Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
Hi all
This is attempt number 3 at our latest update, the last cuople f places we've tried have had s*** internet so they kept either kept crashing, failing, or timing out on us.
We're in Ho Chi Minh City, capital of Vietnam at the minute, and have just had a quick walk around the city and it's everything you'd expect from a south-asian Capital city; hustle & bustle, having to play chicken with a million motorbikes to cross the road, people trying to sell you anything and everying for anything! We arrived today having left from Chao Doc by the Vietnam/ Cambodia border yesterday. We only spent one day there, and took a motorbike ride up into the moutnains to see the sunset which was absolutley beautiful and worth every second of the nerve jangling ride to the top, check out the videos we've uploaded and you'll see what we mean!
Since our last update, we've had a week in Cambodia were we spent a couple of days each in Siem Reap, Pnomh Penh, and Sihanoukville before leaving for Vietnam. In Siem Reap, we visited the temples of Angkor Wat, getting up at 4am to go and watch a sunrise, that never really happened becasue of the s***ty weather, behind the main Angkor Wat temple. We also visited the temples where they filmed the Tomb raider films during the first day. That night, despite the 4am start we were out on the lash in the Temple bar/ club in Siem Reap, and partied with Jesus and a few others until 2am! The following day we went to see a floating village, where literally thousands of peasents live. Too poor to afford houses on land because of the land tax, they build there huts on rafts and just live there, floating on the river. The villages are complete with floating farms, markets, schools, churches, the works! We visitied a fish farm there where saw crocodiles, and a young beggar girl chased Zoe around with a live snake dangling around her neck pleading for a dollar. Our tour guide for the day spoke pigeon English at best, and fancied himsel as a standup comedian. His jokes were crap, but he spent an age trying to explain the punchline of each joke and why it was funny, causing him and the rest of the bus to crease up laughing.
From Siem Reap we moved on the the capital, Pnomh Penh. Despite the scare stories from our guide and some ex-pat locals, we had a great experience there. On our full day we visitied Tao Sleng, the school converted into a prison bu Soldiers under Pol Pot's regime in the late 70s. It was here that almost 20,000 innocent people were detained, interrogated, and tortured on account of either their involvement in the previous regime, or thei percieved level of intelligence. Having seen the cells and torture rooms, complete with individual photographs of every prisoner ever kept there, we met Bao Meng, on of only 14 people to escape from the prison alive. We bought his book, which he kindly signed for us, and posed for a photograph with him. From Tao Sleng, we made the same short journey as most of the 20,000 inmates to the Killing fields, were prisoners were bludgeoned to death, their lives deemed cheaper than the cost of bullets, and thrown into mass graves. We saw the graves and a monument build from over 8,000 skulls that have been exhumed from the graves. It was a truly sombre and heart wrenching experience that will stay with us both forever. That evening, we went to the home of our tour guide for the day and ate with him and his family. 16+ people sat around on the floor of what was the main living area of their 'hut' eating fired pork noodles, chicken curry, beef kebabs, and drinking rice wine distilled with spiders to release the venom into the wine. An experience if ever there was one.
From there we moved down to Sihanoukville, and stayed at a hotel right on the beach front. Lee managed t turn $5 into $35 with one spin of the roulette wheel, convinced Zoe to give him another $10 to try make some more money but was unsuccessful. Still in profit though so hey ho! That evening, one of us went on a 15km bike ride through the countryside, whilst one of us sat sunning on the beach. We'll leave it for you to decide who did what!
From Sihanoukville we moved into Chao Doc, spending just one evening there where we did the motorbike ride. Tonight will be a bit of a night out we reckon, as there's more nightlife here than we had last night! Off to see the cu-chi tunnels, where the local Vietnamese hid during the Aemrican war, then head for Nha Treng by overnight sleeper train.
That should bring you all bang up to date, hope all is well as you're reading this. Excuse the grammar and any spelling errors, we're in a rush incase the bloody internet crashes again! Unable to load photos at the minute, as the hotel computer doesn't have USB portals (it's archaeic & hamster powered), will try again in a couple of days...
Till next time, Lee & Zoe x
- comments
Jan Can't wait to see the photos - sounds as if you are building up a library of memories. Man's cruility to man is unbelievable -lessons don't seem to be learnt from history!!!! Zoe when you were in a Kenya you almost stroked a black mamba - now someone chases you with a snake -what has happened in the intervening 22years??!! Lots of love Mum/Jan xx
Subhash I was very excited to hear that you have voueltner English teachers serving in Vietnam, by teaching English as a Second Language. I myself have a Bachelor of Arts in English with concentations in Education and English as a Second Language. I have been looking for a way to serve the Lord with the skills he has given me. Please contact me if there is any need for more or relief teachers there.
Wiyono How can I obtain auntithec Vietnam dog tags?I'm aware that most of the dog tags for sale online are fakes. However, I've always wanted a real set of Vietnam-era dog tags. Is there any way I can obtain a true set?I don't mean to disrespect any veteran, they are for a private collection eventually to be donated as a museum display (boots, gun, helmet, tags).