Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos: A Comparative Study of Southeats Asia

This is something I wrote in my journal to pass time during the 17 hour flight from Bangkok to NYC... I hope you find it amusing.

Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos: A Comparative Study of Southeast Asia

Typical bus journey
Thailand: Being sedated and robbed on "VIP" tourist bus
Cambodia: Mini van designed for 8, carrying 30+ people including the wife of the driver riding on the roof of the mini van and at least one passenger vommitting
Laos: A songthew- converted pickup with benches in the back, stopping every 30 minutes to buy street food from venders that rush the vehicle and shove chicken feet and eggs in your face

Most likely to eat
Thailand: full english breakfast- eggs, potatoes, tomatoes, mushrooms, toast... everything fried
Cambodia: deep fried spiders
Laos: Khao Niaow, sticky rice

National Beer
Thailand: Chang, Singha
Cambodia: Angkor Beer
Laos: BeerLao

Best deal for booze:
Thailand: coctails in a bucket, Thai whiskey, M- 150 (like red bull but I'm pretty sure intead of caffine they use amphetamines), and cola
Cambodia: Meekong Whiskey, $1 per liter
Laos: Lao Lao rice whiskey, so good they give tourists shots of it for free at certain establishments

Most memorable activity
Thailand: renting a car and driving from Chiang Mai to Burmese border
Cambodia: Svay Rieng village visit, eating nonstop for 24 hours
Laos: impromtu visit to hospital in rural, southern, Laos

Best night out
Thailand: Full Moon Pary, December 24 2007, Ko Phangan
Cambodia: dancing with lady boys at Heart of Darkness, Phnom Penh
Laos: crashing a party in a private kareoke room at the only night club in Vientiane, Dungeon Palace

Favorite saying
Thailand: Bai nai, bai nai!?! Where you going?
Cambodia: Free boom boom? ... use your imagination
Laos: Bo pen ngan. No problem, your welcome, pura vida, etc...

Most impressive sights
Thailand: view of the mountains in northern Thailand during bus ride from Chiang Mai to Pai
Cambodia: Temple Ta Prohm, the tree temple from Angkor Wat
Laos: view from slow boat down the Meekong River

Will always remember
Thailand: Hitching around in Khao Yai National Park and camping with young Thai hippies
Cambodia: first 1/2 of the 24 hour bus ride from Siem Reap to Ko Phangan
Laos: teaching impromtu english lesson at a village secondary school in souther Laos

Your average farang might look like...
Thailand: Same Same tee shirt, fisherman pants, and dread locks from Khao San rd, the sure sign of a traveler who has really found themselves
Cambodia: huge groups of Chinese tourists all posing for a photo in front of Angkor Wat, not one is smiling
Laos: anyone Irish in Vang Vieng, making the police shut down a bar for rowdy sing-along sessions two nights in a row

Will miss the most
Thailand: Soi Rambuttri, Bangkok
Cambodia: spending my days playing guitar with the kids at New Hope for Children, Orphanage in Phnom Penh
Laos: Katip Khao Niaow (bamboo sticky rice baskets)

Just for fun, a way to reflect on the past three months. On a side note the pictures are from Bangkok and our crazed 48 hour stint in NYC between flights from Bangkok and to Sao Paulo. Now I am in Sao Paulo, learning Portuguese and staying with a Brazilian family. More on Brazil still to come.

---

---