The first market we discovered upon arriving to Luang Prabang was the Night Handicraft Market, which lines the main street beginning at 5:00pm every night. Th Sisavangvong is closed down for several blocks along the perimeter of the Royal Palace complex, and vendors pack the street with beautiful lanterns, jewelry, scarves, antiques, hand-stitched linens, embroidered bags and clothes, paintings and hand-made journals, to name just a few of the offerings on display. Even when we’re not shopping (or more accurately, when I’m not shopping and Johnny is waiting patiently nearby), we love strolling through the market at night on our way to and from dinner to watch the men and women at their stalls quietly embroidering, painting watercolors or hammering jewelry. It is such a relaxed, calming atmosphere, that it is hard to believe we’re actually in a market at times.
Towards the end of the Night Handicraft Market, food stalls start to pop up and intersperse with handicraft stalls. Baguette sandwiches, fruit shakes and the scent of grilled bananas begin to fill the air. Turning down a small alleyway, you enter the wonderful world of the Night Food Market. The crowded, bustling tables piled with food, opposite communal tables crammed with patrons, the Night Market snaps you out of the daze from the Handicraft market and gets you back on your toes to pick out the perfect meal for the night. For about $1.25, you can get a plate and pile it high with as many dishes as you like from a buffet-like Laos offering, or you can get a BBQed whole fish on a bamboo stick, or you can have a fresh papaya salad chopped up, or you can indulge in my and Johnny’s favorite find, some delicious soup from “Mrs. Noodle.” Not only is “Mrs. Noodle” the sweetest, most lovely woman, but she also slings some mean noodle soup. Similar to pho, she piles noodles of your choice plus fresh herbs and veggies into a divine broth and then gives you a plate piled high with other herbs, limes and chilies to personalize your flavor. We will most definitely miss sipping soup and Beerlao at Mrs. Noodle’s table. Our other favorite offering at the Night Food Market is the coconut rice balls. They are steaming, sweet little bite-size morsels that are crispy on the outside and gooey on the inside. With the ability to buy 6 for around 50 cents, we’ve pretty much developed a nightly habit of eating these tasty treats.
Last but not least, Luang Prabang’s morning market is a wonderful place to walk through first thing in the morning. The bountiful selection of herbs, fruits and veggies are displayed beautifully, big fish flop around in metal tubs, live chickens await their fate and there are of course all sorts of meats and animal parts to choose from. All the freshly-picked fruits and veggies reminded us of the smell from our CSA farm basket back home. Our first visit to the Morning Market was around 7am after we had attended the alms giving ceremony along the streets with Vong. At 7am the market had obviously already been bustling for hours, making me wish I was more of an early riser!
In Luang Prabang, the daily alms giving ceremony, known locally as tak bat, is a beautiful thing to witness. Each morning around sunrise, hundreds of saffron-clad Buddhist monks set out from the over 60 temples spread throughout Luang Prabang to collect food offerings from the local people. In silence, they walk past kneeling alms-givers, who place a handful of sticky rice or fruit into each monk’s bowl. This collection of offerings is all the monks will have to eat for the entire day. The ceremony supports both the monks (who need the food) and the alms givers (who earn merit and blessings).
Anna and I were fortunate join Vong, our awesome guesthouse owner, one morning for his daily tak bat routine. First, Vong took us to his local temple, Wat Nong Sikhounmuang, where Anna and I sat in silence as he meditated and prayed in front of Buddha statues for several minutes. Next, Vong led us out to the street for tak bat, where he handed out sticky rice to each and every monk that passed by. Some people have complained that tak bat has turned into too much of a tourist spectacle, and they may be right. However, seeing Vong’s daily devotion to the monks made Anna and I realize what a sacred, special and genuine ritual tak bat is, and we felt very fortunate for the opportunity to join him.
Wat Nong Sikhounmuang
Vong’s temple, Wat Nong Sikhounmuang
Vong passing out sticky rice to the monks
The numerous beautiful temples, the flashes of saffron robes that catch your eye throughout the day, the chants and drums of the monks in the afternoon, the iconic tak bat ceremony…one can’t help but feel some sense of spirituality while in Luang Prabang. Definitely a special place.
From the moment we touched down in Luang Prabang, Laos, on Christmas Eve, we have been in constant celebration mode! We couldn’t think of a better place to spend the holidays. Luang Prabang has proven to be one of our favorite destinations so far, and we can’t seem to tear ourselves away. 8 days turned into 11 days which have now morphed to 14 days! More to come on all of the things we love about Luang Prabang, but for now, here is a quick wrap up of the festivities from the past week!
