I said it myself...it's crazy what a day can bring. After just one week working for Budget rental, we were given the boot with nothing to show but our hip company shirts as a parting gift. It was probably one of the funniest moments of my life and we are not bitter at all that they had to "let us go." When it came down to it, we had no working visa, we don't speak a lick of Greek (and therefore cannot work in the office) nor do we drive manual (so we can't drive any of the cars). Our only function was flashing our beautiful confused smiles and providing some good laughs. Now we are on the hunt for another job or some sort of direction on what to do for the rest of our trip in Europe.
Since being fired we have had a great time bumming around the island, seeing old friends and making some new ones as well. We continue to spend the majority of our time sitting on the beach or in front of our friend's jewelry shop. There was a new addition to the group this week; Jenna, a friend living in Italy, came to visit and she was fresh meat for our new greek friends to joke with. And, of course, I cannot forget to mention our newest best friends in the whole world: Ari, Tanya, Brendan, Davin, and Dion. Apparently all of Israel has come on vacation to Mykonos and we are glad for that. They have been great company for naked people watching on the beach (yep, all beaches seems to be nudey beaches here on Mykonos) and have provided tons of laughs. Was that sufficient Ari? Would you like me to write some more about you?
Apart from trying to find some direction in our travels, our days continue to be exciting and filled with lots of random activities. The Greeks are generous, welcoming, and make some damn good gyros...so we love them. Our fame seems to grow by the day....just today some girl came up to us and asked if we were Jess and Amanda, the girls traveling around the world with the blog. Yep, that's right...we have a fan club. It must have something to do with all those pictures we took with random people in India. In all honesty, it was pretty cool that people out there are actually reading this godforsaken blog and I hope that you all enjoy!
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Walls, Deserts, and Islands
In the 3 weeks since I last wrote, our lives have become so amazingly random I can't help but laugh as I sit here and write this entry. Let's put it this way...we don't know how to drive manual, Jess doesn't even have a license with her, nor do we speak Greek, yet we scored a job delivering cars for Budget rental in Mykonos, Greece. Like many things on this trip, I'm not sure how we stumbled upon this opportunity - but I'm just gonna roll with it. Yesterday we had to walk an hour to get home because we missed the bus, today we have our own company car to drive around the island and we are going to get courtesy cell phones. It's crazy what a day can bring.
Before arriving here in Greece, we rounded out the China leg of our trip and visited the wonderful Taylor and Tobin Ireland in Abu Dhabi. Our time in Beijing was spent visiting the Forbidden city, summer palace, and, of course, - the Great wall of China. The most memorable of the three is definitely the wall - it truly is "Great." We spent our last day in Asia hiking from Jinshanling to Simatai. This is an interesting stretch of the wall with sections that remain original and others that are completely restored. The landscape is overwhelming; the mountains are so green and textured that they look fake. The wall itself stretches as far as the eye can see, up and over the hill and cliffs. It's a wonder that they able to build the wall on such terrain - I was getting winded hiking it...imagine having to haul all of the materials and build the wall to boot! It made us realize that our goal to run a half marathon is going to be more challenging than we thought.
We left Asia with a tear in our eyes and endured a day long journey to the UAE. It was not long before we were in the laps of luxury in the Ireland's apartment in Abu Dhabi. Our time with Taylor and Tobin was like a breath of fresh air...before we arrived we were grumpy and homesick - by the time we left we were rejuvenated and ready to move again (although we would have preferred to hang in Abu Dhabi a bit longer). Within 24 hours of our arrival we met the entire staff of the American International Elementary School. They were chock full of entertainment with their crazy tales of teaching the expats and royal Emirates. It was interesting to hear all of their stories and we are now convinced that teaching is in our future. It would be the perfect occupation to feed our travel addiction. Beyond that, we spent a full week watching boot legged movies or, when we wanted to get some "fresh air," walking around glamorous malls with the rest of the Emirate women. The dry heat of the UAE is both tiring and satisfying. This, coupled with our laziness, kept us form exploring the city too much. But, it is amazing to think that just 30 years ago this incredibly modern city was all desert. Now it is an interesting mix of western and eastern cultures, set in the richest country in the world. Public transport was slacking but the crazy cheap gas prices allow the taxi rides to be affordable - we filled up a full tank of gas for about 15 US dollars.
