genocide museum. Lots of history here.

Siem Reap

Today we woke up at five, drank plunger coffee at the Golden Banana hotel's little poolside bar, and the hopped into the waiting tuk tuk - a little passenger cart towed by a motorbike - and rumbled off to the Angkor Wat complex for sunrise and a half-day of temple madness.

Today, which ended with gentle rain and a lemon macaroon from the Blue Pumpkin patisserie, was much more sensible than yesterday, our first day here in Siem Reap where enthusiasm and the 'death-hike' gene had us staggering through some seriously humid, shirt-drenching heat. We wised up quickly!


The complex is huge, and the scale of the building to the length of the bas reliefs immense. As I need to hit the hay, I'll leave the descriptions to Dad, and just post a few highlight photos below: sunrise at Angkor Wat, and Ta Prohm, a favorite.

Route

I'm on the road again:


Darwin - Vietnam - Cambodia - California - Boston - Oxford

Wired

Two things have defined HCMC for me so far: jungle-thick electrical lines and freakin' great iced coffee (with condensed milk please! buzzzzzz!).

This bustling, booming city is 100% wired.

Power line repairs, Vietnam style:

'Nam

Last night, Linds, Dad and I enjoyed beers from the mini bar with the roar of motorbike traffic and river barges, unceasing, below the wide open window (our hotel, above). Clinking bottles and glasses, we toasted to Vietnam, Cambodia, and the trip ahead. Wonderful to be back in Asia.

The wheels are turning for each of us: I am wondering about how economies boom, Linds is marveling at the web of electrical wires (see photos in 'Wired' post), and Dad, looking out the window over breakfast, remarks how the West is unsustainable - we're all too 'over-scaled' to ride around like schools of helmeted fish on Honda motorbikes.

Today we are wandering the big city, checking out museums and markets. We'll head to Siem Reap on Saturday. Vietnam already feels less conservative than Indonesia. In fact, one bit reminded me most of Chile: dozens of young couples out snogging in the public parks. Mon dieu!

Below: Newlyweds pose for photos at the Ho Chi Minh City Museum.