Si Phan Don/4000 Islands

Our next stop was Vientiane…again, to pick up our Myanmar visas. Readers know my patience was wearing thin, and I couldn't have been happier to board a bus, (this one had beds!), to the 4000 islands in southern Laos. Thousands of islands, some only big enough for one small tree, rest in the Mekong. Flooding covered many of the smaller islands, but it was still very beautiful. We stayed on Don Det island, where cows, chickens, a variety other animals and rice paddies surround the guesthouses. It was different than we expected, (no actual beach, no sun, no sand), but still a lot of fun. We took a ferry, (a small motorized canoe), from the bus station on the mainland to the island, where there was SO much mud! We slipped to a nearby bungalow for $3 per night and left to explore. We planned to walk over the bridge to Don Khon, the other backpacker island next to us.  We walked on the path for some time, until it stopped being a real path and turned into mud trenches with nothing around but water buffalo. We knew this wasn’t right, but the island is small and we knew eventually we would reach the bridge–by now it would have been longer to go back. Soon the mud was so deep that we couldn’t take a step without getting suctioned in, so we took off our shoes and ran through until, in the distance, the bridge! (This was after we awkwardly shouted/acted/pointed to two farmers to make sure we were going in the right direction). We washed our feet in the river, just as it started to rain. Dirty and soaking wet we crossed the bridge, laughing and discussing how we would NEVER do this at home, and found a small restaurant to wait out the rain and fill up on rice and vegetables.

That night, we congregated with every other foreigner on the island, (so about 15 people), at Adam’s Bar. The café/bar is sheltered, but doesn’t have full walls so it feels like you’re outside. A few booths on the side leave room for a middle section filled with pillows and rugs where backpackers gather to drink Beer Lao, eat cheese toasties and watch movies every night. Indiana Jones was playing when we walked in, and the next night the bar was packed again for Slumdog Millionaire and The Beach.

The highlight of our time in Si Phan Don was our day of kayaking. We left early in the morning and kayaked to a waterfall on a nearby island. Our guide was funny, but a little crazy. He didn’t think Brianna was steering the way he liked for some reason, so he had us switch places…in the middle of the water. I climbed onto the front of his kayak, trying not to tip it, while Brianna moved to the front of ours, then I scooted back on into the rear seat. He kept going way ahead, making phone calls, smoking cigarettes…not actually guiding us anywhere. The waterfall was really pretty, then we went on a long walk to a beach. It was raining, but we got back in our kayaks for the most exciting part–the rapids! Our guide was convinced one of us would capsize, and not without reason. The waves were big! But we made it to the farther island, which was technically Cambodia. Here, we ate fried rice and watched the Irawaddy dolphins jump right in front of us. (We were so distracted trying not to tip we didn’t even see them while we were in the kayaks). The Irrawaddy dolphins live in freshwater, and in the Mekong they are critically endangered because of fisheries and degradation of their habitat. They look more like beluga whales than dolphins, and we had a lot of fun watching them bop around. Then we kayaked for what seemed like forever to the largest waterfall in Southeast Asia. Our guide told us we had an hour to look at it, but we only needed about ten minutes. We found him drinking with other guides at a roadside bar. He didn’t want to leave, so we joined them. Luckily, two guys our age, an Australian and American, joined us, as their guide was best friends with ours. After many cheers while our guide passed around a giant bottle of Beer Lao, he was finally ready to call the boat to take us back to Don Det.

The next morning we settled in for a 20-hour bus ride back to Bangkok. 

Luang Prabang, Laos

The quiet, small-town charm of Vientiane was a welcome change from Bangkok, and as we drove  toward Luang Prabang things become even more relaxed. Our 13-hour bus ride wound deep into the mountains, overlooking gorgeous landscapes of sandstone and thick forests, and we didn’t see other people for hours as we climbed higher into the peaks. Unfortunately, the rainy season and landslides created deep potholes and made for an extremely bumpy ride. With narrow roads, no railings and the bus literally bouncing in the air with every hole, we feared falling thousands of feet off the edge. “Ok if we tip right, we grab the seats in front of us and hold tight while we roll…and if we tip left toward the cliff we break the opposite side window and jump out,” Brianna and I plotted during more precarious turns. Luang Prabang, once we finally arrived, was just as beautiful as we expected. A small, quiet town with fishing villages and temples along the Mekong River, everything seemed to move at a slower pace and sunny days stretched on into arresting sunsets. The entire city is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, because of its “Outstanding example of the fusion of traditional architecture and Lao urban structures with those built by the European colonial authorities in the 19th and 20th centuries. Its unique, remarkably well-preserved townscape illustrates a key stage in the blending of these two distinct cultural traditions.” (whc.unesco.org).  Luang Prabang has more than 30 temples, so we spent our days there wandering through spectacular walls of mosaics depicting folk tales, or climbing steps to the highest temple for a perfect view at sunset. We read for hours by the river, and took a boat ride on the Mekong, stopping in a village tucked into the woods where families make paper and weave silk. Laos and Thailand are known for some of the best massages in the world, so we found a place and for $6 had an hour-long massage unlike anything at home. The masseuse pulled, elbowed and even kicked our backs, legs and arms, but nothing has ever felt so amazing!

