Alexis, Ethan, Skye and I were continuing our adventures to Bali and Singapore thanks to some discount flights that we discovered on Air Asia's website. Our flight to Bali was early Wednesday morning and we were lucky to catch a beautiful sunrise through the clouds on the plane.
Our first stop in Bali was to the relaxing village of Ubud. We took a taxi (that was a total rip-off) from the airport to the village and found a guest house pretty quickly. The room was really clean with an awesome balcony and a beautiful view. Bali was extremely tropical and green and the air was very fresh and clean. After about 10 minutes in Ubud I knew I was going to absolutely love it there! After dropping our stuff off at our guest house, we decided to explore the village and of course our first stop was food. We stumbled upon a cheap restaurant with traditional Balinese food like peanut and coconut sauce over veggies and rice. Alexis wanted to find a yoga studio and Ethan and Skye wanted to meet up with their friend Josie so the day was spent walking around the village and getting acquainted with our surroundings. For dinner we went to a small local place suggested to us by Josie, the dish she recommended was sold out but we all enjoyed what we ordered... until Alexis got sick later that night.
We had to go to bed early that night because we had a 2 AM wake-up call to hike a volcano and watch the sunrise. When we woke up at 2, Alexis didn't feel good from her dinner so she decided to stay home and rest. Ethan, Skye and I met up with Josie and her friends to climb the volcano, and we all fell asleep on the van ride to the hike. It was SO cold and dark when we started the hike, easily the coldest I had been in six months. Our Balinese guides gave us flashlights to light the trails, but hiking on loose volcanic ash, rock, and sand was a tricky business in total darkness. It became increasingly difficult when we had to start climbing our way up! I was in the middle of the group so I followed the footsteps of the girls in front of me, but we all slipped a few times on the way up. I do have to give a special shout out to the 9 year old boy who was part of our trekking group. He was a good sport about this adventure and didn't complain once- I definitely wouldn't have had his stamina at 9 years old! Once we reached the top of the volcano, we took a seat along a natural ledge and waited for the sun to come up. The views were BEAUTIFUL. We were overlooking a lake and opposite us was another mountain peak. The area around the volcano was extremely green and the setting reminded me a lot like the setting of LOST. The craters of the volcano we had hiked were steaming which added to the natural beauty of our surroundings. When the sun started rising the colors of the sky were truly breathtaking. Neon pinks and deep oranges covered the sky and the reflections in the lake were gorgeous. It was 100% worth the 2 AM wake-up call, if you ask me. After the sun rose, our guides had breakfast prepared for us and we got to explore the craters a little bit. Skye and I were too cold to explore the craters so we stood over the area where the steam was coming out and enjoyed a "natural sauna."
After the hike, we headed back to our hostel where Alexis was feeling much better. Alexis and Ethan decided to explore our local area and figure out the rest of our day while Skye and I passed out for a much needed nap. It was only 9:45 AM and we had already hiked up and down a volcano- I was exhausted!
When we woke up, we decided to rent motorbikes and explore some of the temples and rice fields outside of the downtown village. Again, Skye was an excellent chauffeur and we had a lot of laughs on our motor bike ride. We saw some interesting sights from our bike, including groups of ducks crossing the road, naked people, and even a woman peeing on the side of the road. Other than those bizarre scenes, the ride to each temple was gorgeous. The rice paddies were amazing - so green and natural looking. Even the temples we visited were built in the jungle so we were able to see waterfalls, tropical trees, and really beautiful moss covering ancient parts of the temples.
We had had a very busy day but there was still one more activity we wanted to squeeze in. Ethan had read about a coffee plantation called "Bali Purina" that gives you a tour of the plantation and free samples of the coffee... the catch? The coffee beans are filtered through the digestive system of a Balinese Fischer Cat! Yes, that means we tried cat dung coffee. It was actually a very interesting process. Not all of their coffee is made this way, and we could definitely taste a difference of bitterness/strength in the Cat coffee than the other types we sampled. I am more of a sweet coffee drinker so the cat dung coffee wasn't my fav... but I was definitely missing Emily during this activity because she was my coffee buddy throughout Cambodia and 'Nam !
The next day was our last day in Ubud- we were moving on to a beach town later that day. Alexis did a yoga class in the morning and then we all regrouped to visit the popular tourist spot "Monkey Forest." It was absolutely terrifying. I love monkeys, but because this has turned into such a tourist trap these monkeys have associated people with food and have no shame jumping on you and taking your possessions. They were a very aggressive group of monkeys and I saw them steal people's water bottles, candy bars, and even a pair of earrings off of a woman's ear! Our guest house had given us a bag of bananas to bring to the forest, and Ethan had made some cute monkey friends as he was giving them away. It was all fun and games until this HUGE monkey came bounding at Ethan and snatched our entire bag of bananas!! Ethan was nervous he would choke on the plastic bag so when he tried to take the garbage, the monkey growled and barred his teeth so we quickly moved along. The rest of the visit was brief, I was really freaked out by the monkeys and their aggression was very nerve-wracking. After the forest, we visited some souvenir shops and got a good deal on wood carvings and bracelets.
On our way to the taxi stand in Ubud, we had a very interesting encounter with a fellow American at an art gallery. Alexis was walking behind Ethan, Skye, and I and was taking a while to catch up. I assumed she was sampling dried fruit or something until she came running to us saying "Did anyone else notice that was Tyra Banks back there?!?" So Ethan, Skye, and I followed Alexis quickly down the street and there she was!! Tyra Banks just casually buying art in Ubud, Bali. She was wearing a long orange maxi dress with gold strappy sandals and her hair was in a cool braided up-do. Alexis walked right up to and said "We thought that was you!" and proceeded to tell her about our teachings in Thailand. The only words I could muster was to tell her I was from Massachusetts and I maybe squeaked out a "bye!" at the end. I was totally star struck! We all left Ubud in total shock that we had just met Tyra Banks! She was nice enough, and we didn't want to bother her for a photo, but I swear it happened!