Two highlights of our trip to the UAE were dining with Cornelia and Hunter Milborne at the Emirate Palace and playing in the sand dunes in Liwa. The dunes were incredible and unlike anything I have ever seen before. Pictures will be up soon. Though these were "highlights" of our week, in all honesty, our favorite times were spent on the couch watching movies, awaiting the return of our adoptive parents from work with hugs and dinner in the oven. We love Taylor and Tobin, the perfect mirror image of our own relationship. It was like a double date with 2 old married couples: I was Taylor and Jess was Tobin.
As for life at the moment, we are happy to be settling down for awhile in one spot. Hopefully by this time next week we will have an apartment and will be able to cook meals and have a hot shower. We are spending our days learning to drive manual, our afternoons running, and our evenings sitting in front of our friend's jewelry shop sipping wine. It's a hard life but someone has to do it.
Before arriving here in Greece, we rounded out the China leg of our trip and visited the wonderful Taylor and Tobin Ireland in Abu Dhabi. Our time in Beijing was spent visiting the Forbidden city, summer palace, and, of course, - the Great wall of China. The most memorable of the three is definitely the wall - it truly is "Great." We spent our last day in Asia hiking from Jinshanling to Simatai. This is an interesting stretch of the wall with sections that remain original and others that are completely restored. The landscape is overwhelming; the mountains are so green and textured that they look fake. The wall itself stretches as far as the eye can see, up and over the hill and cliffs. It's a wonder that they able to build the wall on such terrain - I was getting winded hiking it...imagine having to haul all of the materials and build the wall to boot! It made us realize that our goal to run a half marathon is going to be more challenging than we thought.
We left Asia with a tear in our eyes and endured a day long journey to the UAE. It was not long before we were in the laps of luxury in the Ireland's apartment in Abu Dhabi. Our time with Taylor and Tobin was like a breath of fresh air...before we arrived we were grumpy and homesick - by the time we left we were rejuvenated and ready to move again (although we would have preferred to hang in Abu Dhabi a bit longer). Within 24 hours of our arrival we met the entire staff of the American International Elementary School. They were chock full of entertainment with their crazy tales of teaching the expats and royal Emirates. It was interesting to hear all of their stories and we are now convinced that teaching is in our future. It would be the perfect occupation to feed our travel addiction. Beyond that, we spent a full week watching boot legged movies or, when we wanted to get some "fresh air," walking around glamorous malls with the rest of the Emirate women. The dry heat of the UAE is both tiring and satisfying. This, coupled with our laziness, kept us form exploring the city too much. But, it is amazing to think that just 30 years ago this incredibly modern city was all desert. Now it is an interesting mix of western and eastern cultures, set in the richest country in the world. Public transport was slacking but the crazy cheap gas prices allow the taxi rides to be affordable - we filled up a full tank of gas for about 15 US dollars.
Two highlights of our trip to the UAE were dining with Cornelia and Hunter Milborne at the Emirate Palace and playing in the sand dunes in Liwa. The dunes were incredible and unlike anything I have ever seen before. Pictures will be up soon. Though these were "highlights" of our week, in all honesty, our favorite times were spent on the couch watching movies, awaiting the return of our adoptive parents from work with hugs and dinner in the oven. We love Taylor and Tobin, the perfect mirror image of our own relationship. It was like a double date with 2 old married couples: I was Taylor and Jess was Tobin.
As for life at the moment, we are happy to be settling down for awhile in one spot. Hopefully by this time next week we will have an apartment and will be able to cook meals and have a hot shower. We are spending our days learning to drive manual, our afternoons running, and our evenings sitting in front of our friend's jewelry shop sipping wine. It's a hard life but someone has to do it.
Friday, May 2, 2008
6 Months Away from the Homeland!
It's true. Today marks 6 months away and we are alive, kicking, and still getting along! It's hard to believe that we have been away for so long. But, when I look back it feels like an eternity has passed since that November night when we first stepped on our flight to Peru. Eleven countries, fifteen flights, endless hours on buses and trains, and God knows how many walked miles later, we are in China and exhausted. I knew this day would come, but I denied it until it actually happened - we don't want to go ANYWHERE or see ANYTHING. I would actually rather sit and watch movies in the hostel than go explore the city we are in, Pingyao, a small glimpse into old-world China. How pathetic!? We lead difficult lives. Despite our lack of motivation, we have seen a number of cool things in the past week and met a handful of amazing people.
First stop after Hong Kong was Shanghai. Unfortunately, when we arrived we had some trouble with our ATM card and spent the first entire day walking from ATM to ATM.
