Hi guys,
Please note that you can click on any picture in the blog to link to a larger version of the image. Enjoy!
Jojo and Jason
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Friday, February 6, 2009
Royal Palace & Silver Pagoda (2/5/09)
The Royal Palace of Phnom Penh, Cambodia is a complex of buildings which are the royal abode of the Kingdom of Cambodia. Its full name in the Khmer language is Preah Barom Reachea Vaeng Chaktomuk. The Kings of Cambodia have occupied it since it was built in 1866, with a period of absence when the country came into turmoil during and after the reign of the Khmer Rouge.
More info here
In general, this compound was in the same ilk as the Grand Palace of Bangkok, but more or less paled in comparison. No offense to the Cambodians, of course, just sayin.
Here are some pictures, starting with this crazy owl that was watching over the grounds during the day ...
More info here
In general, this compound was in the same ilk as the Grand Palace of Bangkok, but more or less paled in comparison. No offense to the Cambodians, of course, just sayin.
Here are some pictures, starting with this crazy owl that was watching over the grounds during the day ...
A familiar face in Phnom Penh (2/4/09)
After arriving in Phnom Penh (hereon referred to as PP), we hired a cab to take us to our hotel, the Cambodiana. This is a 40 some odd year old hotel that at one point housed troops that helped to topple the Khmer Rouge regime. A quick pic (from the website, we were really bad about pics here ... we were having too much fun!) A bit dated, but not too expensive ... which was nice since we were off the SPG dole.
So, we checked in and went to take a stroll to grab some lunch. Not 7 minutes into our exploring, we quite literally bumped into our friend Dan S. from Chicago, a friend of Ethan and Dave's who was in PP to video tape an ongoing study on Cambodian music hosted at the Cambodian Living Arts PP location. Along with Lauren, a friend of Dan's, we were whisked off to a fantastic Indian meal right down the street. Not what we were expecting, but it hit the spot! It was so welcoming. Over the next 48 hours we spent a LOT of time with Dan and Lauren, as well as their friends from the guest house Oscar (the travel agent / driver), Mr. V, and another friend whose name escapes us. Here are some pics.
L to R: Jojo, Dan, Oscar, Lauren, Mr. V, and Mr. Name We Forgot ...
Sunset ...
Its worth noting that we found PP to be an incredibly enchanting town with fun, relaxed people and a fantastic variety of eclectic food. We were very, very sad to leave. Definitely a revisit in the future.
So, we checked in and went to take a stroll to grab some lunch. Not 7 minutes into our exploring, we quite literally bumped into our friend Dan S. from Chicago, a friend of Ethan and Dave's who was in PP to video tape an ongoing study on Cambodian music hosted at the Cambodian Living Arts PP location. Along with Lauren, a friend of Dan's, we were whisked off to a fantastic Indian meal right down the street. Not what we were expecting, but it hit the spot! It was so welcoming. Over the next 48 hours we spent a LOT of time with Dan and Lauren, as well as their friends from the guest house Oscar (the travel agent / driver), Mr. V, and another friend whose name escapes us. Here are some pics.
L to R: Jojo, Dan, Oscar, Lauren, Mr. V, and Mr. Name We Forgot ...
Sunset ...
Its worth noting that we found PP to be an incredibly enchanting town with fun, relaxed people and a fantastic variety of eclectic food. We were very, very sad to leave. Definitely a revisit in the future.
Chau Doc to PP by boat (2/4/09)
Our final morning in Vietnam was an early one. The "fast boat" to Phnom Penh left at 8am, so we gathered our belongings, forced down some questionable breakfast, and took a cyclo to the boat dock. Imagine two not so skinny Americans, with FIVE bags (two suitcases, a camera bag, a backpack, and a day pack) being cycled through town by a MAYBE 110 pound Vietnamese man. Needless to say, the townies were laughing with us.
We boarded the boat and proceeded to enjoy 5 of the most beautiful hours thus far on our trip. The river and its surroundings were just calming and peaceful. Jason was in heaven asea. We also met some very nice people on the boat, which always makes the trip go by faster. I should note that the boat did stop twice, once on the way out of Vietnam and once (10 minutes later) on the way into Cambodia. Pretty funny boarder control. Super lax with machine guns, if that makes sense.
Some pics ...
We boarded the boat and proceeded to enjoy 5 of the most beautiful hours thus far on our trip. The river and its surroundings were just calming and peaceful. Jason was in heaven asea. We also met some very nice people on the boat, which always makes the trip go by faster. I should note that the boat did stop twice, once on the way out of Vietnam and once (10 minutes later) on the way into Cambodia. Pretty funny boarder control. Super lax with machine guns, if that makes sense.
Some pics ...
Chau Doc (2/4/09)
Our second stop in rural Vietnam was in the border town of Chau Doc. This brought an upgrade in accommodations from Can Tho, but Jason was severely unhappy due to stomach issues and heat that lead to major dehydration. The first couple of hours in town were somewhat unpleasant. Our arrival was a little bittersweet. It marked the end of car travel for a couple of days, but we also had to say goodbye to our trusted driver Duk (pronounced duke). Duk was a very sweet man who left his wife and two daughters, 1 month and 14 months, to make some scratch by taking us to Chau Doc. We often grow very fond of the drivers who guide us from town to town. This was no exception.
Jason and Duk
After we cleaned up a little, we took a "cyclo" back to the main drag to have a pizza and a huge bottle of water at the nicest hotel in town. Sometimes old favorites are a must have on the road. Here's a picture of a typical cyclo and then Jojo on our trip into town.
