Doing "Normal" Stuff in Da Nang

After spending way too much money on tailored clothing in Hoi An, I chilled out for 2 nights at a hostel in Da Nang and really did a lot of nothing.

Da Nang is a big-ish city about an hour from Hoi An, and its definitely a little more off the beaten track. There are some tourists that stay there and commute into Hoi An to avoid the higher accommodation and food prices in the Old Town, but walking around the city you definitely feel like you stick out as a white person! I got a lot of stares and occasionally a child would point at me!

I had to do some t-shirt shopping since I didnt pack very many and a few have been ruined along the course of the backpacking adventures. This was also an adventure. For one thing, Vietnamese women are TINY. At home I generally fit a size small or medium shirt, but here...I am a Large or XL! And sometimes they dont even carry those sizes! The upside is that clothing here is so much cheaper...I got 2 good quality shirts that I like for 50,000 VND each, which is roughly between $3-4 CAD.

The other thing was that I would walk into a store and the staff would just look at me and break into a shocked smile, like as if a clown had just burst in with noisemakers and a dance routine. Then they would drop everything and try to suggest things for me to wear- usually stuff I would not be caught dead in, and usually way too small. I think both of us were a little bewildered as to how to proceed. Eventually we would both give up, but it was quite sweet. When I did actually buy something, the one salesgirl who had followed me around told me in broken English that my purchase was very pretty.

Ordering food at a restraurant was an interesting experience! With no English translation, no English-speaking staff, and few photos to go on, I literally just pointed at something within my price range and hoped for the best! It turned out to be Ban Xeo, which is rice paper pancakes, fried omelets, and veggies served with peanut dip- the same dish I ate at Friendsgiving! Delicious.
I repeated the point-and-wait-for-a-surprise routine each time I ate out. Since I loved most Vietnamese food, this was generally quite successful.

On my last night in Da Nang I was feeling a bit nostaligc for home, and wanted to do something that felt normal. So I went to the movie theatre, and I watched The Hunger Games....yes, it was in English, with Vietnamese subtitles! I was the only white person in the entire mall/cinema, and definitely got a lot of curious stares and points. I was also the only solo female, and it turned out to be a date movie haha...Vietnamese couples everywhere! The plus side was that the movie theatre seats were the most comfortable I have ever had the joy of sitting in, and Ihad the most prime seat in the house, and no one sitting in front of me. And I enjoyed the movie, and had been looking forward to watching it for a long time. So...a successful night. I dont think I've ever watched a movie in theatres by myself before!

The only "normal" thing left to do, that I meant to accomplish there and didnt, is get a haircut! I am still too afraid to allow someone who doesn't speak my language to take the shears to my head. Its a situation that is quickly getting out of control, however. Between the humidity and just the sheer quanitity of hair that is accumulating on my head, I'm beginning to look like a crazy person. The bright tourist pants probably dont help.

Even though these "normal" activites still were different than they would be at home, it was strangely comforting to just go about the everyday things, rather than do tourist stuff. But now I'm back at it...spent a day in Hué exploring the historic citadel, and today I have arrived via tourist bus in Phong Nha, to pay ridiculous amounts of money for a touristy tour...but I think it will be cool, so I hope its worth it! We will see...

Farewell, Cambodia!

I've been wandering through the land of all things Khmer for 2 weeks now! Starting in Siem Reap for a sunrise at Angkor Wat (of course), I had some adventures taking a "direct" bus to Kampong Cham for one night as a pit stop on my way to the riverside town of Kratie to see the rare Irrawaddy dolphins, and then moved on to the mountains and jungles of the Eastern border in Sen Monorom. After some time there enjoying the cooler climate and green space, I finished up my last couple days here in the hustling, bustling capital city of Phnom Pehn.
I'm sure other travelers will chastise me for passing up the entire South coast, but in my defense the next 2 week's weather forecast is rain, rain, rain...and I will get plenty of beach time elsewhere, I'm sure.

Some highlights from Cambodia include:

-Angkor Wat & Ta Prohm temples: so beautiful and a dream come true.