Our next stop in Bali was Padang Bai, which at first glance is a total dump. It is used as a ferry port to visit the smaller islands off of Bali, and the main harbor is filled with boats and no beach to sit and relax. I wasn't super impressed with the location until we did some research and learned that the beaches are a walk away from the main harbor. We also learned that its an awesome spot for scuba diving, which Skye and Ethan were really interested in, so we decided to visit the local companies and inquire about a diving package. The first place we visited didn't seem interested in our business so we went back to the cafe we first sat down in when we arrived in Padang Bai to use their wifi. The woman Elaina was really nice and had a very relaxed mind set about diving. I never thought I would be interested in an activity that puts me so close to the creatures I fear in the ocean, but something about her friendliness and the way she wanted to help Skye and I with our hesitations had me hooked. There was also a chance of seeing sea turtles!! The next thing I know, I was signed up for 2 dives the next day!
The diving experience was awesome! We started off in a pool, just the 4 of us with Elaina and 2 teachers in training. I felt really safe the whole time because we were able to have a one on one relationship with our instructors. In the pool, we learned the basic techniques of diving, how to put the equipment on and off, where everything was located on our vests, how to inflate and deflate our vests, and most importantly: how to breathe. It was definitely a weird feeling breathing under water, and I felt like I was breathing really rapidly and using up a lot of my air to quickly, but it was all in my head and I just had to get used to it. The next stop was the ocean!! We were headed to Blue Lagoon first for our 10 meter dive. We jumped right into it and did backflips into the water from the boat. I was nervous about equalizing my ears, but it turned out to not be as difficult as I expected. I got a dizzy one or two times but using the techniques that Elaina taught us, I was able to overcome it on my own. We were under water for almost 40 minutes for the first dive and we got to see a TON of fish! There was a pretty strong wave current that day so we had to continuously change our air pressure in our vests so we weren't taken by the waves. Another thing that was tricky to get used to was not using your arms. Because of the vest and the flippers, you really don't need to use your arms to swim that deep under water- so I was wasting a lot of my energy by using my arms.
In between dives we were given cookies and tea and had some laughs with the other teachers on our boat. The second dive was a little bit longer, just over 50 minutes and we saw even more cool fish! No turtles which was kind of a bummer, but we saw a school of barracudas, a lion fish, some trumpet fish, calamari, and tons of others that I can't remember their names. I found scuba diving to be oddly relaxing and if I lived in a warmer climate with better dive spots, I definitely would have considered becoming certified. Skye and Ethan decided to stay in Padang Bai and extra day and become certified which was really cool to hear about. Alexis and I decided to opt out of the certification primarily because of its cost, so while Skye and Ethan dove, we relaxed on the White Sand Beach. It was a beautiful area with huge waves and cool rock formations on either side of the sand.
It was a pretty small spot so for our last day in Bali, Alexis and I decided to take a bus to Kuta, the extremely popular tourist spot located right near the airport. It was definitely a completely different atmosphere than Ubud or Padang Bai but Alexis and I had fun admiring the resorts, western restaurants, and outdoor shopping plazas. We spent the day on surfer's paradise beach and waited for Skye and Ethan to arrive after their dive. Alexis wasn't feeling too great so instead of our original plan, which was sleeping in the airport, the four of us split a really cheap and really disgusting room at a guesthouse and slept for 5 hours before heading to the airport. If Alexis wasn't sick, I would NOT have stayed in that guesthouse. The ceiling was moldy and I woke up to the largest cockroach I have ever seen hanging out in our bathroom, but it was the cheapest place we could find and it was better than sleeping on a bench at the airport!
We sleepily found a cab at 3:30 AM to take us to the airport as we prepared for the last leg of our journey: SINGAPORE! This adventure was going by way too fast and I was very sad to say goodbye to the peaceful beauty that we experienced in Bali. I was however, extremely excited to visit Universal Studios in Singapore!!
Friday, April 26, 2013
Monday, April 8, 2013
Backpack Adventure: Cambodia: Siam Reap
After our intense visit in Pnomh Penh, we were all anxious to get to Siam Reap and visit the one and only Angkor Wat. The bus ride to Siam Reap had its fair share of odd events, like traveling next to a cargo truck filled with pigs on a ferry. Our bus driver was "horn happy" and beeped at EVERYTHING so napping was out of the question. When we arrived in Siam Reap we were greeted by our hostel's tuk tuk driver in the strangest bus station I have ever seen. It was hidden from the road and barricaded by a large wooden fence. Supposedly they try to separate the bus from the rest of the road so that people will be forced to take the over priced tuk tuks. Luckily we had arranged our ride in advance, but he turned out to be just another scam artist and we decided to find another drive for our tour of Angkor Wat.
Our first night in Siam Reap we were able to visit Angkor War for the sunset. Angkor Wat is an incredible building. Its massive size and impressive details makes it pretty fascinating to think that humans built it so many years ago. Our time in the actual temple was brief because we wanted to find a good spot for the sunset, but we had enough time to see monks roaming the grounds, monkeys, and small Cambodian children selling souvenirs. The sunset was beautiful, but I was more excited to see the sunrise the next morning. The sun comes up right behind the pillars of the temple and it is supposed to be absolutely beautiful.
