So a quick little update on what i've been up to the past couple of days. On the 21st i crossed the cambodia/vietnam border... and got stuck. My vietnam visa was dated 2010 and the border guards wouldn't even READ the freaking paper i had from the Viet embassy in canada correcting the mistake. So for a good hour i was in neither Cambodia, nor Vietnam and was freaking out. The embassy in canada wasn't open and i had no idea what the # for the canadian embassy in vietnam was. After a bit of wandering i bumped into some guards and pointed out the error on my visa as well as the copied documents i had. He said dont worry about it.. took my stuff and disappeared for a few minutes and then came back with my visa signed. He told me to try again at the border and voila, the guy reluctantly stamped my visa and let me through!
As it turns out, I think they wouldnt let me through before because the english version of the corrected document was adressed to all "airport passport control" and i was entering by land.
Anyways, on the first day in saigon, it rained. I've never seen rain like this in my life, within 30minutes of it starting, it only got stronger, and the streets started to flood. Restaurants had water flowing into them and motorcycles had water up to their exhaust pipe. People walked through the streets where water went up to their knees as if it were a regular occurence. I stayed in the most compact small alleyway, but my room was AMAZINGLY clean, there were ceramic tiled floors with a super clean bathroom, TV, everything. For only 6$ !!!.
...and then i went to Mui Ne to see the sand dunes, which were quite majestic and a sight to behold, I can only imagine what the Sahara desert must be like. Here i slept in a room... with mold growing on the ceiling, and you could smell the mould, and the bed was really spongey foam so there was no back support. I've had better sleeps on a bus then at the place i stayed.
And then i took a 20h bus to hue, which is where I am right now. I saw the imperial city and some royal tombs, and now I'm about to take a 12h sleeper bus up to Hanoi, and then see Halong bay and Sapa before i arrive in china on the 30th or the 31st! Yay almost there... I really want to sleep in AC without having to pay for it...
Oh and just a comment on vietnamese culture, its amazing just how different it is from Thailand, Laos and Cambodia, despite their proximity to one another, Vietnam is visibly much more influenced by chinese culture. From their building styles, to their food, and their spirituality just seems much more familiar than the other South East Asian countries. In anycase, it's great here except the bus rides. Buses are limited to around 50km/h, but overnight they usually break this rule and 'speed'. But when they dont it drives you CRAZY. Theyre faster than the train too in most cases... which is even stranger.
Anyways, hopefully the north has cooler weather. Hue was unbelieveably hot today, you sweat from standing under the shade.
Reviews:
Siem Reap, Cambodia: Stay at Hilton Guesthouse, outside of the backpacker area, free moto rides into 'town'. Rooms w/ fan cost around 1-3$/night.... amazing.
Battambang: Royal Hotel, clean, decently priced, friendly staff. Moto guides here speak great english and will take you on day tours of the sites people want to see. The batcave is a must see at sunset if you've never seen bats swarm before.
Phenom Penh: Royal Guesthouse, not in main backpacker area, rooms are meh, price is meh for the room. But one of the receptionists speaks perfect english, so its a great place to get information.
Vietnam:
Saigon: go to backpacker street (Pham Ngu Lau and De Tham area) and look for the ladies in blue shirts with a circle emblem/badge, theyll point you to the cheap alleyway guesthouses, and theyll also show you the better value meals nearby.
Hue: Mandarin Cafe is a great place to dine and chat with the owner. He's a photographer and let me use his 70-200mm f/2.8L, 100mm Macro and 10-22mm lenses. Plus he gives you a good map to follow for a walking tour of this city. The locals here are genuinely friendly and generally aren't trying to overcharge you. Too bad i can't stay longer, vietnam would probably take a 2-3week trip to really explore well.
Saturday, 25 July 2009
Sunday, 19 July 2009
Me not posting pictures (again)
AHOY, so I'm currently in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh and killing time until I leave for saigon on the 21st. I went to go see the killing fields and the old S21 prison and theyre quite... heavy sights.
The killing fields served as the execution and burial sites of some of the 200000 to 2 million people that were killed by the Khmer rouge around the time of the second world war. There are trees nearby that have sharp, hard and jagged edges that were used in place of bullets (since they're expensive) in the execution process. It's a little bit overwhelming to see all the photos and to see the stupa (buddhist temple) filled with over 9000 excavated skulls of the victims. Often times these skulls still bear the markings of bludgeoning or bullet wounds.