-Accidentally missing a turn on our way back from Angkor Wat, and ending up cycling madly though the insane trafffic on Siem Reap's main street. Adrenaline rush!

-Meeting a very kind and helpful Cambodian teacher on the bus to Kampong Cham, and chatting with him about all things Cambodia.

-Trying all sorts of delicious foods, like Amok, Banana Flower Salad, spicy stir-fried frog, random street foods, fruit shakes, curries, and a traditional stew made inside a bamboo stalk over a fire!

-Riding on the back of a motorbike taxi through tiny villages- beautiful scenery, and so much fun! Now I want a motorbike :)

-Meeting some elephants at a wildlife sanctuary in Sen Monorom! They were amazing, and I feel so lucky to have been able to get up close and personal with them!

-Visiting the Daughters of Cambodia Visitor Center in Phnom Pehn, a really awesome NGO which enables girls to leave the sex trade and regain control and dignity in their lives! It was really cool, and I spent a long time there, getting my feet pampered in their spa, eating and drinking delicious things in their cafe, and making a few purchases of their handmade goods in the shop!

-And of course, my very favorite thing about traveling (ok, maybe tied with the food...): I have met some seriously wonderful people and made friends from all over the world. Its crazy that you can just spend a few hours or days with someone and connect so well, because you have a common interest and love of traveling. But this is the thing I look forward to most, and that really makes traveling the best ever. And I just realized I need to start taking more photos of these people! haha :)

On that note, I'm looking into "couchsurfing: round 2" for my stay in Ho Chi Minh City...hoping somethings works out!

So ya...onward to Vietnam tomorrow morning! Wahoo!

Siem Reap!

Sorry for the long hiatus on blogging! Its been a busy week!
Last Friday I said goodbye to all my new friends at the Fatima Center. It was bittersweet, since I felt like I was beginning to find my place there and could have done more to contribute if I'd planned to stay longer, but I was also excited to say goodbye to Bangkok and begin my travels across the rest of SE Asia!

Angkor Wat at Sunrise

Satrday morning I left bright and early and boarded my bus for Siem Reap Cambodia. I was fortunate in my seating partner- a Californian girl the same age as I am, of Cambodian heritage. She has also been doing a fair bit of traveling this year, and we talked for a really long time and really connected. We were booked into different hostels, however, so we parted ways upon arrival.

Backing up a bit...despite being warned of scams at the border, a bunch of us definitely fell for the trickers that lay in wait. Our bus was no help. The driver likely has some kind of deal with the scammers, so he dropped us off at their office which is right outside passport control. We were told this is where we got our visas, so we paid the money, waited 20 minutes, and were given our visas, and then they started to fill out our entry forms for an additional 200 B. (approx $7). Once we realized what theye were doing, we told them we would fill out the forms on our own, and headed for passport control. After completeing that, we stepped out of the office and saw a very official looking sign that said "Visa On Arrival" for about $15 US less than we had paid. Oooooh well. Live and learn.

I stayed at the European Guesthouse in Siem Reap on the advice of my trusty Lonely Planet travel guide. While it doesn't win any awards for cleanliness, it has a nice small pool, a decent bar/restaurant, and it comes at the low, low price of $5 US/night. Having lived in treeplanting camps probably helps me get over a bit of bathroom grime!

My first morning I met  (read: nosily wormed my way into a conversation and introduced myself) a Colombian girl who was also traveling by herself. We hit it off, and decided to take a Khmer cooking class and wander around the city together, and then rent bikes to ride to Angkor Wat the next morning. I am so glad I met her, as we had a great time hanging out over the next few days, and sharing my Siem Reap experience with someone made it so enjoyable!

We got up at 4am on Monday and cycled to the temple, joined by throngs of tourists in tuk-tuks and taxis. I was a bit dismayed by the crowds of selfie-sticks, but we moved to a less-popular and populaced location to watch the sun rise and snap a few photos. It was really beautiful, though I remain a bit jealous of those who had the opportunity to see the magical area before it became such a tourist hotspot.