After the sunset we had dinner in our hostel then headed to the night market and walking street. The market was much better than the ones in Vietnam and the street was lined with bars, clubs, and massage parlors. Alexis and I bought some dresses to wear in Bali and then everyone decided to get neck and back massages. I opted out of the massage gang - it was way too hot for a stranger to be touching me- so I bought a beer and chatted with some of the workers while the others relaxed. After the massages we headed back to the hostel- we had a 4 am wake up call to make the sunrise at Angkor Wat!
As we sleepily arrived to the grounds of Angkor Wat, we were greeted by a small Cambodian child who went by the name of "Justin Bieber." His family owned a cafe on the grounds and he struck a deal with us- if he showed us the best spot to see the sunrise we had to eat at his cafe. He was a very smart little boy and made a lot of clever jokes. His english was very impressive and we later learned he could also count in Thai, Chinese, German, French, and many other languages. He stayed in character the entire morning, telling us he was "20 years old and originally from Canada." when we told him he didn't look 20, he said "Cambodian people, very small." He sang a few versus of "Baby" for us and served as a great tour guide. We had spots directly in front of where the sun rose, sitting on the edge of a pond filled with lily pads that projected beautiful reflections of the sun and the temple. I am not a morning person, but the view was worth it. It was a very beautiful sunrise and I feel very lucky that I was able to see something so beautiful at such a historic monument. After the sunrise, we kept our promise and visited Bieber's cafe.
The rest of the day we explored Angkor Wat and the other temples on the grounds. In total we visited 7 temples. One of the temples was used for the movie "Tomb Raider" with Angelina Jolie and had beautiful ruins and lots of nooks and crannies to explore. One of my favorite temples was a temple (not sure if it was the same as the tomb raider temple or a separate building) that was covered in large tree roots. I mean HUGE tree roots. The trees wove around the stone buildings so beautifully and naturally- it was truly amazing to see. Another favorite temple that we visited had hundred of Buddha faces carved into its pillars. The detail that went into the structures that we saw was truly mind blowing and I fully understand why it is considered one of the 7 man made wonders of the world.
Towards the end of our time at Angkor Wat (which was in total just about 12 hours) I couldn't walk around anymore. I actually took a nap in the tuk tuk while Ethan and Emily explored one of the sites. The early wake up call and the Cambodian heat had completely wiped me out, but I am very content with the beautiful sites that I saw and I hope to one day return to Cambodia and explore the sites in even more detail.
Our time in Cambodia was extremely brief but it left an enormous impact on me. Its a truly amazing country and I am fascinated by its history.
Our next stop was Bangkok- Emily was heading back to the US in a few days and wanted the Bangkok tourist experiences of Khao San Road. Our flight to Bali was also approaching and we had to get ready for the next leg of our journey!
The bus ride from Siam Reap to Bangkok wasn't that bad....until we got to the Thai border. What should have taken 45 minutes took almost 3 hours- and we had to wait in line outside in the heat. It was brutal. That was probably the hottest I have ever been in my entire life. From now on, if I am in a warm environment I am going to compare it to my time in Cambodia. "Its hot, but its not Cambodia hot!" Just a fair warning.
Arriving in Bangkok was definitely a strange feeling. Salaya is so close to Bangkok that the city has kindof become an icon of "home" to us for the past 6 months. After seeing so much in Vietnam and Cambodia it felt weird to return to familiar territory. We even stayed in the same guesthouse we stayed in before Pattaya- which brought back mixed emotions. Our time in Bangkok was brief- we had to get our laundry sorted out and buy last minute souvenirs. It was very sad saying goodbye to Emily- funny to think that only 3 weeks before we were complete strangers! The trip brought us all together and I am so thankful I got to share this amazing experience with such an amazing group of people. We were all very, very different from one another but the group dynamic was always fun and I am going to miss them very much. Cheers to the next reunion !!!!!
NEXT STOP: BALI !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Our first night in Siam Reap we were able to visit Angkor War for the sunset. Angkor Wat is an incredible building. Its massive size and impressive details makes it pretty fascinating to think that humans built it so many years ago. Our time in the actual temple was brief because we wanted to find a good spot for the sunset, but we had enough time to see monks roaming the grounds, monkeys, and small Cambodian children selling souvenirs. The sunset was beautiful, but I was more excited to see the sunrise the next morning. The sun comes up right behind the pillars of the temple and it is supposed to be absolutely beautiful.
After the sunset we had dinner in our hostel then headed to the night market and walking street. The market was much better than the ones in Vietnam and the street was lined with bars, clubs, and massage parlors. Alexis and I bought some dresses to wear in Bali and then everyone decided to get neck and back massages. I opted out of the massage gang - it was way too hot for a stranger to be touching me- so I bought a beer and chatted with some of the workers while the others relaxed. After the massages we headed back to the hostel- we had a 4 am wake up call to make the sunrise at Angkor Wat!
As we sleepily arrived to the grounds of Angkor Wat, we were greeted by a small Cambodian child who went by the name of "Justin Bieber." His family owned a cafe on the grounds and he struck a deal with us- if he showed us the best spot to see the sunrise we had to eat at his cafe. He was a very smart little boy and made a lot of clever jokes. His english was very impressive and we later learned he could also count in Thai, Chinese, German, French, and many other languages. He stayed in character the entire morning, telling us he was "20 years old and originally from Canada." when we told him he didn't look 20, he said "Cambodian people, very small." He sang a few versus of "Baby" for us and served as a great tour guide. We had spots directly in front of where the sun rose, sitting on the edge of a pond filled with lily pads that projected beautiful reflections of the sun and the temple. I am not a morning person, but the view was worth it. It was a very beautiful sunrise and I feel very lucky that I was able to see something so beautiful at such a historic monument. After the sunrise, we kept our promise and visited Bieber's cafe.