The old prison, also called the Tuol Slang Genocide Museum was where most of these victims were held before they were transported to the killing fields. Only 12 people are known to have survived their stay at the prison out of the tens of thousands that made their way through it. Some of the disgusting torture techniques were displayed on the walls of the prison, as well as the many faces that made their way through the prison. The whole place has an airy and dusty feeling that accompanies the general sombre/haunted feeling of the whole area.
These kinds of sites are far more interesting to visit in my opinion than the innumerable palaces and temples that cover asia. So i'm kind of excited to see the vietnam war museums once i get there. Also, it's really made me want to go see the holocaust museums in europe when i get a chance.
On a brighter note, theres a market here that has QC-rejected jeans produced by huge brands here. I think i'm gonna pick up a pair and try to wear them in this crazy weather. I have to add though, i'm getting used to the weather here, ive been sleeping with a fan and a blanket now and wearing shoes doesnt seem so excruciating anymore. Which brings me to an odd thought:
I didn't bring my own pair of shoes on this trip, i've been using my dad's running shoes as well as my own flipflops. One of the strangest things i miss are wearing my own shoes, it feels nice to have a pair of shoes that have been molded perfectly to your feet after repeated use.
Anyways, i'll post again once im in Vietnam, and then i have to blitz through the country on a 10day ish run. Pictures will definitely be up in china though.
PS. Help me decide if its worth going all the way to shanghai just to see a few skyscrapers? or is it better to spend time in chengdu and eat A LOT.
The killing fields served as the execution and burial sites of some of the 200000 to 2 million people that were killed by the Khmer rouge around the time of the second world war. There are trees nearby that have sharp, hard and jagged edges that were used in place of bullets (since they're expensive) in the execution process. It's a little bit overwhelming to see all the photos and to see the stupa (buddhist temple) filled with over 9000 excavated skulls of the victims. Often times these skulls still bear the markings of bludgeoning or bullet wounds.
The old prison, also called the Tuol Slang Genocide Museum was where most of these victims were held before they were transported to the killing fields. Only 12 people are known to have survived their stay at the prison out of the tens of thousands that made their way through it. Some of the disgusting torture techniques were displayed on the walls of the prison, as well as the many faces that made their way through the prison. The whole place has an airy and dusty feeling that accompanies the general sombre/haunted feeling of the whole area.
These kinds of sites are far more interesting to visit in my opinion than the innumerable palaces and temples that cover asia. So i'm kind of excited to see the vietnam war museums once i get there. Also, it's really made me want to go see the holocaust museums in europe when i get a chance.
On a brighter note, theres a market here that has QC-rejected jeans produced by huge brands here. I think i'm gonna pick up a pair and try to wear them in this crazy weather. I have to add though, i'm getting used to the weather here, ive been sleeping with a fan and a blanket now and wearing shoes doesnt seem so excruciating anymore. Which brings me to an odd thought:
I didn't bring my own pair of shoes on this trip, i've been using my dad's running shoes as well as my own flipflops. One of the strangest things i miss are wearing my own shoes, it feels nice to have a pair of shoes that have been molded perfectly to your feet after repeated use.
Anyways, i'll post again once im in Vietnam, and then i have to blitz through the country on a 10day ish run. Pictures will definitely be up in china though.
PS. Help me decide if its worth going all the way to shanghai just to see a few skyscrapers? or is it better to spend time in chengdu and eat A LOT.
Friday, 17 July 2009
Two countries done, 4 to go
Hola to anyone that reads this. It's been a while since my last post, I've mostly been busy getting from place to place but I am doing fine, if not a bit exhausted. Currently I'm in the city/town of Battambang in Cambodia. Tomorrow i'll be in Phnom Penh and on the 21st i'll be on my way to Saigon in Vietnam.
I saw angkor wat yesterday and it is HUGEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE, i didnt expect the ruin complex to be that.... large. The whole park spans maybe 10km by 10km. No pictures will do justice just how big it is but im sure google can help.
