Back in Canada and Keeping Busy

This post covers what I got up to after Southeast Asia, back in Canada from December 14, 2009 - April 26, 2010.

Returning to Seoul to pick up my things and cat from Alex the Brit and Blake, I had a few days to kill before returning home on the 19th. This gave me a chance to see some friends one more time before I left and catch up on some rest form the trip. As the week came to an end I got ready and headed to the airport on the 19th, only to realize that I had made a terrible mistake on my flight times and that I had missed my flight. I had been so wrapped up in getting Goah on the plane from Japan to Toronto that I had forgotten about the flight from Korea to Japan. After running around the airport like a mad man for a few hours and having all the flight be too full to change, I had to buy another ticket in order to make it home for Christmas. In retrospect, I could have waited until after Christmas, but I really didn't want to. Either way I had to change flights, and then deal with getting the cat enrolled on a new flight, which was a pain because they were only taking pets "in cabin", so I had to buy a new carrier for Goah. The new carrier looks like something Paris Hilton would have, but it did the trick and we got home just fine on the 20th. Though carrying her through the airports and onto the planes was quite an ordeal, as everyone thought I was just a weirdo with a huge pink purse.
Home safe and sound, I took a couple days to rest up, because the jet lag coming from east to west is atrocious. Timing was perfect, because everyone was starting to gather for X-mas things, and that allowed me to see all of the family and hand out gifts in one big group instead of trying to make a million trips around town. It was great to see everyone again, and share my stories. Over the Christmas holiday I spent lots of time with the family, and we even had all of the kids and grand kids at Mom and Eds for dinner, which hasn't happened in a long time.
After Christmas past, I went with a group of friends up to Bryan Q's cottage for New Years. Again it was awesome to be around so many of my friends that I hadn't see min so long, and have a chance to hangout, share my stories, and party with them. There was lake hockey, tree chopping, fireworks, and even an incident with a burning electrical blanket that I dealt with when nobody else thought it was an issue. Unfortunately, while I was at the cottage, Goah got sick and had to go to the vets and when I got home to a $600 vet bill, I was not impressed. We aren't sure what happened, but believe she got into the X-mas poinsettias. The result was us having to syringe feed her for a month while she slowly got better, which came in waves f good and bad.
During the month of January I pretty much stayed at home all day, until Gavin would get off work and we would hang out. There wasn't a whole lot going on since I had no job and was just starting to look for new job openings in Korea. On the weekends however, I did head out to do some ice fishing with my dad and uncle Ken. It's really the only time of the year when they have free weekends ,with roofing and everything, and we all really enjoy just getting out and sitting on the ice for the day. With the mild winter we were having, it was tough to get out in January, because the ice wasn't fully formed until near the end. I also had the chance to get out with some friends for lunches and dinners, that I hadn't had a chance to see, such as Genie Bailey and Caitlin; as well as getting up to Adam and Lisa's new place in Waterloo.
In February it was a lot of the same, sitting around during the day, taking care of house chores, and trying not to get too bored. We did some more ice fishing, and Gavin took me to his friend Dana's cottage over the February 12-15 weekend, for what they call Snow. It is something Dana and her friends do every year, and it is just a gathering in the winter to play some games and have a party up north. It was a great time, and Gav and I definitely brought the party. We played wizard sticks on the first night, which resulted in some hurting stomachs the next morning; and then beer pong the next night. The rest of February was pretty relaxing, with the Superbowl, some hanging out at Mike's, and the exiting of winter.
March was a good month. As the weather warmed, I had the chance to get out and do some work with Ken, which was nice because I got to be out of the house and do some hands-on work that I missed while away. Gavin and I got up to Mike's a couple more times, and to Jen Laporte's for a party night. I also, took some time during March to build a new cage for my iguana, Iggy. He had outgrown the one I was given by Rob and Becky a couple years ago. His new cage is built out of the wood from my loft bed that Gavin and I built in University. I had most of it together by myself, and Gav came over to help me finish it off and move it out of my room and into the space at the bottom of the stairs. Also in March, we started doing some more work on dad's garage, trying to get the ends closed in with a board and batten style, and soffit and fascia around the rest. It really made it look sharp, the more we got into it, and we only had one mishap, when I fell off a ladder and gouged up my arms and legs on the junk around the bottom of the ladder. We thought it was pretty serious at first, but once I realized I didn't break anything, we had a laugh about it and got back to work.
As march closed out, April brought with it a slurry of roofing jobs, which I did my best to help with. As time had been moving along, I had found a job that would get me back to Korea, but the start date was still in the works. Not knowing when I was going to be starting was a pain, but it gave me time to help Ken by taking the guys to work and made me a little money for when I wold return to Korea. At the start of April, we had a going away party at Gav's after working on dad's garage on the Good Friday before he and Kyle left for their Europe vacation the next week. We decided it would be a good idea to play wizards again, and had lots of friends over to join. The party got good when we started getting close to wizard status and playing beer bong and other drinking games. It was good to see many of the people that showed up, though I don't remember the end of the night. Russ, Michele, and the kids were down that weekend, so Saturday and Sunday I spent around the house with them to get in as much uncle time as possible. We had a trip to the airport on Sunday before an Easter egg hunt and a family dinner. It was fun to watch the kids run around like we used to at Nan and Gump's every Easter. After Easter, and with Gav off to Europe, I spent most of my time working and getting ready to head back to Korea, though I still didn't have an exact return date until the week before they wanted my to be here. I got a call, well actually it was an email, on Friday the 16th asking me to be in Korea the following Friday. I had to tell them that it was too short of notice and we settled on the 27th, which meant I had to leave Canada on the 26th. I spent the rest of my last week, still working during the day and then getting around to see my family and what friends I could at night. On my lat weekend I went to Guelph for Jen L's and Courtney M's double birthday celebration, and had a chance to meet a bunch of their friends that I didn't meet the last time I was there. On the Sunday I came back for brunch with Ash and dad before going home to finish packing for my 7am flight on Monday the 26th. Packed and ready to go, cat and all, Ash, mom, and I went to the airport early Monday to see me off.

