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Cambodia

Cambodia

Cambodia…where to start with this country? The traffic. Holy sh*t the traffic here is crazy. There seem to be four directions of traffic on a given road, the usual opposing directions of traffic in the lanes, and then on the shoulders, a bike or tuk tuk could be operating in the other direction. Nothing surprises the drivers, and people generally don’t get angry. It’s a terrifying lot as a tourist pedestrian. Your best bet it to just keep a constant pace while crossing once there is a lull and have faith the motorbikes steer around you. I avoided a near collision as I took a step back to the shoulder on a crossing attempt; not realizing a motorbike was right behind me. I only knew how close I was to disaster when I saw the look of horror on an approaching monk’s face as he saw my near demise. As his bike got closer, his face turned grateful I wasn’t road kill, and he uttered, “sorry.”

Before I go into the city of Phnom Penh, I’ll review a recent little history, since I was pretty clueless before my visit. In 1974 the Khmer Rouge came to power and over threw the reigning government. Pol Pot, the movement’s leader, wanted to change Cambodia into a communist agrarian society. He systematically killed the nation’s intellectuals, doctors, city people and anyone who was not ethnically Khmer among other innocents for fear they would undermine his reign. It started with the taking over of the capitol of Phnom Penh, which was literally emptied on April 17th, 1975. It continued with the relocation of many millions and the brutal deaths of almost 2 million.

During the trip I read,  “At First They Killed My Father” a little girl’s autobiographical account of the Khmer Rouge’s siege of Phnom Penh, the restructuring of the country and the systematic killing of their own people. This book provides a riveting and heartbreaking account of this tragedy from a four year-old’s perspective. Once I arrived in Phnom Penh I visited two memorial sites to the genocide, the Killing Fields and Tuel Sleng. The Killing Fields were literally fields where prisoners of the Khmer Rouge were killed. Prisoners were blindfolded and murdered with tools like hoes and axes, while propaganda music blared from speakers to muffle their screams. Bullets were too expensive. Soldiers would grab children by the legs and bash them against a tree, and there was a specific tree they used. Then they were dumped in mass graves. A well-produced audio tour guides you around the site where excavated graves sit as depressions in the grass.

During rains storms bits of clothing and bone still surface, and caretakers collect these. In the middle of the field there is a memorial stupa (Buddhist shrine), which houses hundreds of skulls of the victims. It is a sobering and macabre site.

Many of the victims who ended up at the killing fields were transported from Tuel Slan (S21). This was a school turned into a detainment and torture center. It has since been turned into a museum. It’s an eerie museum, which features the original jail cells, the barbed wire that kept prisoners from jumping to kill themselves and the occasional bloodstain. Surprisingly, only now are some of the leaders who were responsible for this killing facing a UN war crimes tribunal. The world seemed not to know what was going on here, or chose to ignore it.

Phnom Penh is a hectic city, but I gained a bit of peace along the riverside, which is quite pretty. They’re groups of people do dancing aerobics, friends chatting and children playing. Venture inland and the regular mix of stores and outdoor markets are side by side with working girl bars and massage parlors. Many people come into Phnom Penh for the sex tourism which seems very open, more so than Thailand. Later on in my trip I spoke with a documentarian that did a film on the child business here. There is a specific place outside of the city that specializes in children for the interested perv. Ok I am not really selling Cambodia yet am I?

On a positive note there are shooting ranges in the area and I took the opportunity to fire off a round of a M-4, a shiny new automatic weapon. Overall the experience was a bit of a let down as it was over so quickly (that’s what she said) but it was pretty awesome to experience the raw power the killing machine had (that’s what…oh never mind).  But in all seriousness, later I took a lovely ride through the villages outside of the city, which was a nice way to get a glimpse of the village life.

I went with Blazing Trails on a half-day tour through rice fields, villages and country. Little kids along the path were used to the ATV rumble and would run out to greet us. It was so darn cute these kids were just happy to say hello.

Cambodian kids are adorable. One aside, if I was a professional photographer I would do a series on toddlers on the front of motorbikes. I am horrified by it; one at the lack of helmet, and two the lack of seatbelt. But I also think its so freakin adorable, these little faces squinting with wind in their eyes and their hair flying about.