Christmas Eve
We arrived to our guesthouse pretty exhausted on Christmas Eve day after an overnight train from Sapa, a four hour wait at the Hanoi airport and then an hour flight to Luang Prabang. We were so happy to discover when we checked in at Villa Chitdara2, that the owner, Vong, who is one of the happiest and nicest people I have ever met (I’m suspicious that he may be related to Big Jay!), was hosting a Christmas Eve dinner for everyone at the guesthouse. Vong’s wife cooked an amazing spread of duck with orange sauce, veggies and a myriad of desserts – some rolled in coconut, some stuffed in banana leaves – all of which we enjoyed sitting on a deck overlooking the Mekong River. There was even cheese brought specially from Paris and a pile of baguettes – Vong and his wife lived there for 35 years before returning to Laos. We met a lot of nice people from Australia, Washington DC, Philly, France and Luang Prabang over the course of the evening and had one too many glasses of red wine, as Vong was constantly placing full glasses in front of us. We felt right at home after our first evening in Luang Prabang, and knew we had chosen the perfect place for our first Christmas away from home.
Hanging on the deck over the Mekong before dinner
Christmas
Christmas was our first full day in Luang Prabang, so we set out to explore the old town which sits on a peninsula between the Mekong and Nam Khan Rivers. We happened upon a bamboo bridge and decided to cross over to the other side to see what the area outside the peninsula was like. We had just passed a group of men watching a cock fight when we ran into our new friend, Joel, whom we had met at Christmas Eve dinner the night before. He has been coming to Luang Prabang for the past few years and has made friends with many locals in the process. He happened to be bicycling with his friend James to visit the Hmong New Year celebration in a nearby village. The Hmong people celebrate the New Year at the end of the rice harvesting season, and the festivities usually last around 10 days. James invited us along, excited to show us something he was sure we had never seen before, and after following him down dirt roads through some villages, meeting his friends along the way, we came into a clearing filled with Hmong people, many wearing traditional costumes, playing games, cooking, eating and having a really good time. Everyone was so friendly and happy, and everywhere we looked smiling faces greeted us with ‘Sabaidee’ – ‘hello’ in Laos.
Crossing the bamboo bridge
En route through villages to Hmong New Year
Hmong New Year!
Hmong girls in traditional costumes
The Hmong ball tossing game pov pob
Johnny got in on the povpob action
Walking home via the “Old Bridge”
That night we had made Christmas dinner reservations at Tamarind, a restaurant we had read had delicious Laos cuisine. But before dinner we took a stroll through the lovely night market…most definitely the most laid-back, quiet, pretty market we have experienced in SE Asia to date. Johnny and I each picked out a “Christmas present” and then headed over to the river to Tamarind. The restaurant was set up in big long communal-style tables, and we immediately got to talking with our “neighbors” – couples from Philly, London and Paris. Towards the end of our meal, Johnny decided that we needed to try some “Lao Lao,” Laos’ rice whiskey that we’d heard a lot about. Since it was only about 50 cents per glass, Johnny ordered a round for our new friends…dangerous! One round turned to four rounds as each couple returned the favor. And then four rounds turned to six rounds as the guys decided that we should try some of the infused Lao Lao. I was pretty sure that my stomach lining had been obliterated after the chili-infused Lao Lao (basically like drinking fire!), but the ginger lime Lao Lao helped to ease the pain. The Parisian couple ducked out after round three of Lao Lao (smart), but the rest of us closed down the restaurant – to the extreme entertainment of the waiters who thought we were hilarious – and headed down the street for a Beerlao nightcap. We were saved by city’s 11:30pm curfew and headed home from our very fun and delicious Christmas dinner.
Shopping the night market before dinner
Dinner at Tamarind
Lao Lao round #…?
The dudes
Post-dinner brew with new friends
My Birthday Luckily we had a few days to recover from Christmas before my 30th birthday! I never would have dreamed that I’d be turning 30 in Luang Prabang, Laos, and I feel so lucky to have spent my golden birthday in such a special place! Johnny surprised me with a cooking class through Tamarind, so the day started bright and early at a local market where we were guided through the amazing variety of herbs, produce, rice and meats (severed buffalo legs are a little aggressive first thing in the morning!). We were then driven out into the countryside to a beautiful little oasis on a lake surrounded by gardens where our cooking stations were set up. We made all sorts of dishes, each incorporating tons of local herbs, with our main tool being a mortar and pestle. We were stuffed after enjoying the fruits of our labor (sticky rice, eggplant dip, tomato chili dip, fish steamed in banana leaves, lemongrass chicken, pork stew and coconut purple rice pudding).
