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Hello everyone!
Quite a long post this time, so bear with me.
I write this from Ho Chi Minh City (formally Siagon) after a punishing 13 hour bus journey from Siem Reap. The first half of the journey was spent next to a toothless old woman who had smelt quite bad and insisted in fanning her aroma towards me. She made up this strange concoction of a red seed pod wrapped in a green leaf which she would chew, prehaps as a pain killer, this made her mouth look like it was full of blood, which it may well have been. Half way through she vomited, managing to catch most of it in her hat.
The seat in front was broken so when the chap in front reclined it, his head was about three inches from my nose. He then put his hands behind his head, I spent many hours inspecting the conditions of his nails.
I changed at Phnom Penh to a cleaner bus but with air con so cold that it would freeze hell and blaring music videos all following the same format, on repeat. This section of the journey was made more bearable by
having a jolly good chat with an Amercian Morman Missionary, who turned out very pleasant and far more moderate then you would expect.
The advantage of this long journey gave me time to reflect on Cambodia.
Well, Angkor Wat was undoubtly impressive (as was the Korean Tourists dress sense) and well worth the trip. I plunged my hands (very) deep in to my pocket and arranged a Tuk Tuk driver and Guide for the first day, which, combined with the $40 entry price made for a expensive few days.
It was worth it though, the reality is that without a guide for at least one day you miss out on much of the history and detail. For me, the real pleasure came from having the opportunity to spend the day with a Khmer with a decent grasp of English. This is rare, the older people cant speak any English, and while the younger people are picking it up, it is usually hard to have a decent conversation. Speaking English here is a valuble commodity and allows the speaker much more opportunity then non speakers. This is because after Agriculture, Tourism is the second biggest part of the
Cambodian ecomomy and, for now, English is the global language.
We spent more time talking about life in Cambodia then the temples, towards the end of the tour the explanations of who build the particular temple and when became more of a formality. We spoke about many things, the one party state, the education system, the corruption, the Pol Pot regime, family etc.
She was born on a small island, similar to the one I visted earlier in my trip. Her parents still lived there, she, like so many others, moved to Siem Reap to find work. She sends around 1/2 of her income back home to support her parents, who had a forced marriage under the Khmer Rouge.
Under strict instructions from Aunt Mary, the next day I visited the local Church (St Johns) to observe a Khmer Mass, this involved a 05:30 start, they do everything very early here. The Mass followed the same pattern as in England, and I was reassured that the key staples of any good mass were present and correct, restless children, Irish Nuns and out of tune singing.
I didnt visit due to any serious religious conviction, more out
of curiosity. I like visiting Churches in different countries.
I was very sad to leave Cambodia, I would love to stay for a lot longer but I need to move on, its been almost a month since I left the UK. This place will leave me with mixed feelings.
On one hand its a hugely positive place, with warm and friendly people who humble you with their generosity. At every turn I was confronted with smiles and hospitality. I think this country will have a bright future given some more time.
On the other hand its a very sad place, the poverty, corruption and vice simply cannot be ignored. One moment you are happy to be sat with a bunch of lads drinking and playing games, a second later when a homeless kid takes the leftovers from your plate and says "thanks yous sir" you are left feeling a bit depressed. This place is constantly filled with moments like that.
There must be so much going on under the surface that I was oblivious of, the only way to start to get an understanding would to be learn the language and live here for a year
or so.
I am still hoping to stay in a village at some point in my trip, maybe Laos. I have thought about the ethical considerations of this, but I am comfortable that as long as you do it in a considerate way, and contribute, the good would out way the harm. I think of my home village of Pill, if a tourist arrived and offered some of the locals a chance to learn english or improve their maths skills, and paid a few dollars for food and accomodation, I am sure this would be a positive thing.
Only been in Ho Chi Minh a very short while but impressions are good. HCMC is buzzing, electric, full of life. I thought Phnom Penh was crazy but this place is on a different scale. I am going to enjoy this place and will stay for three or four days.
Right, before I return to the madness, a few lessons learnt in the first month:
1) Planning. No matter how romantic the idea of just wondering around aimlessly seems, the reality is you need to some forward planning. This sadly means more time huddled over a computer.
2) Do not be dominated by Guidebooks. Guidebooks are a gift and a curse, they are great to get a feel for things but can force you along the same routes to the same places as everyone else.
3) Money management. It may only be $1 here and $1 there, but it all adds up. My Cambodia budget was exceeded by some way.
4) Force yourself down the side roads. This key to having decent experiences.
5) A guide can be worth their weight in gold.
6) You will have good and bad days, but even the bad days are better then being stuck in an office.
Ok, being terrible with maps, I have decided to walk until I get lost and then jump on the back of a motorbike back to the little hotel I am staying.
As always I hope everyone is well and thank you for reading.
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