Southeast Asia – 2023-4 | The Adventures of Dave

*Dave at Bayon Temple, Siem Reap, Cambodia*

Another wonderful Christmas and New Year’s trip in the books. This was especially fun since I was joined by my good friends Sylvia and Cindy. I met them on a trip to India in Dec 2014 and this trip marked our 7^th time traveling together, with an 8^th planned.

I had been to Bangkok before, but this was my first time visiting Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. The narrative and photos below are just a fraction of what we did and saw on this four week trip.

We were in Bangkok over Christmas and had a dinner cruise on the Chao Phraya River. It was originally scheduled for Christmas Day but ended up getting moved to the 26^th. We were fortunate to be there when sound and light shows were operating at Wat Arun and the Rama VIII Bridge. This was the first time our Thai trip leader had actually been there to see the bridge lit up. It was amazing.

During our time in Bangkok we visited a local family for a hand’s on lesson on how to prepare traditional curry paste followed by a lunch at their home. We also had the opportunity to explore the ancient city of Ayutthaya about an hour north of Bangkok.

We visited many Buddhist temples including the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, Wat Pho, Wat Arum, Wat Tramit and the Golden Mount.

One evening the girls and I took a Tuk Tuk by Night tour seeing many of the temples lit up as well as exploring the very busy Bangkok Flower Market and China Town. It included dinner but that was kind of underwhelming…just some noodle soup and bottled water while sitting on plastic chairs at a plastic table.

From Bangkok we flew to Luang Prabang, Laos. There I was able to do some laundry for just $1. I did small loads of laundry three times and it was never more than $3. Quite the bargain.

Most of us left the hotel at 5:30 AM in Luang Prabang to give alms to the local monks. It was very interesting to participate in this daily Buddhist ritual.

Afterwards we tried some Vietnamese coffee and then spent time in the Luang Prabang morning market. You know I love a good market.

We also joined a multi-generational family for a home hosted dinner, including a cooking lesson, as well as visiting a local elementary school supported by the tour operator’s foundation.

Our next stop was Vientiane, the capital of Laos, which we reached by high speed train. We were there for New Year’s Eve though I was sound asleep when it arrived. Did you know we just hit the year 2567, in the Buddhist calendar.

On New Year’s Day we flew to Phnom Penh, Cambodia. There we had a very somber visit to one of the Killing Field sites and had to opportunity to hear from one of the few survivors of the notorious Khmer Rouge Tuol Sleng Prison.

*Genocide Memorial at Tuol Sleng Prison*

From Phnom Penh we traveled by bus to Siem Reap. On our first full day there we started with a buffalo drawn cart ride.

Next we took a boat ride to a floating village on a lake. These houses, and even a floating school, move as the water level in the lake changes. We stopped at one of the floating houses and met with a local couple. The wife had been the local midwife in the village.

The highlight of Siem Reap was our visit to Angkor Wat, a large pyramid temple, built between 1113 and 1150.

Although I’m terrified of heights I did climb up to the 3^rd level at Angkor Wat. Those stairs are steep.

We also went to the Ta Prohm temples, featured in the Lara Croft: Tomb Raider movie as well as Banteay Srei, one of the oldest and best-preserved temple sites in Cambodia.

One evening most of the group went to a traditional dance performance with an included dinner. I wasn’t really interested so went out on my own to have some wonderful Cambodian Mexican food. It was delicious. I took a ride there in a remorque, a motorized carriage pulled by a small motorcycle. I ordered my ride using the Grab Taxi app (similar to Uber) and the ride was only about $1.70.

*Maybe Later Mexican Bar & Grill, Siem Reap*

Leaving Cambodia behind us we flew to bustling Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (formerly known as Saigon). Since we would be in Vietnam for some time I headed to the ATM to get some local currency. I was instantly a Vietnamese Bhat millionaire.

Cindy’s birthday was the day we flew to Ho Chi Minh City. We had an awesome steak dinner at the B3 Steakhouse in Ho Chi Minh City to celebrate the next day. We shared this platter and couldn’t finish it all.

Our meal of imported New Zealand beef, including a “few” gin and tonics came in at 2,620,200 Bhat!

Since the Lunar New Year was approaching we saw many Vietnamese, young and old, dressing in traditional costumes and taking each other’s photos.

Our hotel was centrally located just off the main walking street in the city center. It was fun to walk there at night and see all of the buildings lit up in various colors at night.

While there we took a cruise on an old rice barge in the Mekong Delta followed by a sampan ride on a side canal.

Our excursion was followed by a fish lunch at a restaurant on the river. I was having nothing to do with the fish so they gave me chicken instead.

We also had the chance to visit the Cu Chi Tunnels, a 125-mile-long underground maze where thousands of fighters and villagers hid and fought during the Vietnam War. Some of the entrances were very small and well hidden.

Our main trip ended in Ho Chi Minh City and we gathered one last time for a group photo and farewell dinner.

For 9 of us, the adventure would continue for another week on a post-trip to Hanoi and Northern Vietnam. It was a bit refreshing to leave the 90+ degree weather to a much cooler Northern Vietnam.

The walking, biking and motor scooter transportation in Vietnam was amazing. Anything and everything was sold from them. Often they had recorded loudspeakers announcing what they were offering. I loved seeing this scooter being packed up to take some clocks somewhere.

When we visited the Ho Chi Minh mausoleum the building was open to the public and we walked by Ho, or at least what they claim to be his still perfectly embalmed body. He died in 1969 and though the Communist government would never admit it, this is certainly a wax replica.

Many school children were on field trips visiting the mausoleum that day since it was open to the public.

One day we drove to the ancient village of Duong Lam. There we met a group of young school children and spent some time talking with them. Their English was just amazing and we were the perfect audience to help them practice. A while later we met up with them again and posed for a group photo.

We had lunch with a local family that started with a spring roll making lesson. Those and the lunch were excellent.

On our way back to the hotel after lunch we saw a man preparing his rice patties the old fashioned way.

From Hanoi we drove to the town of Sapa for two night. This town is near Vietnam’s border with China and is the home of many indigenous people. Unfortunately it was cloudy and misty most of the time we were there, but it was still enjoyable.

The afternoon we arrived the view from my hotel balcony was thick fog. Luckily it cleared for a few hours the next day to get a picture of the beautiful scenery.

We took a 3-4 mile hike (they called it a trek) through the then-dormant rice patties to a local village of indigenous Black Hmong people.

Our guide was from another indigenous tribe, the Red Dao/Yao.

We met and talked with many local families along the way including one woman who was 102 years old. She had a certificate from the government honoring her 100^th birthday in 2022.

Our final day in Sapa we visited another local school. Most of the students here are from various indigenous tribes. For them Vietnamese is their 2nd language. There many of the students live in dormitories during the week because their family life too far away and are unable to take them and pick them up each day. We brought them 6 cases of ramen noodles to help with their lunches.

We returned to Hanoi for a final night (some had two) before returning home. Some of us took a rickshaw ride through the crazy streets of Hanoi. It was so much fun and we drove through streets lined with vendors selling decorations for the upcoming Lunar New Year celebration.