The rest of the day we explored Angkor Wat and the other temples on the grounds. In total we visited 7 temples. One of the temples was used for the movie "Tomb Raider" with Angelina Jolie and had beautiful ruins and lots of nooks and crannies to explore. One of my favorite temples was a temple (not sure if it was the same as the tomb raider temple or a separate building) that was covered in large tree roots. I mean HUGE tree roots. The trees wove around the stone buildings so beautifully and naturally- it was truly amazing to see. Another favorite temple that we visited had hundred of Buddha faces carved into its pillars. The detail that went into the structures that we saw was truly mind blowing and I fully understand why it is considered one of the 7 man made wonders of the world.
Towards the end of our time at Angkor Wat (which was in total just about 12 hours) I couldn't walk around anymore. I actually took a nap in the tuk tuk while Ethan and Emily explored one of the sites. The early wake up call and the Cambodian heat had completely wiped me out, but I am very content with the beautiful sites that I saw and I hope to one day return to Cambodia and explore the sites in even more detail.
Our time in Cambodia was extremely brief but it left an enormous impact on me. Its a truly amazing country and I am fascinated by its history.
Our next stop was Bangkok- Emily was heading back to the US in a few days and wanted the Bangkok tourist experiences of Khao San Road. Our flight to Bali was also approaching and we had to get ready for the next leg of our journey!
The bus ride from Siam Reap to Bangkok wasn't that bad....until we got to the Thai border. What should have taken 45 minutes took almost 3 hours- and we had to wait in line outside in the heat. It was brutal. That was probably the hottest I have ever been in my entire life. From now on, if I am in a warm environment I am going to compare it to my time in Cambodia. "Its hot, but its not Cambodia hot!" Just a fair warning.
Arriving in Bangkok was definitely a strange feeling. Salaya is so close to Bangkok that the city has kindof become an icon of "home" to us for the past 6 months. After seeing so much in Vietnam and Cambodia it felt weird to return to familiar territory. We even stayed in the same guesthouse we stayed in before Pattaya- which brought back mixed emotions. Our time in Bangkok was brief- we had to get our laundry sorted out and buy last minute souvenirs. It was very sad saying goodbye to Emily- funny to think that only 3 weeks before we were complete strangers! The trip brought us all together and I am so thankful I got to share this amazing experience with such an amazing group of people. We were all very, very different from one another but the group dynamic was always fun and I am going to miss them very much. Cheers to the next reunion !!!!!
NEXT STOP: BALI !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Backpacking Adventure: Cambodia: Pnomh Penh
The bus from Ho Chi Minh City to Pnomh Penh was pretty rough. It was a local bus and made frequent stops to pick up random passengers on the side of the road. One passenger in particular was carrying a bag of fish and smelt so awful I nearly vomited in my seat. The border crossing was relatively easy, but the actual bus ride seemed to drag on forever. I was very happy to finally reach our destination, but was shocked to step off the bus into sweltering heat. It was ten times hotter in Pnomh Penh than in Vietnam !! The heat was worse than Bangkok and I actually couldn't believe the amount I was instantly sweating. Our time in Pnomh Penh was by far the most interesting and educational part of our journey. It was also the saddest part of our trip.
Pnomh Penh is the capital city of Cambodia and is also the home to the largest genocide memorial and museum in the country. In the 1970s the rebel group, the Khmer Rouge, lead by Pol Pot, conducted a "social cleansing" of Cambodia. They evacuated Pnomh Penh and wanted to strip the country of any Western Influence. They wanted to restore the country to its original rural farm state and stopped at nothing to achieve their goal. They brutally murdered anyone who lived in cities, had an education or posed any sort of threat to their "ideal" society. Many of the soldiers recruited by the Khmer Rouge were average citizens who were forced to torture and kill innocent people because they were too scared to resist the rebel leaders. Over 2 million Cambodians were killed during this genocide and I am embarrassed to say that I had never even heard of these devastating events until my time in Vietnam. To think that something so awful happened so recently, and I had absolutely no idea is mind boggling. I guess that's what happens when you make it through 4 years of college with no history credits...
Our first visit in Pnomh Penh was to the genocide museum that was originally a school house, turned into a prison and torture center by the Khmer Rouge. The prison has been preserved to show tourists the horrible conditions that prisoners were forced to live in. The cells were tiny and barbed wire lined every single window. The gallows still remain in the school yard where prisoners were hung upside down, beaten until they blacked out, then forced into buckets of dirty water to regain consciousness. The museum is filled with photographs of the victims - Cambodians ranging from children to elderly citizens. The Khmer Rouge had no restrictions on their victims. From the prison, the victims were transported to what they were told were "work camps" but were actually mass killing fields. They were transported in trucks and usually transported in the middle of the night. At the end of our prison tour, we were blessed with the opportunity to meet a survivor of the prison. He had the kindest eyes I have ever seen, and even though he couldn't speak English I could tell he was a very caring individual. I was able to purchase his book and I am looking forward to learning more about his story. I cannot imagine living through such a traumatic experience, and I have an enormous amount of respect for him. He is much stronger than I ever will be.
The next day we visited one of the many killing field sites in Cambodia. The site we visited was one of the largest, where over 20,000 people were killed. We toured the fields with an audio guide and some of the quotes that the Khmer Rouge used to defend their actions really haunted me:
"To keep you is no gain, to lose you is no loss."
"Better to kill an innocent by mistake than spare an enemy by mistake."
"To dig up the grass one must remove even the roots."