After a couple of days in the city I booked a bus to Sihanoukville, the main beach hub on the southern coast. I avoided downtown and headed to Otres beach. Otres is a quieter beach that is a little tricky to get to, so less people come. It is one of the places a traveler looking for an ideal beach comes, and ends up staying. It’s the perfect mix of relaxed vibe, good social scene and beautiful sunsets. Forbes listed it as one of the top 22 beaches in the world. There are no big developments yet, and it feels like a small town. I stayed in a room at a small Cambodian family owned guesthouse / beach shack. It was a hefty 5$ a night so I decided to stay for a bit.

I want to come back and do a reality show of the characters there at the beach, including the owners Oocha Bar. These hard drinking Aussies who invite patrons not just to just drink, but to “contend.” These bar owners probably get drunker than their patrons, but are having a good time doing it. I arrived here first in Otres. A couple of friends I made on the bus down knew the bar owner, so stopped here first before finding a place to stay. It started to pour heavily, so the only thing to do was pour a beer and get to know the locals. Soon I was watching one of the bar owners guzzle from a beer bong while being tazed willingly, by a tazer that was being played with.

After five days of some serious r & r at the beach I headed back to Phnom Penh. My first mission was to get more pages in my passport. I felt proud of myself for reaching this travel milestone. I visited the U.S. Embassy, and it was nice to see old faithful flapping in the wind. Later I saw a sign for the international Cambodian film festival. I looked it up online and it was three days of movies, documentaries and shorts. I decided to stay in Phnom Penh and binge on films.

I’ll spare the details of what I saw, but it was really cool to see Cambodia through various filmmakers’ lenses.  There were a few docs on the atrocities of the Khmer Rouge, which further punctuated the horror stories from the memorial and museum.  There were also some documentaries, which highlighted the decline of the old ways in small villages as old school tribes cope with the modern world.

Next I was on to Battanbang for a taste of a quieter town. It’s the fourth biggest city in Cambodia, but seems like worlds away from the hustle and bustle in Phnom Penh. It’s also less tourist-centric which is nice. I met an American on the bus ride over, EJ from Oregon, and we hit it off. We ended up staying at the same guesthouse, and how could we not for 4.50$ a night for private rooms. We ended up grabbing drinks that night and had our first (and only) encounter with a Cambodian beer girl.

EJ and I decided to have beer at a local place nearby. Then a girl for Cambodia Beer came over and offered us beer. We gladly accepted and then she sat down with us and kept pouring us beers. Her English was non-existent. She had a manager there too whose English was not much better. They both shared our beers and some smiles. Then the manager started pointing at Esmerelda (the closest English approximation of her name we could decipher) and I nefariously. OK. I get it…I read that some of these beer girls double as working girls. He then kind of pushed our heads together as if I didn’t understand, and said, ”boom boom.” Hmmm…I used my best sign language and broken English to indicate,  “no boom boom.” (a wagging finger, followed by pounding fists).  We did get free Cambodia Beer hats out of the deal. We were quite amused with Esmeralda’s eager to please attitude, but soon parted ways with no boom-boom.

The next day I woke up feeling awful, and it wasn’t a hangover. I had a fever. My first fear was malaria, so I headed over to the local clinic, and got some blood tests. I did have a 102-degree fever, but not Malaria. The doctor suspected Dengue Fever. It sounded cool, but bad too. My fever broke the next day, and the following day I went for a follow up. No Dengue…it seemed like simple tonsillitis. I’ll take it. I was pretty tired so I took it easy for a few days in Battanbang. Time was running out to get to Siem Reap, so I took a bus after three days on the mend.

Siem Reap is the popular hub for visiting the great temples of the Angkor period. This includes, but is not limited too Angkor Wat, Bayon and Ta Prohm (made famous by the Movie Tomb Raider with Angelina Jolie). I awoke before dawn and my Tuk Tuk driver took me to Angkor Wat for sunrise. Some argue this is one of the largest religious temples in the word. Indian structures and Hinduism influence it heavily. It’s meant to evoke a mountain climbing towards the gods.

As it’s tourist peak season I am not the only one who was up for sunrise and I would guess at least 200 others were there too to get the perfect snap. The temple is so grand in scale.  Detailed bas-reliefs run along the outside of one the courtyards, and they highlight centuries of history.  Next was Bayon, which is known for its huge sculpted heads, and it’s convoluted structure.

