Nha Trang

I can’t believe that we almost skipped Nha Trang because it has been my favorite stop so far. We had heard that Nha Trang was a fun beach resort town, but people had failed to mention that it is unbelievably beautiful. Kate and I stayed in a highly rated backpacker hostel (though we went for the private room) that had an great travel agency and really friendly and fun people.

the island with Vinipearl

We arrived from Dalat around noon and were on the beach by 1:30. We were pleasantly surprised by the cleanliness of the beach and clarity of the water despite the fact that Nha Trang has a city feel and the beach is just off the main road. The beach is framed by large mountains coming into the sea and the world’s largest cable car over water going to an island tackily labeled “Vinipearl,” which is a water park. Despite the evidence of manmade attractions, it is a gorgeous area.

The next day Kate and I decided that we felt confident enough to go on a 30 km motorbike ride out to Long Beach, or in Vietnamese Bai Dai. Kate’s friend went there last year and said that it was basically deserted. After getting lost a couple of times, we finally found ourselves on a new, long, 4 lane road. We could sense the beach on our left and after riding down the road a few kilometers we  hung a left and found ourselves on the promised deserted beach. We couldn’t believe that for as far as our eyes could see in either direction that the beach was entirely ours. It is evident that all the land along the beach has been bought up for resorts due to the lack of anything, perfectly paved roads, a structure being built in the distance, and stairs going down to the beach. In a few years it will be impossible to have this beach to oneself, but for the afternoon it was ours.

hi, welcome to my private beach

The only downside to the beach is that since there are no resorts, there is no upkeep of the beach so there was quite a bit of trash. It was extremely sad to me that a deserted beach is still so susceptible to the impact of humans. The trash could have come from anywhere and was a reminder that even though we do not always see our waste, it has to go somewhere, whether it is on a pristine beach on the coast of Vietnam or somewhere else, it is destroying something. But besides that we had an awesome time on our beach.

The drive back along the cliffs of the mountains going into the ocean was amazing. Each day I am amazed at something, and that ride reminded me what an incredible beautiful world we live in. The Nha Trang area is on of the most beautiful places I have ever been and am so glad that Kate and I took the ride we did, even though we got caught in fairly terrifying rush hour traffic on our way back to Nha Trang.

Kate's collage of our ride

Having a good time on the cruise

That night I went out with a girl we met in Mui Ne and stayed with our one night in Dalat. She was staying in a dorm in the hostel, so I joined her and her dorm mates for a couple of drinks. After spending about 20 minuets with them, they had convinced me to sign up for a cruise around the islands surrounding Nha Trang. With 3 minutes to spare until the travel agency closed, I was able to successfully sign up for the cruise and stay true to one of my top rules: if you’re given an opportunity, don’t say no; those are often the most memorable times. I am so glad that I said yes to this opportunity, as it is one of the most fun days I have had so far. Cruising around the different islands and admiring some of the bluest waters and beautiful mountains I have ever seen while meeting an incredible group of young travelers was ideal. The MC of  our boat (full disclosure: this was advertised as a booze cruise, though not too much drinking was involved) insisted we refer to him as Morgan FreeWOMAN and was quite the character. After lunch, the crew from our boat set up a drum, brought out a guitar, and asked everyone where they were from. Morgan Freewoman then announced that each country would have to sing a song. First up was Israel. The two guys were really good sports and got into the song that Morgan had selected for them. As the countries went on, I dreaded more and more when America would be called, especially since I was one of only two Americans on the boat. When it was finally called, I was pleased to hear that Morgan had selected one of my favorite songs: Country Roads by John Denver. After each country had embarrassed themselves, it was time to jump into the clear blue waters and hang out in inner tubes with cocktails in our hands. I could have stayed there all day taking in the mountains and looking down at my toes in the clear water. 

me and Morgan Freewoman

cocktail time! notice how you can see feet under the water

Le Petit Paris (Dalat)

Dalat was not supposed to be a stop on our trip, but we were told by a couple of Vietnamese that is their favorite place in Vietnam, so we thought it would be an interesting place to check out. It is known as Le Petit Paris because of its French architecture, romantic lake, and Eiffel/radio tower. It is a true French colonial town and very cute. We got there early afternoon and after finding our guesthouse, which was high atop a hill, we went to one of Dalat’s attractions, The Crazy House. It is still under construction and clearly made as a tourist attraction, but it is a few different structures inspired by a tree stump, giraffe, and ship. It was fun getting lost in the maze of thin stairs with tree branches for railings and finding ourselves in a room that looked like a cave.

