I had just drank a "happy shake" on the beach in Sihanoukaville, Cambodia and for a moment I thought, w0w, I never want to leave this beach. This is fucking amazing. Then I started to try and devise a completely unrealistic plan in my head to return to Sihanoukaville after my last stop in India and idle away days on the beach, being a bum drinking "happy" shakes all day and working with a bunch of Cambodian potheads at a random beach bar. That would be the life. I have a friend who spent three weeks in Sihanoukaville doing just that and I'm jealous. If we weren't on a time crunch to get to Singapore on November 21, there is no doubt in my mind that I would have stayed for much longer than the allotted three days of bliss.
After Vientiane, which was aight at best (the best part was meeting up with a"friend" I met and spent time with in Nha Trang), we took a plane to Phnom Penh where we met our limping friend Daniel, who we first met in Hanoi. Apparently, the poor guy fell into a hole in some pitch black village in Vietnam and sprained his ankle. Phnom Penh is badass. We painted that town red and black and blue ... and neon green all in one night. Daniel had met some friends, Jan and Emma, (a ridiculously fun English couple on their honeymoon), on part of his trip to Vietnam and we spent the night with them drinking and dancing. The night started at this unexpectedly and way-too-hip for-it's-own-good bar called Chow, where we acted like P-Diddy when Denny treated us to a bottle of champagne and we sipped it on it's rooftop terrace overlooking the lake to the beats of some Swedish DJ with a shaved head and glasses. The crowd was dressed to the nines and I felt like a tragic hippy backpacker in my rainbow flip flops and ethnic printed scarf wrapped around my waist. After uber-hip Chow, we went to a club on boat called Pontoon, and then after that got lost in a tuk tuk as the rain poured down trying to find some random-ass club fittingly moniker ed, Heart of Darkness. We found it, eventually, and it ended up being a blast but a bust at the same time. The dance floor was crowded with Cambodian prostitutes and old Cambodian men trying to grab my ass. After Heart of Darkness we went back to our hotel, the dingy, dirty and all together disgusting Wonderland 2 Guesthouse for some late night refreshments.
Phnom Penh, was of course, not all fun and games. Cambodia's history is a tragic one and it's really interesting and heartbreaking to see the remnants of what is left from the Khmer Rouge and the impact it's had on their country and it's people today. Cambodia is poverty-stricken. The kids break my heart the most. I can't resist their beautiful faces and whatever they are selling, I have a hard time not buying. My arms are full of crappy bracelets I've bought from adorable Cambodian kids, because I just can't say no. Denny gives me a hard time for it and says it doesn't really help them to buy from them, it doesn't go to them blah blah ... but I can't help it, I love them and my heart hurts for them. It's hard to be in Cambodia and not want to do something to help. It's impossible really. I wish I did more; I wish there was more that I could do. When I was in Siem Reap their was a group of adorable and sad orphans who put on dance performances, handing out fliers. I talked to one of the little girls that danced and in that moment I wished I could have adopted her and taken her home with me. The thought of all those beautiful children as orphans, killed me. I thought about coming back and volunteering at that orphanage, just because they were so gorgeous and the thought of all of them without homes or families or anyone but themselves was heartbreaking. I wish I could take them all home with me.
After our night in Phnom Penh we took the bus to Sihanoukaville where I had epiphany after epiphany about life as a backpacker and what bliss means to me. Sihanoukaville is my favorite beach town thus far. You have no idea how chill this place is. When I say chill, I mean so chill there's nothing to do but sit on the beach and drink happy shakes and Angkor beer all day while Cambodian ladies give you five dollar massages. It's heaven. I came to the realization one night as I lazily sat in a hammock sipping a bucket of vodka tonic, that this whole backpackers world is crazy. It's like the twilight zone; I feel like I have entered another dimension where everyone you meet is a traveler. No one really has jobs and you are in this constant state of happiness, adventure, and spontaneity. You see the same people over and over and over again, all over Asia and make new friends constantly. You party like you're in college, you eat like it's impossible to gain weight, and just do whatever you want, whenever you want. It's so strange, yet so brilliant. It's literally a whole new world away from having an apartment, a job, and serious commitments. No wonder people do it for years and years and years; it's fucking fantastic. I love it and I wish I could do it forever. I never knew that life could be like this and this trip has incredibly opened my eyes to a whole new way of life. I think back about how miserable I was at times before I left for this trip--getting laid off, working at temp jobs I hated, etc. and I realize that it was all for a purpose. The purpose being: me, here, now, traveling, learning, loving, and experiencing ... everything.