Successive kings built over the existing structure many time so it’s maze like, enormous and impressive. The last temple of note was Ta Prohm. It was the only temple in the vicinity left close to its natural state. Gigantic Silk Cotton Trees and smaller Strangler Fig Trees and sculpted rock live side by side and create a beautiful effect.

Visiting the temples was an epic climactic way to end my trip. The country is a confluence of grandeur, history, chaos, beauty, grit and crazy freakin traffic. And no boom boom!

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Thailand

Thailand Part 2: Recovery & Relaxation

Link to Photos on Facebook

My sprained foot put my Thai kickboxing plans on ice. Speaking of ice, I needed a few days of recovery time before I was going anywhere. After a sad goodbye with Nicky, I parked myself in Ao Nang for a few days. I got into a rhythm of hobbling to the beach, swimming, reading and eating at the local restaurant, Family. There I dined on good cheap food and drank smoothies while listening to lounge covers of popular songs, included Smells Like Teen Spirit. Let the healing begin. I also took a Thai cooking course. It was a fun half day whirlwind introduction to Thai cooking. I got accused of being a lady boy by the teacher as I started to leave the course with my apron still on.

After a few days my foot improved, so I was able to change locations. I moved on to neighboring Railey beach, an ideal place to watch the sunset. While walking around the island looking for accommodation a girl in front of me was approached by a monkey and his gang. The monkey walked up to her and started climbing up her dress. She screamed as I started to come over to help. The monkey tore through her plastic bag holding fresh pizza. I had come over and started yelling at the monkey to scare it, but I am not scary to a monkey. He ran away with the pizza. Beware of monkeys when carrying pizza. After finding a nice bungalow, I caught a really beautiful sunset.

The next day I explored the area and ended up at the Phra Nang Cave beach which was ruggedly beautiful. It is cave surrounded by stalagmite covered cliffs.

There were climbers scaling the walls. Longtail boats come around lunch time and cook anything from traditional Thai food to sandwiches. Later that day during low tide I walked on the rocks along the beach to the adjacent Ton Sai beach. This is where the hardcore climbers and backpackers stay. It’s one of those places people come and stay for weeks. It’s still quiet and undeveloped thanks to a rocky beach front and lack of luxury accommodation.

It was Thanksgiving, so of course I had to have the traditional Thanksgiving pizza. I spent some time Skyping with my family. It was bizarre sitting outside with waves crashing behind me sporting a tank top. I have soooo much to be thankful for this year. I am thankful my family is healthy and happy, I’ve got a wonderful beautiful girlfriend and amazing friends. I am also so grateful for this opportunity to see and experience the world. I am lucky and glad I took the plunge. To be honest, I was a little thankful I didn’t have to do the hardcore training I was planning with the Thai kickboxing 🙂

I decided on a Thai massage class in lieu of kickboxing. I also decided to go to Chiang Mai in the north as I had heard wonderful things about it. Phuket was sounding sleazier and sleazier the more people I talked to as well.  I enrolled in a week long Introduction to Thai Massage at the Thai Massage School of Chiang Mai. Chiang Mai is wonderful charming city. It has a population around 1 million, but still feels like a small city. Part of the city is demarcated by the old moat, walls and gates originally built in the 13th Century. It exudes history, charm and friendliness. I spent the first day walking around town checking out different Wats (temples). First was Wat Pra Sang, an impressive temple and a buddhist monk school. While there I was captivated by Buddhist pearls of wisdom posted on trees in the garden.

Walking through the garden I met Mr. Chai. We started talking and he showed me around the temple and then recommended and accompanied me to restaurant for lunch. His friendliness was a nice introduction to Chiang Mai. After lunch I headed to another temple, Wat Srisuphan which is home to the silver temple and a silver works school. That evening, I walked through the Sunday night market. It’s a huge weekly market featuring every type of Thai craft and street food you can imagine. It runs through the center of the old town. I had a lot of fun taking pictures, especially of these guys.

It was time to start massage class. I was a bit nervous but soon relaxed once class started. 🙂 Each morning we were picked up via a Songtaew (red pick up with two benches in the back) and picked up the other students (almost all foreigners). We would start the day with tea and chatting, getting our temperatures read to make sure we weren’t sick and then slipping into our massage clothes.

Then we did some light exercises, a prayer to buddha and were given our lessons. The teacher would demonstrate techniques for certain part of the body and then we were off practicing on our partners. Class was a lot of fun, although I am not a huge fan of foot massages. I mean getting them is ok…but giving them? Not for this guy. The teachers didn’t speech great English, but still managed to teach us very well.

