Saigon, Mekong Delta and Cambodia

So, this is going to be a blog post on steroids. I'm catching up with 2 countries and countless miles travelled - all in the next 20 minutes. I would have updated it a couple of nights ago, but... The hotel we were at 2 hotels ago charged 25 cents for each 15 minutes of internet use (We are getting stingy, but we mostly didn't use it out of stubborness) and the internet browser at the our last hotel crashed every 2 minutes (or so it seemed). Here goes!

I loved Saigon, but not the first hotel we stayed in. We got in late and, therefore, had called the hotel in advance and arranged to get picked up by them from the airport. We checked in. The bathroom window was broken so hot air was pouring in. The sink leaked. The beds were hard. There was a stain on my pillow. The AC was literally 6 inches from my feet and I still couldn't feel it. I lay in bed, failing in my attempts to go to sleep. I thought I felt bed bugs crawling on my legs. We fled in the morning to a cheaper (and much nicer hotel only a block away).

The first day we just walked around the city, saw the sites and visited museums. Our second stop was the War Remnants Museum. This was probably the most sobering Vietnam War experience we had. The pictures gave everything a vividness so often missing. The stories were incredibly moving. At the end we got to see a remake of a South Vietnamese prison. It showed something called a tiger cage. It was a barbed wire cage 18 inches tall, 6 feet long and maybe 2 feet wide with the ground acting as the bottom. I thought it would be painful with one person inside. It was intended for 3 POWs. We left. We were all speechless.



We went to the main night market in town. A couple of students approached us to practice their English. One of the was a Geography major!!! Talk about a small world. I was also beginning to remember how much I loved bartering. It's dangerous. I bought a shirt I didn't really want because the lady met my ridiculously low price as I walked away (I was getting more than 75% off on some items I bartered for). Another lady looked like she might accept my low price. I left as fast as I could. Or I at least tried to. She called me back. She met my price. I came up with an excuse not to buy it ("the fabric was too thin").

Friday we went to the Chu Chi tunnels in the morning. They are located northwest of Saigon and were a VC stronghold during the war (The zone was so uncontrolled that American planes returning from combat missions were allowed to drop their unused bombs anywhere in the area. With no permission necessary.). We saw a propaganda video that talked about killing Americans. We saw some of the traps into which American and South Vietnamese troops would fall. It brought the war to life yet again. It made me think a lot.

That afternoon we went to the 'Reunification Palace' - the building that was the presidential palace during the war. Interestingly enough, the one standing today is different than the one first built. It was bombed during the war, but, not as you would guess, by the North Vietnamese. It was bombed by the South Vietnamese leaders own air force. He survived but he was later forced from power.

Over the weekend we worked our way to Cambodia by going through the Mekong Delta. Sadly, we didn't have much time to actually explore the delta, we spent most of the time in a bus or on a boat. When we finally got to the Cambodian border on Sunday afternoon I realized that I had lost the passport photo that I would need to get my visa at the border crossing. I told our guide. He said it would cost one extra dollar. I'm not sure if that was an 'administrative fee' or a bribe. I didn't ask. But we did know for sure that we had paid $22 for our visas. The stamp that went on our visas said "Cost - $20". We don't know where or to whom that 2 extra dollars went.

Sunday night we took a bus from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap, the city right next to Angkor Wat. All I can say is that the bus was freezing. ABSOLUTELY FREEZING. Somebody said that either the AC isn't working here or the people want to show it off. Well, they showed it off all right. The man across from me covered his head/upper body with a towel. A couple behind him were using a curtain to deflect the AC. I just sat there. Freezing to death. I was SO happy to get off that bus.

But, the tuc-tuc (sitting cart pulled by a motorbike) ride to the hotel was even more interesting. 2 guys from the hotel came to pick us up from the bus station for free. One of them was constantly apologizing for being late. The other one was driving... Well sort of. He was swerving. A lot. He was trying to follow the line that marked the edge of the road. A couple of times I seriously thought we were going to cross that line and go OFF the road. I don't think I've ever held onto a handle bar so tight. I thought I knew why this was happening... We arrived at the hotel. I shook the drivers hand and got my face as close to his as a I could without being too obvious. I could smell the alcohol on his breath...

Monday through Wednesday spent in Angkor Wat. I don't have too much time to describe it, but saying that it's incredible doesn't do it justice! The first day when we got off the tuc-tuc in front of the main temple (Angkor Wat) it left me in awe. Cambodia has gone through a lot recently (genocide less than 35 years ago), but they've never lost their pride in Angkor Wat. Seeing all of the different temples was truly spectacular.

Wednesday afternoon we went to Battambang (Cambodia's second largest city). Thursday we took a cooking class (Cambodian/Thai food is really good!!!) and then went to a nearby killing cave in the afternoon (Used during the genocide committed by Pol Pot in the 1970's). The cave is now next to a buddist temple. Hopefully those who were killed can now find peace. Again, it really made me think. It took my breath away seeing a shrine full of human skulls and bones.

Friday morning we took a bus to Phnom Penh. We left at 6 AM. We didn't think that it would be that long of a bus ride - the distance between the two cities isn't that great. As we got closer to Phnom Penh the roads got worse. Think of it this way.. Take a speed bump from the US. Now drive over it at 30 miles an hour. That's what it felt like. Yet the roads looked perfectly flat. I have no idea how they do it!!! We didn't arrive in the capital until noon. It had been a 6 hour bus ride.

Friday afternoon and Saturday we explored the city. We went to the national museum. Saturday morning we went to the killing fields (One site right outside of the city where a large number of people were killed) and to a prison from during the Pol Pot regime. Again, another harrowing experience. And this genocide happened less than 35 years ago.

The best part, though? We went to a pool Saturday afternoon. We were all tired from the travelling. We needed a break. We swam and read and slept. It was the best $4 I've spent all trip. We left feeling recharged. Ready to go.

Today we flew from Cambodia to Kuala Lumpur. We found a 'guest house' and around. It's definitely different from Cambodia!!! Stay tuned! And thanks to those who have let me know what they think about the blog. It's nice to hear that people are actually reading it.