That night we posted up at a bar on the river to watch the sunset and had a wonderful dinner in the lantern-filled garden at Blue Lagoon. The only thing that could have made the day any more perfect would have been the presence of our families and friends!! 30 is off to an amazing start!
Lake by cooking school
Gardens around cooking school
Our instructor, Jai
Sticky rice
Lemongrass chicken
The novice chefs
Pickin’ up new skills as a 30-yr-old
Pork stew
Sun downers on the Mekong
Feeling good in my “old age”:)
New Year’s Eve
Vong invited everyone at the guesthouse for another dinner on New Year’s Eve…lucky us!! After strolling around the streets and checking out all the festive decor in town and listening to the monks chanting in the many temples, we returned to Chitdara2 for our NYE party. Vong’s wife prepared a traditional Laos feast with sticky rice, noodles, papaya salad, chicken, buffalo, chili spread and more delicious desserts. This time around, we met families from Germany and Australia and a fun couple from Norway, along with Vong’s friends and neighbors and Joel. The best part about the night was the hundreds of glowing lanterns being released into the sky. They started as soon as it got dark and continued to rise till after midnight. There were so many in the sky, they looked like giant, orange stars.
We also didn’t realize that fireworks are legal to set off in Luang Prabang, until Vong, the Australians and the Norwegians all appeared with stashes of them. I thought they’d just be little sparklers, but they were actually huge, awesome fireworks shooting up through the palm trees! At midnight, up and down the street along the river, there were all sorts of fireworks and other explosives going off, accompanied by flaming lanterns soaring through the sky. It was quite an unforgettable site, and I think everyone was relieved that nothing caught on fire! To top it off, Vong passed around champagne to everyone for a New Year’s toast. Definitely a New Year’s Eve to remember!!
The streets around Luang Prabang looking very festive for New Year’s Eve
Dinner on the deck of our guesthouse
Yum
Johnny, Vong, Anna & Joel…almost midnight
Happy New Year!
Vong and I lighting a lantern
Almost ready…
And it’s off
Our lantern carries NYE wishes to the sky
The scene along the river
Lanterns floating everywhere
Trying not to light any palm trees on fire…
Ringing in the New Year!
HAPPY 2012!! Here’s a little video from the night for good measure (you can hear my obvious excitement over the size of the fireworks and you can see Vong’s excitement…love that guy!).
After we left Ha Long Bay, we took a four hour minibus back to Hanoi, an overnight train to Lao Cai and finally an hour minibus to Sapa, an ex-French hill station in northwest Vietnam near the Chinese border known for its gorgeous terraced rice fields and colorful hill tribes. Don’t worry, our overnight train this time around was much nicer, and we both managed to get some solid sleep (thanks, Ambien!).
Our first reaction to Sapa was…where is Sapa? When we arrived at 7:00 am it was so chilly and foggy that we could barely see 10 feet in front us (which we later learned is often the case in Sapa in December). Unfortunately, we couldn’t check into our guesthouse until 11:30 am, so we grabbed some coffee to kill some time in hopes that the weather would clear. Slowly but surely the fog began to thin out, and we found that Sapa was a pretty cool little town. Perched high up in the Hoang Lien Mountains, which include Fanispan, Vietnam’s highest peak, Sapa feels more like a European ski town than a dusty, Southeast Asian village. After checking into our hotel, taking an icy cold shower (that was fun) and resting our eyeballs for an hour, we explored nearby Cat Cat village in some beautiful and welcomed afternoon sunlight.