I'm much more pleased to be out of thailand and in another country, it's been pretty cool lately (30C) so it's been pretty easy to get around and see sites. I have to say though... no more temples, if i have to see one more temple im going to go insane. All i have planned for the rest of the trip before i get to china is to visit war museums... and relax and read and eat.
The asian food here is great, but I miss the variety that i have access to at home. There quality food from all over the world all packed together, whereas here... all i have is curry.. or some other strange things.
I did NOT get to eat any exotic meat yet, which makes me sad :( i saw a bbq restaurant that had crocodile but it cost 10$ !!!! too expensive since regular meals are only 3-6$. And i almost missed the spider village where they deep fry spiders and you eat them... i'm still gonna try and find one though.
In any case, I miss my bed, and cold weather, and home food. Chengdu food will bring me close to home... I can't wait. Oh, and just for the record, ive been spending around 30-35usd/day, which is too much, but its so hard not to spend unless i literally do nothing and eat maybe 1 meal a day. And then i still have to deal with japan.... hopefully couchsurfing pulls through for me.
I saw angkor wat yesterday and it is HUGEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE, i didnt expect the ruin complex to be that.... large. The whole park spans maybe 10km by 10km. No pictures will do justice just how big it is but im sure google can help.
I'm much more pleased to be out of thailand and in another country, it's been pretty cool lately (30C) so it's been pretty easy to get around and see sites. I have to say though... no more temples, if i have to see one more temple im going to go insane. All i have planned for the rest of the trip before i get to china is to visit war museums... and relax and read and eat.
The asian food here is great, but I miss the variety that i have access to at home. There quality food from all over the world all packed together, whereas here... all i have is curry.. or some other strange things.
I did NOT get to eat any exotic meat yet, which makes me sad :( i saw a bbq restaurant that had crocodile but it cost 10$ !!!! too expensive since regular meals are only 3-6$. And i almost missed the spider village where they deep fry spiders and you eat them... i'm still gonna try and find one though.
In any case, I miss my bed, and cold weather, and home food. Chengdu food will bring me close to home... I can't wait. Oh, and just for the record, ive been spending around 30-35usd/day, which is too much, but its so hard not to spend unless i literally do nothing and eat maybe 1 meal a day. And then i still have to deal with japan.... hopefully couchsurfing pulls through for me.
Thursday, 9 July 2009
Boat rides, glitzy bangkok, and food
STILL NO PHOTOS, cause i'm lazy.
ALright, so its the night of the 9th right now and I'm going to update you all on the happenings of the past few days.
First off, I LOVE BOAT RIDES, I have no clue why, but it's quite an enjoyable sensation to be sitting on the edge of the boat with your feet dangling overboard as it cuts through the deep blue sea at some ridiculous speed. Occasional rough waters creates a spray of salty mist that's just oh so refreshing. Not only that, but looking around you and not seeing a single speck of land on the horizon is just another amazing experience. I wish I had a fisheye lens to capture what it was like on the boat, hopefully my 17mm did a decent enough job.
So yeah, boatride aside, today whilst i was napping in my guesthouse (which costs 7$/night, which is cheap for bangkok, but laos was like 2-3$/night, so i feel like im overpaying) I decided that i'd forgo the tourist route of all the crazy temples and all the history and just try to find what the regular young people of bangkok do. Apparently the answer was to head to Siam Sq. and check out the massive shopping malls they have there that are all connected by skywalks and tubes.
There really is no way to describe these malls except as a HUGE maze like complex of small shops where you can haggle for everything under the comfort of air conditioning. Also it doesn't smell bad and is really clean with shiny floors. It's pretty much like the west, except you can barter for everything. So i ended up spending the bulk of the afternoon just browsing through this place with Paul and Judith from Oxford and I've never seen soooo much in terms of variety of the different kind of tshirt designs you can get here, the amount of ed hardy shirts is crazy.
I think i'll come back here the day before i leave and stock up on a bunch of shirts so i can give you guys. Speaking of which, if you have any souvenir requests, do tell me so I can try my best to pick them up as i go.