We found that by walking from bank to bank we were able to see a greater part of the city and it eventually led us to the bustling area of the city by night time. We wondered the Bund, checked out the lights of Shanghai, and tried to sell roller blades. Well, to be fair, Jess tried to help 2 Chinese girls sell roller blades to tourists and I spent a good 10 minutes actually trying to use them. Picture this: Jess running up and down the street with an energetic Chinese girl, attempting to sell light up roller blades to anyone that looked western. Now, picture me, far behind, leaning on a 5 foot nothing Chinese girl who is trying to help me stand on 2 feet and teach me how to use the death traps. It wasn't good for sales, I can say that much. Afterwards we got the ATM to work...thank the lord for Commerce Bank!
The following night was a bit random. Jess got lured into a pub by a "Hoegarden Beer" sign. Apparently 2 Australian guys recognized us from one of our many ATM stops the day before and before we knew it they were buying us a traditional Chinese dinner at a posh restaurant. We tried pigs feet, fish heads, and frog. They don't waste anything here in China...apparently we could have ordered cat...I was thankful they didn't put that in front of me.
From Shanghai we took a near 24 hour train ride to Xi'an. This city is the home of the "8th wonder of the world," the Terracotta Army. Discovered in 1974, these ruins consist of near 60,000 warriors made to protect the first emperor's tomb. They were constructed in 200 B.C.! That's right...after nearly 2,000 years underground, these ruins were discovered by some farmers digging a well. The sheer number of them is overwhelming, considering when they were made, and the fact that they are so detailed. From the the expression on the warriors faces right down to the horse's teeth, you can make out everything. Not all of the warriors have been restored and there is still much work to be done. Nevertheless, the site was definitely worth the long train all the way out to Xi'an. Here is one of many pictures of the warriors:
At the moment we are in Pingyao. This is an old banking city halfway between Xi'an and Beijing. The walls surrounding the city are the only ones remaining in China from the Ming Dynasty (1300's). Apparently, at it's height the city flourished as the financial capital of China. But, it was too poor to modernize since it's collapse and, lucky for us, has kept it's old-town China feel. The architecture is amazing and the streets are filled with antiques and temples. It is definitely one of my favorites in China.
We had a pretty random experience last night. Jess impressed some old man by doing a cartwheel and he invited us into his home for "picture." We assumed he wanted a picture of us (we are so vain), but he actually wanted to show us his photo albums. Apparently he was a martial arts star in his hay-day; he had newspaper clippings, photos of himself preforming in front of large crowds, and plaques. He even whipped out his sword, non-chucks, and spear...and let us play with them. He didn't speak a lick of English but I left feeling like we had a whole conversation.
That brings you all up to date! Lucky you. Tomorrow we take 2 buses to Beijing, where we plan on participating in our self-organized Olympic games. Events will include spinning, leap frogging, and my personal favorite, "how many Chinese people can you get to take a picture with you?". I don't think that Beijing knows what's coming their way.
First stop after Hong Kong was Shanghai. Unfortunately, when we arrived we had some trouble with our ATM card and spent the first entire day walking from ATM to ATM.
We found that by walking from bank to bank we were able to see a greater part of the city and it eventually led us to the bustling area of the city by night time. We wondered the Bund, checked out the lights of Shanghai, and tried to sell roller blades. Well, to be fair, Jess tried to help 2 Chinese girls sell roller blades to tourists and I spent a good 10 minutes actually trying to use them. Picture this: Jess running up and down the street with an energetic Chinese girl, attempting to sell light up roller blades to anyone that looked western. Now, picture me, far behind, leaning on a 5 foot nothing Chinese girl who is trying to help me stand on 2 feet and teach me how to use the death traps. It wasn't good for sales, I can say that much. Afterwards we got the ATM to work...thank the lord for Commerce Bank!
The following night was a bit random. Jess got lured into a pub by a "Hoegarden Beer" sign. Apparently 2 Australian guys recognized us from one of our many ATM stops the day before and before we knew it they were buying us a traditional Chinese dinner at a posh restaurant. We tried pigs feet, fish heads, and frog. They don't waste anything here in China...apparently we could have ordered cat...I was thankful they didn't put that in front of me.