The sun finally came out in Cat Cat village
Piggies in Cat Cat village
Some Hmong men carrying home a hide…
…with baby in tow
Sapa is cute kids central
Bamboo
Hand woven blankets in Cat Cat village
Some kids enjoying the afternoon sunlight in Cat Cat village
Sapa lies in the Lao Cai province, which is home to some eight different ethnic groups, most notably Black Hmong and Red Dao, and on our second day Anna and I joined a one-day trek to learn more about these people. Our trek was led by a Hmong woman named Bam, who was five feet tall, full of energy and spoke by far the best English out of anybody we’ve met thus far in Southeast Asia. We were amazed to learn that she can’t even read or write, and that all the English she knows she’s learned from speaking with travelers such as ourselves. We met Bam and began the 4 kilometer walk to Lao Chai village, when it soon became apparent that we were being followed by about 10 other Hmong women. Bam explained that these woman bring goods to the Sapa market in the morning and then follow tourists back to their villages in hopes of selling them some souvenirs. A little tacky, we thought, but we ended up talking to and learning a ton from each of them during the three hour walk…well worth the $5 we spent on a handmade scarf and bracelet afterwards. Throughout the day, Bam explained all about the different hill tribes in the area, each distinguishable by their own language and elaborate costumes, and it was touching to see the simple way these people live. As a bonus, we were blessed with some sunshine, and the surrounding scenery was some of the most beautiful we’ve ever seen.
Heading down the hill with some Black Hmong
Locals sifting through some cinnamon
Cutest pup ever?
Black Hmong
Hmong woman heading back to her village
Weaving some scarves
Bam’s handmade clothing for her daughter
Kids playing in Lao Chai village
Red Dao
Red Dao
Anna and Bam shootin’ the breeze
Anna and La
We thought it was cool all the kids were playing marbles
Johnny, Bam and Anna
We really enjoyed Sapa, but it’s definitely one of those places you wish you could’ve seen 20 years ago, as it seems to be on the precipice of becoming Disneyland-esque. There was a ton of new construction when we were there and no shortage of hawkers. But it’s not all a tourist attraction. For each Hmong woman stopping you in the street to sell you trinkets, you see one heading over the hills with a basket full of vegetables to feed her family. We met some women who still burn their foreheads with the end of fire-heated buffalo horns to cure headaches. I guess I’m trying to say that there are plenty of authentic experiences to be had in Sapa, but go now before it’s too late.
Hanoi was fun, fast-paced and crazy! After almost a week of dodging motorbikes and listening to a constant cacophony of horns, we were ready for some fresh air and peace and quiet. Ha Long Bay was the perfect overnight escape, and a destination that we’d both been looking forward to for a long time. Recently named one of the “New 7 Natural Wonders of the World” and already a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Ha Long Bay was one of those places that we’d read about and seen magnificent photos of and couldn’t wait to experience in person. With nearly 2,000 limestone islands steeply rising from tranquil green waters, the scenery did not disappoint.
Our boat, or “Junk,” also exceeded our expectations, and we only wished we had booked longer than two days/one night on the Dragon’s Pearl. Our cabin was beautiful with a million-dollar view, every meal, which had around 10 courses, was delicious and the crew was super friendly. We even lucked out with sunny weather – a welcomed site after perpetual gray skies in Hanoi .
Our Junk, The Dragon’s Pearl
Our cozy cabin for the night
Lunch on the deck
Loving the sunshine, view and peace and quiet!
After a yummy lunch packed full of fresh seafood our boat docked near one of the islands in the bay where we climbed up to see some views and explore a couple of caves. Many of the islands are hollowed with caves, rivers and lakes, and local fisherman used to live in them. Unfortunately many of the stalagmites and stalactites had been stolen or sold off before the bay became a protected area, but the caves were still magnificent and beautiful. We also had the chance to take out kayaks and paddled through and around dozens of islands. This was one of our favorite parts of the trip, as the sun was starting to sink and we were surrounded by towering silhouetted peaks in every direction. Once back on the beach we laid on the sand and watched the sunset, a truly relaxing and mesmerizing experience.
After a lovely evening on the boat with another delicious meal and the company of new friends, we awoke early the next morning to more blue skies and a visit in small bamboo boats to a local floating fishing village called Vong Vieng. The woman rowing our boat was nice enough to offer us some traditional hats, soon followed by some neon orange life vests, so we looked pretty ridiculous cruising the bay (we noticed that no one else in other boats had on hats OR vests…hmmmm). The fishing village was amazing…like a land lost in time. Colorful little houses stacked in a row with beautiful boats tied up at their front doors…the 50 or so families had been living there for generations. We stopped off at the local school to see the cute children hard at work and then headed back through the maze of islands to our boat.
We were sad to say goodbye to Ha Long Bay and wished we could have had more time just lying on the Dragon’s Pearl deck, taking in the natural wonders around us. But travel called, and we were soon off to our next destination – which proved to be just as naturally and culturally amazing – Sapa.