The plane ride was the same as always long distance rides........long and somewhat boring, given the movie choices this time around. I arrived at 4pm on the 27th, and got to my new school, where I would spend my first week of training by 8pm.
Coming up will be the continuation of my life in Korea. Take care everyone.

Thailand and Some Time On The Islands

Thailand -->The Land of Smiles: December 4-13, 2009

After getting into Bangkok from Laos on the long bus ride, Jameson and I had to book it for the airport because we had a flight to catch at 730 to Phuket, so that we could ferry it out to Phi Phi Island. Luckily my experience in Thailand came in handy when the taxi driver wanted to charge us a flat rate of 2000 Baht to get to the airport instead of metering it like he is supposed to and was asked to. I refused and got very upset with him, so he lowered his price to 1000 Baht, which is still $33 for a 25 minute cab ride. I still refused and got even angrier at him, letting him know I was going to report him to the tourism authority board. Eventually after ten minutes of arguing and me telling him off, he kicked us out of his cab and we had to find another cab, which we found almost immediately, that took us to the airport for 220 Baht on the meter. We got to the airport with time to spare, and eventually boarded to plane and got to Phuket around 1030. Now this is when life got really intense. There were cab drivers lined up outside the airport waiting to take people to the ferry port. we were not worried about how fast we got there because we figured we wouldn't make it for the 11am ferry so we would take out time and make the 1pm one. However, this one cab driver felt different, and promised he could get us there for the 11am boat. We took his word for it and got in his cab, which he then proceeded to drive at literally 150km/hr trough town and traffic like Mario Andretti, all the while with Jameson and I losing our mind in the back. We made the boat with about 5 minutes to spare, and sat on deck with a couple from Calgary, named Jamie and Leah, for the 1.5 hour boat ride. Once we arrived on the island I tried to find a working bank machine, but nothing seemed to work, which meant we had to get a place to stay on Jameson's dime until I could get the card issue sorted out. We stayed at Miss Lee's Ban Thai Guest House, which was pricier than other places we had stayed at, but her humour and hospitality made up for it. After finding a place we grabbed some lunch, then got the card issue sorted out (it turned out that I was hitting the wrong buttons because they had two different foreign card buttons). We then all headed to the beach to have some beers and get some sun. The tide was way out so to go in the water we had to walk about 200m out and even then it was only waist deep. Also, while walking in the water I was pinched by a crab, but since nobody saw the crab but me they all called me a liar. After the beach we showered up and grabbed dinner at a western style burger joint then went back to the beach for the nightly parties, where they do fire shows (flame twirling, jump-rope, limbo etc.) and we drank bucket drinks and partied until 330am.
Well after all the traveling, and poor sleep on the buses, Jameson and I slept until 1pm on the 5th, which was kings 82nd birthday. We got up and it was awful quiet out, given the holiday of the kings birthday, but I think it was a respect thing that everyone be subdued on the birthday. We grabbed some lunch and bought towels for $9 a piece, since we had discarded our due to their condition back in Cambodia. We were not happy about the towel price, but we sucked it up and went to sit on the beach to finish bronzing. Around 630 we met with Jaime and Leah for a seafood dinner. Jameson and I split a grilled red snapper and prawn dish that had been steamed then grilled, which was delicious. After dinner we went back to the beach to see if the fire shows were going on again, but again since it was the kings birthday they were very subdued; so Jaime and Leah called it a night and Jameson and I stayed until 1am for some beers and conversation with a group of girls from Sweden who had been there for a month.
Sunny for the third day straight, we got up at 10, traded in some books (I traded Treasure Island and Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy for Cannery Row and The Prince and The Pauper), then met with Leah and Jaime for lunch and to take a long boat to Long Beach. We stayed on Long Beach, which was just around the back side of the island, until 430, before coming back to shower and get dinner at Papaya Bar. Once again we went to the beach for the fire shows, which were on again the day after the big birthday, where I almost got in a fight with some Swedish dude for being an idiot and knocking over everyone drinks and being an overall dick because he was so drunk and wanted to be the center of everyone's attention. His friends took him away and apologized, which was nice, and we got back to checking out the fire shows and different bars up and down the beach until 330 again.