Throughout the tour of the fields, we saw tooth, bone, and clothing remains of the victims. One site was particularly disturbing, known as the "killing tree" where soldiers would beat babies and small children against the tree until they died. The Khmer Rouge did not use guns, for they were expensive and the noise could give them away. Instead they used common farming tools to beat the victims to death. Another very haunting experience was the alarm that went off at night. The audio tour played loud music with loud horns blaring in the background, this was the sound played at night to mask the screams of the victims. This tour was incredibly eye opening and the images that I saw, and heard described to me, will last with me forever. I cannot believe I was so unaware of such a horrible event. I have been doing alot of research on these events since my visit to Pnomh Penh and feel so terrible for the innocent Cambodian victims. I would highly recommend the book "First They Killed My Father" by Loung Ung, which is the story of a survivor told through the eyes of a child. The history of Cambodia is devastating and I am happy to learn that leaders of the Khmer Rouge have been sentenced to life in prison, Pol Pot died in captivity, and others are still on pending trial. Their acts are unforgivable and I hope that not only in Cambodia, but throughout the rest of the world, something like this never ever repeats itself. Pnomh Penh continues to suffer from the repercussions of the Khmer Rouge's actions and it angers me to think that human beings are capable of such cruelty.
While the overall vibe of our trip to Pnomh Penh was disturbing and sad, I was happy to be submerged in a first hand history lesson. RIP to the victims of the Khmer Rouge and I hope the future of Cambodia is brighter than their past. <3
Pnomh Penh is the capital city of Cambodia and is also the home to the largest genocide memorial and museum in the country. In the 1970s the rebel group, the Khmer Rouge, lead by Pol Pot, conducted a "social cleansing" of Cambodia. They evacuated Pnomh Penh and wanted to strip the country of any Western Influence. They wanted to restore the country to its original rural farm state and stopped at nothing to achieve their goal. They brutally murdered anyone who lived in cities, had an education or posed any sort of threat to their "ideal" society. Many of the soldiers recruited by the Khmer Rouge were average citizens who were forced to torture and kill innocent people because they were too scared to resist the rebel leaders. Over 2 million Cambodians were killed during this genocide and I am embarrassed to say that I had never even heard of these devastating events until my time in Vietnam. To think that something so awful happened so recently, and I had absolutely no idea is mind boggling. I guess that's what happens when you make it through 4 years of college with no history credits...
Our first visit in Pnomh Penh was to the genocide museum that was originally a school house, turned into a prison and torture center by the Khmer Rouge. The prison has been preserved to show tourists the horrible conditions that prisoners were forced to live in. The cells were tiny and barbed wire lined every single window. The gallows still remain in the school yard where prisoners were hung upside down, beaten until they blacked out, then forced into buckets of dirty water to regain consciousness. The museum is filled with photographs of the victims - Cambodians ranging from children to elderly citizens. The Khmer Rouge had no restrictions on their victims. From the prison, the victims were transported to what they were told were "work camps" but were actually mass killing fields. They were transported in trucks and usually transported in the middle of the night. At the end of our prison tour, we were blessed with the opportunity to meet a survivor of the prison. He had the kindest eyes I have ever seen, and even though he couldn't speak English I could tell he was a very caring individual. I was able to purchase his book and I am looking forward to learning more about his story. I cannot imagine living through such a traumatic experience, and I have an enormous amount of respect for him. He is much stronger than I ever will be.
The next day we visited one of the many killing field sites in Cambodia. The site we visited was one of the largest, where over 20,000 people were killed. We toured the fields with an audio guide and some of the quotes that the Khmer Rouge used to defend their actions really haunted me:
"To keep you is no gain, to lose you is no loss."
"Better to kill an innocent by mistake than spare an enemy by mistake."
"To dig up the grass one must remove even the roots."
Throughout the tour of the fields, we saw tooth, bone, and clothing remains of the victims. One site was particularly disturbing, known as the "killing tree" where soldiers would beat babies and small children against the tree until they died. The Khmer Rouge did not use guns, for they were expensive and the noise could give them away. Instead they used common farming tools to beat the victims to death. Another very haunting experience was the alarm that went off at night. The audio tour played loud music with loud horns blaring in the background, this was the sound played at night to mask the screams of the victims. This tour was incredibly eye opening and the images that I saw, and heard described to me, will last with me forever. I cannot believe I was so unaware of such a horrible event. I have been doing alot of research on these events since my visit to Pnomh Penh and feel so terrible for the innocent Cambodian victims. I would highly recommend the book "First They Killed My Father" by Loung Ung, which is the story of a survivor told through the eyes of a child. The history of Cambodia is devastating and I am happy to learn that leaders of the Khmer Rouge have been sentenced to life in prison, Pol Pot died in captivity, and others are still on pending trial. Their acts are unforgivable and I hope that not only in Cambodia, but throughout the rest of the world, something like this never ever repeats itself. Pnomh Penh continues to suffer from the repercussions of the Khmer Rouge's actions and it angers me to think that human beings are capable of such cruelty.
While the overall vibe of our trip to Pnomh Penh was disturbing and sad, I was happy to be submerged in a first hand history lesson. RIP to the victims of the Khmer Rouge and I hope the future of Cambodia is brighter than their past. <3
Backpacking Adventure: Vietnam Part II: Nha Trang and Ho Chi Minh City
So clearly I was horrible at keeping up with updates along the way... we were very busy on our adventure! I am back in Salaya now, packing up and getting ready to embark on the journey home. I cannot believe how fast the past 5 weeks flew by!!! We have seen and done SO much I feel like the daily routine of teaching in Thailand was a lifetime ago.