Stand on any street corner in Hanoi and observe the surroundings for a few minutes and you’re bound to have your mind blown. You’ll see a woman steaming some crabs on a sidewalk full of tiny plastic chairs, a man selling $0.30 glasses of bia hoi out of what appears to be his bedroom, women in conical hats selling exotic fruits you’ve never seen before, a beautiful French villa juxtaposed with modern office buildings, and a seemingly endless flow of scooters, one of which is carrying three butchered pigs and another of which is somehow carrying a family of five. Welcome to Hanoi, the craziest city Anna and I have ever visited. Nothing comes easy in Hanoi, including crossing the street. With no gaps in the never-ending blur of scooters anywhere in sight, you basically just have to go for it and trust the scooters will swerve around you. It was actually pretty scary at first, but after I channeled some wise words from one my heroes, Bhodi from Point Break, (“Fear causes hesitation, and hesitation will cause all your worst fears to come true”), I was OK.
Trying to make our way to the Dong Xuan market
Walking down one of Hanoi’s quieter streets
Steaming some crabs on the sidewalk
Cooking some bun cha on the sidewalk
This is pretty much the scene on every sidewalk in Hanoi
Bird cages and scooters everywhere
Hanoi’s night market
Ready…GO!
Playing Frogger
When we weren’t dodging scooters, we managed to see some of Hanoi’s historic sights. We based ourselves in the city’s Old Quarter, which is pretty much a tourist attraction in itself with its ancient architecture and maze of narrow streets. We really liked walking around Hoan Kiem Lake and found it to be an oasis of peace in this otherwise maddening city. We also visited the Temple of Literature, which was built in 1070 and functioned as Vietnam’s first university. But our favorite attraction had to be a water puppetry show at the famous Thang Long Theater.
Thap Rua (The Turtle Tower) on Hoan Kiem Lake
Temple of Literature
Temple of Literature
Temple of Literature
Temple of Literature
Waiting for the water puppets…where’s Waldo?
Water puppets
The Huc Bridge on Hoan Kiem Lake
Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum
Getting into the Christmas spirit at Quan An Ngon restaurant
The highlight of our stay in Hanoi was definitely a street food tour with Tu. Tu was born in Nha Trang in central Vietnam, but has lived in Hanoi for the past 10 years writing the popular Sticky Rice food blog. We really wanted to eat as much of Hanoi’s world famous street food as we could, and we figured having a local show us the ropes would be better than us running around the city pointing at menus we couldn’t understand. The tour was fantastic. It felt more like going out to eat with a friend than an organized tour. Tu picked us up at our hotel and basically told us, “I’ll just keep taking you to my favorite places until you tell me you can’t eat anything else.” For the rest of the night, Tu took us across the entire city and down all sorts of back alleys to his favorite food spots, and we were definitely the only Westerners to be found at each of them. We must have tried at least 10 different dishes. Although our tour was supposed to finish at 8:00 pm, it was nearly 11:00 pm by the time Tu dropped us back off at our hotel, where Anna and I immediately changed into our elastic pants for rest of the week.
Tu and Johnny
Tu and Anna
Fish porridge at Doan Xom
Bun cha
The polarizing durian fruit
Vietnamese tea and fried bananas in coconut rice pudding
Pho ga (chicken noodle soup)
A sampling of sweets in the Old Quarter
Banh cuon (rice pancake with pork, mushroom and shallots)
Sweet drink with wild rice and yogurt
mmmmm…fish cakes!
mmmmm…pho ga!
mmmmm…frozen yogurt with Vietnamese coffee!
mmmmm…Vietnamese sweet tea!
Capping off the night with a young sticky rice cake
5. The train looked like it rolled out of 1955, and I’m pretty sure that was the last time it had been cleaned.
4. The ride felt like Thunder Mountain Railroad…sounds fun, but not for 16 hours or when trying to balance over the metal hole in the bathroom.
3. The entire train car reeked of rancid, stinky feet as everyone on it removed their shoes about an hour into the journey.
2. The shady man across the aisle from my seat chain smoked with his two-thumbed hand in our non-smoking car and stared at Johnny and me for most of the trip.
…and the #1 reason we did not enjoy the overnight train from Da Nang to Ninh Binh…
1. Cockroaches! The fearless little pests crawled on the walls, the backs of the seats and even on to us a few times.
The train from Ninh Binh to Hanoi wasn’t much better, but at least it was only a couple of hours. This time, the only seats available were the top bunks in a four-person sleeper, and the woman beneath Johnny’s bunk hacked up a lung the entire trip. The best part was that she would hock up her loogies into a plastic tupperware sitting on her lap. She had quite a collection going by the time we got to Hanoi. Oh…the joys of travel!