We then headed over to the manmade lake where we had a couple of cocktails and took in the Eiffel tower and swan pedal boats that made their way around. Dalat is known as a honeymoon spot for locals and is especially liked because of its cool climate. It was about 75 during the day, but people were walking around in long coats and riding around in parkas on their motorbikes. By sundown we were feeling a bit chilly and picked up a couple of $5 fleeces from the chaotic night market that takes over a street that is quiet and empty during the day.

Though the town itself is small, the countryside is supposed to be beautiful. People come here to do adventure tours, which we opted out of. Dalat is also the area in which they make milk and some of the most delicious yogurt I have ever tasted.

 I am driving through the countryside right now around sharp turns that go around mountains. It is quite beautiful and completely different from anything I’ve seen in Vietnam. Unfortunately, not everyone on my bus is enjoying the ride as someone is loudly getting motionsickness from the sharp turns.

We decided to only stay in Dalat one day and not do an adventure tour or explore the country side because we did not feel comfortable enough on motorbikes. We also plan to do a lot of trekking in Laos and want to get to our last beach town of our trip before heading up to northern Vietnam and landlocked Laos

at the Crazy House

The Lake

The Eiffel Radio Tower

Mountains on our way from Dalat to Nha Trang

Mui Ne

Hi, welcome to paradise

Mui Ne is an idyllic beach about 5 hours north of Saigon. It’s not extremely popular among tourists, yet, so it was really nice going to a quiet, clean beach. The main reason we decided to stop at this beach is because it has some large white and red sand dunes around that make for some beautiful scenery next to the beach with palm trees hanging over the fine sand beach.

Upon arriving to our guesthouse, which was far away from the main tourist strip (Mui Ne has one road along the beach and we were at the end closer to the fishing village, meaning few tourists), we were eagerly greeted by the owners who yelled, “Laura! America!” They couldn’t stop laughing at my name, which they knew since I had booked online. 

After our day on the beach, the family that owned our guesthouse offered to make us dinner. We told them that we had to first book a tour of the sand dunes with our friend who we had met on the bus and asked how we could get a ride into town. The owner told us to wait a minute, and he quickly returned with a large motorcycle and two helmets so Kate and I could hop on the back. We were so happy with their incredible hospitality and that we didn’t have to worry about paying for motorcycle taxis both ways. When we returned to the guesthouse we were forced to sit down with the owner and his two friends and eat hard boiled eggs and take shots of a liquor made from bananas. The owner’s friend could not stop saying my name and laughing. We finally figured out that “Laura” means “to take out” in Vietnamese. It was certainly one of the more memorable St. Patrick’s days.

fishing village

The next day Kate and I decided to rent motorbikes. We had been contemplating the idea for a long time, since it is quite dangerous to ride them, but it is the best way to explore your surrounding area wherever you are in South East Asia. Mui Ne was a great place to learn since it is just a straight road. We rode to the fishing village and along the main tourist strip. When we finally felt confident enough we took a turn off the main road in Mui Ne and found ourselves on a completely empty, beautifully paved road with gorgeous flowers in the median. We could see the ocean to one  side and the red sand dunes to the other. It was a very cool ride and a great introduction to driving motorbikes.

Our motorbike drive was sadly cut short because we had to return to our guesthouse to get picked up for our sand dune tour. It was a four our tour that took us to to a river that ran through white rocks and red dunes, white sand dunes, a red canyon, and finished with sunset on the red sand dunes. We covered a lot of ground and were infinitely impressed with the beautiful scenery that Mui Ne has to offer. It is certainly different than anything we have seen so far and not what we would expect to find in Vietnam.

contemplating the white sand dunes

sunset over the red sand dunes

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

backpacker street 

Now known as Ho Chi Minh City by the Vietnamese government, people are still split on whether to call this chaotic, motor-biked dominated city its pre or post-communist name. Though this is a communist city, I really did not feel a difference from other South East Asian countries I’ve been to.