The following day, Dec. 7th, was one of the best days of our vacation. We woke up at 830 for our day trip with the U-Rip Boat Trip company. It was a day long snorkeling trip around Phi Phi Island to some of the other islands and shallow coral beds. The boat left at 10 with about 20 people aboard. We started off of Long Beach where we snorkeled over a shallow reef with many colourful fish around it, then it was Lay Lay Beach to snorkel again, after which we went to Bamboo Island for our provided lunch and a chance to walk around or go for a swim. We were there for one hour which was good because it was getting super hot and we left out sunscreen on the boat. After lunch we went to Mosquito Island to snorkel, then stopped at Monkey Beach where Jameson and I got some roasted corn for a snack. Next we stopped at Boat Lagoon, a small island inlet for a swim, at which point the captain of our boat jumped in the water to take those of us that would follow on a tour. He took us out around some sheer rock cliffs that extended under the water as far as you could see, and that were covered in corals and sea anemones; which he encouraged us to touch because they were ones that you would not harm and vice versa. We saw some lobsters and fish hanging out in an underwater rock bridge that he took us to so we could swim under it. It was a few meters below the surface and a few meters wide, and covers in sharp shells, so you had to be careful or else risk getting cut up. After we returned to the boat we went to Maya Beach, the place that the movie "The Beach" was filmed at. It was the most beautiful beach of the day with the nicest water and scenery. Around 530 we headed back to the main island and had to skip Shark Point due to the setting sun. We got to the guest house around 630, showered and assessed our sunburns. Even though we had been applying sunscreen during the day, being in and out of the water washed it all off, and with your back to the sun in the water, you can just imagine how lobteresque we looked. For diner we grabbed some Phad Thai from a street vendor and took it to the beach to watch the fire shows again. We retired around midnight so that we could pack our bags to leave the next morning.
Jameson and I got up at 8 am so that we could make the ferry back to the mainland, but not back to Phuket. Instead we went to Krabi to catch the bus from there. I slept for most of the ferry ride, and then in Krabi at the bus station because we had to wait from 11 when we got there, until 5pm for the bus. When the bus arrived we quickly realized that it was not as V.I.P. as we had been told and had paid for, but after thinking about it figured if it was the V.I.P. Bus we would hate to see the regular bus. We boarded the bus and had to sit across from a couple other travelers who talked super loud and idiotically about their travels for the first three hours until we stopped at 830. They were much better after that and we reached the second rest stop around 1230. After this, our time with buses gets funny again. We were not even 45 minutes away from our second stop when there was a huge spark in the bus that came from the engine compartment, and we had an electrical fire, killing the engine; thus leaving us stranded on the side of the road........again. We had to wait on the side of the road, because inside the bus was too hot, for two hours while they got a guy out of bed to come and fix the bus. Eventually we got back on the bus around 3am for the last 5 hours of the trip to Bangkok.
Arriving in Bangkok at 830am on the 9th, we grabbed some breakfast at a guest house, but they did not have any rooms, so we had to find a different place to stay and shower before getting out to see Bangkok. Around noon we met up with Jaime and Leah, as they were on the bus with us, and headed to the Grand Palace, where we saw the Emerald Buddha and Grand Palace area. After all the traveling and walking around, we had lunch then grabbed foot and leg massages for an hour (1hour for 220 Baht was a great deal). After our massages we just hung out and read until around 6 when Jaime came and we went to Khoa San Road for street food dinner and beers. Then to our surprise, there was a fireworks show in the distance because they were still celebrating the kings birthday. After the fireworks Jameson and I returned to our guest house for a couple more beers and watched couple movies they were showing in the lobby, before heading to bed at midnight.
I got up at 9 am the next morning to shower and grab some breakfast before the four of us went out again sight seeing. We headed first to Wat Pho, or the Reclining Buddha, and as usual we were told it was closed by the tuk-tuk drivers looking to get tourists to go with them elsewhere. Luckily we were able to point out to the man who was telling us not to go in because it was closed, that a whole tour bus of people just walked in, at which point he recognized his defeat and left us alone. The grounds of the Reclining Buddha were just as I had remembered it, beautiful, colourful, and peaceful; yet so busy and important. We walked through for a while, admiring the architecture, and time it must have taken to built such things, when I was stopped by a monk who was talking with a group of school children and asked