After a Lasagna dinner at the Victoria (I know, lame ... but Jason was really hurting), we walked the town to find a celebration in the making. After a few attempts of garnering information, we found out that it was the 79th anniversary of communism in Vietnam. Hurray! Coupled with the Chinese style Buddha, we realized that we were a bit out of our element and made it a relatively early night.
All and all, Vietnam was a very interesting and beautiful country, but it was just an appetizer of things to come ...
Jason and Duk
After we cleaned up a little, we took a "cyclo" back to the main drag to have a pizza and a huge bottle of water at the nicest hotel in town. Sometimes old favorites are a must have on the road. Here's a picture of a typical cyclo and then Jojo on our trip into town.
After a Lasagna dinner at the Victoria (I know, lame ... but Jason was really hurting), we walked the town to find a celebration in the making. After a few attempts of garnering information, we found out that it was the 79th anniversary of communism in Vietnam. Hurray! Coupled with the Chinese style Buddha, we realized that we were a bit out of our element and made it a relatively early night.
All and all, Vietnam was a very interesting and beautiful country, but it was just an appetizer of things to come ...
Can Tho (2/3/09) - early river tour
We had decided that we wanted to enter Cambodia by boat from Vietnam, which meant we needed to make our way to the border. We hired a driver to take us on a 2-day trip through the Mekong Delta area. The first night we were headed for Can Tho. The next morning we set out to take a tour of the floating markets. We were a bit late heading out at 8am (the markets are most bustling from 6-8), but we thought we would give it a try. A woman approached us on the street (we had heard that most of the boat tour operators were women), Jason negotiated and we were off...
Despite his extensive boating experience, my husband thought we would be OK in this trusty craft...
Our tour guide...
Approaching the markets...
Pics of commerce at its best..
After the markets, we went on a tour of the back canals where we were expecting to see Dennis Hopper on acid offering to introduce us to a bald Marlon Brando (aka reminded us of Apocalypse Now) ...
Despite his extensive boating experience, my husband thought we would be OK in this trusty craft...
Our tour guide...
Approaching the markets...
Pics of commerce at its best..
After the markets, we went on a tour of the back canals where we were expecting to see Dennis Hopper on acid offering to introduce us to a bald Marlon Brando (aka reminded us of Apocalypse Now) ...
SPG Saigon Loung: Superbowl, another new friend, and a Vietnamese popstar (2/2/09)
So, we have been spending a considerable amount of time in the SPG lounges along the way. No, not because we're super lame and, no, not because we don't like culture. Think free food, free drinks, and free wifi. Also, they tend to host some intersting characters.
This lounge epitomized all that and then some. First, Joanna and I were bombarded by a group of Vietnamese women (1 baby, 1 toddler, 3 older ladies, and a younger lady) during happy hour. They came through like a tornado, both little girls crying from a fight, the 3 older women frantically chasing them, and a calm 30something observing the action. We later came to find out that the 30something is a Vietnamese pop star who occupies the Presidential suite when she is in town. Hysterical! I was wondering why she looked so rested with two small children. Turns out that the 3 ladies were hired help ... two nannies and a Chinese teacher. Later, a very tired looking younger American woman surfaced who we learned was the English tutor.
Next, I asked a gentleman about tipping procedures in this part of the world and in these posh lounges. This succinct question turned into a 7 hour night of discourse and drinks with our new friend Gary. We had a fabulous time. Oh ... did I mention that about 3 hours into our conversation we realized that his uncle the Rabbi in Chicago is none other than Rabbi Emeritus Fred Schwartz from Temple Sholom. Too funny, small world.
Last, we had to rely on the free wifi, our MacBook and Frost's Slingbox to take in the Superbowl in HCMC. It was pretty funny, as we had the volume on full tilt and were cheering our way through the game at 6am! They didn't seem to mind too much.
Good times!
This lounge epitomized all that and then some. First, Joanna and I were bombarded by a group of Vietnamese women (1 baby, 1 toddler, 3 older ladies, and a younger lady) during happy hour. They came through like a tornado, both little girls crying from a fight, the 3 older women frantically chasing them, and a calm 30something observing the action. We later came to find out that the 30something is a Vietnamese pop star who occupies the Presidential suite when she is in town. Hysterical! I was wondering why she looked so rested with two small children. Turns out that the 3 ladies were hired help ... two nannies and a Chinese teacher. Later, a very tired looking younger American woman surfaced who we learned was the English tutor.
Next, I asked a gentleman about tipping procedures in this part of the world and in these posh lounges. This succinct question turned into a 7 hour night of discourse and drinks with our new friend Gary. We had a fabulous time. Oh ... did I mention that about 3 hours into our conversation we realized that his uncle the Rabbi in Chicago is none other than Rabbi Emeritus Fred Schwartz from Temple Sholom. Too funny, small world.
Last, we had to rely on the free wifi, our MacBook and Frost's Slingbox to take in the Superbowl in HCMC. It was pretty funny, as we had the volume on full tilt and were cheering our way through the game at 6am! They didn't seem to mind too much.
Good times!
Reunification Palace (2/1/09)
The Reunification Palace was at one point a military stronghold for the South Vietnamese. The peace talks of 1975 occurred at this location and hence it was renamed accordingly. The old structure was decimated in the early 60's, which gave way to a complete rebuilding in classic 60's style. Its truly a blast from the past. More info can be found here
For now, some pics ...
Cabinet meeting room
Banquet room
For now, some pics ...
Cabinet meeting room
Banquet room
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)