One day, we went to Elephant Village, a camp in the jungle that works to keep elephants free from abuse while providing jobs for indigenous people in surrounding areas. The sanctuary currently supports nine elephants. Tourists can train to be mahouts, elephant trainers), or ride the elephants, and donations go toward their care and preserving the surrounding virgin river valley. Riding the elephant was so much fun! Our mahout jumped off to take our pictures, then decided we were fine and never got back on, so we clung tight as the elephant walked up rocks and through rivers doing whatever it pleased. When we returned other tourists seemed shocked to see us sitting on the elephant instead of in the seat provided, and that our guide was no longer actually guiding us. He was walking nearby, (and was obsessed with Brianna’s camera), so there was never anything to be worried about, but the others seemed confused, or maybe a bit jealous.

French bakeries, wine, elephant rides, tranquil mountain scenery and reading by the river on gorgeous sunny days…Luang Prabang is definitely one of my favorites so far! 

A day of adventure

Refreshed and ready to explore Vientiane, we set out on a hike through the city to find the Myanmar Embassy and apply for visas.

 ‘Dear Google Maps, though we love you and find your iphone mapping app superior to others, you really need to work on Southeast Asia, especially when it comes to walking directions.’ These were our sentiments as we walked two of the four miles to the embassy, only to find we were far past the “turn” on our map, (the nonexistent turn).  Walking out of our way to get back on track, we again followed our map faithfully, thinking Google couldn’t be wrong twice, as it led us down a dirt path. ‘Hm, this is strange,’ we thought. But the walking directions often lead down paths and through short cuts, so we pressed on. This path, however, led to a house and a dead end, where three dogs ran at us, barking ferociously and attacking my leg. One bit a hole in my brand new Aladdin pants!! I was furious as we trudged back down the path and found our own way on the main road. We were at our destination, according to the blue tracking dot on the map on my phone. But we were not. We were in front of the Embassy of Brunei, and next to the Embassy of Korea. It was only after asking a guard that we found the Union of Myanmar Embassy on a street around the corner. Thank you, Google, for getting us to the other side of the city and in the general right direction, but please, please, work on the details!

There was an old gate leading to the embassy, so we pushed it open and looked around. No security, only a house and a small building. After signing in we walked into the embassy’s waiting room while a pregnant woman in what looked like pajamas gave us forms. All of this seemed very unofficial and strange. She told us our passport pictures were too large, (apparently Myanmar uses a different size than the rest of the world), so we had to walk down the street and have new ones taken at a Kodak shop. Returning 15 minutes later we finished our applications and made a wish that our passports would be safe there for days while we traveled to other cities around Laos. The United States embassy has bullet proof windows and guards, but the Myanmar embassy looked as though anyone could walk in at any time and do whatever they pleased.

Musing over whether or not we would get approved, (the woman asked what we went to school for and said journalism, government and business students rarely get visas…so we said art), we took a local bus outside the city to Buddha Park.

The park, built in 1958, is filled with 200 Buddhist and Hindu statues made of stone and mosaics, all in different positions. Interestingly, a priest who incorporated Hinduism and Buddhism into his practice built the park, and another in Thailand.