The city is divided into districts, much in the same way that Paris is. We were confined to District one, as it is where most of the tourist attractions are and the backpacker street is. Crossing the street here is absolutely terrifying, as there are minimal traffic rules and more motorbikes driving around than people cruising the streets. On my bus ride into Saigon I did a little experiment: for 10 minutes I counted the cars I saw. I saw 30. Everything else was a motorbike, truck, or minibus. That’s how many motorbikes there are in this city. It is something you can’t even fathom unless you see it. luckily, almost everyone wears helmets, so safety seems to be taken a bit more seriously here than in other places I have visited.

bikes on bikes on bikes

The backpacker area is a long road filled with shops, street vendors, neon blinking lights, restaurants, travel agencies, and hotels. The sidewalks are so crowded that pedestrians need to walk in the street that is also filled with traffic. It is absolute chaos. We absolutely loved it. many of the guesthouses, including ours, were down side alleys, which were mazes filled with colorful buildings and residences of the local vendors. In a way it reminded me of Bangkok because of the excitement and the knowledge that anything could be laying behind the next corner.

Rodeo Drive of Saigon

Me, Kate, and Uncle Ho

Saigon's Notre Dame

Our first day in Saigon (I will refer to HCMC as Saigon because a. I think it is a much cooler name than Ho Chi Minh City and b. we had an incredible tour guide that will forever call it Saigon) we decided to just wander. As written about before, we went to the War Remnants Museum, which was incredibly touching. We then headed over to the Notre Dame Cathedral (the French occupied Saigon for about a century) and saw the old French-style post office. Our walk back led us to the Rodeo Drive of Saigon, which is a couple of mall complexes comprised of shops such as Chanel, Hugo Boss, Burberry, Hermes…you get the picture. Surrounded by the wealth is a statue of Uncle Ho himself. As soon as we passed the Rodeo Drive area, dozens of women approached us selling piles of fake wallets from all the real designers we had just passed. We then hit the central market, which is not really a “true” Asian market, as it is really just a large building with billions of souvenirs. It was extremely overwhelming and after seeing about 5 stalls, you had seen it all. So we exited and found ourselves in a park. Walking through we had to dodge people playing badminton, a hacky-sack like game where two people kick back and forth a little ball with a feather attached, and of course Vietnamese zumba classes (one of which had a large white man joining. Such a wonderful sight). Though our long walk only took us through district one, it is apparent that Saigon is a clean and lively city.

yes, they really wear these hats

The next day we woke up at the crack of dawn and made our way to the Cu Chi tunnels, which are about an hour outside of the city. Our tour guide was a war veteran named Jackie, who fought for the south. Though he lost the war, he is the most optimistic man I have ever met and loves his country. He is so eager to share his story and learn of others. He understands that every person is entitled to their beliefs, and even though people may have different beliefs, we are all people and have the right to fight for what we believe in. Though the people who lived in the Cu Chi tunnels were Viet Con, hence his enemies, he knew people who lived down there for 3 years and had 7 friends who died in the tunnels.

according to our tour guide Jackie, this was an appropriate
pose

The Cu Chi tunnels were home to Vietnamese communists who lived in the south and had to build an entire community underground to protect themselves from the Americans who were bombing their villages. The tour began with use being seated in a room and watching a film that taught Viet Con how to kill the enemy…AKA Americans. IT was very interesting watching this film as an American because we were basically being taught how to kill our own soldiers. We were then shown the tactics the Viet Con used to kill soldiers, which was often through booby traps that ended in a gruesome death by large, pointy spikes. We also learned that since the Viet Con did not have rifles, they sharpened bamboo sticks. They were able to puncture the enemy’s throat with one end and then use to butt end to knock out any one who tried to approach them from behind. As brutal as this sounds, the Americans were off killing civilians all over Vietnam with chemicals that still affect the population today, and completely wiped out all the vegetation in the area of the Cu Chi tunnels with chemicals. The area was so toxic that no tourists were allowed to go until 1990 when the chemicals were no longer active.

Bai guyz. Going into the tunnels. See yaz

The coolest part of the tour was actually going into the tunnels. They were so small most people in my group got claustrophobic and had to exit after being down there for about 20 seconds, I was able to make it through the entire way. I was down there for about 3 minutes, crouching, crawling, and a little bit afraid I was lost since everyone in front of me and behind me had left. It’s amazing that some people lived underground for 3 years, getting from room to room or getting reading for combat through these impossibly small passageways.

shooting an AK-47 from the Vietnam War...along with some
bullets from then too

Unfortunately, my stay in Saigon was a bit tainted when a man on a motorbike zoomed by and snatched my bat right off my body. I am always extremely careful, but it was a wake up that I’ve gotten very comfortable traveling in SE Asia, which is good, but that there is never a moment when your guard can be let down. I was wearing a cross-body bag that thankfull came off my body easily and only left a small rope burn mark on my arm. I could have easily gotten caught in my bag by my neck and dragged by the motorbike, which was going about 30 MPH. thankfully everything is replaceable and I was out at night so I did not have very much money on me and it will not debilitate my finances for the rest of the trip.

would not wanna get caught in this deadly booby trap

I was overall very impressed with Saigon. It’s amazing that only 30 years ago there was a devastating war in Vietnam and now Saigon is this clean and thriving city. It was hard for me to envision GIs, tanks, and bombs going off in such an exciting city. I am currently driving to a beach town called Mui Ne, and you can certainly see the effects of war. Though it’s the dry season, entire hillsides are brown and barren  with young trees sprouting up. Saigon was a great place to start our tour of Vietnam and I can’t wait to explore more of this country.