Anyways, next door to this MBK mall is Siam Centre, which is just another massive mall catered to the rich, with all the burberry and D&G and other expensive brands stocked up here. They even have maserati, ferrari, lotus and porsche dealers in here. On the bottom floor was a pretty awesome aquarium that had manta rays and sharks which was well worth the kind of expensive entrance fee of 30$.
This brings me to another point, asia is more expensive than i originally imagined. Mostly stemming from the fact that im travelling solo so i can't split room costs. Also, transportation costs stack up quite a bit over the course of the day. I'm looking forward to cambodia and vietnam since theyre likely to be as cheap as Laos.
It's pretty crazy to think im already two and a half weeks into this trip, and that i've met tons and tons of other backpackers. I've really got to get around to posting some photos online or on facebook. I promise ill try and do that tomorrow since i have the day set aside as a resting day.
Food in malls suck by the way, street food is amazing, and mcdonalds in asia will ALWAYS be better than mcdonalds at home, so much more variety and the food is just... better.
ALright, so its the night of the 9th right now and I'm going to update you all on the happenings of the past few days.
First off, I LOVE BOAT RIDES, I have no clue why, but it's quite an enjoyable sensation to be sitting on the edge of the boat with your feet dangling overboard as it cuts through the deep blue sea at some ridiculous speed. Occasional rough waters creates a spray of salty mist that's just oh so refreshing. Not only that, but looking around you and not seeing a single speck of land on the horizon is just another amazing experience. I wish I had a fisheye lens to capture what it was like on the boat, hopefully my 17mm did a decent enough job.
So yeah, boatride aside, today whilst i was napping in my guesthouse (which costs 7$/night, which is cheap for bangkok, but laos was like 2-3$/night, so i feel like im overpaying) I decided that i'd forgo the tourist route of all the crazy temples and all the history and just try to find what the regular young people of bangkok do. Apparently the answer was to head to Siam Sq. and check out the massive shopping malls they have there that are all connected by skywalks and tubes.
There really is no way to describe these malls except as a HUGE maze like complex of small shops where you can haggle for everything under the comfort of air conditioning. Also it doesn't smell bad and is really clean with shiny floors. It's pretty much like the west, except you can barter for everything. So i ended up spending the bulk of the afternoon just browsing through this place with Paul and Judith from Oxford and I've never seen soooo much in terms of variety of the different kind of tshirt designs you can get here, the amount of ed hardy shirts is crazy.
I think i'll come back here the day before i leave and stock up on a bunch of shirts so i can give you guys. Speaking of which, if you have any souvenir requests, do tell me so I can try my best to pick them up as i go.
Anyways, next door to this MBK mall is Siam Centre, which is just another massive mall catered to the rich, with all the burberry and D&G and other expensive brands stocked up here. They even have maserati, ferrari, lotus and porsche dealers in here. On the bottom floor was a pretty awesome aquarium that had manta rays and sharks which was well worth the kind of expensive entrance fee of 30$.
This brings me to another point, asia is more expensive than i originally imagined. Mostly stemming from the fact that im travelling solo so i can't split room costs. Also, transportation costs stack up quite a bit over the course of the day. I'm looking forward to cambodia and vietnam since theyre likely to be as cheap as Laos.
It's pretty crazy to think im already two and a half weeks into this trip, and that i've met tons and tons of other backpackers. I've really got to get around to posting some photos online or on facebook. I promise ill try and do that tomorrow since i have the day set aside as a resting day.
Food in malls suck by the way, street food is amazing, and mcdonalds in asia will ALWAYS be better than mcdonalds at home, so much more variety and the food is just... better.
Monday, 6 July 2009
A few comments on Thailand
I only had a short paragraph on this topic in my last post, but I feel compelled to elaborate on my distaste for Thailand.
For some reason, everyone that i've met that's not of asian descent is absolutely in love with the country of Thailand. They find it exotic, fun, and just an amazing place to be. I, on the other hand, have given the opportunity for the nation to prove otherwise, and after having spent a couple of days in this country I'm about to give up.
The best way I can describe most (but not all) of thailand is as a heaping pile of crap scattered everywhere and unhelpful scam artist around every corner. It might sound amusing to those of you who have never been here, and probably even sound fun, but the moment you step off your flight and exit the airport, hordes of local will come at you exclaming that the buses have stopped running (which they havent), or that some sights are closed (which theyre not) and charge you exorbiant fees to get places.