Later in the day we walked to COPE, (Cooperative Orthotic and Prosthetic Exercise), an organization that works to provide prosthetics and rehabilitation to those that cannot afford them. Most of the patients are victims of land mines. Lao, like Cambodia, was bombed extensively during and after the Vietnam War, and people still suffer today. In rural areas, children come across mines and do not know what they are, and sometimes adults try to deactivate them themselves because the parts can be sold for large sums of money. We watched a BBC film about a man who came across a landmine and ended up losing his legs, arms and one eye, meaning he could no longer provide for his already extremely poor family. COPE helped him receive prosthetic arms, improving his life and helping his family greatly. Parts of bombs are used in pots and pans, spoons, cups and other household items, so people fail to realize their danger and instead see the practical value, and end up hurting themselves in the process of deactivation. Seeing bombs used as a part of every day life is also dangerous to children, who then perceive them as normal and beneficial, and not as harmful. COPE works to educate children and families about the risks of land mines and proper precautions, and to spread word throughout the world about Laos’ enduring struggle with land mines. After harassing the poor PR woman with questions and taking pictures of everything in the museum in order to remember names and stats, we finally left right at closing time.

We made it to the Golden Stupa, (Pat That Luang Temple), just before sunset. Laos’ national symbol, the tall, shining gold spires are magnificent. The stupa holds the ashes of kings from different dynasties, as well as some monks, and is a symbol of religion and sovereignty in Laos.

At our last stop, the night market, women sell paintings, bags and dresses, while food carts wheel through the crowds hawking potato puffs, fried bananas crepes and other delicious, cheap treats. Each night market we go to is basically the same, with slight twists. Mouse ears and masses in Hanoi, fish massages in Siem Reap and lots of art in Vientiane.

Buses and Borders

Night buses. Our new favorite thing, because they save us time on our limited schedule, money on a place to stay for one night, and boredom because we can sleep and wake up in a new city or country. Night buses. Our least favorite thing, because they are not very comfortable, the roads are awful, deep sleep is never accomplished and we arrive in each new city or country slightly irritable and feeling very dirty.  They’re the cheapest, most logical option though, so we take one every week, sometimes twice. Upon boarding the night bus from Bangkok to Vientiane we were overjoyed to get the front seats on the upper deck, meaning lots of storage and leg room, and to see that the seats were more plush than others and came with blankets! The ride was going smoothly and I was about halfway through my $2 copy of Crime and Punishment when there was a loud ‘clunk’ and we slowly pulled over. The bus stopped and we peered out onto the highway below us. A man was angrily pointing to his car and yelling at our driver. “Oh my God…we hit a car,” was the collective gasp and whisper throughout the bus. We all waited, trying to get a better view, (good thing we had those prime front seats), as our driver handed the man money, to which he shook his head and made some phone calls. There were no police, no insurance companies, nothing written up. If this happened at home there would be all of the above, and someone would come on the bus and explain what was happening and give an estimated departure time. We just waited, until finally more money was handed over and our driver pulled away, not even acknowledging the incident to his amazed passengers. Then it started storming. How could we sleep in a thunderstorm, on crowded roads, with a driver who could hit something at any moment?  We managed to doze here and there before reaching the strangest border crossing yet. On the side of the road we filed out in the rain through a muddy field to a pavilion with coffee and a few picnic tables where a man and woman took all our passports and attached our visas while we huddled in small groups.  An hour later we reached a more official crossing where we showed our visas and got on a new bus to Vientiane. Due to weather, traffic and the accident, the trip took hours longer than expected, but at least we had a hostel lined up!

Our first night in Laos was uneventful. The rain didn’t let up for hours, so we napped and read and looked up activities for the next day. We did find a terrific Italian restaurant by the river for dinner though. We had read they had great pizza, but were a little skeptical. We ordered a goat cheese salad to share and a four-cheese pizza, and waited in anticipation. The salad was one of the best things we’ve had so far and we watched them make our pizza in a giant wood fire oven. We were surprised, and strangely delighted when our servers watered and resilvered between courses, (!!!). This is either a sign we’ve worked in too many restaurants, or that we get too excited over little things. The pizza was perfect and satisfied our hunger after 24 hours of buses and trudging through the rain. After this meal, we vowed to eat only Lao food the rest of our time here! 

Colors, Temples, Sweets, New Friends...Bangkok In Pictures!