Our journey from Hoi An to Nha Trang was not quite as enjoyable as our last overnight bus experience. This time around the bus was much older and Skye and I had seats "upstairs" in the back row which were very shaky and narrow. There was also no toilet on this overnight bus, so we had to stop in the middle night for a "dinner" stop and for everyone to use the restroom. I didn't sleep well at all and was looking forward to a nap upon our arrival in Nha Trang. We settled into a hostel recommended by Lonely Planet but since we were only staying for one night, we weren't too picky about the accommodations (although I could have done without the giant cockroaches and other questionable species that were hiding in our bureau). After a well needed nap, Ethan and Emily knocked on our door saying they found a snorkeling trip that was willing to take us that day (we thought we would have needed to book in advance so we had assumed that our day would be relaxing on the beach) I snapped into my "go" mode, threw on a bathing suit, and was ready for the day. The best part about backpacking is there are little to no expectations of appearance so getting ready was always an extremely quick process.
We grabbed breakfast from the street, a delicious egg sandwich with laughing cow cheese and veggies. Vietnamese street food is very different from Thai street food and not nearly as abundant. I was looking forward to our snorkeling trip- we were visiting 3 different snorkel locations with lunch included. The boat was relatively small but it had a roof for sun bathing, and what later became our group diving board. The coral we saw on the first snorkel spot was gorgeous- huge pieces of red and pink and very well preserved. The second spot was kind of cloudy so we decided to stay on the roof-deck and relax. The third spot we were all sweating to death so we decided to swim, but skipped out on the snorkeling. We took ridiculous group photos of us jumping from the boat but we soon realized there were tiny jellyfish everywhere nibbling at our skin so we didn't last very long in the water. Overall our snorkeling experience was really fun and it was interesting to snorkel somewhere other than Thailand to see the variety of fish and coral.
We only had one night in Nha Trang so we decided to explore the restaurant and bar scene. There were a good amount of backpackers in the area and everywhere had deals for "happy hour." Skye and Alexis were pretty tired from the bus ride and long day in the sun, so Ethan Emily and I found a dive bar with free pool and 2 for 1 drink specials. We also discovered a fun beach bar, but with a 10 dollar cover charge it was way out of our budget.
The next day was St. Patrick's Day, although if it hadn't been for the drunk backpackers we saw at 9 am it could have been just another Sunday... We were scheduled to take the overnight bus that night to Ho Chi Minh city so no Irish celebrations for us! We headed to the beach which was actually used by Americans during the war for vacation time. The beach was very nice with views of mountains in the distance. There were fun waves to play in and Ethan, Alexis and I enjoyed a St. Patty's Day beer on the beach. We bought some souvenirs from some beach vendors and sat chatting in the sun for hours. It was a really fun beach day and definitely the most relaxed St. Patrick's Day I've had in a while...
For our last overnight bus experience the 5 of us decided to take the back row of seats and snuggle up! We charged Skye's computer so we could watch "Wedding Crashers" and all had optimistic thoughts that the ride would be enjoyable. Being the shortest of the group, I was placed in the middle of the row which was rather difficult because I move around a lot to find that perfect sleepy position. Being in the back of the bus was a little nauseating and the 5 of us together made for a pretty warm sleep... Again there was no toilet on this bus so the ride wasn't nearly as enjoyable as we had hoped. Oh well, we survived and there were no more overnight bus rides to dampen our spirits! I was not sad to say goodbye to those experiences...
We arrived in Ho Chi Minh city a little cranky from the journey and a little overwhelmed by the city. Thank god for Ethan because he is very good at reading maps and orienting himself in a new city, every time we arrived in a new city after the overnight bus ride I followed him around like a zombie, but always trusted his judgement on directions and accommodations. When we arrived we passed through a park where all the local Vietnamese were getting their early morning workout routines in. Hilarious is an understatement- mass groups of Vietnamese people doing aerobics was one of the funniest things I have seen in my life. I was skeptical about the hostel we chose because the directions were leading us down a very random alleyway- but they had a room that accommodated our group of 5 and the owner seemed nice enough.
Doing our research ahead of time, Alexis, Emily, and I knew there was a Starbucks in Ho Chi Minh so we planned on beasting through the day with a caffeine boost. After nearly 2 weeks of disgusting Vietnamese coffee I was very much looking forward to a good cup of Starbucks. We had a lot to cram into our time in Ho Chi Minh City- we only had 2 full days in the city and there was lots to do!
Our first stop was the War Museum. It was very interesting to go to the museum as an American and read all of the stories and perspectives from the Vietnamese. Some of the exhibits were really difficult to walk through- particularly the Agent Orange exhibit with photos of victims of all ages. The chemical affected up to 3 generations from the bomb sites and there were even preserved fetuses to show the damaging effects. Many of the propaganda posters were interesting to read and the aggressive adjectives used against the Americans left me blushing in embarrassment. It was definitely an eye opening experience and I enjoyed learning about history from an alternate perspective.
Our next stop, the most important stop of the day, was a lunch stop. We enjoyed Pho and Spring Rolls, the only food we really discovered in Vietnam. Vietnamese food definitely lacked the flavor and spices that Thai food is so well known for and meals were often a difficult decision for the 5 of us to agree upon in Vietnam.