From Shanghai we took a near 24 hour train ride to Xi'an. This city is the home of the "8th wonder of the world," the Terracotta Army. Discovered in 1974, these ruins consist of near 60,000 warriors made to protect the first emperor's tomb. They were constructed in 200 B.C.! That's right...after nearly 2,000 years underground, these ruins were discovered by some farmers digging a well. The sheer number of them is overwhelming, considering when they were made, and the fact that they are so detailed. From the the expression on the warriors faces right down to the horse's teeth, you can make out everything. Not all of the warriors have been restored and there is still much work to be done. Nevertheless, the site was definitely worth the long train all the way out to Xi'an. Here is one of many pictures of the warriors:
At the moment we are in Pingyao. This is an old banking city halfway between Xi'an and Beijing. The walls surrounding the city are the only ones remaining in China from the Ming Dynasty (1300's). Apparently, at it's height the city flourished as the financial capital of China. But, it was too poor to modernize since it's collapse and, lucky for us, has kept it's old-town China feel. The architecture is amazing and the streets are filled with antiques and temples. It is definitely one of my favorites in China.We had a pretty random experience last night. Jess impressed some old man by doing a cartwheel and he invited us into his home for "picture." We assumed he wanted a picture of us (we are so vain), but he actually wanted to show us his photo albums. Apparently he was a martial arts star in his hay-day; he had newspaper clippings, photos of himself preforming in front of large crowds, and plaques. He even whipped out his sword, non-chucks, and spear...and let us play with them. He didn't speak a lick of English but I left feeling like we had a whole conversation.
That brings you all up to date! Lucky you. Tomorrow we take 2 buses to Beijing, where we plan on participating in our self-organized Olympic games. Events will include spinning, leap frogging, and my personal favorite, "how many Chinese people can you get to take a picture with you?". I don't think that Beijing knows what's coming their way.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
We love Laos: "I love you, no problem!"
The past two weeks of our life went by in a blink of an eye. Looking back, I wonder how we could have ever considered skipping Laos and how different our perspective on life and traveling is now that we have had such a wonderful experience. Laos is the highlight of Southeast Asia. Despite being widely known as the most bombed country in history, the Laos people are the most content, welcoming group of individuals I have ever met in my life. When we started traveling we were told that the most important thing to do is to immerse ourselves in the culture. Fellow travelers harp that more time in less places is the way to go and it is essential to talk to strangers. Although we thought we were doing an alright job of this, it was not until we left Laos that I realized we had a truly unique experience and that for the the first time on our trip we really got to know the locals personally.
Vang Vieng is notorious for luring in travelers who seem to get "stuck" there after falling in love. Westerners spend the whole day tubing down a gorgeous river surrounded by limestone mountains. To make matters more interesting, the river is lined with bars made from bamboo (which look like they could crumble at any moment), fully equipped with rope swings and volleyball courts. What more could you need? A helmet might have been smart. Then, after tubing the day away, you return to the town center only to watch endless episodes of "Friends," played in virtually every restaurant. I have a new found love for the TV show and actually relate my life to "Friends" episodes on a daily basis. It is sick and wonderful all in one.
We were lucky enough to be in Vang Vieng for the New Year. It is known as the "water festival" because for 3 days straight there is basically one huge water fight in order to celebrate the New Year (based on the Indian calendar). Locals and westerners alike stand on street corners, ride in the back of trucks, and run around town with super soakers, all with one goal in mind: to drench any dry piece of clothing in the area. These people take mercy on no one. Whether you have a camera in hand, just arrived in town with your luggage, or are 100 years old...you are getting wet. Everyone is in high spirits (per usual in Laos) and it makes for a really good time. What makes the New Year especially great is that the area was jam packed with even more Laos people than usual. We went down to the river to drink, dance, laugh, sing, and swim with the locals. They pass around glasses of beer and someone is always walking around with shots of Lao Lao (local whiskey = poison) that you are not allowed to refuse. One morning when Jess and I arrived at work (yes, we got a job...more on that coming up) we were accosted by a group of about 10 Laos people who were having an early morning celebration. We don't know what they were saying but they loved us...this they were able to convey with the only English they could muster up: "Thank you, for you!" and "I love you, no problem!". Now we know the proper response when someone says "I love you"...it's "NO PROBLEM!". Once again, they would not let us refuse beer and lao lao....at 9am. We drank, danced, and laughed endlessly for hours, only to see them hop in their cars and leave, taking everything (including our sanity) with them, never to return again. This debauchery went on for three days straight, after which I was exhausted and a little tired of being constantly drenched with water! Nevertheless, it was a ridiculous amount of fun and hopefully I will be back again for the festival.