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Bangkok

Bangkok by Night

Back at our hostel, Brianna and I debated how to spend our night in the city, and decided the best option was obviously the Calypso Cabaret, one of Bangkok’s finest ladyboy shows. Bangkok is known as having some of the best ladyboy shows in the world, and the most convincing transvestites. Apparently, Thai men make beautiful women because of their small features, height, and flawless skin, and Thai ladyboys are some of the highest paid sex workers in the world. Even after hearing all this, our jaws dropped as the first number started and some of the most gorgeous women we’d ever seen started singing and dancing in leotards and sequins. We watched dazzling performances from Chicago, Moulin Rouge and Marilyn Monroe impersonations. Still, it was impossible to tell that some of the performers were male. They were so pretty, and many have had sexual reassignment surgery, so it’s actually easy to see how some unsuspecting tourists find out the next morning they haven’t slept with a female prostitute after all, (Hangover 2 anyone?). Some might never even know…

Immediately after the show, our next adventure began. We attempted to find a cab to the Hilton for the amazing view from the 360 Sky Bar. But no cab drivers knew where the Hilton was. We repeated it over and over and tried to explain…”It’s a really, really big hotel…a lot of tourists stay there…the HILTON…” We got nothing but blank stares. Normally we try to have an address or map on hand for these inevitable language barriers, but we thought the Hilton was pretty popular, and huge. In our fourth cab, we sat while the driver called all his friends who spoke English and I attempted to explain to them. “The ehton?” they all asked, confused. “Yes, the Hill-ton.” Awkward silence on the other side, no matter how many friends he called. (Brianna has this on video. If anyone knows anyone, who knows anyone, who knows anyone, who knows anyone in the production or television industry, we are dying to meet them and pitch our travel show ideas. Somehow we always end up in the most ridiculous situations. Way more entertaining than An Idiot Abroad. Who gave that guy a show? Ugh. Anyway…) By cab five we were losing hope, but this time the driver pretended to know his way around, until we stopped in the highway so he could ask someone, who, shocking, had no idea. He called a friend and the same conversation ensued. “Can you look it up and tell your friend the address?” I pleaded into the receiver. “Google..?” Apparently that logic didn’t make sense, so he hung up. Finally, we called my dad in the states. His first words at hearing our dilemma: “Who doesn’t know where the Hilton is?” Our thoughts exactly! He Google mapped us, we relayed the address and we were on our way, (but not until we got out of that cab because he wanted to overcharge us, and into another one…now we’re on #6).  Still laughing that we had to call the United States to get directions in Bangkok, and having a momentary pang of appreciation for home and the quick, logical way things work there, we took the elevator up to the to 36^th floor of the Hilton, to a view worth the hassle. And then our night got even more interesting… Sipping elaborate cocktails and overlooking the city, we were soon joined by some men on business from Canada, who thought we were Australian. (We’ve gotten Australian, Swedish, English and Canadian, but people rarely think we’re American, which is strange). Finding out we were from the Midwest, they then made us feel guilty for not knowing anything about their country. In Canada, they watch US news and know everything about our politics, economy, etc, but US citizens know nothing about Canada. This is true. Brianna and I know a lot about the Middle East, and a lot about pretty much every country except Canada, which is embarrassing considering we border it.  Done lecturing, they introduced us to their friend Katy, a woman from Bangkok who went to school at UW-Madison. “Ahh I love Wisconsin!” she said. “Party now, work later! Cheers to that!” She was funny, pretty and older than we originally thought, (we think about 38, but originally though 25).  Despite her love for Madison’s party school reputation, she is very intelligent and accomplished. She got her masters and PhD from UW-Madison for Education, and then became superintendent for a large school district in Bangkok. Even more interesting is that she used to be a member of Thailand’s parliament, and we were currently in the area she represented. Now, she’s a professor. She looked so young to have done all of this already! So excited to talk about Madison and meet other UW alums, she called her brother Matt and forced him out of bed, (it was 1am), to come meet us too. (First, she pulled up a youtube video on her phone of a commercial he stars in). He went to law school at Madison, and was equally excited. It turns out Matt and Katy, (not their real names, but what they tell people to call them because their real names are so hard to pronounce), are influential in Bangkok.  The bar was closing, but Katy wanted to keep talking so she slipped the servers a tip and we got bottle service and they stayed open. 