The rest of the day was spent wandering through the main temples, riding our bikes in the hot sun, and snacking on dried mango and salted cashews we had bought cheaply at the market the day before.

On the way home, we missed a turn and ended up way off track, out towards the airport! It made for a VERY interesting ride back to the hostel as we were obliged to cycle along one of the busiest main roads in the city! It was quite an experience, and I have to say, I'm pretty proud of myself for how calm I remained, especially as I have never been much of a bike-riding expert, and helmets literally do not exist here. Traffic patterns in Cambodia are different from anything I have seen before- they seem even more chaotic than what I saw in Cusco, Peru! So there we were, pedalling hard on a mix of pot-holed dirt roads and random brick sidewalks, while cars, motorbikes, and tuk tuks are zooming by, occasioinally honking at us to get our of their way (which I would have gladly done, had there been anywhere to go!), and then out of nowhere some random will cut directly across traffic, or just go right against the flow. Literally everyone is just going everywhere and hoping they dont get hit. I just kept my eyes wide open, and kept on pedaling!!! It was actually kind of hilarious. My friend and I were just like...what is even happening right now....

Needless to say, we survived, and it is something I will never forget!

Yesterday we took it easy, swam in the pool, did some skyping and facebooking, went to the market, ate some spicy frog stirfy and then delicious ginger and black sesame ice cream, stuck our feet in a tank of fish that ate our feet, and visited the night market with some new aquaintances! It was a fun, relaxing day, and a nice finale to my Siem Reap visit.

Evidently my feet have more to offer....

This morning I hopped on another bus for my next destination, but that's another story for another day!

Weekend Wonders

Where has the time gone??
I'm on my last week of volunteering/staying in Bangkok, and preparing to strike out on my own come Saturday.  I can't believe how fast the last 3 weeks have flown by!

I've been much busier since the two other volunteers arrived, which has been nice. We have gone out exploring on a few nights, and spent our long weekend (last Friday was a holiday here...what the occason was is still a mystery) about an hours drive outside Bangkok (read: 2 hours for the whole trip, because it takes an hour to get anywhere in the city) at the historic UNESCO World Heritage sites of Ayutthaya. This was a good warm-up to starting the backpacking portion of my trip :)

Checking out some ruins at sunset on my first night in Ayutthaya

I stayed in the cheapest room I could find, which was about 200 Thai Baht ($7.45 CAD). It was a private room, with a shared bathroom. Creaky floorboards, opaque plastic windows, and a small fan sitting on a plastic chair serving as the A/C lent it a rustic charm. The bed was big, fairly comfortable, and clean, so I was satisfied. The bathroom was sketchy as heck, and I spent very limited time there! haha!

I ate the street food served piping hot from the little pushcarts on the corner- delicious! - and drank SO much water, iced drinks, and coke...anything cold. It was ridiculously hot outside. As soon as I took a drink out of the cooler, it began to sweat almost as much as I was, and in a matter of minutes it's lukewarm, and then just plain warm and gross. So I guzzle while its chilly.

And heaven knows I needed hydration. Most people rent bikes or hire tuk tuks to get around Ayutthaya, but one of our party was nervous about riding a bike and tuk tuks get expensive fast, so we decided to walk! And since I was detirmined to get to a certain temple at the far reaches of the town, I continued walking long after the other girls turned back. It was an adventure, as my free tourist map was fairly useless, and I had to stop to ask for directions several times. But it was good. And a nice Thai lady on a motorbike saw me tootling along sweating up a storm, and stopped to offer me a free ride to the temple! I took her up on it, and got my first motorbike ride- what a thrill! I loved it! Once I'm out of Bangkok I think this will become a more regular occurance :)

I visited 3 temples in total, and they were all very beautiful. Wat Phra Mahathat was of special interest to me because it is the location of the intriguing Buddha head that is tangled up in tree roots. Its an image I've seen a few times, and its always appealed to me, so I wanted to see it for myself.
I guess I had never seen a picture with it next to a real person, to get the scale of it. For some reason I imagined it was this massive boulder of a sculture, locked in roots the thickness of a giant's arm. I was slightly taken aback to discover that in fact, the Buddha head is about the same size as mine, if not smaller, and could easily be missed if not for the crowd of tourists snapping selfies with it.