Wow do I love Sihanoukaville. I wish I could have stayed forever. We met up with Jan and Emma again in Sihanoukaville and spent a few nights lazying on the beach. We also ate the worst Indian food I've ever had in my entire life, which scared me from ever eating Indian food anywhere but at home and in India again. We left Sihanoukaville the next day to my dismay, and the persuasion of Denny and Daniel who aren't beach bums like I am.
We decided to go back to Phnom Penh for one night and then to Siem Reap to see Angkor Wat the next day. The day we got back to Phnom Penh we went to the Killing Fields which was really depressing and the Genocide Museum which was equally depressing but necessary to see. At the Killing Fields there was an overwhelming feeling of tragedy and pain there that took over my entire being. It was something in the air, it was just there; you could feel the fear and sadness of all the people that had died there. There was still remnants of the clothes on the unearthed graves of the dead. A piece of a blue shirt or a pair of pants lay solemnly in the dirt and little white specs of teeth stuck out from the muddy ground. On their graves there are new signs of life, which is ironic and poetic simultaneously. Vines and lush green plants were slowly growing over the graves, forming new life over ones that were lost.
The genocide museum was equally as sad. Walking through the school turned prison, and now museum was intense. I kept on getting shivers throughout my body as I walked through the eerily preserved cells where inmates were tortured. I could tell that it was haunted.; like the Killing Fields their was a heavy aura of sadness and tragedy in every corner of this place. The stench of mildew emanated from the tiny prison cells and there were times when I was alone in them, without another onlooker and this overwhelming feeling of anguish and pain took over my mind. It was like you could feel all of the wrongdoings that were done there. You could feel it in your bones--their pain, their sadness, their lives. The photos of all those who died there were plastered over the walls and my heart felt heavy with sadness for all those who died, who were killed for no reason at all, and those who endured torture and losing their loved ones to a corrupt and evil dictator. I found myself asking, why? Why would someone kill thousands of his own people? It will never make sense to someone like me, or most people for that matter.
Phnom Penh was an amazing place and I feel fortunate to have been able to see the city now, slowly changing. We left for Siem Reap the next day. When we got there I felt as if I was in an urban bazaar for backpackers. The streets were filled with hip bistros and cool boutiques. I couldn't believe this urban oasis existed in Cambodia of all places. We bought a three day pass to Angkor Wat and the next morning at 8 a.m we met our tuk tuk driver and guide for the day to see Angkor Wat and it's surrounding temples. We started with some temples around Angkor Wat, which were beautiful and surreal. It felt so ancient and grand that it almost seemed fake. We saw the temple where tomb raider was filmed, and it was gorgeous. Large tree roots stuck out from the ground and covered the structure.
Angkor Wat, the main attraction, was amazing. It was massive and impressive and when the orange-pink sky set behind it, it was a beautiful, beautiful thing to see. We spent the next day with Jan and Emma exploring other temples around Angkor. Daniel had the idea to go to one that overlooked a waterfall and we spent an hour hiking up to it in the rain. When we got there, there was no temple. Nothing. Just a waterfall with some carvings. Beautiful yes, but no temple. We left disappointed and laughing.