“Now we’re going to a club!” she announced an hour later. So our group, (also including a few more people in town for business with Matt’s company), piled into cars and taxis. “You two are riding with my brother in his car,” Katy said, leading us to his Porsche. “Want to drive it?” We opted out of attempting to drive on the opposite side of the street, but happily sat on the passenger side as we sped off and talked about Wisconsin and snowstorms.  Inside the club lights flashed with loud music and throngs of people, and we danced until it closed. Matt and Katy were SO nice. When they heard we were staying in a hostel, they upgraded us to one of the nicest hotels in Bangkok, (“we have vouchers”), and told us they could get us flights for free too. The next morning, Matt sent his driver to pick us up and take us to get our India visas so we wouldn’t have to pay for a cab. For whatever political status or wealth they might have, they were some of the most laid back people I have ever met. Katy was fun and carefree, and Matt talked endlessly of bike trails in Madison and solo fishing trips in southern Thailand. They invited us to their father’s birthday party a few days later, but unfortunately due to limited time we couldn’t stay, (and didn’t get to utilize the nice hotel!).  Of all the people to randomly meet, how strange that they went to UW!

Gems, Shopping, Politics

The street we stayed on is always busy, so we spent the next morning checking out the vendors before meeting up with Baitoey again.  (Shamefully, we rejoiced at finding a Starbucks).  Today, Baitoey happily told us, we were doing more shopping.  Brianna and I were a little shocked when we arrived at a gem factory. Rows of brightly colored jewels glittered behind glass cases. ‘We cannot afford any of these,’ we thought.  We wandered through, looking yearningly at sapphires and rubies, before realizing the prices. While some of the gems were huge, and still very expensive, they were a fraction of the cost in the US.  Giant, shimmering stones were priced at 6,000 Baht, or about $200.  “These would cost thousands at Tiffany’s,” Brianna said.  The gems are so cheap because they actually cut and treat the stones right there at the factory. Jewelers in Thailand are known as some of the best in the world for the way they cut rock to ensure maximum sparkle, and they start training at around age 15.  We had heard of the infamous gem scams in Thailand, and were wary about making any purchases, but Baitoey reassured us that this gallery was legitimate. We limited ourselves to one ring each, (how can we pass up a $35 gorgeous gem that would be hundreds at home?), and vowed to not buy anything else for ourselves.  From here, we went to a much less glamorous market downtown, crowded with teenagers and young adults hitting up end of summer sales.  I stuck to my vow and didn’t break out my wallet, but it was hard. Adorable dresses for $4, nice shoes for $10, business skirts for $6….why don’t we have this at home? The market was interesting, with cheap street shops right next to nice boutiques and Baitoey said she and her mom love coming here for all their clothes shopping. We stopped in the center of  all the commotion for black jelly mixed with crushed ice and brown sugar.  I’m not sure exactly what it was, but it tasted like molasses flavored jello. I love molasses, and haven’t had it in years so this was great! After wandering around some more we grew tired of the market and went out for dinner at a Thai restaurant in a mall, where again Baitoey ordered so much food we could barely move afterward. Fish cakes, spring rolls, seafood soup, pad thai, fried pork strips, vegetable stir fry, scallops and dumplings… “But you have to try a lot of Thai food!” Baitoey kept saying.  “I will come visit you wherever you move in the US and you will do the same for me.”

Baitoey had a lot of homework, (it was exam week), so we said goodnight a little early. Thai students study a lot more than Americans. The night before, Saturday, she said she was up until 2am doing homework, and woke up at 6am to do more.  No one goes to College Library in Madison on a Saturday night! She told us how when she studied in the US she was so surprised because after school students have so much free time. In Thailand, after class students go home to study before dinner, she said. “But in the US maybe after school you can go play tag, or something. I like the US better I think.”  Baitoey absolutely loves Wisconsin, which we found funny because of all the places to travel in the United States it may be one of the prettiest, and the people are fun and nice, but it’s definitely not the most exciting. “I can’t wait to go back to Deerfield!” she said over and over.  In my opinion Deerfield is about the most boring place you can go, but she said it was the Vogel’s and the rest of the people she met that made it so wonderful.  I guess I can see that. Brianna and I studied in Irbid, Jordan last summer, which is much less exciting than Amman, but it was the shop owners, professors, hotel staff and fellow students that made us love it so much. 

On the way back to our hostel traffic was completely stopped. Bangkok is always really busy on weekends, Baitoey told us, but today there was a ceremony for a member of the Red Shirts who was killed in a fight. In very simple terms, the Red Shirts are Thailand’s opposition party, loyal to former leader Thaksin Shinawatra, and comprised mostly of working-class and rural Thais. Yellow Shirts, on the other hand, support the party currently in power, and hold more elites among them. The parties clash often through protests and in some cases acts of violence. They wear red and yellow shirts to show which party they support, and in Thailand citizens take pains to not wear these colors if they don’t want to be associated as a member or run into problems in their daily life. 