I was a little disappointed, but then realized how ridiculous my expectations were, and snapped my photo. I like it.

Next we visited Wat Pha Si Sanphet, which was cool, but very crowded with tourists, and also caters to the Elephant-riding crowd, which made me sad and a little peeved. I get that its cool and exciting to ride an elephant, but that doesn't make it ok. Especially when you can clearly see that they are being mistreated, ie: scars and marks on their bodies from the hooks the handlers use to control them.

After that point, my friends and I parted ways for the afternoon and I carried on to Wat Chai Wattanaram, which was my favorite! It was a bit further out = less crowded, and very well preserved. While not very large, I spent a fair amount of time wandering and taking photos, cuz that's how I roll. I even took a selfie! Gasp!

Despite sunscreen usage, I burnt to a crisp.
Thanks to frequent application of Burt's Bees After Sun lotion, it turned to a tan. Hooray!

I finished the day with a quick trip to the local floating market, which I'm sure lacked authenticity, but was fun nonetheless. Again, not what I expected, but it was interesting to look around.

On Sunday, back in Bangkok, I visited the Jim Thompson House (pretty, if not really as interesting as I'd hoped), and took a Thai cooking class! We learned about some of the key ingredients while shopping at a local market, prepared each dish separately, cooked, and ate! It was fantastic and we had a lovely chef to guide us. I walked out with a small recipe book I am very excited to use!

Now, I am back to work at the Fatima Center for the rest of the week, and then I carry on to Siem Reap, Cambodia on Saturday! Wish me luck at the hectic Poiphet border crossing!

As always, more photos & anecdotes can be found on my instagram, jllkc79, or #jillgoesbackpacking.

Thailand Sightseeing Weekend #2: Temples and Tuk Tuks

I had big plans to get up early to see Wat Arun, the "Temple of the Dawn" while the sun was rising...but when the alarm went off at 5:45am, I decided that it just wasn't going to happen today, and rolled over for another hour of rest. 

I did eventually drag myself out of bed and caught a taxi to Koa San Road while there was still no traffic. Because it was still early, the infamous street was still slumbering off the hangover from the night before, which doubtless had only come to an end around the time my alarm woke me up. Sometimes I really feel like an oddity among the usual Thailand tourist crowd!

I wanted to get in as much temple sightseeing as possible, including Wat Phrakaew & the Grand Palace, Wat Pho, Wat Arun, and a few other places further down the river if I had time and energy. 

Though the day started off looking like it might rain, it soon turned to the typical sweltering heat I am still trying to adapt to. It is difficult for this Canadian to accept that 25 degrees celcius is a cool night time temperature. 

Strolling down a main road, I stopped to read a corner street sign to figure out where I needed to make a turn, and was quickly approached by a well-dressed, friendly Thai man, whose English was much better than most. He greeted me, and asked where I was going, and did I need help? I said I was looking for the Grand Palace, and he pointed me in the right direction, and asked if I had a map so he could show me. At this point I was foolishly still thinking that he was just being helpful, and that quickly switched to a realization that he was a typical scam artist that my Lonely Planet guide book had warned me of, when he told me the temple wouldnt open until 1pm, but he could reccommend a few other places where I could spend my time until then! This is a trick where they whisk you away to various overpriced places where they pressure you to buy a lot of things and basically hold you hostage for a couple hours. 