to take their photos for their school project. It was a little weird but they all handed me their cameras, and there I was photographing Thai students getting a lecture from a monk about the ancient art of massage. Of course, I got a few shots for myself to remember the moment. After Wat Pho, we checked out an uninteresting flower market before having lunch at 3. We then returned to our place and relaxed until dinner time when Jameson and I headed to the Thai boxing arena for Thursday night fights. And, wouldn't you know it but on our way there, Jameson and I found ourselves tied up in an anti-government rally that was demonstrating for a pro-democratic movement. It was pretty awesome, because red was the colour to wear and wouldn't you know it, both of us had red on. Eventually we made it to the fights, where we had to pay an absurd amount more than the Thai people because we were foreigners. We reluctantly paid the 1000 Baht to see the fights and spent the rest of our money inside on beer and chips during the fights, which were pretty fun and physical. We stayed until 1030 before leaving to walk back through the masses of red shirt ralliers, where we grab some street food and ran into Chris and Jen our British friends. Having a few beers with them and catching up on everyone's adventures lead to another late night, but it was nice to see them again before we left.
After getting home at 3am the night before and arguing with the hotel staff that we were indeed staying there, we woke up around 9 am. I quickly ran downstairs to talk to the travel agent in our guest house's lobby, who we spoke with the day before about going to the Tiger Temple. He said there were still spots available, so I ran up and got Jameson because the bus was leaving at 11. We dashed downstairs for some breakfast before the bus got there and then for 2.5 hours east of Bangkok. Once again we were ATMless, though the travel agent said there would be one, and Jameson had to pay for me to get into the park. It was 500 Baht, which was more than I remembered paying last time, and then another 1000 to get the "special" tiger pictures, again double what I remember it being. The special picture allows one person to have their picture taken with the tigers head in their lap, and since Jameson paid he had the honour. I was a little pissed because we would have had enough money to both do it if they hadn't raised the price, and this was the second time I was there and didn't get it done. No big deal, I'll just have to get there again at some point. After being in the tiger quarry, we walked around the rest of the sanctuary and saw the baby tigers, and other animals. Then it was back on the bus and back to Bangkok, where we met Jaime and Leah again for dinner at an Indian place, which was really good and had great hookah. After dinner Jameson and Leah really wanted to get tattoos, so we slid over to Khoa San Road to make it happen. Leah ended up with a gecko on her foot, and Jameson an armband around his forearm. I was getting tattoo envy near the end but was glad the next day that I didn't do it. We grabbed one more drink before saying goodbye to them and went back to our guest house, where we joked about our trip so far, and the new tattoo until 3am.
Sleeping off our previous day, we got up around 11 and went to the Chatuchuk Market, the largest market in Bangkok, and possibly Thailand. Jameson was amazed at how large it was and we spent a few hours walking around before splitting up to buy the things we had been looking at. Unfortunately, we were unclear on where to meet up and had a bit of a hard time finding each other when it was time to go. Eventually we got it together and headed back to the guest house, where we relaxed until 8. That night I wanted to take Jameson to the Sukumvut area that I had stayed in last time, and even though I had been there it was pretty confusing at first. We walked the strip for a while, until an older man, presumably a pimp, asked us if we wanted a "Happy Massage. We obviously answered no, but quickly asked him about the famous Thai Ping Pong shows. He said he knew where to go, and before we knew it we were in a cab with 'Danny' being driven into some back alleys for the show of our lives. I'll spare the details, but let me just tell you that holy heck that was the wildest shit I have even seen in my life, and well worth the 700 Baht to get in. After the show, Danny our pimp took us to a go-go/whore bar around the corner. We were reluctant to go but Jameson thought why not, and I wasn't about to leave him alone. We had a few over priced drinks, and were offered some lady of the evening company, which we denied, before leaving around 3. We got back to our guest house and passed out at 4am, still bewildered at the nights unfoldings.
The 13ht was the final day of our 32 day adventure, and boy did we ever need a break. We spent the day packing our stuff, getting massages and relaxing at the guest house. We left for the airport around 9pm to make sure we got there for our midnight flights with plenty of time to spare. Since Jameson and I were flying back to Seoul with different airlines we split up until we got back to Korea.

