So i've been in Mui Ne for 3 days now. It's been a lot of fun but it's time to move on! I leave for Da Lat, the mountains in the central highlands of Vietnam, tomorrow morning.
Yesterday i rented a motorcycle for the first time. I...loved...it. The coastline here is amazing...kinda reminded me of California actually..which was a bit weird..but then you see bulls towing wagons filled with hay and you remember that you're actually in Vietnam.
I visited the white sand dunes after getting lost a few times on the way...really beautiful...my first sand dune experience..kinda makes me want to go to the Sahara now! Then i moved on to the Red Canyons, which looked like a miniature version of the Grand Canyon..nice for few minutes but not that impressive. Any rock formation that you can't climb does nothing for me! (it was basically hard red sand...)No not sand stone...hard sand. Then, i went to the red sand dunes which were nice but not as big and impressive as the white ones. And it was so hot by then that i spent the rest of the afternoon chilling poolside at my guesthouse!
I've been living in luxury for the past few days. Usually i can find 3$ a night guesthouses. Those are usually pretty basic. :) But here, i pay 6$ a night!!! I get my own room, with my OWN bathroom, no hot water but no freezing water either, AND they come and make my room everyday and i get a new towel everyday as well!!! A new towel!! Luxury. The guesthouse is super clean and it's directly on the beach...but the food here sucks. :)
Today i walked all the way to the Fairy Stream, which as you may have guessed, is a stream. You walked in it for about one kilometre and it leads to small water falls. A nice way to spend an afternoon. :)
I was going to put some nice pictures of all of this but my camera just died!! So more pics coming soon!
Friday, September 28, 2007
Mui Ne
Okay!! Picture time!
First one is of Chau Doc, my first stop in Vietnam.
Claire and I in the crazy small Cu Chi tunnels!
Eating with friends at Asian Kitchen is Saigon!
Relaxing on a rowboat on the Mekong Delta
Martin and I...cheers!
Andre the bad-ass snake handler!
First one is of Chau Doc, my first stop in Vietnam.
Claire and I in the crazy small Cu Chi tunnels!
Eating with friends at Asian Kitchen is Saigon!
Relaxing on a rowboat on the Mekong Delta
Martin and I...cheers!
Andre the bad-ass snake handler!
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Saigon!!!
Hello!
It's been a while since my last post! And i really wanted to show you lots of photos but the internet place here won't let me connect my camera to the computer..so the pics and stories will have to wait a day or two!
Long story short, i've been in Saigon (or Ho Chi Minh city depending how old you are)for the last 6 days. Vietnam...is...awesome. I did a day trip on the Mekong Delta where we visited a coconut candy factory...we also learned how rice paper and rice crispy is made! I visited the famous Cu Chi Tunnels and have mixed feelings about it. The tunnels themselves are interesting/scary/fun but the whole place had a weird theme park vibe to it. Inapropriate is a word that came up often. The guide made too many jokes, there are disneyesque robotic puppets everywhere, there's a shooting range!!! But i did love going thru 100 metres of tunnels, 3 feet high and less than 2 feet wide in some places! (up to 10 metres deep!!) We ended the tour in Ving Long in a cool market with lots of weird stuff for sale..the highlight of my day: Being the first brave guy/idiot to grab a bunch of lives snakes from a cage. Picture to prove it coming soon. :)
Besides that, i've just been walking around the city..visiting lots of museums. (Fine Arts museum, War Remnants museum, Ho chi Minh museum)I went to a zoo/botanical garden today! There's so much to do around here!!
But i have to move on so tomorrow i'm leaving for Mui Ne where sand dunes and beaches await!
I'll write more when i can put some pics up!
:)
It's been a while since my last post! And i really wanted to show you lots of photos but the internet place here won't let me connect my camera to the computer..so the pics and stories will have to wait a day or two!
Long story short, i've been in Saigon (or Ho Chi Minh city depending how old you are)for the last 6 days. Vietnam...is...awesome. I did a day trip on the Mekong Delta where we visited a coconut candy factory...we also learned how rice paper and rice crispy is made! I visited the famous Cu Chi Tunnels and have mixed feelings about it. The tunnels themselves are interesting/scary/fun but the whole place had a weird theme park vibe to it. Inapropriate is a word that came up often. The guide made too many jokes, there are disneyesque robotic puppets everywhere, there's a shooting range!!! But i did love going thru 100 metres of tunnels, 3 feet high and less than 2 feet wide in some places! (up to 10 metres deep!!) We ended the tour in Ving Long in a cool market with lots of weird stuff for sale..the highlight of my day: Being the first brave guy/idiot to grab a bunch of lives snakes from a cage. Picture to prove it coming soon. :)
Besides that, i've just been walking around the city..visiting lots of museums. (Fine Arts museum, War Remnants museum, Ho chi Minh museum)I went to a zoo/botanical garden today! There's so much to do around here!!
