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Angkor Wat and the abrupt end of our tour

4/12/2020

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​The culmination of our Vietnam/Cambodia trip was to be Angkor Wat. a Buddhist temple complex in Cambodia which is the largest religious monument in the world, on a site measuring 162.6 hectares. This iconic site is easily recognizable because so many films have been made there. The surreal trees that have almost swallowed the buildings create a perfect back drop for adventure and mystery. 
We got up at 4:15am to see the sunrise over the main temple. Everyone does it and, once again, we were saved from the normally enormous crowds who show up for it. The sun did finally come up, although it was hazy. After sunrise we saw two of the main temples and then headed back to the hotel for a swim and rest. We were to spend the next day at the Angkor Wat complex also. 
At about noon (March 17) we were notified of an urgent meeting for our group at 2:00. At that meeting our guide announce that Intrepid Travel was suspending all tours effective immediately due to uncertainty caused by Covid-19. Meaning we could have our hotel for the night, and then we were on our own. At that point there were 3 more days left in the original tour. Intrepid made this move because in their words, “things were changing by the hour”. Hotels and tourist attractions were being close rapidly, flights to and from many countries were being cancelled. 
Pat and I made the decision to take a tuk tuk to the airport immediately and try to get a flight to Vietnam, where we already had flights home on March 20. At the airport we discovered that 80-90% of flights were cancelled, and that there was a good chance we would be put into quarantine in Vietnam. So we bought new tickets on the spot and kept our fingers crossed that all of our 3 flights through 4 countries, taking 37 hours would make it. And they did!
We are working on getting some money back on the flights (yes, we had insurance) and Intrepid gave us a very fair credit for the days missed on the tour. 

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Floating Village on Lake Tonle Sap - Cambodia

4/12/2020

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After entering Cambodia (where it was HOT) we stopped by Tonlé Sap Lake to visit the floating Village of Kampong Luong. Unique and picturesque, this village of 1000 homes moves in it’s entirety to other parts of the lake 3 times a year depending on the water level. The people subsist by fishing. There are floating stores that sell supplies but, of course, there is constant boat traffic carrying the villagers to the near by town. There is no electricity but some people have solar panels, or batteries or generators. All drinking water is bottled and there is a water boat that goes makes the rounds. 
As you can see, Blue is a very popular color for the boat people, a color that signifies good luck in Cambodia. 

 

 
 

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Mekong Delta

4/8/2020

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The Mekong Delta is a massive river delta covering a great deal of Southwest Vietnam. It is a biological wonder with thousands of species of animals, fish and birds. The water level varies with the seasons. We were there in dry season so it was low. In addition, China has installed a series of dams that are threatening the water supply of the delta (Same old story). 
We had plans to take a longer trip into the Delta at the end of our tour, but that got cancelled, like so many other things. 
With our local guide we cruised water ways in canoes and visited several cottage industries in local homes. 

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Markets

4/8/2020

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I Love Markets: The color, sounds, exotic fruits and veggies. I am fascinated by the people who begin their work day long before daylight and provide the open-air supermarkets of Asia. The local people buy their produce fresh, as they need it, and go to the market at least once and sometimes twice a day. There are large central markets and also local small vendors selling in neighborhoods, or off of the back of bicycles. 
Noodles are always fresh in Hanoi. There is a town 17 Km from City in which everyone makes noodles. That's all they do. The send their fresh noodles to Hanoi 2-3 times a day. Morning noodles are considered too old for evening meals. 
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Temples and beautiful Hoi An

4/8/2020

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Any trip to Vietnam and Cambodia will include many trips to Temples, monasteries, and all sorts of religious sites. Because the spirituality and the buildings are not a great interest of mine, I don’t take as many pictures as, perhaps, I should. Mostly Hindu (in the past) and Buddhist (now), the structures are highly ornate, and very colorful. But, here are the pictures I did take, as a teaser. 
Hoi An is a well preserved port city whose buildings reflect a mix of foreign cultures, including Japanese and Chinese.  Because of it’s beautiful architecture and scenic setting on the coast with many rivers and waterways running through it, Hoi An is a popular tourist destination. It is known as the city of lanterns and there are hundreds of excellent restaurants along the river.

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Vietnam - Getting around.

4/7/2020

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Intrepid Travel (our tour company) likes to give guests a wide range of experiences. Most of the time we traveled in small, private, air-conditioned tourist buses. But during the tour we also experienced several boats, an overnight train, motor scooters, bicycles, tuk tuks, and one airplane.  Intrepid is very socially and environmentally responsible and all guides are local. They also use the services of local families, and support local businesses and non-profits. They specialize in small groups (ours was 14) and we would highly recommend Intrepid Travel. 
Our tour group consisted of 8 Australians, 4 British, and 2 Americans (us). It was a great group of people. Everyone was game and fun, no one complained, everyone was helpful and positive. We felt very lucky and, although we were the oldest in the group, we had no trouble keeping up with younger Aussies and Brits. We just went to bed earlier, but they were always chipper and ready to go in the morning. 
Unfortunately, in the town of Hue, one of the British couples was put into quarantine because they had been on a flight from London with a rich jet-setting young Vietnamese woman who had Covid-19. She had neglected to mention to authorities that she had been to Italy. Although she was in first class, the Vietnamese government tracked down everyone on the plane and quarantined them. Our British friends spent 14 days in the hotel room in Hue before being sent home. Our tour leader “Pinky”was also quarantined because she had slept in the overnight train carriage with the British couple. They all tested negatively and none of them got the virus although there were many people on the flight (mostly first class) who did get it.
We hated losing Pinky because she was is a fun guide and we already felt very close to her but our replacement “V”was also excellent. 

 
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Vietnam - Food lovers dream

4/5/2020

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Vietnamese food does not disappoint; It’s always delicious and beautiful. Pat described the eating experience as Disneyland for foodies. One of my favorite experiences in Hanoi was a cooking class in which we were the only 2 students. It involved a trip to the market to buy materials, hands on cooking, and eating it all afterwards. 
Since we are both big coffee drinkers we were delighted to discover that the coffee, especially in the north, is fantastic. It’s strong and smooth and Vietnamese coffee is often served with sweetened condensed milk, which especially good iced. We sampled Egg Coffee, a local specialty, which is made with whipped egg yolks, condensed milk, and rice wine. It’s very rich and almost like eating mousse, but with strong coffee on the bottom.
During our tour we also had a chance to see how rice wine, noodles, coconut candy, and smoked sticky rice are make by visiting some local homes who have those cottage industries. 
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April 05th, 2020

4/5/2020

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Vietnam Street Life

4/4/2020

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​Hanoi is a city of over 8 million people with over 5 million motor scooters Sidewalks are for parking motor scooters, which means pedestrians walk in the street. Once you learn how to navigate the streets, it works very well: more like a dance than walking. Making eye contact, moving slowly and gracefully. No abrupt movements, show no fear and they just swerve around you.  Hanoi street life is colorful, noisy, and fascinating. Exercise and Tai Chi classes take place in the parks. Thousands of people sit on tiny little chairs drinking excellent Vietnamese coffee and chatting at all hours of the day and night. 
Everywhere we went on the trip there were many less tourist than usual. The is because Vietnam gets millions of tourist every year from China and Korea and flights from those 2 countries had already been suspended due to Covid-19.  Very lucky for us in that respect. I will speak more about Covid-19 impact on our trip in a later blog. 
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    Gail MacDonald

    This is to give a snapshot of our trip to Vietnam and Cambodia in March, 2020

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