And there you have it, Southeast Asia on a shoestring budget and a will that never says die.

Lost in Laos

Laos: November 28 - December 3, 2009

Laos, was the third stop of our trip and one of the most relaxing and removed place I have ever been. Also, it is the birth place of Beer Lao, a deliciously smooth beer that you can only get in Southeast Asia because it is not exported to the rest of the world apparently.
Starting in Luang Prabang on the 29th, Jameson and I got up around 10 due to the construction going on around our hotel. We hit the town for some breakfast and to book a trek for the next day with White Elephant tour company. It wasn't what we had talked about, but Jameson jumped on it before he thought about how much he had wanted to do an elephant tour instead of a bike/kayak trek; even when there was a place next door that offered one. After booking our tour we hit some of the sights. We started at Wat Sop, then on to Wat Xieng Thong which was built in 1560 and had great decoration and colour. After that we went to where the Mekong and Nam Khan rivers meet and crossed the Nam Khan on a rickety bamboo bridge that took us to some outskirt villages where we met and talked with some monks. Once back on the town side of the river, we stopped at our guest house before heading to the Royal Palace Museum. After the palace we grabbed some Indian food for dinner then climbed Phu Si, a tiny rock hill in the center of the backpackers area with Wats and other religious bits. It is located in a spot that is great for watching the sunset. The sunset was spectacular, and once it was finished we headed back to the guest house for a break before grabbing a few beers and street food (chicken). We called it a night at 1030 to get some much needed rest.
The 30th stared out cloudy but became sunny and hot in a hurry. We got up at 730 for our jungle adventure. We got to White Elephant tours and waited for our guide Ken, who was actually Laotian and of Hmong descent. We started on mountain bike and headed out of Luang Prabang. After a short while we were out of the city and riding through small "jungle" villages, I use quotations because they were in the process of having roads put in, for 2 hours. Eventually we reached the Nam Khan river where we traded our bikes for kayaks and started the trip down river that would take us back to the city. We stopped about 20 minutes down river at a waterfall for lunch. The water fall falls just over 60m in a 120m span, and has many pools for people to swim and play in, though the water was quite chilly. We had a 1.5 hour lunch/swim break before getting back in the kayaks and heading 2 more hours down river to the city. In the end it was a nice trip, but we did get a little sun burnt and sore from all the paddling. Back around 4pm we took showers and hit the market to find some souvenirs, and stop for food at a street food buffet extravaganza. After we ate we dropped our buys off at the guest house and went to Utopia Bar for a couple beers, then called it a night on account of exhaustion around 10.
Waking up at 7 the next morning we packed then grabbed breakfast, the place where we saw the dancing Beggar for the first time, before going back to White Elephant for our tuk-tuk to the bus station so we could head to Vang Vieng. Getting on the minivan bus at 9, we settled in for our 6 hour ride through winding mountains. It wold have been a great time to take pictures but my bag was tied to the top of the van. We got into Vang Vieng and found a place to stay then went out for some dinner and drinks at The Irish Bar then Q-Bar, but had to call it a night because everything in Vang Vieng closes at 11.
Once we woke up at 10 on the 2nd we got some breakfast at Aussie Bar, then bought some new swim shorts since mine went missing in Vietnam, so that we could go tubing on the river. We rented our tubes and headed to the river for the daily party and tubing, though hardly anybody ever tubes, they just drink and party at the bars along the first stretch of the river. We met up with a girl from Ottawa named Miriam and spent most of the day hanging out and partying with her. We drank from bar to bar and played in the river until around 5 when we got separated. So I took a tuk-tuk back into town to find Jameson and get some dinner with Miriam, which consisted of "Special Pizza"; then a bar promoter came and talked us into going to his bar for a few drinks. At the end of the night Jameson had gone back to the hotel while i finished my last beer. Then on my way back I stopped at a sandwich cart that made me the best sandwich ever. It was on a baguette and had chicken, ham, bacon, hot dogs and cheese on it, in fact it was so good I went and got Jameson so he could get one and I could get another. Then is was off to bed feeling full and tired.
The sandwiches from the night before came back to haunt me the next morning, as i woke up at 7 with a stomach ache and had to go back to bed until 10. After breakfast with Miriam, we packed our bags and headed to the bus station for our bus to Bangkok. this is the point in which I lost my phone and camera cord due to one of the bus station employees rummaging through my bag while I was in the washroom. I caught him as I was coming back but wasn't aware of what he had taken until I was back in Korea. Either way the bus left at 2pm for the 15 hour ride to Bangkok. And, on a side note, I punched a fly into the window during this ride because Jameson couldn't kill it and I told him to just punch it like a man.........we were both beside ourselves when I actually landed the punch. Reaching the Thailand border around 930, I had some more passport trouble, that was eventually sorted out by one guy saying to another, "just give him the stamp on the special paper and staple it in his book". We got into Bangkok at Koa San Road around 545am and headed straight for the airport.

It was a quick trip through Laos, but worth every penny. Up next, Thailand and some much needed time in a place for more than 2 sleeps.