There was a market nearby where we would go for lunch. My regular became a soup stop which served chicken soup with noodles and vegetables. Yum. Dessert was a steamed chocolate bun the likes of which I had never seen. It was like a pork bun, but chocolate. I was in heaven. Lunch was long enough to allow for a brief nap on the massage class matts before the afternoon session. Ok, now I really am in heaven. Then we were off watching demonstrations and practicing. My two best friends in the class were Melissa (USA) and Sheryl (UK). We all stayed in the same guesthouse and ended up exploring the city together in the evenings.

I was sad to say goodbye to class, new friends and practicing massage all day. I did get a lot out of the five days and am ready to practice,but I was ready for adventure too. The next three days were packed with an introduction to Reiki, an action packed trek day and a day with the elephants. Sheryl signed up for an introduction to Reiki class during the middle of the week and my curiosity was peaked…what was this energy healing all about? Rod at the Chiang Mai Body and Mind Center gave us no nonsense introduction which I enjoyed. He explained that each one of us contains the power to heal with our hands, and we do it instinctively but the practice of Reiki puts you more in touch with that innate skill and allows you to amplify it. After some relaxation techniques, chanting and our first self Reiki session for twenty minutes I definitely felt very at peace and relaxed.

The next day was all about action. I signed up for tour which included an elephant ride, hike to a waterfall, whitewater rafting and a bamboo raft ride. The elephant ride was fun, but didn’t compare to my experience the next day at Patara Elephant Farm. It was amazing being on top of such a huge beast. The waterfall was a fun hike, an hour there and hour back. The whitewater rafting was the highlight, and there were a couple rapids that were big enough to get the adrenaline going. I was up front and had a front row seat to watch my seat mate across from me falling out of the boat into the river when we hit the rapids sideways. He made it out alive and was ok. The bamboo raft ride is better in theory than it practice. Sitting on the bamboo we were half submerged in water, and it was anticlimactic after the whitewater.

My last full day was spent at the Patara Elephant Farm and it was such an amazing way to end my Chiang Mai visit. The day program is billed as own an elephant for the day. After arriving, the owner, Pat gave us an introduction to the farm, told us why it was unique from the other elephant camps and what we would be doing. Patara is focused on breeding elephants as their numbers have diminished drastically in the last 50 years. They take healthy elephants, provide them with a lot of land to roam on, even secluded honeymoon trips when the women are in heat. Our responsibilities were to take care of the elephants including: daily inspection, brushing, washing and feeding. Then we had some fun riding and swimming with them.

Fun facts about elephants…their poop doesn’t smell, unless they’re sick. You want to see six pellets of poo at least. It’s about three hours from eating to pooping. They sleep four hours a day. If they sleep standing up it means they’re sick as they know they wouldn’t be able to get back up. You can tell if they slept on the ground by inspecting the dirt marks on their skin. Happy and healthy elephants ears and tails wag and they sweat (only above their toenails).

Each person got their own elephant to take care of for the day. Mine was Boon Jien, a big teenage male. I was worried he was going to be a bit unruly given his age, gender and the warnings from the trainers. First we started with feeding the elephants which is how you bond with them. I literally was sticking bananas in his mouth while it closed on my hand and huge tongue slurped me as I pulled my hand away.

Then we got to wash and brush them in the river. Proper skin care is important for elephant health to avoid infection. After the river they demonstrated how to get on the elephant. He lifts his leg of off the ground and creates a little ladder for you by bending his lower and upper leg.

Then you climb up his shoulder and swing your leg around. Boy is it HIGH up there. No safety harness, just your knees tucked snuggly up at the top of the elephants ears and faith.

After a ride and lunch we got to swim with them. There was a nine month old baby elephant who was cute, mischievous and loved playing. I had fun with him in the water as we were trying to push each other over. I was instructed to get him from the side from the trainers. I learned quickly I had no chance facing him head on. The day was a special one. It was nice to see the elephants so well taken care of.

I was sad to leave Chiang Mai. It is a special place; the friendliness of the people, the inexpensive food and lodging, perfect weather, the history, the markets, the massages all make for it a city you can feel comfortable, welcome and relaxed in. I was about to embark on city that was a little less welcoming, less relaxing and whose recent history has been marked with genocide.