But i have to move on so tomorrow i'm leaving for Mui Ne where sand dunes and beaches await!
I'll write more when i can put some pics up!
:)
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Sihanookville to Saigon ?
So the weather is still really crappy. Everybody is thinking of leaving tomorrow and i think i might do the same. A few people have told me to take the boat to Vietnam and spend a few days in the Mekong Delta before going to Saigon...sounds pretty good to me!
The only bad part of that plan is that it's the raining season pretty much everywhere for the next month...sooooooo i don't know what to do..i change my mind every hour.
Sometimes i feel like going early to Australia...or straight to Bali to surf...oh how hard my life has become.
good times.
:)
The only bad part of that plan is that it's the raining season pretty much everywhere for the next month...sooooooo i don't know what to do..i change my mind every hour.
Sometimes i feel like going early to Australia...or straight to Bali to surf...oh how hard my life has become.
good times.
:)
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Battambang to Sihanookville
Salut!
I spent a nice few days in Battambang...for Cambodia's second largest city, the night life is absolutely dull though! Restaurants close at 10 and the one bar that doesn't play Cambodian music has a last call at 11!
I've been traveling the last few days with Claudia from Holland. We met on the boat ride from Siem Riep to Battambang and have been getting along very well. We went to the Killing Caves which are half way up a small mountain a few kilometres from town. Quite disturbing but it was nice to be in the mountains...our guides, Puong and Sopa (pictured below ), were lots of fun and we learned a lot about the local history.
We also went to visit another temple on top of another small mountain. After walking nearly 400 steps in the afternoon heat, we were met with an Angkor-period temple and lovely views of the country-side. I think that's what i enjoyed most about my time there, the moto drives in the country-side. Beautiful. Your arms get tired because you're constantly waving to all the excited children! Fruit trees, rice fields, narrow roads, small villages...beautiful.
The next day we went for a ride on the bamboo train - basically a bamboo mattress on rails. Lots of fun and the breeze was very refreshing! I also recommend to anybody travelling through there to have a fruit shake at The White Rose...by far the best i've had so far. :)
Last night i arrived in Sihanookville after a painful 10 hour bus trip. Painful because they played reaaaaaalllly loud Cambodian karaoke the whole way. For those of you not familiar with it, Cambodian music sucks. Cambodian karoake is worse. At one point during the ride, i almost snapped. Almost.
But it wasn't all bad...we met a really nice couple from Holland - Ruban and Claudia. We spent the entire morning just talking and drinking tea today. At the moment, we are sadly not at the beach because the weather is crap!!! The wet season is indeed wet now. Hopefully, tomorrow will be better...
So far my plan is to stay here for 4-5 days...that may change if the weather doesn't get any better so i'll keep you posted!
I spent a nice few days in Battambang...for Cambodia's second largest city, the night life is absolutely dull though! Restaurants close at 10 and the one bar that doesn't play Cambodian music has a last call at 11!
I've been traveling the last few days with Claudia from Holland. We met on the boat ride from Siem Riep to Battambang and have been getting along very well. We went to the Killing Caves which are half way up a small mountain a few kilometres from town. Quite disturbing but it was nice to be in the mountains...our guides, Puong and Sopa (pictured below ), were lots of fun and we learned a lot about the local history.
We also went to visit another temple on top of another small mountain. After walking nearly 400 steps in the afternoon heat, we were met with an Angkor-period temple and lovely views of the country-side. I think that's what i enjoyed most about my time there, the moto drives in the country-side. Beautiful. Your arms get tired because you're constantly waving to all the excited children! Fruit trees, rice fields, narrow roads, small villages...beautiful.
The next day we went for a ride on the bamboo train - basically a bamboo mattress on rails. Lots of fun and the breeze was very refreshing! I also recommend to anybody travelling through there to have a fruit shake at The White Rose...by far the best i've had so far. :)
Last night i arrived in Sihanookville after a painful 10 hour bus trip. Painful because they played reaaaaaalllly loud Cambodian karaoke the whole way. For those of you not familiar with it, Cambodian music sucks. Cambodian karoake is worse. At one point during the ride, i almost snapped. Almost.