The next day we took a cab to the border of Thailand and Cambodia and then a mini-bus to Bangkok ... wow, Bangkok, and what a night we had in Bangkok. I'd write more now, but I'm exhausted and I've been sitting at this Internet cafe for two hours. I think it's time to go explore Bangkok some more .... maybe go to a ping pong show tonight .... if you don't know what a ping pong show is, look it up. Or don't, it may frighten you.
After Vientiane, which was aight at best (the best part was meeting up with a"friend" I met and spent time with in Nha Trang), we took a plane to Phnom Penh where we met our limping friend Daniel, who we first met in Hanoi. Apparently, the poor guy fell into a hole in some pitch black village in Vietnam and sprained his ankle. Phnom Penh is badass. We painted that town red and black and blue ... and neon green all in one night. Daniel had met some friends, Jan and Emma, (a ridiculously fun English couple on their honeymoon), on part of his trip to Vietnam and we spent the night with them drinking and dancing. The night started at this unexpectedly and way-too-hip for-it's-own-good bar called Chow, where we acted like P-Diddy when Denny treated us to a bottle of champagne and we sipped it on it's rooftop terrace overlooking the lake to the beats of some Swedish DJ with a shaved head and glasses. The crowd was dressed to the nines and I felt like a tragic hippy backpacker in my rainbow flip flops and ethnic printed scarf wrapped around my waist. After uber-hip Chow, we went to a club on boat called Pontoon, and then after that got lost in a tuk tuk as the rain poured down trying to find some random-ass club fittingly moniker ed, Heart of Darkness. We found it, eventually, and it ended up being a blast but a bust at the same time. The dance floor was crowded with Cambodian prostitutes and old Cambodian men trying to grab my ass. After Heart of Darkness we went back to our hotel, the dingy, dirty and all together disgusting Wonderland 2 Guesthouse for some late night refreshments.
Phnom Penh, was of course, not all fun and games. Cambodia's history is a tragic one and it's really interesting and heartbreaking to see the remnants of what is left from the Khmer Rouge and the impact it's had on their country and it's people today. Cambodia is poverty-stricken. The kids break my heart the most. I can't resist their beautiful faces and whatever they are selling, I have a hard time not buying. My arms are full of crappy bracelets I've bought from adorable Cambodian kids, because I just can't say no. Denny gives me a hard time for it and says it doesn't really help them to buy from them, it doesn't go to them blah blah ... but I can't help it, I love them and my heart hurts for them. It's hard to be in Cambodia and not want to do something to help. It's impossible really. I wish I did more; I wish there was more that I could do. When I was in Siem Reap their was a group of adorable and sad orphans who put on dance performances, handing out fliers. I talked to one of the little girls that danced and in that moment I wished I could have adopted her and taken her home with me. The thought of all those beautiful children as orphans, killed me. I thought about coming back and volunteering at that orphanage, just because they were so gorgeous and the thought of all of them without homes or families or anyone but themselves was heartbreaking. I wish I could take them all home with me.
After our night in Phnom Penh we took the bus to Sihanoukaville where I had epiphany after epiphany about life as a backpacker and what bliss means to me. Sihanoukaville is my favorite beach town thus far. You have no idea how chill this place is. When I say chill, I mean so chill there's nothing to do but sit on the beach and drink happy shakes and Angkor beer all day while Cambodian ladies give you five dollar massages. It's heaven. I came to the realization one night as I lazily sat in a hammock sipping a bucket of vodka tonic, that this whole backpackers world is crazy. It's like the twilight zone; I feel like I have entered another dimension where everyone you meet is a traveler. No one really has jobs and you are in this constant state of happiness, adventure, and spontaneity. You see the same people over and over and over again, all over Asia and make new friends constantly. You party like you're in college, you eat like it's impossible to gain weight, and just do whatever you want, whenever you want. It's so strange, yet so brilliant. It's literally a whole new world away from having an apartment, a job, and serious commitments. No wonder people do it for years and years and years; it's fucking fantastic. I love it and I wish I could do it forever. I never knew that life could be like this and this trip has incredibly opened my eyes to a whole new way of life. I think back about how miserable I was at times before I left for this trip--getting laid off, working at temp jobs I hated, etc. and I realize that it was all for a purpose. The purpose being: me, here, now, traveling, learning, loving, and experiencing ... everything.