Cambodia and the Wonders of Angkor

Cambodia: November 23-28, 2009

After our late arrival the night before, Jameson and I got up to a sunny and hot Cambodia around 10 o'clock the next morning, and given the price we payed for our room, had to have a cold water shower. We grabbed breakfast at the hostel for $2.50 before heading out to see what Phnom Penh had to offer. Our first stop was at Wat Phnom, the highest elevation in the city, which was still not very high, where we saw some poor families; and one lady who had a monkey picking fleas out of her hair. After Wat Phnom, we strolled down the water front of the river through town on our way to the National Museum. which housed a great number of artifacts. After that we went to the Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda complex. The sun was high by this point which made it incredible hot and poor for taking pictures, but it was a beautiful place with great buildings and statues. We even ran into Sally and Olivia, a couple girls we met on the Halong Bay trip, from Australia. When we left the Palace, we headed for the War Monument and Independence Monument, both of which were great but overshadowed by the setting sun. On our way back to the hostel we stopped at Ounalom, a monk housing complex before sitting down at the Pink Elephant Pub for some dinner. Little did I know, but the most touching thing I would see on our trip was about to unfold. While we were dinning, there were many children wandering the streets looking for handout, or to sell you something. Now it is best to refuse or else face the wave after wave of street children looking for handouts, but there was one little girl between 5-7 years old who came walking down the street and stopped to look at a group with pizza on their table. She never once put her hand out, and when she was going to walk away one of the ladies handed her a slice of pizza. Happy as could be she walked away with it and propped herself on the seat of a scooter to eat away like a child at Christmas. Here is where it gets better. When the people had finished and left, the little girl walked back to the table but still did not touch anything. Then as the waitress came to clean off the table, she took a glass with a touch of orange pop left in it and leaned it over so the girl could finish it off. The little girl flashed a smile and skipped away like she had just won the lottery (the enclosed photo is not the girl but another that was standing with her family). After eating we went back to our hostel and got our party on with the group of Brits we had come up with in the bus.
After the heavy night of drinking, we woke up around 9am feeling like death twice run over but with a full schedule ahead of us. We grabbed some breakfast at the hostel and headed to the Killing Fields of Choeung Ek around 10:30. The Killing Fields is a place just on the city's edge where prisoners were kept and tortured after being held at the S-21 Detention Center during the Khmer Rouge, now known as the Tuol Sleng Museum. The Killing Fields were the last stop for most prisoners, where there is now a stupa that contains the skulls of the thousands of victims of Pol Pot's regime. As we were leaving, we had a group of children running after and hanging on our tuk-tuk trying to get a handout, it was quite shocking. After the Killing Fields we headed to S-21, which is just inside the edge of town, where we saw some graphic photos and the prison cells where they kept the prisoners. When we returned to our hostel and grabbed some Indian food for lunch before booking bus tickets to Siem Reap and plane tickets from Siem Reap to Luang Prabang, Laos in a few days. We boarded a bus around 530pm for Siem Reap, and arrived around 1am.
After finding a hotel for $6 a night, we went to bed to get some rest for our Angkor tour in the morning. We woke up at 8 on the 26th eager to see the great treasure of Cambodia that is Angkor. Built between the 9th and 13th centuries the many temples of Angkor were built by the kings of the Khmer empire, that held a population of over a million people at its peak. Like a city rising from the jungles, Angkor has been rediscovered and unearthed after centuries of being forgotten. There was a reason the Tomb Raider films were done here. We started on the outer north edge and worked out way in with the help of our tuk-tuk driver, which was a great way to see it. From beginning to end we saw Banteay Srei, Pre Rup, Banteay Kdei and Srah Srang (where Jameson was told that if he didn't buy a bracelet then he hated Cambodian children), Ta Prohm, To Keo (drive by), Victory Gate (and Span Tmor), The Terrace of the Leper King, The Terrace of Elephants, baphuon, Bayon, the South Gate, and then finally Angkor Thon the biggest and greatest of the Temples of Angkor. The whole day had been awe inspiring, but Angkor Thom was simply amazing. Large yet calm, it stood in the cleared jungle like a true monument to the Khmer people. I wold love to go into more detail, but it would never do it justice, and would take far too much space. There were lots of tourists and locals there all taking in the temple at their own pace. When we were finished, we headed back to town for showers at our hotel before going out for dinner at Khmer Kitchen. Then we met up with Sally and Olivia, for a night of drinking and partying that got way out of control.
Waking up on the 27th to a massive hangover and a sore hip (most likely from falling down) Jameson and I spent most of the day in the hotel recovering. Around mid afternoon we headed out for some lunch and to check out the market, but returned to the hotel to get out of the heat.
Woke up to another sunny hot day on the 28th around 9am feeling rested and ready to go, though my hip still hurt. We hit the market again and bought a few gifts before checking out of our hotel and heading to the airport to wait for our plane to Laos. The plane didn't leave until 5 but we were there around 2, giving us lots of time to read and talk about our adventures thus far. We got on the plane and got to Laos at 7, just in time to check in before they closed the Luang Prabang International Airport. Given the state of my passport and how soon it was expiring, I had to pay an extra $5 fee on top of the already high $40 Visa fee i had to pay to get into the country. Leaving the airport we took a taxi into the backpackers area to find a hotel, which we got for 70 000 Kip per night, then we had a quick walk around town and through the market before heading to bed.

Well that was Cambodia and next I will be taking you though Laos, one of the calmest and most relaxing places I have ever been.

Back When I Was In Nam

Well after a 6 month hiatus, I am back on the blogging kick. A lot has happened since I last blogged and left the country of Korea for a Southeast Asian adventure. I'm sorry it took so long to get these posts up, but I left my travel book in Korea at a friends place while I was gone, ans have just retrieved it upon my return. So here goes.