Bangkok, Thailand

We left Cambodia early Friday morning, mentally preparing ourselves for the 12 hour bus to Bangkok over coffee before we bid goodbye to our hostel owner. The bus was nicer than expected though, and only ten hours! As usual, we stopped at roadside souvenir/food stands on the way, (the drivers get commission, so everywhere we go we stop too often and for too long), and soon enough we were at the border. Immigration into Thailand took over an hour, due to lines of buses, then we were herded into groups and sorted by colored stickers. “We’re like cattle,” I said as a yellow sticker was slapped onto my sleeve, designating me in the ‘Bangkok’ group in the corner. We were led past the border to another bus…but the bus turned out to be a van, and they squished 11 of us in it, along with our bags. It looked like a family vacation from the outside, but inside we all exchanged awkward smiles, wondering how we could possibly fit.  Luckily, the ride to Bangkok was only a few hours and we were dropped off near Khaosan Rd., where tons of backpackers and tourists congregate at guesthouses and outdoor cafes and bars. We were supposed to meet Baitoey, a student who had stayed with my mom’s friend in Deerfield, but couldn’t get in contact with her, so we found a hostel and had our first Thai food.  Pad Thai…definitely better in Thailand!

Baitoey is a student at the University of Technology, so we went to meet her at her campus the next morning. She came running excitedly at us, a tiny girl in bright yellow, armed with an umbrella. She immediately began telling us about her school and parents and asking how everyone in Wisconsin was doing. She was so friendly it was like we’d known her much longer than 5 minutes. As we walked by other students, Baitoey would put her hands together and make a small bowing gesture. Seeing our confused faces she explained that younger students have to respect the senior class. She and her roommate Joy fed us coconut water and a spicy papaya salad with shrimp fried in sesame seeds, then started our tour of Bangkok.  Joy doesn’t speak English, but wanted to come along and was very sweet. Baitoey is talkative, funny and LOVES shopping. Joy thinks she shops too much…haha.

They took us to a temple where we learned how to burn incense, pray and present gifts to Buddha. We’ve been to a lot of temples, but hadn’t yet joined in the rituals. Next to the temple is a fishing village, so we took a small boat to explore. It was windy, and raining, and our little boat that was like a motorized canoe was swaying a lot. The man who owned the boat scared us when he jumped into the lake, only to show that the water, even far out in the middle, came only to his knees. Feeling safer, we continued to a river where we looked in on houses of fisherman and saw giant lizards climbing the banks. The mudskippers, (fish that breathe through their skin and can live above water for days), were really cool.  Their slimy skin blends in with the muddy earth around them as they pop in and out of holes.

Back on land, we headed to the Amphawa floating market, otherwise known as the place Brianna and Rebecca gained ten pounds in sugar. Boardwalks filled with shops stretch across the water, with bridges connecting each side and a few boat vendors too. We passed rows of colorful sweets, (some we recognized, some we never would have guessed what they were), before reaching the “restaurant” we were stopping at for lunch. It was a row of tablecloths along the side of the dock, with a boat tied to the edge where people sat grilling fresh seafood. We sat on the ground, my feet hanging over the water while we ordered fresh scallops, shrimp, squid and seafood salad, then watched them cook it before setting heaps of food on our makeshift table. This was one of the best meals we’ve had so far, and we happily peeled shrimp, (whole, with the eyes), and attempted to use our chopsticks. Actually, I’m getting a lot better at using chopsticks over the past few weeks! Though we were stuffed, Baitoey insisted Brianna and I try pad thai again, because a certain stand was supposedly the best. It was served on banana leaves with orange glass noodles in the center and the egg, greens, peanuts, sugar and spices surrounding them. You mix it together yourself, and it really was the best.  “Now it’s time for sweets!” Baitoey said. We tried homemade popsicles from a spinning ice box, ice cream, fried bananas coated in honey, suncakes, cotton candy and lastly a “taco” made of a sweet pancake shell and filled with coconut, cream and so much sugar it spilled out everywhere. Even for dessert lovers like myself, we had overdone it. “I just want you to try a lot of Thai food,” Baitoey kept saying as we protested against any more sweets. Feeling a little sick, but happy, we said goodbye to Baitoey and Joy and went back to our hostel. 

Photos from Cambodia (Phnom Penh and Siem Reap)

Cambodia