He whipped out a pen and started marking down attractions on the other side of town that were "only free today", and "just free for students," and wasn't I lucky because right now there was a once-a-year festival, "but only today"! I thanked him and said that sounded nice but it was very far away. He quickly stepped in to say that I could take a tuk tuk, one of the colorful go-cart lke mobiles that have infested the city, charging horrendous prices to ignorant tourists. The 'Nice Man' said I should only take a government taxi because it was cheaper, "only 20 Baht for 3 hours! It will take you to all these places!". I may be cheap, but even I know when something is TOO cheap. 20 B. for 3 hours is absolutely ridiculous, and I had spent enough time with this fellow so I began to extricate myself from the situation. His friendly smile soured when I deffered on the waiting tuk tuk, and said I wanted to look around first. "But why dont you want to go now? You hear about that bomb that exploded in Bangkok? Killed many tourists! There is a political demonstration today, very dangerous for walking!" (absolute rubbish). He was quite angry when I insisted on leaving...I walked to the end of the street, crossed to the other side, and then continued on my way to the Grand Palace!

I did eventually find my way there, and surprise surprise...it was open! In fact, it was packed with tourists, mainly big chartered busloads of Chinese tourists, who are undoubtedly the most annoying kind I have ever encountered. I will try not to focus too much on just how much I disliked the swarms of self-stick toting, personal-space invading, culturally-insensitive, and obnoxious tourists, but suffice it to say that I spent a shorter time there than I would have otherwise, and left with a headache that was almost certainly crowd-induced. 

However, the temple was absolutely stunning, and I tried to get some photos that captured some of its magnificence. I tried to imagine how wonderful it must have been when it was a calm, peaceful place for meditation and reflection. 

After reviving myself with some coconut ice cream, I walked down the road to Wat Pho, which was a visit I preferred quite a lot more. While stll touristy, it was not super busy, so it was not difficult to wander and snap photos without waiting for someone to take yet another selfie. I spent quite a lot of time there, enjoying the peace, admiring the huge reclining Buddha, and trying to entice a small orange cat to pay attention to me (I am going through Lokers deprivation). 

After this, I walked a tourist gauntlet of small vendors, tuk tuk drivers, and beggars, to reach the canal of the river, upon which Wat Arun, my original choice of temple, is set opposite. I was dissapointed to find that the beautiful temple is currently under restoration, and almost entirely obscured by scaffolding! 

Disheartened by scams, tourist hordes, and the unrelenting heat, I tried to find a taxi that would bring me home. I was completely unsuccessful, as every single one I approached refused to use the meter, instead asking for 200-300 Baht for the trip, that was probably worth half that. I compromised with myself by instead catching a taxi to the nearest BTS Skytrain station, and then riding that to the stop nearest the guesthouse, and walking the rest. Sometimes I wonder if I am too cheap, but then I remind myself I have more time than money, so if it comes down to one or the other, I should keep the money! 

So that was my day! I got home exhausted, took a cold shower, and had a nap! Looking through my photos, I remind myself that even though there were annoying aspects about today, everythiing was very beautiful, and I knew Bangkok/Thailand would be like this. That is why I have planned to move on after this month :)

I allowed myself one selfie.

I am excited to go to Cambodia, but my tourist time in Thailand is not done yet! Next weekend I am hoping to head out of the city with the new volunteers to explore a Unesco World Heritage Site, and visit a floating market! I'll keep you updated! 

The Big Bangkok

The weekend is nearly over...I begin my volunteer placement tomorrow! What have I been up to in the meantime?

1. Thai Language Lessons

It was less than a year ago I started my Spanish lessons with Proyecto Peru in Cusco...what the heck makes me think my brain is capable of learning another language now?? Well, its just part of the curriculum for one thing, but I also really enjoy it. Yes, its a struggle, and I tend to forget things immediately after hearing them, but learning a language really does make a huge impact on being able to absorb a culture and travel experience. Thai is fascinating, because it is a tonal language...one word can have several meanings depending on intonation. I struggled to get my "maa" sound right in order to say "I am from Canada", instead mistakenly saying "my dog is from Canada". The trouble is it all sounds the same to me...Its going to be interesting once I start braving the streets with my new-found vocab!
Fun fact: I blurted out "Gracias!" to my server at the restaurant. Apparently my brain has registered I'm in a foreign country, it just hasn't realized that Spanish is of no use here.

