Home and Final Thoughts

What an unforgettable trip this was. Erika and I are home after more than a full day of flights. We were lucky with all of our flights on this journey - only one delay (which didn't impact any subsequent legs) and smooth airport passage throughout.

Overall, we were able to see Southeast Asia by plane, taxi, bus, speedboat, paddle boat, flat-bottom boat, off the back of a pickup truck, by tuk tuk, and on foot. Each vantage point gave us a unique view and invaluable understanding of the wonderful people and places we were fortunate to meet and see. Along the way, we met happy and proud people and made some good friends.

Thanks to everyone we encountered for sharing their stories and hospitality, and thanks to you for following our adventures. We'll be back!

Hong Kong Day 2

It's shocking how quickly this trip is coming to an end, but Erika and I made sure our last day was full and, in our style, one in which we traversed as much ground as possible. 

In the morning we set out from our hotel on foot and quickly made it to the Man Mo Temple, a nearly 150 year old temple that has seen the rest of modern Hong Kong build up around it. 

After stopping in, we continued on further into the Central District before we hopped on the nearly mile-long escalator up to the Mid-Levels, used by thousands of commuters daily and these two tourists today in Hong Kong. 

After riding the escalator all the way up to the Mid-Levels, we turned around and walked back down to Queensway Road. There, we boarded the old tram for an East-West trip across the city. 

We took the tram pretty far East and then doubled back to head back to central for some lunch. Here, we had our first lost in translation moments of the trip when Simon's meal 1) originally did not arrive, 2) was then accidentally cancelled outright, and finally 3) was wrong when delivered. Undeterred, though, we went back down to the pier and took the Star Ferry across to Kowloon. 

We hopped off the boat as the Typhoon Mawar began to pick up, but continued walking around the beautiful Tsim Shui harbor area. 

Then we went further and visited the expansive and lush Kowloon city park before going up to Temple Street and the Jade Market, two of the most similar areas in Hong Kong to mainland China. We also found some absolutely delicious pork buns on Temple Street that completely made up for our lunchtime difficulties!

In the late afternoon, we took the subway (MTR) back to the Hong Kong side of the bay and then got some refreshing hot tea. 

After a bit of rest, we went back up to the trendy Lan Kwai Fong pub district for some tasty drinks and people watching. 

Finally, as promised we went back to Crystal Jade for another mouth watering, belly satisfying round of dim sum with all new dishes and no regrets!

We fly out tomorrow morning and will try to update the blog as wifi access permits. 

Hello, Hong Kong

Greetings from Hong Kong after a whirlwind day!

Erika and I woke up early after a late night yesterday, packed, had a quick breakfast, and then met our airport transfer for the ride to the Hanoi Airport. 

Our Vietnam Airlines flight surprised us in a few ways. First, the woman at the ticket counter bumped us up to exit row seats, which we later realized she did only because someone has to sit there (our plane was pretty empty). When we took our seats, the exit row safety talk consisted of a polite but firm request from our flight attendant to please not open the door unless there is an emergency. Duly noted. Second, they fed us on the plane and it was a genuinely good meal (and you can believe this since Erika agrees). Third, we saw an unruly passenger get restrained and then arrested by the HK police when we landed (but he was a line jumper to begin with and seemed to be a jerk so no sympathy was shed on his behalf). 

When we landed at the Hong Kong Airport, we took the Airport Express to the Hong Kong Station and then a cab to our hotel. We quickly unloaded our things and then, seeing the threatening weather in the forecast (apparently we've arrived in HK just ahead of a potential typhoon) we hiked through the Central District to the base of the Peak Tram. 

There, we got our tickets and boarded the vertical railway up to Victoria Peak. As soon as we got up there, I was dismayed as the entire peak (and its corresponding views of Hong Kong) was blanketed by thick white clouds. I have been talking Erika's ear off for 5 years about how amazing Hong Kong is and all I wanted to do was show off the great city from its best vantage point. However, for a while we literally could not see more than a hundred yards ahead. 

With luck and patience, the eventually clouds let up and the city began to peak through. We rushed to the highest viewing platform and by the time we got up there we were greeted by spectacular (albeit a bit cloudy) 360 degree views of Hong Kong. What luck (especially as more clouds rolled in soon after). 

We stayed at the viewing platform for nearly an hour and then went down further into the belly of the complex to wait for sunset and to see the city lit up at night. Still, more clouds and fog rolled in, but we enjoyed some hot tea and relaxed a bit on the deck. Simon even found time to make a new friend. 

Finally, abandoning the quest for clear views from the peak, and feeling our growling stomachs, we took the tram back down to the city at about 7:45pm and then an Uber to Crystal Jade for dim sum since it started pouring. Holy moly. 