Wow do I love Sihanoukaville. I wish I could have stayed forever. We met up with Jan and Emma again in Sihanoukaville and spent a few nights lazying on the beach. We also ate the worst Indian food I've ever had in my entire life, which scared me from ever eating Indian food anywhere but at home and in India again. We left Sihanoukaville the next day to my dismay, and the persuasion of Denny and Daniel who aren't beach bums like I am.
We decided to go back to Phnom Penh for one night and then to Siem Reap to see Angkor Wat the next day. The day we got back to Phnom Penh we went to the Killing Fields which was really depressing and the Genocide Museum which was equally depressing but necessary to see. At the Killing Fields there was an overwhelming feeling of tragedy and pain there that took over my entire being. It was something in the air, it was just there; you could feel the fear and sadness of all the people that had died there. There was still remnants of the clothes on the unearthed graves of the dead. A piece of a blue shirt or a pair of pants lay solemnly in the dirt and little white specs of teeth stuck out from the muddy ground. On their graves there are new signs of life, which is ironic and poetic simultaneously. Vines and lush green plants were slowly growing over the graves, forming new life over ones that were lost.
The genocide museum was equally as sad. Walking through the school turned prison, and now museum was intense. I kept on getting shivers throughout my body as I walked through the eerily preserved cells where inmates were tortured. I could tell that it was haunted.; like the Killing Fields their was a heavy aura of sadness and tragedy in every corner of this place. The stench of mildew emanated from the tiny prison cells and there were times when I was alone in them, without another onlooker and this overwhelming feeling of anguish and pain took over my mind. It was like you could feel all of the wrongdoings that were done there. You could feel it in your bones--their pain, their sadness, their lives. The photos of all those who died there were plastered over the walls and my heart felt heavy with sadness for all those who died, who were killed for no reason at all, and those who endured torture and losing their loved ones to a corrupt and evil dictator. I found myself asking, why? Why would someone kill thousands of his own people? It will never make sense to someone like me, or most people for that matter.
Phnom Penh was an amazing place and I feel fortunate to have been able to see the city now, slowly changing. We left for Siem Reap the next day. When we got there I felt as if I was in an urban bazaar for backpackers. The streets were filled with hip bistros and cool boutiques. I couldn't believe this urban oasis existed in Cambodia of all places. We bought a three day pass to Angkor Wat and the next morning at 8 a.m we met our tuk tuk driver and guide for the day to see Angkor Wat and it's surrounding temples. We started with some temples around Angkor Wat, which were beautiful and surreal. It felt so ancient and grand that it almost seemed fake. We saw the temple where tomb raider was filmed, and it was gorgeous. Large tree roots stuck out from the ground and covered the structure.
Angkor Wat, the main attraction, was amazing. It was massive and impressive and when the orange-pink sky set behind it, it was a beautiful, beautiful thing to see. We spent the next day with Jan and Emma exploring other temples around Angkor. Daniel had the idea to go to one that overlooked a waterfall and we spent an hour hiking up to it in the rain. When we got there, there was no temple. Nothing. Just a waterfall with some carvings. Beautiful yes, but no temple. We left disappointed and laughing.
The next day we took a cab to the border of Thailand and Cambodia and then a mini-bus to Bangkok ... wow, Bangkok, and what a night we had in Bangkok. I'd write more now, but I'm exhausted and I've been sitting at this Internet cafe for two hours. I think it's time to go explore Bangkok some more .... maybe go to a ping pong show tonight .... if you don't know what a ping pong show is, look it up. Or don't, it may frighten you.
