|
Hello everyone!
Greetings from Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Just come over by a quick boat
ride from the Vietnamese Mekong Delta to the Cambodian killings
fields….yep what a difference a small border crossing can make! So
lets see, what did I do in Vietnam….
Hanoi — the last travel update left off admiring this cute city (and
my haircut). Well, all the honking (cars/motorbikes hong every few
seconds just to let everyone else know they are there), the extremely
aggressive and deceptive pursuit of tourist dollars (hundreds of
motorbike drivers will desent on you any moment you pull out a map and
seem vulnerable), and the fact that these people never smile….all
takes a bit of getting used to….definetly a sharp contrast to the
friendly natured people of Thailand, Laos and Cambodia.
Perfume Pagoda — outside of Hanoi, the locals flock after Tet (new
year’s) to this place to make thier religious offerings. They seem to
burn everything (even fake dollars) hoping all this will go to thier
dead ancestors. several peaceful hours, just rowing down the river to
the pagoda (well, actually westerners don’t row, they just chip in a
dollar so an old Vietnamese lady can row thier boat…feminism in full
blossom!)
ok, enough of this big city stuff, down to Hue. Night trains in
Vietnam are definetly an experience. First there’s the metal bars over
the windows (apperently kids like to throw large rocks at the
train…to relieve some angst?) The cows standing next to the tracks
is only a bit more disturbing, but its ok, just go to sleep and
hopefully we’ll be there when I wake up….wrong….when they want to
serve 6am breakfast, they let nothing stop them…especially something
as trivial as moaning sleepy tourists!
Hue — First the kings lived and died here, then American soldiers did
the same (needless to say, the Kings seemed to have a bit longer
lifespans then the soldiers) For those who like war history (me!!),
this is the place. the DMZ tour from here, takes us to see battle
sites like Khe Sanh, where you can go shopping for American soldier’s
dog tags (the only time you’re glad its all fake) Very little is left
out here of the war (except the endless supply of land mines), but
when they point out what used to be a forest, and all you see is a few
shrubs, you can’t help but reflect on the seriousness of what went on
here only 30 years ago.
oh, and the Kings? I found the biggest irony in that the King’s tombs
(each king built a massive palace for his death) were left completly
intact, while the Imperial city where they ruled was mostly destroyed
during heavy fighting in the Tet offensive…you can still see the
outer wall (thier wailing wall??) full of bullet holes.
The most common question I got there from the Europeans was what the
Vietnamese thought of Americans? My constant quest for this answer
didn’t turn up anything juicy….the younger generation just views us
all as tourist dollars to be made (and Americans have the most)…the
older folks (the few that didn’t end up on the wrong side of an
american bombing run)…well they show signs of a difficult life, but
don’t seem to dwell on who fought them….everyone screwed
them…french, american, chinese.
Hoi An — nice little river town (just like a small french village)
this is definetly the shopping capitol! Even I broke down and had to
buy stuff…suits, tux, ceramics…you name it, they got it here.
(tailor made suit costs $35)
ok, enough sightseeing, down to the beaches of Nha Tran. nothing to
see here but the ocean waves, the sand, and the beach side bars. Every
day I wake up, I have to make the 100 foot trek from my bed, to the
lawnchairs on beach….drinking from a freshly cut coconut, eating
spring rolls while watching the tide come in….yea, life is difficult!
There’s a bar here, called Crazy Kim’s, where all the tourists drink
before the midnight dancing starts. Tourists like it because its all
for a good cause…they give money to help children (they even sell
t-shirts to raise money). Well, after sitting around here long enough,
I hear from the local expats that its all fake…the women running the
club pockets all the money from the t-shirts sales! just a small
glimpse of vietnamese life….
Well, you can’t drink coconuts foreever…down to Saigon. People here
seem friendler then up north….maybe it was that American influence
🙂 Had to go see the war museum….got to learn about all the
American war crimes that were perpetrated against the locals …
actually even more interesting was the collection of american war toys
here…right in the backyard they have fully intact helicopters,
bombers, artillery….a bit more and they can compete with the London’s
war musuem 🙂
Mekong Delta — “row row row your boat, gently down the stream….”
yep that’s life on the Delta. So different here….floating down the
river for a few days, all of thier daily life unfolds right in front of
you. The school kids rowing down the river to get home after
school…all waving to us yelling thier one english word, “hello”.
Houses are anchored on the river as part of fishing villiages…as our
boat passes thier kitchen we yell “What’s for dinner?”.
And then’s there’s the biggest supermarket here, consists of hundreds
of boats on the river selling thier goods (usually food). The big
boats are wholesalers, the smaller boats are retailers buying from
them, and the new shiney boats are tourists getting in everyone’s way.
Just row your boat up and buy what you need.
well, that’s it for now. stay tuned for the next travel
update….Cambodia! (killing fields, bodygaurds, land mines….)
|