I look like someone who didn't want to be interrupted while he ate his spare rib. It was everything we hoped it would be (we're going back tomorrow for more) and we had to pace ourselves to not overeat. 

Right as we finished our meal, the rain let up and we rushed to the pier to board the Star Ferry for the quick crossing to and from Kowloon. 

On the passage, at last we got the breathtaking views of the lit up, night-time skyline that I've hoped to show Erika for the past 5 years. 

Finally, after getting back to the Hong Kong side, we took a cab back to our hotel. 

Tomorrow we're going to do as much as the weather allows us, but we know we were tremendously fortunate for all we were able to see and do today in the intermittent dry moments!

Hanoi

After a long day of traveling yesterday, we decided to sleep in today - at least until 8am. We had breakfast in our hotel and then set off to explore Hanoi on foot (at least for as long as we could). 

We quickly realized the streets were going to be packed all day as Vietnam was celebrating its Independence Day today, but we had a great time walking among the thousands of happy and celebratory Vietnamese people throughout the day.

In the morning we first stopped at the beautiful Ngoc Som Temple, staring over the Hoan Kiem Lake, near our hotel. To get there, though, we had to get past a bike and motorcycle race going on at the circuit surrounding the lake. We also met a very friendly young student and took a survey about our time in the country. 

Next, we walked through the Old Quarter past the St. Joseph Cathedral and to the Hoa Lo Prison (a.k.a. the Hanoi Hilton), which has now been turned into a museum. 

At the Musuem, we went through a series of informative exhibits and appreciated the chance to learn more about the prison, its role in Vietnam's foundation, and take in its (skewed but valuable) perspective on American POWs. 

After an hour in the surprisingly air conditioned museum, we went back out into the 113 degree heat index weather and trudged slowly but excitedly to the Temple of Literature - Vietnam's oldest university. We were not disappointed. 

The Temple complex, which dates back to the 11th Century, was beautiful and remained in remarkable shape. We could understand how students could succeed in this serene environment which impressively kept out the noise and chaos from the hectic city around it. 

When we left the Temple at around 12:30, we were both sweaty and pretty tired. I got a very tasty Banh Mi sandwich on the way back to our hotel for an a/c break. Then we went out and, unfortunately, had our first bad meal of the trip - some Pho soup with almost inedible, fatty "brisket" meat. (Also debatable was the decision to have hot soup on such a hot day, but the Vietnamese do it so go figure).  

Undeterred, and after another brief Starbucks visit to cool off - we, again, regret nothing - we hired a tuk tuk driver for an hour to take us to the tall and picturesque Tran Quoc Pagoda on the other side of downtown. (By the end of the day we walked 13 miles so you can understand why the tuk tuk was a good idea in that heat!)

Powered by our beastly strong driver, we saw the Pagoda and then also the One Pillar Pagoda and Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum.

We then left our hero tuk tuk driver and headed back to our hotel a few miles away on foot (though we ended up pleasantly running into him two more times when we made it back to the Old Quarter in the late afternoon). 

At 5:30, we went back down and circled the lake to try and meet up with Yuri and Ilana for rooftop sunset drinks at the Sofitel, but we all later realized that we were talking about two different rooftop lounges. We did not take this epic sunset picture (credit: Yuri), but we'll take credit at least for the effort to get there. 

After getting back on wifi, the four or us finally met up for a fantastic dinner and great conversation at Red Bean in the Old Quarter. Yuri and Ilana fly back to Chicago tomorrow so we wished them safe travels back home before we headed back to our hotels. Tomorrow we are off to Hong Kong, our final full stop on this fortunate journey!

Ha Long Bay

We had a quick turnaround after our late arrival into Hanoi last night and, after a quick breakfast at our hotel, we were picked up by our guide, Ha, and driver, Noi. (Yes, those are actually their names. Yes, it is awesome). As our bus picked up the other tour group members in the city, we finally met up with the first other Americans of the trip - two really cool Chicagoans our age named Yuri and Ilana. 

On the four hour drive to Ha Long Bay, our guide, Ha, entertained us with jokes and also told us frankly about the history of his country and the region. He was tremendously insightful and engaging (he kept us awake in spite of our late arrival last night) and we learned quite a bit.

On the way up, we stopped at an artisan market operated by disabled artists and found a beautiful souvenir to remember and show off our time here. We also talked with Yuri and Ilana for a while as well, and saw some  was things we couldn't unsee. 

Once we got to the Bay, we boarded our boat and took off in earnest.

We had a great lunch with Team Chicago on the boat but frequently hopped up to take in and snap photos of the breathtaking scenery around us. Simon annoyed no one as he silently hummed the theme from The Man With the Golden Gun in his head. The bay's tiny islands climbed ever upward and the green and lush vegetation stood stark against the murky water below. 