After lunch we briefly visited the market and then headed to the palace. It was the weirdest palace I have ever visited and was used as more of a conference center than a home of royalty. The exhibits inside were very strange and we didn't spend much time there. The heat and the history lessons were starting to take a toll on us so we headed back to the hostel for an afternoon nap. We were resting up for the night market which was supposed to be the biggest market in Vietnam. When we got there we were certainly surprised to see the market only lasted for 3 short streets. After a very strange noodle dish from a street vendor, we explored some of the market stalls but they were not comparable to the souvenirs in Thailand. We headed back to the hostel where I anxiously awaited the arrival of midnight- which would be Tuesday- was the best day ever- MY BIRTHDAY! Ethan had snuck off at the market to buy me a hand made Disney card and I was very happy to be surrounded by friends for my birthday. I was feeling weird about turning 23 but to be able to celebrate any birthday in Ho Chi Minh city is a pretty cool experience so I remained optimistic about the day. We headed to bed- we had an early wake up call for the Cu Chi Tunnels the next day!
The Cu Chi Tunnels were the tunnels created by the Vietcong in the Vietnamese War. It was a pretty touristy experience, but our hilarious tour guide, John Wayne, made the day interesting. As part of the tour we got to see some of the trap doors and booby traps that the Vietcong placed around the tunnels to prevent enemies from discovery their hideaway. The tunnels primary use was for the soldiers to seek shelter during a bombing. They could spend up 2 hours in the tunnels at a time. There are 3 sets of tunnels, the first level is 3 meters below the ground, the second level is 6 meters below the ground, and the third level is 12 meters below the ground. Overall the tunnels stretch over 75 miles long- insane to think that they were hand made !! Only the first level of the tunnels is open to tourists, and you can crawl through 200 meters of the tunnels, with different exit points along the way. The 5 of us started out the journey, but it was dark, narrow, and very hot underground so Skye and Emily left about halfway through. Alexis, Ethan, and I crawled the full 200 meters, and some parts were scarier than others. I couldn't imagine being under there for an extended period of time but I am really glad I got to see a glimpse of what it was like. Another part of the tour was eating the root of a Tapeoka plant, which was the primary food source for the Vietcong. It was actually pretty delicious and tasted like a baked potato.
The tunnels were a very fascinating experience and it was interesting to have such a cultural experience on my birthday. It is definitely an unforgettable memory! After the tour, we headed back to Ho Chi Minh city for our last night in Vietnam. We had an early wake up call for the bus to Pnomh Penh, Cambodia the next day but that didn't halt the birthday celebrations! We started the night at a Mexican restaurant where I enjoyed quesadillas and margaritas. From there we found a bar/night club with good drink deals, an empty dance floor, and free pool. The 5 of us had the place to ourselves and had a blast dancing to random songs, playing pool, and some make shift karaoke sessions. It was a great birthday and a great way to end our trip in Vietnam.
Overall Vietnam was a very interesting place. I loved the mix of history and natural beauty that we experienced on our trip. We had a lot of very memorable moments during our 2 week stay in Vietnam and I am very happy I got to learn more about their history and culture. I never thought Vietnam would be a location I would visit in my lifetime but I am very happy with our trip and would definitely return to learn more. Vietnam is a very beautiful country and there is a wide variety of things to learn, see, and do.
Our journey from Hoi An to Nha Trang was not quite as enjoyable as our last overnight bus experience. This time around the bus was much older and Skye and I had seats "upstairs" in the back row which were very shaky and narrow. There was also no toilet on this overnight bus, so we had to stop in the middle night for a "dinner" stop and for everyone to use the restroom. I didn't sleep well at all and was looking forward to a nap upon our arrival in Nha Trang. We settled into a hostel recommended by Lonely Planet but since we were only staying for one night, we weren't too picky about the accommodations (although I could have done without the giant cockroaches and other questionable species that were hiding in our bureau). After a well needed nap, Ethan and Emily knocked on our door saying they found a snorkeling trip that was willing to take us that day (we thought we would have needed to book in advance so we had assumed that our day would be relaxing on the beach) I snapped into my "go" mode, threw on a bathing suit, and was ready for the day. The best part about backpacking is there are little to no expectations of appearance so getting ready was always an extremely quick process.
We grabbed breakfast from the street, a delicious egg sandwich with laughing cow cheese and veggies. Vietnamese street food is very different from Thai street food and not nearly as abundant. I was looking forward to our snorkeling trip- we were visiting 3 different snorkel locations with lunch included. The boat was relatively small but it had a roof for sun bathing, and what later became our group diving board. The coral we saw on the first snorkel spot was gorgeous- huge pieces of red and pink and very well preserved. The second spot was kind of cloudy so we decided to stay on the roof-deck and relax. The third spot we were all sweating to death so we decided to swim, but skipped out on the snorkeling. We took ridiculous group photos of us jumping from the boat but we soon realized there were tiny jellyfish everywhere nibbling at our skin so we didn't last very long in the water. Overall our snorkeling experience was really fun and it was interesting to snorkel somewhere other than Thailand to see the variety of fish and coral.
We only had one night in Nha Trang so we decided to explore the restaurant and bar scene. There were a good amount of backpackers in the area and everywhere had deals for "happy hour." Skye and Alexis were pretty tired from the bus ride and long day in the sun, so Ethan Emily and I found a dive bar with free pool and 2 for 1 drink specials. We also discovered a fun beach bar, but with a 10 dollar cover charge it was way out of our budget.
The next day was St. Patrick's Day, although if it hadn't been for the drunk backpackers we saw at 9 am it could have been just another Sunday... We were scheduled to take the overnight bus that night to Ho Chi Minh city so no Irish celebrations for us! We headed to the beach which was actually used by Americans during the war for vacation time. The beach was very nice with views of mountains in the distance. There were fun waves to play in and Ethan, Alexis and I enjoyed a St. Patty's Day beer on the beach. We bought some souvenirs from some beach vendors and sat chatting in the sun for hours. It was a really fun beach day and definitely the most relaxed St. Patrick's Day I've had in a while...