Once you finally do settle down wherever it is you're living, and you decide to go see some of the attractions like the grand palace, you hop into a taxi (or god forbid a tuktuk) and tell them to go there. Chances are he wont use the meter and demand that you pay him a ridiculous flat rate, or he'll tell you (much like if you took a tuk tuk) that the attraction you want to go to is closed due to some special holiday and that you should go see 'lucky buddha' instead. Essentially what theyre doing is making comission by bringing you to these places even though the place you wanted to go is actually open.
This drove me insane the other day, to the point where i walked to the grand palace under the noon sun which took about 40minutes, and then explored the pretty impressive palace.
Another thing that the tuk tuk and taxi drivers do in Thailand is they take you unwillingly to tailor suit shops, or to jewlery stores, and they try to get you to buy something because that way they get free gas cards. Virtually everyone does it in thailand and it makes getting places an extreme headache.
This probably sounds like a terrible rant of a limited bad experience, but if you ask anyone else theyll confirm these stories. I guess most foreigners are preoccupied with how different thailand is and have this impression that it represents all of asia. Which is DOES NOT. The rest of asia is less scammy, more friendly, less expensive, and just overall more pleasant to travel in. Laos was amazing, and i've only heard good things about Cambodia and Vietnam. China and japan and korea are just clean and amazing places to be, period. Thailand somehow managed to turn itself into a dirty port-o-potty for young tourists who are only here to seek out cheap beer and thai hookers. The locals have all adapted to the immense amount of tourists in thailand, and are all trying to offer you "good deals" that are probably huge scams.
This isn't to say all of thailand is bad, the tropical islands are very resort like, although the carribean is by far more relaxing. And from what i've heard, the northern cities of chiang mai and chiang rai and pai are absolutely stunning and somewhat untouched by tourists. I'm disappointed i didnt go to these places, but if i ever do come back to Thailand, that'll likely be my only stop in this country.
I've booked a flight into Cambodia for the 14th, so i've decided to kill a few days down on the Diving island of Ko Tao, and then i'll head back to bangkok and try to keep myself from going insane for a few days before i leave. Ill probably post a lot of pictures up once i'm back in bangkok since i'll want to do nothing else there.
Also, for those who care, I've decided to skip the full moon party. I went to the beach where its held earlier today, and the amount of drunk, retarded tourists, and the ridiculously overpriced rooms on the island forced me to reconsider my plan to celebrate my birthday with 10000 other inebriated tourists. I dont think its a huge loss in any case since i've never been a party scene person. I'm sure my parents are glad to hear this in any case.
Anyways, I promise my next post will be more cheerful, and that this will likely be my last post on how much i despise the lifestyle in thailand. I'm going diving tomorrrow so that'll be fun, and then im just going to relax before i run through some ancient cities around the bangkok area.
Bye everyone, miss you all terribly and can't wait to wolf down some boustan when i'm back.
P.S. I no longer have a phone, the one i borrowed from a friend got stolen/lost, so ill just have to borrow stranger's phones whenever i need one.
P.S.#2, I finally finished reading the amber spyglass and LOVED it. Now i have to find another book to read on the long transit trips.
For some reason, everyone that i've met that's not of asian descent is absolutely in love with the country of Thailand. They find it exotic, fun, and just an amazing place to be. I, on the other hand, have given the opportunity for the nation to prove otherwise, and after having spent a couple of days in this country I'm about to give up.
The best way I can describe most (but not all) of thailand is as a heaping pile of crap scattered everywhere and unhelpful scam artist around every corner. It might sound amusing to those of you who have never been here, and probably even sound fun, but the moment you step off your flight and exit the airport, hordes of local will come at you exclaming that the buses have stopped running (which they havent), or that some sights are closed (which theyre not) and charge you exorbiant fees to get places.
Once you finally do settle down wherever it is you're living, and you decide to go see some of the attractions like the grand palace, you hop into a taxi (or god forbid a tuktuk) and tell them to go there. Chances are he wont use the meter and demand that you pay him a ridiculous flat rate, or he'll tell you (much like if you took a tuk tuk) that the attraction you want to go to is closed due to some special holiday and that you should go see 'lucky buddha' instead. Essentially what theyre doing is making comission by bringing you to these places even though the place you wanted to go is actually open.