And yes, it is true...we got a job. Well, technically it was a "job," but I am not sure you can consider it working. We were hired by a somewhat eccentric (but wonderful) Aussie named James to work at "Joker Bar" on the island in town. The bar is owned by a local man named Phai Vanh, who refused to be called "Boss," but instead preferred to be called "friend friend!" We loved everything about him and the bar, including his gorgeous wife, Jan, and children, Joker (hence the name of the bar) and Cutter. Here is a picture of Joker and Cutter:
This was a typical day at "work": wake up, go to the bar, Jan cooked us food, talk for awhile with our co-workers/friends, take a rickshaw to the river, talk to people tubing, give them "free hugs" (we were the only bar in town with free hugs!) in attempt to get them to come the bar later that night, return to the town, shower, Jan cooked us. In return for all of this hard work, we received accommodation, food, and drinks. Basically, all of our costs were taken care of and we were doing exactly what we would have been anyway...and we had a reason to hug anyone we wanted! Jess abused this right, running around town with "FREE HUGS!" written across her body in permanent marker. It was definitely a sight to be seen.
Anyhow, we were supposed to be in town for 2 days and ended up staying over 2 weeks. When we announced that we intended to leave, the family had a "going away" ceremony for us. This was probably one of the most unique, special things that I have ever been part of and one of the reasons why I ever wanted to travel in the first place. We arrived at their house at 8am for the ceremony to be greeted by most of Phai Vonh's immediate family. They cooked us a traditional Laos meal (I could still see the head on the chicken), literally fed us one by one, and then had each of us put out our hands out. In one hand they put a glass of Lao Lao and in the other they tied a string around our wrist while saying a prayer or wish for our travels. We are supposed to keep the strings on until they fall off. After we stomached the lao lao, we were handed beer after beer and watched traditional Laos dancing. James and I were entertained by a drunken Jess attempting to master this dance. All in all, I could try and describe this experience in words but it would be impossible. These people welcomed us into their home after knowing us for only a week or two and were actually sad to be seeing us go! The whole thing brought Jess, James, and I to tears and we all vow to return next year to "work" for this wonderful family again.
After 2 weeks and changing our tickets 3 days in a row, we finally left. I had to practically drag Jess (kicking and screaming) so that we could make our overnight bus to Bangkok and then our flight to Hong Kong. After a somewhat disastrous first night in Hong Kong, we had a nice 3 day stay. We walked the streets of the city (reminding us of NYC), watched the largest light show in the world, climbed the Victoria Peak (in a tram car) to see the foggy view, and shopped in various markets. At the moment we are in Shanghai, excited to eat some Chinese food and brave the streets of China with absolutely no knowledge of the language. Should be an interesting couple of weeks!
Vang Vieng is notorious for luring in travelers who seem to get "stuck" there after falling in love. Westerners spend the whole day tubing down a gorgeous river surrounded by limestone mountains. To make matters more interesting, the river is lined with bars made from bamboo (which look like they could crumble at any moment), fully equipped with rope swings and volleyball courts. What more could you need? A helmet might have been smart. Then, after tubing the day away, you return to the town center only to watch endless episodes of "Friends," played in virtually every restaurant. I have a new found love for the TV show and actually relate my life to "Friends" episodes on a daily basis. It is sick and wonderful all in one.
We were lucky enough to be in Vang Vieng for the New Year. It is known as the "water festival" because for 3 days straight there is basically one huge water fight in order to celebrate the New Year (based on the Indian calendar). Locals and westerners alike stand on street corners, ride in the back of trucks, and run around town with super soakers, all with one goal in mind: to drench any dry piece of clothing in the area. These people take mercy on no one. Whether you have a camera in hand, just arrived in town with your luggage, or are 100 years old...you are getting wet. Everyone is in high spirits (per usual in Laos) and it makes for a really good time. What makes the New Year especially great is that the area was jam packed with even more Laos people than usual. We went down to the river to drink, dance, laugh, sing, and swim with the locals. They pass around glasses of beer and someone is always walking around with shots of Lao Lao (local whiskey = poison) that you are not allowed to refuse. One morning when Jess and I arrived at work (yes, we got a job...more on that coming up) we were accosted by a group of about 10 Laos people who were having an early morning celebration. We don't know what they were saying but they loved us...this they were able to convey with the only English they could muster up: "Thank you, for you!" and "I love you, no problem!". Now we know the proper response when someone says "I love you"...it's "NO PROBLEM!". Once again, they would not let us refuse beer and lao lao....at 9am. We drank, danced, and laughed endlessly for hours, only to see them hop in their cars and leave, taking everything (including our sanity) with them, never to return again. This debauchery went on for three days straight, after which I was exhausted and a little tired of being constantly drenched with water! Nevertheless, it was a ridiculous amount of fun and hopefully I will be back again for the festival.