After an hour of cruising, we reached our first stop and got off the boat to explore a surprisingly large cave. Ha told us about the various formations and pointed them out with a laser pointer. 

Then, we got back on the boat and headed to our second stop: the floating village. There, we took a paddle boat ride into some water caves and lagoons - sights we could never see in any other way. Ilona also donated her portable electric fan to our hardworking paddle-boat rower. 

Finally, late in the afternoon, we cooled off and took the boat back to the dock and got back on the bus for the long ride home. 

When we got back to Hanoi, we navigated the night market around the lake and soon found our hotel. This was a remarkable place and we're excited for our upcoming city day in Hanoi!

Arrived in Hanoi

Arrived in Hanoi and going to sleep! Tomorrow we're off to visit Ha Long Bay. 

Siem Reap and Kompong Phluk

Cambodia has left an indelible impression on us. We will miss it and we will not soon forget it. 

It might be foolish for a traveler to say that he is proud to have gone somewhere, for upon what basis can they claim the pride of a region? Oh well; I am proud to have visited Cambodia.

Its overwhelmingly Buddhist people are fundamentally peaceful, which makes the horrors they suffered in the far too recent past all the more shocking and painful. But you can't see that or feel that by visiting them, by talking to them. They bear no ill will to any visitors nor each other. Only hope that the world, first through Angkor Wat and by visiting the rest of this beautiful country, can recognize Cambodia for what it is now rather than what has happened here before. 

No other place I've visited has had this kind of impact on me in such a short time. Perhaps that's because the people we've met have been enthusiastic and honest. The show we saw last night, for instance, could have been campy and put on, but the performers had such earnestness that we recognized they really cared about introducing their culture to the hoards of visitors descending for a tasty buffet. 

With that unwieldy prologue past, we can get to today.

At 9am we were met by the same driver, Bun, who had picked us up from the airport on Tuesday night. We'd arranged with him to see the floating village down on the Big Lake and then several other temples in the Angkor complex. On the drive, my first question to him was why we were seeing so many 2002-era Lexus RX 300s, Toyota Camrys, and Toyota Highlanders. Seriously, everywhere we went it felt like we saw our moms driving in front of us (circa 2002, of course). He explained that the cars come from the U.S. secondhand and they're refurbished by Toyota and resold to Cambodians after they're fixed up. 

After about an hour driving through the outlying Siem Reap neighborhoods, villages, and rice fields, we got  to the outskirts of the Big Lake. There, we got on a small boat and slowly headed through the canals to the floating village - 500 houses and 2,500 people strong. 

Drifting through this village was like nothing we'd done before. We came through and several locals waved, but we didn't interrupt their routines and, by and large, they didn't seem to change their behavior around us. We could really just see this unique community as it is. (This is aside from a few enterprising female businesswomen who drive small boats around and offer refreshments - fruits and drinks - to tourist-laden vessels).  

Along the way, Bun stopped the boat a few times: first to show us around the local secondary school and a beautiful community pagoda, and second so we could take an even smaller flat row boat through the village and also the surrounding, beautiful mangrove forests.

Next, we got back on our main boat and our captain took us out to see the expanse of the Big Lake - 110km by 75km. It earns its name. 

Bun then drove us to a great restaurant for a quick lunch before we continued on to visit some of the more distant Angkor temples. Our first stop was East Mebon, a 3 stage square complex, completely symmetrical, which was guarded by stone elephants and lions on all of its sides and at its entrances. We scoured it in the heat for as long as we could bear before retreating to Bun's air conditioned Camry and heading to the next stop. 

That was Ta Som, a smaller version of Ta Prohm from yesterday, in that it, too, was losing the battle with nature and, particularly, the Spung trees. It was well worth the extra visit as we saw a beautiful mix of nature and stonework with many fewer other visitors around. 

Our third stop in Angkor was Neak Pean, a very unique temple that we had to cross a long bridge to get to. The temple, itself, was quite small and located in the center of another watery moat. With the clouds rolling in overhead, it was beautiful. 

Finally, we headed to Preah Khan, a very large mazelike complex. To get in, we crossed a long bridge with stone guardians. Once there, we walked through the whole temple (and Simon only bumped his head once! Apparently I'm a little taller than most ancient Cambodians). We enjoyed our last moments in this remarkable place before reuniting with Bun and heading for the airport. 

Now we're relaxing in the remarkably luxurious Plaza Premium Lounge in the Siem Reap airport. Thank you Chase Reserve. We're being treated nicer than we might ever deserve, Simon's first airport shower was awesome, and the food and drinks are delicious :)

We'll soon be on our flight to Hanoi and we'll check in from there.