This drove me insane the other day, to the point where i walked to the grand palace under the noon sun which took about 40minutes, and then explored the pretty impressive palace.
Another thing that the tuk tuk and taxi drivers do in Thailand is they take you unwillingly to tailor suit shops, or to jewlery stores, and they try to get you to buy something because that way they get free gas cards. Virtually everyone does it in thailand and it makes getting places an extreme headache.
This probably sounds like a terrible rant of a limited bad experience, but if you ask anyone else theyll confirm these stories. I guess most foreigners are preoccupied with how different thailand is and have this impression that it represents all of asia. Which is DOES NOT. The rest of asia is less scammy, more friendly, less expensive, and just overall more pleasant to travel in. Laos was amazing, and i've only heard good things about Cambodia and Vietnam. China and japan and korea are just clean and amazing places to be, period. Thailand somehow managed to turn itself into a dirty port-o-potty for young tourists who are only here to seek out cheap beer and thai hookers. The locals have all adapted to the immense amount of tourists in thailand, and are all trying to offer you "good deals" that are probably huge scams.
This isn't to say all of thailand is bad, the tropical islands are very resort like, although the carribean is by far more relaxing. And from what i've heard, the northern cities of chiang mai and chiang rai and pai are absolutely stunning and somewhat untouched by tourists. I'm disappointed i didnt go to these places, but if i ever do come back to Thailand, that'll likely be my only stop in this country.
I've booked a flight into Cambodia for the 14th, so i've decided to kill a few days down on the Diving island of Ko Tao, and then i'll head back to bangkok and try to keep myself from going insane for a few days before i leave. Ill probably post a lot of pictures up once i'm back in bangkok since i'll want to do nothing else there.
Also, for those who care, I've decided to skip the full moon party. I went to the beach where its held earlier today, and the amount of drunk, retarded tourists, and the ridiculously overpriced rooms on the island forced me to reconsider my plan to celebrate my birthday with 10000 other inebriated tourists. I dont think its a huge loss in any case since i've never been a party scene person. I'm sure my parents are glad to hear this in any case.
Anyways, I promise my next post will be more cheerful, and that this will likely be my last post on how much i despise the lifestyle in thailand. I'm going diving tomorrrow so that'll be fun, and then im just going to relax before i run through some ancient cities around the bangkok area.
Bye everyone, miss you all terribly and can't wait to wolf down some boustan when i'm back.
P.S. I no longer have a phone, the one i borrowed from a friend got stolen/lost, so ill just have to borrow stranger's phones whenever i need one.
P.S.#2, I finally finished reading the amber spyglass and LOVED it. Now i have to find another book to read on the long transit trips.
Saturday, 4 July 2009
I'm NOT dead
Alright, so contrary to what some of you believe, I actually am still alive. I just got back to Bangkok earlier this morning after finishing my tour of northern Laos. I would have liked to have photos to show you guys but the netcafe im at doesn't let you use more than 1 usb plug, so photos will have to wait. In any case, i'm going to do a quick run through of how Laos went.
I left on 25th from bangkok for the bordertown of chiangkong on an overnight bus and took a boat across the Mekong river to the town of Huay Xai. It was here that i met Beccy and Theiny from the UK who had been backpacking for a over a month now and are in the midst of a 5 month trip. We hopped on a tuktuk (taxi service in south east asia consisting of a motorcycle with a huge cage strapped on to the back) and made our way to the bus stop.
Along the way we saw a lot of interesting sights, ranging from ostriches (which passed by too fast for me to get a good picture), a 12 year old driving a motorcycle with THREE other kids sitting on the backseat, and just a whole bunch of crazy rural things like what seemed to be a handbuilt car/tractor/contraption.
At the bus station we also met two canadians, one from alberta and another from quebec, and we were all headed in the same direction so we made friends and had a good game of shithead before we caught a bus to the town of Luang Nam Tha. What this first day taught me is that Laos is a very laid back and slow country, scheduled departures happen 1-2hours later, and ALL cargo goes ontop of vehicles, and then the interior is usually overloaded with people.