And yes, it is true...we got a job. Well, technically it was a "job," but I am not sure you can consider it working. We were hired by a somewhat eccentric (but wonderful) Aussie named James to work at "Joker Bar" on the island in town. The bar is owned by a local man named Phai Vanh, who refused to be called "Boss," but instead preferred to be called "friend friend!" We loved everything about him and the bar, including his gorgeous wife, Jan, and children, Joker (hence the name of the bar) and Cutter. Here is a picture of Joker and Cutter:
This was a typical day at "work": wake up, go to the bar, Jan cooked us food, talk for awhile with our co-workers/friends, take a rickshaw to the river, talk to people tubing, give them "free hugs" (we were the only bar in town with free hugs!) in attempt to get them to come the bar later that night, return to the town, shower, Jan cooked us. In return for all of this hard work, we received accommodation, food, and drinks. Basically, all of our costs were taken care of and we were doing exactly what we would have been anyway...and we had a reason to hug anyone we wanted! Jess abused this right, running around town with "FREE HUGS!" written across her body in permanent marker. It was definitely a sight to be seen.
Anyhow, we were supposed to be in town for 2 days and ended up staying over 2 weeks. When we announced that we intended to leave, the family had a "going away" ceremony for us. This was probably one of the most unique, special things that I have ever been part of and one of the reasons why I ever wanted to travel in the first place. We arrived at their house at 8am for the ceremony to be greeted by most of Phai Vonh's immediate family. They cooked us a traditional Laos meal (I could still see the head on the chicken), literally fed us one by one, and then had each of us put out our hands out. In one hand they put a glass of Lao Lao and in the other they tied a string around our wrist while saying a prayer or wish for our travels. We are supposed to keep the strings on until they fall off. After we stomached the lao lao, we were handed beer after beer and watched traditional Laos dancing. James and I were entertained by a drunken Jess attempting to master this dance. All in all, I could try and describe this experience in words but it would be impossible. These people welcomed us into their home after knowing us for only a week or two and were actually sad to be seeing us go! The whole thing brought Jess, James, and I to tears and we all vow to return next year to "work" for this wonderful family again.
After 2 weeks and changing our tickets 3 days in a row, we finally left. I had to practically drag Jess (kicking and screaming) so that we could make our overnight bus to Bangkok and then our flight to Hong Kong. After a somewhat disastrous first night in Hong Kong, we had a nice 3 day stay. We walked the streets of the city (reminding us of NYC), watched the largest light show in the world, climbed the Victoria Peak (in a tram car) to see the foggy view, and shopped in various markets. At the moment we are in Shanghai, excited to eat some Chinese food and brave the streets of China with absolutely no knowledge of the language. Should be an interesting couple of weeks!
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Adventures in Cambodia and over the border to Laos
I can't tell you the number of times I open up this website and don't know what to write about. A lot of the things that I find amusing throughout the day cannot be explained with words and other instances, in retrospect, do not seem to be particularly newsworthy. Hours of karaoke on long bus rides remains to be the most entertaining TV we have seen in 5 months. Taking 10 minutes to bargain the price of a pineapple from 1 dollar down to 25 cents is an everyday occurrence. A woman in Phnom Penh who followed us for 20 minutes and insisted on spraying us with water (although annoying) is one of many strange characters we have stumbled upon. Being told we bought a "direct" ticket only to find out that we in fact have to take a mini-van, walk 200 meters, hop on a boat, take another mini-van, switch into a truck, and then take another boat to our destination, is now expected in our travels. These are things that we have become numb to but, in all honesty, make our days all the more exciting. That being said, it has been over a week since I have last written and in that time we have seen quite a bit and endured our fair share of hassles. Here goes...
I guess I will start with Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. We got there just in time to soak up some much needed AC in the US Embassy and have extra pages added to our passports (it's crazy that they are already full!). Since we were convinced by some random guy that Laos is the place to be, we decided that we would go and, therefore, needed to wait a couple days in Phnom Penh for our visas.