VIETNAM: 12 Days of Awesome November 12 - 23, 2009

Jameson and I woke up and headed to the airport around 6 am on Thursday November 12, for what was going to be an amazing and exhausting trip through Southeast Asia. The first stop on the list was Vietnam. We arrived at the airport and checked out bags around 830. Our plane didn't leave until 1030 and we slept most of the way to Vietnam, due to the lack of sleep in the previous days or packing and saying goodbyes. We landed in Hanoi at 130 and the adventure began.
We got off the plane to 31 degree weather, which was a welcome change to the 6 degrees we left in Korea, and shared a taxi with a girl named Natalie to The Drift hostel. almost an hours drive into Hanoi. Jameson had prebooked our stay there, so when we got there our room was ready and we dropped out things and began planning the next few days. With the help of the staff at The Drift, we planned a 3 day trip to Halong Bay, in which you get to spend the night out on a boat and then 2 nights on Cat Ba Island. After getting it settled Jameson and I, along with Natalie went into the Old Quarter to see some sights and grab a bite. We stopped along the way at Hoan Kiem Lake see Thap Rau (Tortoise Tower) that was in the middle and inaccessible, and Ngoc Son (Jade Mountain) Temple, which houses the embalmed remains of a giant tortoise from the lake. After that it was off for some city pictures and dinner, where we experienced out first Tiger Beer; a delicious and smooth beer.After dinner we returned to the hostel for a couple beers and talk with other travelers before heading to bed around 1 am.
We woke up the next morning (Nov 13) early to get on the bus for Halong Bay. There were quite a few people going on the trip, one of which was a guy named Tom who worked for Habitat for Humanity who I spoke with for most of the 3.5 hour bus ride. We got to Halong Bay around 1 pm, where we boarder our boat and headed out into the bay for lunch and cave tours. In the late afternoon, we had a chance to go tandem kayaking in the bay, and Jameson and I being the gentlemen we are let all the others go before us because there we not enough kayaks. Unfortunately, when the extra kayaks made it out and we got to head out it was quickly becoming dark and the shop owner and group tour guide got concerned. They sent out a search boat for us, which passed us in the complete dark as we were heading back to the shop. We knew where we were going only on the single string of lights the shop had up. Back on the main boat, we had dinner around 8 and then drank with the group until 4 am.
Waking (Nov 14) up a mere 2 hours later, Jameson and I took the opportunity to go swimming off the boat before our 730 breakfast. The boat took us to Cat Ba Island, where we headed to Cat Ba National Park and a 2 hour hike before moving to our hotel and lunch. After lunch we got back on another boat and went to Monkey Island for a swim and beach time. The weather was starting to change and become gray so we headed back to the main island for dinner and drinks. We went out for a few beers at a recommended bar before going back to the hotel Noraebang to sing until around 4.
Again we got up after just a couple hours of sleep for breakfast, but then returned to our room for more sleep. In the afternoon after we had gotten some rest, we rented scooters and took a tour of the island. Unfortunately, it was a cool and damp day so after a couple hours of riding we were freezing and had to take the bikes back. That night we grabbed dinner with a few others that stayed for the extra night, 2 of with were a British couple (Chris and Jen) who would turn out to be good traveling friends throughout our trip. It was an early night of movie watching and resting.
Waking up at 730 on the 16th to some more overcast weather, we packed up and headed back across the bay Halong city to get the bus back to Hanoi. We got back to port around 1130 and had some lunch before taking the terrible/bumpy 3hour ride back to Hanoi. Once back in Hanoi we checked into The Drift again and had dinner with Chris and Jen, then had a few drinks with other travelers at the hostel before calling it a night.
The weather turned out to be better the next day. With the sun out and the wind slowing, Jameson and I headed to the Ho Chi Mihn Mausoleum around 11 am. On the way we saw the Temple of Literature, the country's first national university. Unfortunatley the Mausoleum is closed from September - December for cleaning and removing Ho Chi Mihn's body to Russia to be checked. We did get to see it from the outside, and I have to say it was quite impressive. After the mausoleum we grabbed some Pho for lunch at a little street shop. It was delicious and only cost us $1.20. After lunch we headed to the Hoa Lo Prison Museum, commonly known as the Hanoi Hilton, which was a former POW prison and torture center. It was eerie to be walking around in something with such history, that is now located in such a calm feeling area. Once back at the hostel we packed out bags and got ready for the long bus ride ahead of us to Hue. We ate dinner with Chris and Jen again before we all headed to the bus station for our 7 pm bus. The bus was a sleeper bus, which means that if you are a small Vietnamese person, you can lay down somewhat and sleep. Since we are not, the "beds" were a little uncomfortable, and i would have preferred a reclining seat. Thanks however to my super ability to sleep anywhere, I passed out for the first few hours until our first stop, about 3-4 hours in.
Now, some hour in the early am of the 18th we leave our first stop and didn't get too far before the crazy driving that is Vietnam catches up with us. We were all sitting at the back of the bus and didn't see how the events unfolded, but i am 100% sure that I know how it went down. You see, in Vietnam if you are not honking and trying to pass everyone then you are driving incorrectly. This being the case, our bus tried to pass a transport, and found itself looking another transport in the headlights. Now, instead of slowing and getting back behind like a normal person, our driver tried to push the passee off the side to make room for all 3 vehicles. this didn't work and we ended up getting pinched between the two trucks. the windows in the back half of the bus (those right beside me) blew out, showering us with glass. Luckily I was the only one who took any damage, and it was only a small chunk of glass in my elbow. Slowly we shook off the glass and got of the bus. Once we were on the side of the road, I patched up my arm and started the wait for our replacement bus. Luckily, I had a bottle of vodka in my bag and there was a roadside stand selling beers; so we had some drinks for a few hours until the new bus came. Back on the bus we settled in for the rest of the ride to Hue.