We were really enjoying our introduction to Vietnam in Hoi An, but unfortunately the weather wasn’t doing us any favors. With rain, rain and more rain in the forecast for the rest of the week, we decided to leave central Vietnam and head north a couple days early. After an, ummm, interesting overnight train ride (more on this soon), we arrived in Ninh Binh. Ninh Binh itself is a bit of a hole, but the stunning karst landscape on the outskirts of town, often called “Ha Long Bay in the rice paddies,” makes it worth a stop. With only one full day, our guesthouse suggested we borrow their scooter and ride to nearby Trang An to check out some of the famous caves and grottoes. When we pulled up to Trang An, we found a handful of Vietnamese women offering to row us around in their tiny boats for a couple hours for a few bucks. Although we were skeptical that a four foot tall, 70-year-old woman could get us very far (I nearly passed out while rowing our boat on Lake Bled), we decided to go for it. We’re glad we did. The scenery was incredible, and the accompanying peace and quiet (Vietnam is crazy!) was just what we needed. Also, much to our surprise and delight, rather than row around these giant limestone cliffs, we were able to row right through them, as centuries of erosion has produced numerous caves and underground waterways. For the next couple of hours we explored this beautiful landscape, passing only hidden pagodas and a handful of Vietnamese locals (who somehow row with their feet). Super cool. So, how will “Ha Long Bay in the rice paddies” stack up to the actual Ha Long Bay? We’ll find out soon.
We had read that Hoi An was one of the prettiest little towns in SE Asia…a bold statement! After spending a couple of days there, I can vouch that this is true – at least from what I’ve seen of SE Asia so far.
Although we didn’t luck out with the best weather, the rain didn’t deter us from exploring the lush, colorful streets of the Old Town which happens to be a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Hoi An was a major trading port back in the day (15th-19th century), drawing many foreign influences to the area, resulting in the eclectic architecture of the city. The narrow streets lined with oversized palms and ochre-hued buildings gave us the strange sensation of being transported back to France or Spain, while Chinese-style carved wooden shop fronts with mossy tiled roofs and an intricate Japanese covered bridge give the area a distinct Asian flare. The lanterns hung from the trees and zig zagging across the streets and tiny women in conical straw hats grilling Bun Cha on the sidewalk snapped us back to the fact that we were in Vietnam. The combined aesthetics of Europe and Asia made for a unique and fascinating setting. The food followed suit, with stacks of fresh baked baguettes alongside piles of dragon fruit, rice noodles and all types of green leafy herbs at the market along the river.
The market was chaotic and sensory overload. We couldn’t wait to try the new flavors that awaited us in Vietnam. We read on the menu of one of our favorite restaurants in Hoi An, Morning Glory, which “brought street food to the table,” that Vietnamese get homesick without fresh herbs and that dishes strive to achieve a balance between yin and yang. I’m all for this philosophy because all the food that we ate in Hoi An was amazing and has left me with a crispy pancake addiction and Johnny with a Banh Mi (Vietnamese baguette sandwich) addiction. We are also both most likely to OD on Vietnamese coffee before we leave the country, because it is so freaking delicious! It is served in a glass topped with a small metal French drip filter, only adding to the anticipation for the first sip as it drips slowly in front of you, the rich scent wafting up into your nostrils. We would switch back and forth between black coffee and white coffee (a sweet delight with condensed milk) depending on our mood.
The market
Vietnamese food philosophy 101
Chicken rice packed with fresh herbs
Banh Mi
Pre-stirred “white coffee”
I love you, crispy pancakes
De-boning fish steamed in banana leaves
We spent our two days in Hoi An just wandering around enjoying the narrow streets, peeking into the many historic pagodas and temples and pretty craft shops, watching the action taking place in the tailor shops (Hoi An is known as the best spot to have clothes and shoes made-to-order, and the town has more than 200 tailors to choose from!) and of course, eating. Although Hoi An has become a pretty touristy spot, we still really enjoyed our time there and couldn’t think of a more charming introduction to Vietnam!