We got a small glimpse into the brutality of the Khmer Rouge when we visited the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. Ironically, this is a former high school turned into the Security Prison-21 (S-21), which was functioning up until 1979. The prisoners were accused of betraying the party or revolution and were usually tortured and exterminated within a month of arrival. To make a bad situation even worse, the majority of the time the family members of the accused were also taken in and found a similar fate; children were not spared. Though I will not go into detail on how the prisoners were treated, if you want some further reading here is the Tuol Sleng wikipedia website. It is both horrible and horrifying that a place like S-21 was functioning so recently and no one “knew” about it...or, maybe ignorance was bliss and ignoring it was what our western governments felt suitable. A couple of years ago I went to a concentration camp in Germany and I found Tuol Sleng similarly revolting.
The museum was not all around uplifting, so we decided we needed to go shopping. Therefore, the next stop was the Russian Market. Let me tell you...TJ Max and Marshalls ain’t got nothing on this market when it comes to “brand name clothes for less.” There were countless stalls with clothes from Zara, Hollister, American Eagle, Abercrombie, etc. priced anywhere from 1 to 5 dollars! This wasn’t any post season sale either...they had some good stuff. That being said, we got there right when it was closing and decided we would come back the following day. We returned thinking we would just wonder around for about an hour and then head off to some other tourist site, 5 hours later we were still trying on dresses and going through massive piles of shirts. In the end, our budget got the better of us and we both only left with one or two essentials. Clearly, we are poor.
From Phnom Penh we headed straight to Siem Reap, the location of the temples of Angkor. They definitely live up to their hype. The numerous temples and buildings were all constructed sometime during the mighty Angkorian period between the 9th and 15th centuries. The first stop on our trip was to Angkor Wat, the largest religious building in the entire world. The structure itself is in surprisingly good condition and the bass relief carvings are clear as day. What is so overwhelming about these temples is their magnitude: they are HUGE! I got tired doing construction with my dad and we had electricity! Apparently all of the stones were taken from a mountain 50 miles away, transported by way of river in the wet season and by elephants in the dry. Crazy. After wondering around the area for a couple hours, the next stop on our temple tour was Ta Phrom. I have to say, this was by far my favorite stop. Part of the jungle was cleared in order to construct this temple and over the years the jungle has basically taken back its territory. Trees grow threw windows and knock over walls, creating a big mess out of what remains. It should also be noted that this was a film location for Angelina Jolie’s movie “Tomb Raider.” Now I understand why she adopted a Cambodian boy! Here we are in Ta Phrom.
Our last stop of the day was Angkor Thom, a larger complex of temples, palaces, pools, and other things that were all overwhelming in the heat. The most impressive of the bunch was the Bayon, a temple that is marked by 54 large Buddha heads. All in all, the temples of Angkor were awesome and the area of Siem Reap, although very touristy, was pretty cool and I would have liked a little more time. Alas, our time is limited and we had to head out towards Laos. Little did we know what we were in for.
For the most part, we tend to take the road more traveled. We like surprises but we also like our lonely planet and tend to take the advice they offer. However, this time around when the guidebook said “you will be in for a real adventure if you go through the Cambodian-Laos border," we decided an adventure is what we needed in our lives (plus it was the only way we could go). Maybe it would be fun? To make a very long story short, we got into various fights with our taxi/mini-van drivers who tried to rip us off and over-crowd our vehicles, had our bags held hostage for the equivalent of 3 US dollars, and ended up staying an extra night in a town in the middle of nowhere near the border of Laos. Surely this it was an adventure...but fun? I think not. Maybe we will laugh about it next week.
First stop in Laos was Don Det, one of the 4,000 islands on the Cambodian-Laos border. The sights are beautiful and calming...when you can stand the heat. I can’t believe just how hot it gets here and how lethargic it makes you feel! Yesterday Jess and I rented some bikes and checked out some impressive waterfalls until Jess got a flat tire. I ditched her to check out the rest of the island with the energy I had left and took tons of pictures, which should now be posted. We spent the rest of the afternoon swimming in the Mekong River, conveniently located in our front yard.
Right now we are waiting for an overnight bus to Vientiane, the capital of Laos. I'm not sure how long we will be there, but we will be definitely be looking for some AC.