But it wasn't all bad...we met a really nice couple from Holland - Ruban and Claudia. We spent the entire morning just talking and drinking tea today. At the moment, we are sadly not at the beach because the weather is crap!!! The wet season is indeed wet now. Hopefully, tomorrow will be better...
So far my plan is to stay here for 4-5 days...that may change if the weather doesn't get any better so i'll keep you posted!
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Battambang baby!!!
Ok so the internet is painfully slow here so i won't be able to put too many pictures. Angkor is too awesome to describe so have a look at the pics!
Today i took an 8 hour boat ride to Battambang, Cambodia's second largest city. We passed through small floating villages and narrow forest passages. Very beautiful!
Tomorrow i'll probably hire a guide to take me to the Killing Caves ( on top of a small mountain here) and a few temples as well. The city seems nice enough so far, i couldn't walk around it much because the heat was a bit too intense. The city is know for its colonial French architecture, but from what i've seen, it's pretty much all delapidated.
Enjoy the pics and i'll talk to you soon!
Today i took an 8 hour boat ride to Battambang, Cambodia's second largest city. We passed through small floating villages and narrow forest passages. Very beautiful!
Tomorrow i'll probably hire a guide to take me to the Killing Caves ( on top of a small mountain here) and a few temples as well. The city seems nice enough so far, i couldn't walk around it much because the heat was a bit too intense. The city is know for its colonial French architecture, but from what i've seen, it's pretty much all delapidated.
Enjoy the pics and i'll talk to you soon!
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Angkor What?
Hello All!
just wanted to say that i'm still alive and well! The temples of Angkor are absolutely incredible and everybody should go while you can still walk through them!
Pictures to come soon!
:)
just wanted to say that i'm still alive and well! The temples of Angkor are absolutely incredible and everybody should go while you can still walk through them!
Pictures to come soon!
:)
Saturday, September 8, 2007
Cambodia --- Phnom Penh edition.
Hey hey!
I'll be blogging in english while in Cambodia so I can properly make Tony jealous! :)
I kept hearing that Cambodians were among the friendliest people on earth, and i have to say that so far i agree!
I was sitting next to this Cambodian guy on the airplane shuttle and we started talking for a while...before we got off he offered me his business card ( Long Beang- Attorney at Law ) and said to call him if i had any questions or troubles or wanted to go out for coffee! And when we got off the plane, he even offered to drive me to my guesthouse! I gladly accepted. He even called the guesthouse and arranged for the manager to come pick me at the street corner. So as far as friendliness goes, Cambodians are on the top of my list.
I'm staying at the Floating Island guesthouse. A nice enough place in backpacker central. It's right on the river and has a spectacular sunset view. The staffers are in their early twenties and are super friendly as well. The pool table is free and you get to plug in your ipod to the sound system...so all in all, a great place.
Yesterday i went to the "Killing Fields" and to the "Tuol Sleng a.k.a. S-21" Museum. Needless to say, not a very cheerful day. S-21 used to be a high-school and was transformed by the Pol Pot regime into their main prison/interrogation a.k.a torture center. Gruesome. The place is filled with horrible pictures and mug shots of many of the victims. ( they used to document the lives of every prisoner with pictures and biographies)The place is seedy and dirty and scary as hell.
Then i went to the Killing Fields where all the bodies ( thousands upon thousands) were buried. Quite the creepy vibe as well let me tell you. You can still see old clothing and bones scattered everywhere. The mass graves have been dug up and the landscape is left littered with huge crevasses. A big stupa has been built to commemorate the genocide and is filled top to bottom with skulls.
I can't really express how you feel when you walk around a place like this. It's intense to say the least. But my brain had the hardest time wrapping itself around such evil. Evil. Evil. Evil. Farmers, peasants, intellectuals, bi-linguals, doctors, men, woman, children. There was even a special tree they used to beat children to death against. And another tree they used to hang speakers from to bury the screams during the exections.
Yeah. Great place. But it was worth seeing. And unfortunately for me, guides weren't available at either place so i'll have to read a few books to get to know a little bit more about the Khmer Rouge.
Oh, that's an interesting fact that i didn't expect. French is a bit everywhere still in Cambodia. Especially museums and govermental facilities. I'm told that some elders can still speak pretty well but for most of the population,french is their third language. But this kid at the guesthouse is getting pretty good...