Arriving in Hue on the 18th at noon really put us behind schedule, since we were supposed to get there at 7 am, giving us time to see some sights before catching the 1pm bus to Hoi An. As it was, we got off the bus and waked around for the hour we had before getting back on for another 4 hours to Hoi An. We reached Hoi An around 6 and found a hotel right where we got dropped off. We immediately went out for food, since we hadn't eaten in well over 12 hours. We had, and fell in love with a dish called Cao Lao. It is a local dish of fried pork, noodles, and bean sprouts all on top of some lettuce. The reason it is a local specialty is because it is made from special well water that you can only get in Hoi An. After dinner we walked around for a bit before grabbing a couple beers at a local bar then calling it a night around 130.
Waking up on the 19th, it was little sunnier and the rain had stopped. We grabbed some breakfast around 10 and hung out until noon before heading out to see the city. Our first stop was the bus company to book seats for the night bus, however, due to our accident and time delay the sleeper bus was full so we had to settle for a seated bus just to keep moving since we were behind schedule. After that we went to see the Japanese Covered Bridge, named for its Japanese style construction and decoration. It lead into an older part of the city with many gift shops and cafes. We then walked around town and took some pictures at a market and of the river, before heading back to the hotel to get out of the rain and wait for our bus. Our 630 bus arrived around 730, not happy about it, and we were off again for Nha Trang.
Stopping at 11 pm for food and to use the washroom, we arrived in Nha Trang around 7 am. Once we found our hostel, we grabbed some breakfast and went for an 80 minute massage. After sitting on buses for the last several days and touring in the rain, we thought we deserved it. Following the massages, we grabbed some lunch then took a 6km walk to the Oceanographic Institute, where there were lots of live and preserved specimen sea creatures. It was a nice place but I wish we had of gone to see some of the temples instead. For dinner we went with some people from our hostel to Guava Bar, then for drinks to Why Not Bar and Sailors Club. The only problem was, that after "happy hour" all the drinks tripled in price, so we called it a night and walked back to the hostel around 1, getting by a couple of old Vietnamese prostitutes on the way.
Surviving our run in with the prostitutes, we woke up on the 21st to rain. We woke up at 630, which was a miracle since we had no alarm clock and had to be on the bus at 730. We had out free breakfast at the hostel and retrieved the laundry they did for us.Later we found out that one of my shirts and pair of shorts was missing, though I'm sure it was not intentional. We got on our bus at 730 bound for Saigon/Ho Chi Mihn City, which was only 500km away, yet a 12 hour ride. As long as the bus ride was, and as much as it sucked to be on a bus again for 12 hours, the sights were great. The one regret was that we didn't stop in Mui Ne, a coastal city with sand dunes you can crazy carpet down, but once we saw the injured travelers getting on the bus, we realized we might have died given the nature of our lives. Once we reached Saigon, we grabbed a hotel then some dinner before taking in some much needed sleep.
We got up around 9am on the 22nd and had our free breakfast before heading to T.M Brothers Cafe to book a Cu Chi Tunnel tour for the next morning and a bus to Cambodia for the next afternoon. We then spent our day taking in sights around Saigon. We went to the War Remnants Museum, which was full of graphic photos and propaganda from the Vietnam war, as well as weapons from the war; then we stopped for some Pho Ga for lunch before heading to the Reunification Palace. Given it's name, it was rather lack luster, but it was located close to the Notre Dame Cathedral. After the palace we decided to go find the famous Jade Emperor Pagoda, but after a couple hours of walking around and misdirection we gave up and headed back to the hotel, making a stop at the Saigon Central Mosque. We ran into Chris and Jen, so we stopped to have a beer and catch up on each others travels. We then continued our trip to the hotel to have showers and grab some food. After dinner we tried to find an alarm clock, because we had some wake up times in our future but had been relying completely on luck and the fact that we had no real schedule. We found one in a store but had a heck of a time trying to figure out how to work it given it only had a couple buttons, yet several functions. Feeling like we deserved a heros reward after figuring the clock out, we went to Crazy Buffalo Bar for a couple beers with the Brits and had a chance to watch some young children do flame tricks for money. Sad but entertaining. After some beers and some lady boy offers, we headed to the hotel around 1am to get some rest for the day ahead.
Thanks to the new alarm, we got up at 640 the next morning and headed to the T.M. Brothers Cafe for our tunnel tour. The bus picked us up around 730 and we got to the tunnels at 930 where we met our tour guide Joey, who was hilarious and full of propaganda. The Cu Chi Tunnels is the tunnel system the Viet Cong during the war to hide from and ambush American soldiers. It was amazing to be around a see the tunnels, and actually get to go into some of the first level tunnels; to see the booby traps that were set up; and how the Viet Cong lived and functioned during the war. The tunnels were very small and hardly lit, so when you were crawling through them you really got a sense of how hard it must have been living in them for so many years. After the tunnels we made a stop and a craft factory whose proceeds go to sport those suffering still from the war, such as those affected by Agent Orange deformities and land mine accidents. This however put us behind schedule and many of us were worried that we would not make the bus for Cambodia. As it turned out, they held the bus in Saigon for us for an extra hour because they knew it was not our fault but the tours fault. We caught the bus just in time a few blocks away form where it started, as it had gone on to the next hotel pick up spot. I slept for most of the ride to the boarder, missing some great scenery. We made it to the boarder at 530 and it took just over an hour to get us all across and moving again. Once in Cambodia we stopped for some sketchy roadside food before driving another 1.5 hours to the ferry taht tok us across the Mekong River into Phnom Penh at 9pm. Once off the bus we took a tuk-tuk to the hostel area, which seemed pretty dirty ad sketchy but turned out to be alright. We got a place at The Floating Island Hostel for $4 per night then went out with a few British guys we met on the bus.

Well that was Vietnam in 12 days. Sorry it was such a long blog but there was a lot going on. Up next will be Cambodia.