2. Tasting Thai Food

I'm sure you are all well aware of my love of food. Its one of the best reasons to travel! Yesterday the staff took me to a fancy Thai buffet to sample the country's cusine...it was wonderful! I really tried not to eat too much, but it seemed like there was always one more thing to try! How can one resist the tastebud-tempting flavors of coconut, ginger, lemongrass, sweet basil, lime, peanut, spicy chilies, and garlic? What is not to love? I've even gotten adventurous with seafood, sampling squid, mussels, prawns, and various fish. I still don't love it, but I'm giving it a fair chance.
I also tried some interesting beverages...there was a sweet coffee-like iced drink that I really liked, and today my new friends handed me a takeaway cup filled with ominously black liquid and weird jello-y tapioca filling. It wasn't terrible, and it was nice to sip on something cold, but I can't say I'm a fan.
The sweets have been interesting. I tried a warm vanilla-flavored soup with tapioca balls in it (also not a fave), sweetened baked pumpkin covered in a warm cinnamon-spiced coconut milk sauce which was surprisingly delicious, crispy sugar wafers filled with marshmallow and sweetened, deep-fried slivers of egg yolk, and a coconut macaroon-type square. Its nice that most things are prepared with a rice base so I don't have to worry about the gluten issue too much.
Fun fact: the staff were convinced I had told them I was allergic to "weed", not "wheat". It was a pretty hilarious moment when this misunderstanding came to light.

3. City Sight-seeing

Yesterday we visited the Benchamabophit Dusitvanaram Temple (I despair of ever being able to pronounce that), which was really beautiful. We even got really lucky, because it was the last day of a festival there, so it was an extra unique experience!
The 3 saff here at FFA are all locals, and practicing Buddhists (at some level, anyway), so they took part in some interesting rituals, including buying a beautiful bamboo "giftbasket" filled with fruit, rice, and water, attaching banknote, and then writing a prayer on a piece of paper to deceased family members. This prayer and basket are intended as offerings to the family member, and are given to a monk, who reads the prayer on behalf of the the giver, and takes the basket (which is then resold to the next person).

The other ritual was the purchase of some river snakes in a plastic bag, which are released back into the river after reading a specific prayer. The snakes are symbolic of good luck. You can also purchase small turtles on behalf of deceased family, or fish for protection against evil.

The festival also brought food vendors. Since we had just eaten, the most I tried was a free sample of a pork skin puff. Like a pork-flavored styrofoam peanut. Yum.

Today we did a different kind of sight-seeing...we visited some huge shopping malls! The Siam Paragon was massive, high-end, and elaborately designed. We quickly moved on to the smaller, cheaper nearby mall where I purchased some basic shoes that will be appropriate attire for my volunteer placement. I got my first glimpse of typical Thai tourist souveniers, and maybe its a good thing that I have no room in my backpack because I instantly wanted to garb myself in nothing but those infinitely comfortable-looking pants and dresses.

Fun Fact: both Cusco and here in Bangkok, the locals are so proud of their shopping malls and can't wait to show them off. Generally speaking, I try to avoid malls, and they are definitely not something I seek out when I want to experience a new country and culture. No matter where you go, malls all seem pretty much the same.

4. Sweating profusely

It is so hot here. So. Hot. Its like the entire city is a low-setting sauna...sweaty and humid. When I got off the plane and took my first breath of local un-air-conditioned oxygen, it felt like trying to inhale something solid. The heat is like a steaming wool blanket enveloping you at all times.
I am dying. And sticky. And my hair has gone completely feral.
Fun fact: the staff have been complaining of how cold it is, and they are wearing scarves and sweaters. All I want is to stand in the cold shower all day.

5. Getting Over Jetlag

My internal clock is slowly readjusting, but I've still been waking up around 3-4am, and feeling exceptionally weary at 6:30pm. Its going to take time. Jumping ahead 14 hours wreaks a little bit of havoc on a person.

Well, that's all for now! I'll check back after my first day of volunteering :)