Month: July 2012

I Can’t Get Enough of Darling Hoi An, Vietnam

Of course the roads are super bumpy and general discomfort creates an environment that not even two Diazapem can remedy. Did I mention that we hate overnight bus rides? Hoi An, where the guest houses at?!   How many times have we insisted on never traveling on overnight buses? Ten, twenty, forty? How many times have we taken an overnight bus? Three. Three too many.   For some reason there is no day bus to Hoi An. Why? How is it that there is not one VIP company operating a bus that leaves in the morning? Begrudgingly we booked an overnight sleeper bus to Hoi An. That itself was difficult enough as multiple agencies told us that all of the bus companies were full. Well you learn pretty quick not to trust travel agencies in Southeast Asia. Their bus may be full but they will straight up lie to you in attempt to sell you a ticket on their next bus. If you look hard enough you will eventually find a fare.    When we boarded the bus …

Things Went a Little Sideways in Nha Trang, Vietnam

He then mentioned how his family had seen a girl defecating near the beach after dark… Nha Trang, beach side city where American soldiers used to holiday. With that knowledge I expected it to be a bit more bumpin. Perhaps there’s a peak season that we weren’t a privy to, but it seemed to me that there was less than a full wind in the sail. The beaches were big and clean enough though, and there was ample space to sink into a beach chair. We had great weather and I was able to gain quite a bit of color under the hot sun.   Upon arrival we headed to the bustling Backpacker House but it was full, so we checked in to a hotel across the street. Props to the Red Apple Restaurant. I enjoyed both my breakfast and dinner there. Lanterns also served a good meal. And as long as on the topic, I would not recommend ordering a Bolognese from the Italian restaurant just down the street. It was ironically quite spartan.    The …

Saigon – Good – But I didn’t Fall Into Its Rhythm

After stores close the owners place small plastic chairs on the sidewalks and sell Beer Saigon for 10,000VND ($0.50), the cheapest in SEA. This post should be a little shorter than the following entries for Vietnam.   We crossed into Vietnam from Phnom Penh rather uneventfully. The same couldn’t have been said for the three older American women on our bus. They were kicked off just before departing because they had obtained e-Visas and our border point was not one of the ones that could accept them. They were pretty miffed about where to get a visa, asking a British bloke where he got his Vietnamese visa. Her: “Where did you get your visa?” Him: “Uh, at a travel agent.” Her: “Which travel agent?” Him: “Uh, any travel agent. Like literally, any travel agent.”   Also of note was the skeletal Frenchman who sat beside GTO. Shortly after departure he began to bust up a small bag of grass, tossing stems onto the floor and transferring the rest to a smaller bag. GTO informed me that …

Human Sardines in a Tin Can Van

Returning to the Cambodian mainland, we spent our final days in Sihanoukville with Steve and Angela before they jetted off to India. We decided to stay on Occidental Beach rather than Serendipity. Unbeknown to us at the time, is that they are the same beach

Playing Survivor on Koh Rong Island, Cambodia

GTO was championing Koh Rong as a travel destination and I also had it on good account from another friend who had recently been there. This is how we found ourselves on the small island off the coast of Cambodia. We didn’t have much background knowledge of the island except that it is often erroneously referred to as Monkey Island. This likely originates from Monkey Island, a bungalow beach resort which is only one of three accommodation options on Koh Rong.  We set out and were among a handful of other travellers headed to the island. Boats service Koh Rong twice daily. We reached the wharf and met our first Aboriginal Canadian traveller. She was from Nunavut and thus she was referred to as ‘North of 60’ for the remainder of our trip. She worked at Monkey Island and gave us a pretty good description of what to expect on the island, or rather, what not to expect. A forty of Jack Daniels was being passed about and midway to the island we inquired into what she had …

Playing in the Penh: I Think We Enjoyed Phnom Penh More Than Most People…

…there was a guy on the dance floor and his ‘signature’ move was screaming. Literally. He would (during a song) emit shrill screams. Well I always expected that Phnom Penh (PP) would be a memorable stop on this SEA circuit we have endeavored upon. I had done some homework by reading ahead. Namely, I read the sensational Off the Rails in Phnom Penh: A Story of Girls, Guns and Ganja. Things have certainly calmed down a bit since the author’s stint during the mid 1990s. And thank god for that because shot guns shells are bad for your health (and shit was about to get real at a Cambodian artillery range). Anyway, it was a good read and I’d certainly recommend it to anyone, travelers or sedentary folk alike. Additionally, any trip to PP or Cambodia for that matter requires some insight into its sad, sad past and the politics of civil war which I will not go into here. Between the apparent lawlessness and deeply tragic modern history, I had a very unclear set …

What the Battambang?! I am Not Feeling This…

Lonely Planet, you failed me. You sensationally hyped Battambang’s wealth of charming colonial French architecture, nearly antiquated bamboo train, and tragic Killing Cave. “It is the type of place where travelers lose themselves.” Oh B.S. I have a special place in my heart for France and charming French architecture, but don’t bet the bank on Battambang being the beacon of colonial architecture in Cambodia. Battambang is dusty, run down and lackluster. Shortly after the Central Market closes late at night, garbage – strewn into the street – attracts a healthy population of rats. For foodies, there is an absolute lack of quality establishments and we encountered strange adaptations of standard dishes (as in, strange bad). For social enthusiasts, a lack of life after 11:00 is wholly disheartening. Okay, but Battambang is the location of the nearly obsolete Norry. These bamboo trains travel slowly along rail road lines, disassembling when encountering train traffic. It is Old World travel and there seems to be a persistent rumor that they will soon be pulled from the lines permanently. …

We Visited Tonle Sap Fishing Village Near Siem Reap

Tonle Sap is the largest freshwater lake in South East Asia. Its significant fluctuation in water levels yields a large flood plain and bountiful biosphere. Wikipedia also informs me that the lake is unique because the water flow changes directions twice annually. We decided to make a day trip to a fishing village on the lake’s edge. Residents live on the water because water levels rise more than 9 metres during the wet season! We hired a car and guide from a tour agency which deposited us at the wharf, twenty or so minutes from down town Siem Reap. The group of us boarded privately boarded a boat and headed down the canal to the floating village. Rain clouds threatened overhead but we were delighted when a smaller boat approached ours and child hopped on board. She promptly produced a cooler of local beer and made an easy sale. As quickly as she appeared she hopped back and disappeared into the boat traffic.  Our first stop was a restaurant-souvenir shop-ecological centre. Before we could step off …