For our last overnight bus experience the 5 of us decided to take the back row of seats and snuggle up! We charged Skye's computer so we could watch "Wedding Crashers" and all had optimistic thoughts that the ride would be enjoyable. Being the shortest of the group, I was placed in the middle of the row which was rather difficult because I move around a lot to find that perfect sleepy position. Being in the back of the bus was a little nauseating and the 5 of us together made for a pretty warm sleep... Again there was no toilet on this bus so the ride wasn't nearly as enjoyable as we had hoped. Oh well, we survived and there were no more overnight bus rides to dampen our spirits! I was not sad to say goodbye to those experiences...
We arrived in Ho Chi Minh city a little cranky from the journey and a little overwhelmed by the city. Thank god for Ethan because he is very good at reading maps and orienting himself in a new city, every time we arrived in a new city after the overnight bus ride I followed him around like a zombie, but always trusted his judgement on directions and accommodations. When we arrived we passed through a park where all the local Vietnamese were getting their early morning workout routines in. Hilarious is an understatement- mass groups of Vietnamese people doing aerobics was one of the funniest things I have seen in my life. I was skeptical about the hostel we chose because the directions were leading us down a very random alleyway- but they had a room that accommodated our group of 5 and the owner seemed nice enough.
Doing our research ahead of time, Alexis, Emily, and I knew there was a Starbucks in Ho Chi Minh so we planned on beasting through the day with a caffeine boost. After nearly 2 weeks of disgusting Vietnamese coffee I was very much looking forward to a good cup of Starbucks. We had a lot to cram into our time in Ho Chi Minh City- we only had 2 full days in the city and there was lots to do!
Our first stop was the War Museum. It was very interesting to go to the museum as an American and read all of the stories and perspectives from the Vietnamese. Some of the exhibits were really difficult to walk through- particularly the Agent Orange exhibit with photos of victims of all ages. The chemical affected up to 3 generations from the bomb sites and there were even preserved fetuses to show the damaging effects. Many of the propaganda posters were interesting to read and the aggressive adjectives used against the Americans left me blushing in embarrassment. It was definitely an eye opening experience and I enjoyed learning about history from an alternate perspective.
Our next stop, the most important stop of the day, was a lunch stop. We enjoyed Pho and Spring Rolls, the only food we really discovered in Vietnam. Vietnamese food definitely lacked the flavor and spices that Thai food is so well known for and meals were often a difficult decision for the 5 of us to agree upon in Vietnam.
After lunch we briefly visited the market and then headed to the palace. It was the weirdest palace I have ever visited and was used as more of a conference center than a home of royalty. The exhibits inside were very strange and we didn't spend much time there. The heat and the history lessons were starting to take a toll on us so we headed back to the hostel for an afternoon nap. We were resting up for the night market which was supposed to be the biggest market in Vietnam. When we got there we were certainly surprised to see the market only lasted for 3 short streets. After a very strange noodle dish from a street vendor, we explored some of the market stalls but they were not comparable to the souvenirs in Thailand. We headed back to the hostel where I anxiously awaited the arrival of midnight- which would be Tuesday- was the best day ever- MY BIRTHDAY! Ethan had snuck off at the market to buy me a hand made Disney card and I was very happy to be surrounded by friends for my birthday. I was feeling weird about turning 23 but to be able to celebrate any birthday in Ho Chi Minh city is a pretty cool experience so I remained optimistic about the day. We headed to bed- we had an early wake up call for the Cu Chi Tunnels the next day!
The Cu Chi Tunnels were the tunnels created by the Vietcong in the Vietnamese War. It was a pretty touristy experience, but our hilarious tour guide, John Wayne, made the day interesting. As part of the tour we got to see some of the trap doors and booby traps that the Vietcong placed around the tunnels to prevent enemies from discovery their hideaway. The tunnels primary use was for the soldiers to seek shelter during a bombing. They could spend up 2 hours in the tunnels at a time. There are 3 sets of tunnels, the first level is 3 meters below the ground, the second level is 6 meters below the ground, and the third level is 12 meters below the ground. Overall the tunnels stretch over 75 miles long- insane to think that they were hand made !! Only the first level of the tunnels is open to tourists, and you can crawl through 200 meters of the tunnels, with different exit points along the way. The 5 of us started out the journey, but it was dark, narrow, and very hot underground so Skye and Emily left about halfway through. Alexis, Ethan, and I crawled the full 200 meters, and some parts were scarier than others. I couldn't imagine being under there for an extended period of time but I am really glad I got to see a glimpse of what it was like. Another part of the tour was eating the root of a Tapeoka plant, which was the primary food source for the Vietcong. It was actually pretty delicious and tasted like a baked potato.
The tunnels were a very fascinating experience and it was interesting to have such a cultural experience on my birthday. It is definitely an unforgettable memory! After the tour, we headed back to Ho Chi Minh city for our last night in Vietnam. We had an early wake up call for the bus to Pnomh Penh, Cambodia the next day but that didn't halt the birthday celebrations! We started the night at a Mexican restaurant where I enjoyed quesadillas and margaritas. From there we found a bar/night club with good drink deals, an empty dance floor, and free pool. The 5 of us had the place to ourselves and had a blast dancing to random songs, playing pool, and some make shift karaoke sessions. It was a great birthday and a great way to end our trip in Vietnam.
Overall Vietnam was a very interesting place. I loved the mix of history and natural beauty that we experienced on our trip. We had a lot of very memorable moments during our 2 week stay in Vietnam and I am very happy I got to learn more about their history and culture. I never thought Vietnam would be a location I would visit in my lifetime but I am very happy with our trip and would definitely return to learn more. Vietnam is a very beautiful country and there is a wide variety of things to learn, see, and do.
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