HCMC War Remnants Museum

I am in Saigon, a city that conjures up many different words: chaotic, exotic, war. Also known as Ho Chi Minh City, this city of 6 million people (and just as many motorbikes) has seen two different external presences in the past century alone. Though the largest city in the country of Vietnam has fought off colonization and war, it seems to have bounced back. In what I have seen thus far, no trace of resistance or war can be found.
Today was my first day in Saigon and we decided to do the heavy stuff first: the War Remnants Museum. Upon first walking in I was impressed by the size of the museum and the many large American weapons including tanks and helicopters that filled the front courtyard of the 3-storey open-aired museum. Upon entering the museum you are greeted by a survivors of Agent Orange counter to the left, where severl victims are making various crafts. My mood instantly changed and I realized that this is not a museum to look at cool war relics, but to understand what actually happened to the Vietnamese people.

The museum is a memoriam for the people who fought in the Vietnam (here known as the American) War, as well as the millions of civilians who died during it. For anyone, it is a hard museum to visit, as it shows the suffering that the Vietnamese people went through during the war, and the horrors that still linger from it today. As an American, it was even harder. It is a place were I constantly thought to myself, “I am NOT proud to be an American,” though I was not even alive when this war took place, nor there is nothing I could have done about it had I been.

guillotine left by the French

Though I have been reading books about the Vietnam War and knew about the mass casualties of war, it was extremely upsetting to hear it from the opposite side. Children had to go to school in underground tunnels so they could be safe from bombs. Farmers were pulled out of their homes by American soldiers while their families begged for them not to be killed. Entire villages were destroyed. Agent Orange, the most destructive chemical ever discovered by man, was used in mass quantities and still has effects on Vietnamese children born today. It is incredible that humans can destroy on such a macro level; but these weren’t just any humans, these were Americans. It was especially hard going through the museum and seeing words like "genocide" and "misconduct of war" being used, especially after visiting the killing fields and seeing the devastation senseless killing can cause.

The most terrible thing about this is, there are many things that we do not know about the Vietnam war and never will know because the government has covered up or destroyed the documents with the proof that they carried out such horrific orders. I do not want to think of the terror that is happening in Afghanistan and Iraq, and what sorts of museums will commemorate and reveal about these “wars on terror” 30 years from now. The saddest thing to me is that the Vietnam war is glossed over for many Americans. We only focus on the terrible things that happened to our own soldiers, but rarely do we delve into the catastrophes we caused in Vietnam. Though history is often written by the winner, the United States, though the loser, has successfully ignored the damage done to the country where the war was actually fought.

Argentinian poster against the war. That's
Nixon on that plane.

Though Vietnam went through such a devastating war and is still picking up the pieces, it is impossible for me to imagine a Saigon where tanks were rolling through, bombs were going off, and American soldiers were everywhere. The city is bustling, clean, and has several parks. There’s a statue of Ho Chi Minh in the center of the upscale shopping district, surrounded by retailers such as Chanel, Hugo Boss, and Burberry. Though Vietnam has seen horrors, Saigon certainly has its own personality that is ready to move on from the devastation of war. 

Traveling in Cambodia

Walking into Cambodia

Now that I am in Saigon, I can safely say that I survived Cambodia bus transportation completely unscathed  All my travel this trip is going to be on buses or trains. Cambodia does not have a train system, so bus it is.

Cambodian house

Our crossing to Cambodia from Thailand was a pretty good indicator as to how lax Cambodian laws and procedures are (this directly translates to traffic laws). We arrived to the Thai border town where there is a border crossing to Poi Pet, Cambodia. The bus driver  was kind enough to take us close to the crossing instead of the bus station 7 km away. We pulled into a parking lot behind a travel agent with a spray painted sign that said “visa stamp this way.” Ummm….the visa is not a stamp. It’s a full-page sticker. He pointed us into the travel office, which we knew was a scam. We began to wander with our huge packs, asking random people where the border crossing was and getting either confused looks or pointed in contradicting directions. After finally finding it, it was a breeze getting through Thai customs and then Cambodian immigration with no touts or scams in sight. We were lucky though—people get scammed there all the time.