Last week we made the infamous crossing over the Poipet Thai-Cambodia border. We had heard all sorts of horror stories of swindlers and scammers at the border, so we made arrangements with our guesthouse in Siem Reap to have a “greeter” and taxi waiting for us on the other side. As soon as we stepped foot onto Cambodian soil, the first thing we saw was a giant black and white poster of Johnny’s face! With his beard it looked like an America’s Most Wanted sign, but luckily it was our friendly greeter who walked us through the remaining border lines and finally to our taxi. Phew! We made it, hassle-free, into Cambodia.
Our first impression of Cambodia (other than hysterics at seeing the huge image of Johnny’s face at the border) was how genuinely warm and friendly the people were. We also couldn’t believe how lovely Siem Reap was as we pulled into town along a wide tree-lined boulevard, past the Royal Gardens (and several regal hotels), over the slow moving Siem Reap river and down a red dirt road to our guesthouse. You would have thought we had checked in at the Ritz Carlton with the level of hospitality that met us at this place. We couldn’t get over how polite and sweet the staff were. Every time we returned back to the guesthouse they were all there to greet us and hand us ice cold Tiger Balm towels. We had a huge breakfast every morning that was included with our stay, free wifi, free tea, coffee and water all day and a huge, charming and immaculately clean room, all for $20/night! You can’t beat that!
The Royal Gardens
Siem Reap River
Our guesthouse was decked out for the holidays!
When we weren’t cruising around in a tuk tuk marveling at the temples of Angkor, we were wandering the fun, lively streets of Siem Reap, enjoying the plethora of delicious food options and bargaining our hearts out at the markets. We could see how Siem Reap was a hot spot in the 50s and 60s when stars like Jackie Kennedy and Charlie Chaplin were lured by the temples and silk markets. Unfortunately the hey day in Siem Reap was abruptly halted due to the Khmer Rouge’s reign of terror beginning in the 70s. Cut off from the world and put through traumatizing genocide, it wasn’t till the mid 90s that Cambodia and Siem Reap began to reemerge as a tourist destination. Slowly but surely the country has been building steam ever since, and Siem Reap is once again the place to be.
Pub Street
Lots of “Fish Massages” available on the streets
Some ladies brave enough to get the “Fish Massage” where tiny fish nibble the dead skin off your feet
Restaurants and shops along The Alley
Sampling the local brew
Sampling Khmer cuisine
Although the city is brimming now with tourists, the devastation that the Khmer Rouge left in its wake and the poverty that affects the country are significant. Luckily many organizations in the city have set up “cause-dining” or shopping whereby you can eat at restaurants that train young, disadvantaged youth to become chefs, or shop at stores that support local craftsmen. There were many places with many worthy causes to support. Some of our favorite spots were Le Café, Butterflies Garden, Touich and the Singing Tree Café. Every place we went we continued to encounter sweet Cambodian people whose big beautiful smiles were truly heartwarming.
Last, but certainly not least, I couldn’t end this entry without talking about the markets! Johnny, who gets hives and breaks out in a cold sweat if I mention the word “shopping,” even got into the fun at the Old Market and Night Market. Our favorite market was Psar Chaa (Old Market). You could buy everything from silk scarves to pigs’ heads to haircuts in the labyrinth of stalls and passageways. The vendors were all very good-natured and easy to barter with, which made negotiating (something I usually hate!) really fun. Johnny and I had to laugh because at the airport in Johannesburg leaving South Africa, we had 8 rand (approx. $1) left. We wanted to get rid of the rand before we left the country so we went on a mission through the airport to try and find something for $1… a pack of gum…a granola bar? Nope, nothing. We couldn’t find a single thing to buy with a dollar. In Siem Reap it was quite the opposite…the dollar was king. You could buy almost anything for $1 – a tuk tuk ride, 10 bracelets, 2 pineapples – we couldn’t help but load up on some souvenirs to send home and had a really fun time in the process.
Halls of scarves and jewelry in the Old Market
Gearing up for some serious bartering
Around Psar Chaa/Old Market
The food sector of the Old Market
All sorts of items on offer at the market from pigs’ heads…
…to dragon fruit
Fruit stalls in the market
So many options causes serious indecision!
Outside the Night Market
We know we were in a bit of a bubble in Siem Reap, but we really loved the time we spent there, and maybe one day we will have the opportunity to return and see more of Cambodia. We hope that good things come to this country and its beautiful people as they continue to heal and rebuild.
Wheelie beasts in tow on our tuk tuk to the airport…next stop: Vietnam!
Ciao for Now 