Page 2 of auroracamel Travel Blog Posts
Volcanic Lake
I had heard that you could get your visa for Laos at the Cambodian/Laos border. Unfortunately this turned out to be an urban legend. I was faced with a longer stay than I first anticipated, while I sent my passport to Phnom Penn to get an express Visa sorted out. I was in a little town called Stung Treng close to the border. When we arrived there was only one room left in the hostel. I was horrible, just a crappy bed with a 2cm thick mattress and no windows. There was no shower and after a long journey like we had to get there, that was something that was sorely needed. Also we were woken at 6am to the sound of the most god awful music! It was just a horrible experience and to be ... read more
Sunrise in Angkor Wat
Siem Riep is a slow paced city with old school charm. It is geared up towards the tourism industry so there are lots of Western type bars and restaurants dotted around the place. The locals are pretty friendly and quite laid back. Well apart from our tuc tuc driver that we got from the bus station. He said he would bring us anywhere we wanted to go, but this turned out to be anywhere as long as it was his mates guesthouse, when we wanted to go see a few other places he kicked up such a fuss I thought he was going to get physical with one of the guys in our group, you could almost see the steam coming out of his ears as he reached boiling point. We felt that life is too ... read more
Skulls
Phnom Penh, it is a progressive place today with a real need to move on from its past, you can see the wealth everywhere as the tourism industry really takes off and the western influences start to come in. However it for years it was home to one of the cruelest regimes, the Khmer Rouge, which is remembered mainly for the deaths of up to 3 million people under its rule, through execution, starvation and forced labor. I went to the killing fields to go and see first hand some of the atrocities that were committed in this country. What I was faced with was a very dusty piece of land with signs all around it telling you what happened there. Some of it was hard to imagine as there was very little clue of what ... read more
Paradise
Alone for the first time in a month I headed off to Phu Quoc Island to get off the beaten track. It provided me with some of the most amazing and memorable experiences of my whole trip. On my way there I had to get a mini-bus with only Vietnamese people. It was a strange feeling being the only westerner that I saw for over a day of travelling. It was a role reversal to be in the minority and I was definately getting a few strange looks. On my way there I met a really great Vietnamese Guy and we chatted all through the night about Vietnam, Ireland, dreams and aspirations. When the trip came to an end he handed me a present that he had bought in the market. It was some moon cake, ... read more
Mekong Dream
I decided not to spend too much time in Saigon as I am not really a city slicker. Think I made the right decision. Arrived really early into the city, dumped my bag in a guesthouse and went on the 1 day Mekong Delta Tour. It was a nice experience. Got to see how they make the sickly sweet Coconut Candy, a snake, some traditional South Vietnamese music, drink honey tea and travel on the water in Long Boats. Next day went to the Chu Chi tunnels. It was really good to get a Vietnamese perspective of the American War. It is extraordinary how they built them! How ingenious of the Vietnamese. I nearly had heart failure when I went into the "widened" tunnel. I think I am a little claustraphobic, because I freaked out, if ... read more
Nha Trang Beach
Nha Trang is a nice beach resort similar to something like the Costa Del Sol in Spain. The tourism industry is in full swing here along with all the negatives that brings...sky rise hotels, hawkers and robbers. Everywhere you go there is people trying to sell you stuff and they don't give you any respite even when you are trying to enjoy a nice meal. I had my bag stolen with my camera, phone and shoes inside. Aside from that I enjoyed my time here, was nice to just have some sunshine and relaxation. Visited the mud baths one day to recover from a hangover. Lucky me I got to share a tiny mud bath with to guys, just chilled, soaking up the minerals that would supposedly turn back the hands of time and rejuvinate our ... read more
Girls Cycling
The long sweaty bus journey to Hoi An was certainly worth it. Right from the offset I fell in love with this quaint, picturesque, friendly town. It has all that you could ask for a lovely beach, tastebud tingling good food, a UNESCO heritage Old Town, tempting tailors and a beautiful harbour. At this stage I was travelling with three other people, we had all decided to rent mopeds to do a bit of exploring in Hoi An and the surrounds. One of the days we headed out to the ruins called My Son (pronounced Me Son). It was such an amazing adventure, we headed off without so much as a map, depending rather on the good nature of the locals. Whizzing passed people going about their daily lives be it school, shopping, working, tending the ... read more
Buy MY STUFF!!!!
On your travels you meet so many people and you make so many friends, some you travel with for a while and some you just meet once; one particular friend that I had made while in Halong Bay was a Dutch Guy from Amsterdam called Arne. We had decided to go and see Sapa together. The day we were due to head off to Sapa, he got the worst news that anyone could get from home. One of his bestfriends had passed away in a car crash. R.I.P To say that he was devastated was an understatement. My heart went out to him because there was no way that he would be able to make it to the funeral and there was also no point really, he would be miserable there for two months before he ... read more
View from Above
Visited the Unesco World Heritage Site Ha Long Bay. On the way there unfortunately I was witness to my third car crash since I arrived in Vietnam. Between a car and a truck carrying chickens, who were the only ones seriously injured. They really should reconsider their driving laws, seems senseless the amount of crashes. Anyway, that aside we arrived in Halong Bay and were able to forget about the poor chickens. WOW! Was really amazed by the boat and Halong Bay itself. Actually had to pinch myself, didn't feel like I was on a scummy backpacking trip. The boat that we landed was beautiful with fancy deck chairs on the top for sunbathing, plush cabins and a nice dining area for food. For lunch they served up the most amazing spread of Seafood, a gourmets ... read more
Juxtaposition
So I naively thought that Hong Kong was a culture shock, boy I wasn't ready for the crazy quirky land that is Vietnam!! The minute a stepped foot outside the airport in Hanoi, I was mobbed by blood thirsty taxi/mini-bus/bus drivers vying for my business. Eventually after much to-ing and fro-ing and procrastination I got a mini-bus to Hanoi for a pre-arranged fare of $2. The trip was like something out of the wacky races...beeping, weaving, breaking, speeding through all the traffic, past rice paddies and a huge truck crash(which was a little disconcerting seeing as I didn't have much faith in our own driver). Eventually arrived in Hanoi in one piece. I wanted to be dropped off at the Old Quarter near the lake, they off course dropped me way out, conveniently outside a hotel ... read more