Before I get into the bus scene here, I just need to say that I am currently sitting next to a family going to town on a traditional Cambodian delicacy that involves a hard boiled egg with a chick fetus inside. Not just the yolk. It’s a bit formed. I don’t see feathers, but I am still a bit disturbed.

ANYWAYS. Cambodian buses. Interesting modes of transportation because they are known to be extremely dangerous. Traffic collisions are the #1 killer in Cambodia, but to be fair, it’s pretty similar in other countries. We have heard horror stories of nigh buses crashing, killing some people, and the driver running off. It doesn’t help that there are essentially no traffic laws here (and no one to enforce them), or that the highways are the equivalent of country roads in the United States. There are many extremely slow-moving vehicles on the road (including cows), and to pass busses will blare their horns, go at high speeds into opposite moving traffic, and then swerve back on to the right side of the road seconds before a truck speeds past in the opposite direction. Kate and I are not the only terrified ones, however, all the Cambodians look to the front terrified every time the horn blares as well.

Another minor annoyance: Cambodian music videos blasting the entire ride. Most of the Cambodians seem very interested, so it’s selfish for me to be annoyed, and I am able to drown it out fairly well with my own music.

entrance to a wat

Even though my transportation in Cambodia has been a bit terrifying, I wouldn’t discourage it. I would, however, discourage taking night buses. If you can fly around the country, I would recommend that, but take a bus from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh. It’s incredible to see how most of the country lives in one-roomed shacks on stilts. The poverty is unbelievable and I feel that if you are to visit a country and engulf yourself only in the tourist attractions, you are not experiencing the culture and the country as it truly is. 

ALSO: I keep forgetting to post this video of this adorable little boy who showed me his incredible dance moves in Siem Reap

Sihanoukville

naked boy frolicking

Sihanoukville is one of the most popular beach areas in Cambodia not only for foreigners, but for Camboians as well. It has nice streches of white sand beaches, though much of the areas we went to had trash. Being here made me relized how truly spoiled I have been by Thai beaches. Granted we were in the party/backpacker area, we ventured to a more “chill beach” which was also taken u entirely y restaurants and lounge chairs. Though this is usually a downside for the budget traveler, we quickly learned that you could stay in a chair for free as long as you ordered something from the bar or restaurant. So day one on Ostres Beach, Kate and I ordered a few $1 Angkor beers and enjoyed our extremely comfortable lounge-chair-beds at the wonderful and appropriately named Happiness Bar. Along with the relaxed vibe and comrortable chairs, we were pleased that women trying to sell us fruit, bracelets, sunglasses, and massages was at a minimum compared to neighboring Serendipity Beach, which is party and backpacker central.

The beauty of Serendipity Beach is that most people show up and find accommodation, so you are rarely competing with reservations. Though we were turned down from the first two hostels we came upon, we ended up in a more hotel-like situation a 3 minute walk to the beach and the food options without all the noise for only $8 each a night. Good stuff. Serendipity area also has a plethora of food options, as well as many cheap food options right on the beach. One night I got the special BBq fish, for $3. Not only was it delicious, but I was able to hear the waves crashing feet away from me. The one drawback; Multitudes of children selling you thigs and mime victims begging for money. It’s really sad that this country is so oor that children are so easily exploited. And boy, is it hard to say no to them, especially since they are so good at English and can really strike up a conversation. As hard as it was to say no to them, I had to because I knew hat they were either being kept up late or skipping school by exploitative adults. I did see a woman buy a pineapple from a girl, and I closely watched so that I now know how to peel a pineapple:

1. Take off the rough, spiny shell with a sharp knife
2.  Underneath, there will still be the roots of the spines. They form in a diagonal  pattern, so angle your knife in and at a diagonal on each side of the roots. You will then be able to pull out the roots. Do this all the way around
3. holding the pineapple upright, cut it into fourths. Inside is the hard rib, angle your knife in on each side of the rib to pull it out.
4. cut the remaining sweet, soft pineapple and enjoy!