Luang Nam Tha is supposed to be a trekking town, but the prices are dependent on the amount of people you have going, and as it turns out with the few people we had prices were in the 60$USD range for a two day trek, so the lot of us skipped on that and took a grueling 12hour minivan ride to Luang Prabang. The whole town of Luang Prabang is a unesco world heritage site, and its nicknamed the Emerald City. I'll show you a picture eventually.
BY THE WAY, travelling through northern laos is painful, all the roads wind around mountains, they zigzag, theyre partially unpaved, and covering 100km can take anywhere from 2 to 4 hours, its painfully slow. And its really high altitude, but some of the sights are breathtaking, provided youre not busy puking into a back from the ride.
On the bus ride to the city i met a guy named Jason whos from Maryland, and he was pretty much fluent in mandarin since he'd be working in china for a bit. Eventually when we made it to L.P. we met up with 4 of his friends (Paul, Mike, Hailey, Fletcher) from boston and we had a huge group of 10-12. We went to go see the Kuang Si falls (google it), and at the bottom of the waterfall is a tarzan swing of which i got a video. Standing still in the water for a while will attract fish, and they'll start nibbling on your feet and anything thats exposed.
Luang prabang and all of laos is very very french influenced, theres baguettes everywhere, and theres even La vache qui rit cheese. Theres some interesting architecture, and it was also here that i met some singaporeans who were working at a hotel. They showed me the inside of one of the huts that the locals live in and its quite a sad sight to behold. It's quite disheartening when you hear that some people are living on less than 50$usd/month and see the actual condition they live in. Additionally, since the whole city is a unesco site, that means all buildings are regulated to be no more than 2 storeys tall, and since they want to preserve the status, i find its almost like keeping the whole town poor despite the increased tourism.
Oh i forgot to mention i met Ryan and Elyse from toronto who joined our group after a little bit. I decided to leave on the 1st for Vientiane which is the capital of Laos, whilst everyone else was going to Vang Vieng which is a huge backpacker spot with lots of drinking and overall nastiness. Vientiane is an oxymoron, its expensive for no reason, its ridiculously poor but has starbucks-like cafes all over the place. The major restaurants are all foreign cuisine, so its all a bit confusing. Although i have to say the pizza i had on my last night was AMAZING, made a belgian, but possibly the best pizza ive ever had. Others agreed. Also the Laab (local cuisine) is excellent too, too bad i dont know how to make any.
Oh another though, laobeer (which is dirt cheap, like 1$usd for a HUGE beer bottle), tastes exactly like molson. Fellow canadians agreed.
That's all i can think of now, i know these posts are rather lacking without photos, but eventually ill put them up (or i wont, whatever). I'm headed for some diving in the tropical islands of thailand tomorrow night, and then ive only really got cambodia and vietnam left.
Travelling alone is strange, its hard to force yourself to go visit sites sometimes. Man i've had enough of seeing stupid temples. Only really want to see angkor wat now. Vietnam and the DMZ and war museums should be very interesting though, i'm excited for the 2nd half of my trip.
Shuang, you were right, i hate bangkok and its scammy scammy dirty scammyness everywhere. I dont know why foreigners like this dirty place so much, the rest of asia is so much more pleasant.
I left on 25th from bangkok for the bordertown of chiangkong on an overnight bus and took a boat across the Mekong river to the town of Huay Xai. It was here that i met Beccy and Theiny from the UK who had been backpacking for a over a month now and are in the midst of a 5 month trip. We hopped on a tuktuk (taxi service in south east asia consisting of a motorcycle with a huge cage strapped on to the back) and made our way to the bus stop.
Along the way we saw a lot of interesting sights, ranging from ostriches (which passed by too fast for me to get a good picture), a 12 year old driving a motorcycle with THREE other kids sitting on the backseat, and just a whole bunch of crazy rural things like what seemed to be a handbuilt car/tractor/contraption.
At the bus station we also met two canadians, one from alberta and another from quebec, and we were all headed in the same direction so we made friends and had a good game of shithead before we caught a bus to the town of Luang Nam Tha. What this first day taught me is that Laos is a very laid back and slow country, scheduled departures happen 1-2hours later, and ALL cargo goes ontop of vehicles, and then the interior is usually overloaded with people.