So far on my trip, i would have had no problems bringing my mom to any of my destinations. Bangkok is soooo bland now. But Phnom Penh, a bit more hardcore. ( Don't worry mom, i'm totally fine.) But the first time i left the guesthouse at night, we hadn't walked for 20 seconds and we were offered every single drug you could imagine! Yes, even that one! And apparently, 95% of the massage parlours come with happy endings, so you need to watch out.
But it's not all bad. The tuk-tuk drivers don't piss me off as much as they did in Bangkok. You get offered a ride every 4 seconds, don't get me wrong, but they seem to take rejection better. :)
Today i went to the Russian Market, a smaller, hotter version of the Chattuchak market in Bangkok. I didn't buy anything. Having a hella-small backpack is saving me tons of money. Then i went to the National Museum. It was smaller than expected and a lot of the stuff repeated itself along the way. But the peaceful courtyard filled with coy-ponds was worth it. I sat down and enjoyed the rest of my book ( Breakfast of champions is officially the greatest book ever- everybody go read it now please so we can talk about it!!!) while it rained outside.
Speaking of rain, there hasn't been much of it considering it's the rainy season here. Hopefully that won't change when i'm in Angkor!
Guess what i had for lunch today!? No! Guess again! POUTINE !!!! hahaha I laughed when i saw that on the menu in the Lazy Gecko restaurant. It wasn't really good, but surprisingly, it wasn't the worst poutine i ever had. Well done Cambodia.
I bought my ticket for Siem Riep leaving tommorow morning at 7 o'clock. 6 hour trip for 3 and a half dollars. Oh yeah and Cambodia deals mostly in american dollars. You only need Riels for tuk tuk or moto drivers. ( the moto-drivers are a lot better and less scarier than in bangkok! Don't be scared to try if you ever come...)
So that's pretty much been the last 3 days...i've met some nice people - Chris, Gabs, Rianna and Zoe from England. And a nice guy from finland with whom i've just enjoyed supper with whose name i can't pronounce so i won't even try to write it down.
Enjoy the pics, and more to come soon!
p.s. you also hear a lot about how Cambodia is a country of intense contrasts - good
and evil, beauty and ugliness and so on. These last pictures give you an idea of just that.
I'll be blogging in english while in Cambodia so I can properly make Tony jealous! :)
I kept hearing that Cambodians were among the friendliest people on earth, and i have to say that so far i agree!
I was sitting next to this Cambodian guy on the airplane shuttle and we started talking for a while...before we got off he offered me his business card ( Long Beang- Attorney at Law ) and said to call him if i had any questions or troubles or wanted to go out for coffee! And when we got off the plane, he even offered to drive me to my guesthouse! I gladly accepted. He even called the guesthouse and arranged for the manager to come pick me at the street corner. So as far as friendliness goes, Cambodians are on the top of my list.
I'm staying at the Floating Island guesthouse. A nice enough place in backpacker central. It's right on the river and has a spectacular sunset view. The staffers are in their early twenties and are super friendly as well. The pool table is free and you get to plug in your ipod to the sound system...so all in all, a great place.
Yesterday i went to the "Killing Fields" and to the "Tuol Sleng a.k.a. S-21" Museum. Needless to say, not a very cheerful day. S-21 used to be a high-school and was transformed by the Pol Pot regime into their main prison/interrogation a.k.a torture center. Gruesome. The place is filled with horrible pictures and mug shots of many of the victims. ( they used to document the lives of every prisoner with pictures and biographies)The place is seedy and dirty and scary as hell.
Then i went to the Killing Fields where all the bodies ( thousands upon thousands) were buried. Quite the creepy vibe as well let me tell you. You can still see old clothing and bones scattered everywhere. The mass graves have been dug up and the landscape is left littered with huge crevasses. A big stupa has been built to commemorate the genocide and is filled top to bottom with skulls.
I can't really express how you feel when you walk around a place like this. It's intense to say the least. But my brain had the hardest time wrapping itself around such evil. Evil. Evil. Evil. Farmers, peasants, intellectuals, bi-linguals, doctors, men, woman, children. There was even a special tree they used to beat children to death against. And another tree they used to hang speakers from to bury the screams during the exections.
Yeah. Great place. But it was worth seeing. And unfortunately for me, guides weren't available at either place so i'll have to read a few books to get to know a little bit more about the Khmer Rouge.
Oh, that's an interesting fact that i didn't expect. French is a bit everywhere still in Cambodia. Especially museums and govermental facilities. I'm told that some elders can still speak pretty well but for most of the population,french is their third language. But this kid at the guesthouse is getting pretty good...