I guess I will start with Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. We got there just in time to soak up some much needed AC in the US Embassy and have extra pages added to our passports (it's crazy that they are already full!). Since we were convinced by some random guy that Laos is the place to be, we decided that we would go and, therefore, needed to wait a couple days in Phnom Penh for our visas.
We got a small glimpse into the brutality of the Khmer Rouge when we visited the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. Ironically, this is a former high school turned into the Security Prison-21 (S-21), which was functioning up until 1979. The prisoners were accused of betraying the party or revolution and were usually tortured and exterminated within a month of arrival. To make a bad situation even worse, the majority of the time the family members of the accused were also taken in and found a similar fate; children were not spared. Though I will not go into detail on how the prisoners were treated, if you want some further reading here is the Tuol Sleng wikipedia website. It is both horrible and horrifying that a place like S-21 was functioning so recently and no one “knew” about it...or, maybe ignorance was bliss and ignoring it was what our western governments felt suitable. A couple of years ago I went to a concentration camp in Germany and I found Tuol Sleng similarly revolting.
The museum was not all around uplifting, so we decided we needed to go shopping. Therefore, the next stop was the Russian Market. Let me tell you...TJ Max and Marshalls ain’t got nothing on this market when it comes to “brand name clothes for less.” There were countless stalls with clothes from Zara, Hollister, American Eagle, Abercrombie, etc. priced anywhere from 1 to 5 dollars! This wasn’t any post season sale either...they had some good stuff. That being said, we got there right when it was closing and decided we would come back the following day. We returned thinking we would just wonder around for about an hour and then head off to some other tourist site, 5 hours later we were still trying on dresses and going through massive piles of shirts. In the end, our budget got the better of us and we both only left with one or two essentials. Clearly, we are poor.
From Phnom Penh we headed straight to Siem Reap, the location of the temples of Angkor. They definitely live up to their hype. The numerous temples and buildings were all constructed sometime during the mighty Angkorian period between the 9th and 15th centuries. The first stop on our trip was to Angkor Wat, the largest religious building in the entire world. The structure itself is in surprisingly good condition and the bass relief carvings are clear as day. What is so overwhelming about these temples is their magnitude: they are HUGE! I got tired doing construction with my dad and we had electricity! Apparently all of the stones were taken from a mountain 50 miles away, transported by way of river in the wet season and by elephants in the dry. Crazy. After wondering around the area for a couple hours, the next stop on our temple tour was Ta Phrom. I have to say, this was by far my favorite stop. Part of the jungle was cleared in order to construct this temple and over the years the jungle has basically taken back its territory. Trees grow threw windows and knock over walls, creating a big mess out of what remains. It should also be noted that this was a film location for Angelina Jolie’s movie “Tomb Raider.” Now I understand why she adopted a Cambodian boy! Here we are in Ta Phrom.
Our last stop of the day was Angkor Thom, a larger complex of temples, palaces, pools, and other things that were all overwhelming in the heat. The most impressive of the bunch was the Bayon, a temple that is marked by 54 large Buddha heads. All in all, the temples of Angkor were awesome and the area of Siem Reap, although very touristy, was pretty cool and I would have liked a little more time. Alas, our time is limited and we had to head out towards Laos. Little did we know what we were in for.For the most part, we tend to take the road more traveled. We like surprises but we also like our lonely planet and tend to take the advice they offer. However, this time around when the guidebook said “you will be in for a real adventure if you go through the Cambodian-Laos border," we decided an adventure is what we needed in our lives (plus it was the only way we could go). Maybe it would be fun? To make a very long story short, we got into various fights with our taxi/mini-van drivers who tried to rip us off and over-crowd our vehicles, had our bags held hostage for the equivalent of 3 US dollars, and ended up staying an extra night in a town in the middle of nowhere near the border of Laos. Surely this it was an adventure...but fun? I think not. Maybe we will laugh about it next week.
First stop in Laos was Don Det, one of the 4,000 islands on the Cambodian-Laos border. The sights are beautiful and calming...when you can stand the heat. I can’t believe just how hot it gets here and how lethargic it makes you feel! Yesterday Jess and I rented some bikes and checked out some impressive waterfalls until Jess got a flat tire. I ditched her to check out the rest of the island with the energy I had left and took tons of pictures, which should now be posted. We spent the rest of the afternoon swimming in the Mekong River, conveniently located in our front yard.
Right now we are waiting for an overnight bus to Vientiane, the capital of Laos. I'm not sure how long we will be there, but we will be definitely be looking for some AC.
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