Luang Nam Tha is supposed to be a trekking town, but the prices are dependent on the amount of people you have going, and as it turns out with the few people we had prices were in the 60$USD range for a two day trek, so the lot of us skipped on that and took a grueling 12hour minivan ride to Luang Prabang. The whole town of Luang Prabang is a unesco world heritage site, and its nicknamed the Emerald City. I'll show you a picture eventually.
BY THE WAY, travelling through northern laos is painful, all the roads wind around mountains, they zigzag, theyre partially unpaved, and covering 100km can take anywhere from 2 to 4 hours, its painfully slow. And its really high altitude, but some of the sights are breathtaking, provided youre not busy puking into a back from the ride.
On the bus ride to the city i met a guy named Jason whos from Maryland, and he was pretty much fluent in mandarin since he'd be working in china for a bit. Eventually when we made it to L.P. we met up with 4 of his friends (Paul, Mike, Hailey, Fletcher) from boston and we had a huge group of 10-12. We went to go see the Kuang Si falls (google it), and at the bottom of the waterfall is a tarzan swing of which i got a video. Standing still in the water for a while will attract fish, and they'll start nibbling on your feet and anything thats exposed.
Luang prabang and all of laos is very very french influenced, theres baguettes everywhere, and theres even La vache qui rit cheese. Theres some interesting architecture, and it was also here that i met some singaporeans who were working at a hotel. They showed me the inside of one of the huts that the locals live in and its quite a sad sight to behold. It's quite disheartening when you hear that some people are living on less than 50$usd/month and see the actual condition they live in. Additionally, since the whole city is a unesco site, that means all buildings are regulated to be no more than 2 storeys tall, and since they want to preserve the status, i find its almost like keeping the whole town poor despite the increased tourism.
Oh i forgot to mention i met Ryan and Elyse from toronto who joined our group after a little bit. I decided to leave on the 1st for Vientiane which is the capital of Laos, whilst everyone else was going to Vang Vieng which is a huge backpacker spot with lots of drinking and overall nastiness. Vientiane is an oxymoron, its expensive for no reason, its ridiculously poor but has starbucks-like cafes all over the place. The major restaurants are all foreign cuisine, so its all a bit confusing. Although i have to say the pizza i had on my last night was AMAZING, made a belgian, but possibly the best pizza ive ever had. Others agreed. Also the Laab (local cuisine) is excellent too, too bad i dont know how to make any.
Oh another though, laobeer (which is dirt cheap, like 1$usd for a HUGE beer bottle), tastes exactly like molson. Fellow canadians agreed.
That's all i can think of now, i know these posts are rather lacking without photos, but eventually ill put them up (or i wont, whatever). I'm headed for some diving in the tropical islands of thailand tomorrow night, and then ive only really got cambodia and vietnam left.
Travelling alone is strange, its hard to force yourself to go visit sites sometimes. Man i've had enough of seeing stupid temples. Only really want to see angkor wat now. Vietnam and the DMZ and war museums should be very interesting though, i'm excited for the 2nd half of my trip.
Shuang, you were right, i hate bangkok and its scammy scammy dirty scammyness everywhere. I dont know why foreigners like this dirty place so much, the rest of asia is so much more pleasant.
Thursday, 25 June 2009
Live from Bangkok
Hey there everyone, its 12:10pm in bangkok and the sun is absolutely searing. I haven't had a chance to upload any pictures yet but I will be leaving for Laos tonight, so once i'm back expect a huge collection of pictures.
Also, I think i got sick on the flight to tokyo, i've been walking around with a fever, hopefully its not swine flu (haha....) in any case i'm feeling better now.
Theres a LOT of foreigners here, almost 2:1 ratio of thai to foreigners in the area im staying in. In any case, I miss you all, and i miss the temperate weather back home.
I'll be back to post as soon as i can!
Also, I think i got sick on the flight to tokyo, i've been walking around with a fever, hopefully its not swine flu (haha....) in any case i'm feeling better now.
Theres a LOT of foreigners here, almost 2:1 ratio of thai to foreigners in the area im staying in. In any case, I miss you all, and i miss the temperate weather back home.
I'll be back to post as soon as i can!
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