So far on my trip, i would have had no problems bringing my mom to any of my destinations. Bangkok is soooo bland now. But Phnom Penh, a bit more hardcore. ( Don't worry mom, i'm totally fine.) But the first time i left the guesthouse at night, we hadn't walked for 20 seconds and we were offered every single drug you could imagine! Yes, even that one! And apparently, 95% of the massage parlours come with happy endings, so you need to watch out.
But it's not all bad. The tuk-tuk drivers don't piss me off as much as they did in Bangkok. You get offered a ride every 4 seconds, don't get me wrong, but they seem to take rejection better. :)
Today i went to the Russian Market, a smaller, hotter version of the Chattuchak market in Bangkok. I didn't buy anything. Having a hella-small backpack is saving me tons of money. Then i went to the National Museum. It was smaller than expected and a lot of the stuff repeated itself along the way. But the peaceful courtyard filled with coy-ponds was worth it. I sat down and enjoyed the rest of my book ( Breakfast of champions is officially the greatest book ever- everybody go read it now please so we can talk about it!!!) while it rained outside.
Speaking of rain, there hasn't been much of it considering it's the rainy season here. Hopefully that won't change when i'm in Angkor!
Guess what i had for lunch today!? No! Guess again! POUTINE !!!! hahaha I laughed when i saw that on the menu in the Lazy Gecko restaurant. It wasn't really good, but surprisingly, it wasn't the worst poutine i ever had. Well done Cambodia.
I bought my ticket for Siem Riep leaving tommorow morning at 7 o'clock. 6 hour trip for 3 and a half dollars. Oh yeah and Cambodia deals mostly in american dollars. You only need Riels for tuk tuk or moto drivers. ( the moto-drivers are a lot better and less scarier than in bangkok! Don't be scared to try if you ever come...)
So that's pretty much been the last 3 days...i've met some nice people - Chris, Gabs, Rianna and Zoe from England. And a nice guy from finland with whom i've just enjoyed supper with whose name i can't pronounce so i won't even try to write it down.
Enjoy the pics, and more to come soon!
p.s. you also hear a lot about how Cambodia is a country of intense contrasts - good
and evil, beauty and ugliness and so on. These last pictures give you an idea of just that.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Phnom Penh tomorrow!
Je devrais arriver au Cambodge demain soir vers 7PM !! J'ai hate de visiter un nouveau pays...je vais faire de mon mieux pour vous tenir au courant de mes nouvelles aventures..en esperant que l'internet n'est pas dispendieux!
A part ca pas grand chose..j'ai passe les derniers jours a lire et a ecrire. Suggestion de lecture :
"Thank you for Smoking" de Christopher Buckley. Vraiment drole, y'a un film aussi si vous preferez.
"Breakfast of Champions" de Kurt Vonnegut. Je l'ai pas fini encore mais j'ai l'impression que ca va etre un de mes livres preferes. Completement tordu.
A+
A part ca pas grand chose..j'ai passe les derniers jours a lire et a ecrire. Suggestion de lecture :
"Thank you for Smoking" de Christopher Buckley. Vraiment drole, y'a un film aussi si vous preferez.
"Breakfast of Champions" de Kurt Vonnegut. Je l'ai pas fini encore mais j'ai l'impression que ca va etre un de mes livres preferes. Completement tordu.
A+
Sunday, September 2, 2007
Photos take 2!
Bon excusez moi mais mon site de blogger ici est thailandais donc c'est pas facile de cliquer sur les bons boutons!
Voici la petite ile Perhentienne nommee Kecil (Malaysie)
Quelques vues de notre fameux bungalow! ( Je m'ennuie tellement deja!!)
La vue de notre resto sur la plage!
Le plus gros reclining Buddah au monde au Wat Pho temple a Bangkok! Ce temple est aussi reconnu pour avoir la meilleur ecole de massage thai au monde! J'ai pas eu le choix d'avoir mon premier massage! Trrrrres cool.
Voici la petite ile Perhentienne nommee Kecil (Malaysie)
Quelques vues de notre fameux bungalow! ( Je m'ennuie tellement deja!!)
La vue de notre resto sur la plage!
Le plus gros reclining Buddah au monde au Wat Pho temple a Bangkok! Ce temple est aussi reconnu pour avoir la meilleur ecole de massage thai au monde! J'ai pas eu le choix d'avoir mon premier massage! Trrrrres cool.
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