My country my beer! Best beer slogan ever

Though we enjoyed going to Ostres Beach, we were glad to stay in the Serendipity area because of the wide food selection and easy access to the party scene. We also discovered that if we ever wanted a beach bum gig for a bit, Sihanoukville is the place. Many of the bars have help wanted signs for native English speakers. Food, accommodation, and drinks included. All you need to do is sacrifice your liver and party every night. The one bar we went to was called the Dolphin Shack, which had a huge, friendly, fun crowd. They also offer a booze cruise that they claim is going to be in the next edition of Lonely Planet. We did not go on it, so I can’t vouch for how amazing it is, but I can envision it to be extremely fun with such great staff.

We never made it out to any of the islands, which are also supposed to be really nice with bungalow accommodation (though limited), so staying on Serendipity for a night to make those reservations is suggested.

If you are coming through Cambodia and then on to Vietnam, I would HIGHLY recommend getting your Vietnamese visa at the consulate in Sihanoukville. It took literally 15 minutes, while getting your visa at an embassy can take 2 days. Only thing to keep in mind: they are closed from 12-2 every day for lunch break.

we were asked to posed with the 3 older children...and then they
handed me the baby

Overall feelings of Sihanoukville: good backpacker party scene. Great break from Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. If you wanna just chill on a nice beach with a few low-key bars, stay on Ostres Beach. If you don’t mind venturing off to another beach (or jus want to be on a trash-ridden beach) but want to party at night, stay on Serendipity. But if you want great, clean beaches, save it for Thailand. Though I did like the Serendipity party scene better than Koh Phangnan.

Phnom Penh

outskirts of central market

 
I have mixed feelings about Phnom Penh. I absolutely loved it when I first got there, but by my third day I was ready to leave. It’s a chaotic city. Before Pol Pot came to power, the French had colonized it and had meant for it to be the “Pearl of Asia.” Before they could finish their job with the French-style architecture, they were kicked out and the typical Asian ramshackle buildings were put in to fill in the gaps. The traffic here is absolutely insane; even worse than Bangkok. There are no traffic laws. People are going every which way, including down one-way streets. I got hit by a one-armed man on a bicycle who was going the wrong way and didn’t have enough control over his bicycle to steer clear of me. But because of the chaos, it’s a great city to walk around. There’s always something to look at. It’s also on a river, which I was surprised to see had a promenade next to. There are also several other parks scattered throughout the city. There touristy area is quite extensive and next to the river, with a variety of eats and LOTS of cheap beer (our cheapest was 50 cents).

central market

We stayed in two different guest houses. One was far from the river and in the Russian part of town. I was glad to see it, but glad that we moved next to central market and were within walking distance of the river. There aren’t too many attractions in Phnom Penh, and besides the killing fields, I only made it to two.

The first was the National Museum, which is a one-level museum of artifacts from Khmer history. I found half of the museum fairly interesting as it consisted of jewelry, costumes, tools, and instruments. The other half consisted of stone carvings and after seeing Angkor Wat, they just weren’t that impressive because we weren’t seeing them with their temples. The museum itself is very beautiful and has a gorgeous courtyard.

The other attraction I saw was Wat Phnom, which is on the only elevated area in the city. Legend has it that the original temple built here was built by a woman who found 4 Buddha images in the Mekong River. The temple now is a colorful dedication to her and the Buddhas, which is now also a symbol of good luck to the locals of Phnom Penh. The most interesting thing I found about it was the giant working clock at the base that is guilt on a patch of grass.

What really got me cynical about Phnom Penh was all the poverty, which is really in your face. Especially after going to the Killing Fields, I felt guilty being a tourist in this poor country; I almost feel as if I am taking advantage. Because Cambodia is the most heavily mined nation in the world, there are many mime victims begging. It is also not uncommon to see children selling you things, undoubtedly with an adult following them closely. I also witnessed babies lying on a blanket on the street while their mother was sitting next to them breastfeeding their sibling.

Kate and I on the river

As unfortunate as the Cambodian situation is, there is much room for improvement. Our taxi driver to Siem Reap told us that universities are over enrolled, and construction around Phnom Penh with renderings of fancy new glass buildings indicates that growth is in progress and a bright future is near. The kindness of the Khmer people also speaks volumes. The other night a group of tuk tuk drivers offered me to sit down with them on their tuk tuk cushions on the side of the street, and then promptly pulled out a beer can out of a trash bag and asked me to join them for a drink.

A trip to Cambodia certainly isn’t complete without seeing Phnom Penh, as stopping in only Siem Reap and Angkor Wat is a tourist pocket. Phnom Penh is tourist-friendly, but allows a traveler to see real Cambodian city life.

giant clock

street-side haircut, anyone?