Top 10 things I miss while traveling

I'm currently on an excruciating 24 hour bus ride through Vietnam, from Saigon to Hoi An. The roads are so bumpy they have me bouncing around in my seat like a piece of popcorn popping. There couldn't be a better time to blog. April 1st will mark 5 months of traveling thus far. Do I get homesick? Yes. It usually comes in waves every 2 months and only lasts a couple of days, but it still happens. I'm only human. What can I say? Then I remind myself how less exciting life is when I'm not traveling and that usually cures it quickly.
When I'm oceans away from home, and absolutely nothing is familiar to me, there are some things I miss more than others. Here's the list I've compiled:


1. My pup, Harley.
She's like a daughter to me. She's as sweet as honey. I've had her as a puppy, and she'll be 10 next month! Are you wondering who takes care of her while I'm on these international escapades? The only people I would trust with the job, my parents. She has a good life while I'm gone at their home in Minnesota. But she's not really a dog, you see, she's more like a human. I love her more than I've ever loved a human. And that's the truth :)

2. My family.
My adorable niece and nephew are growing up quickly and I wish I was more present in their lives. We do see each other on Skype though. What a brilliant program. Also, both my grandmas are having health issues and I wish I was by their sides in their last years/months/days.

cutie patooties

3. My friends.
I grew up in a small town in SW Minnesota. Population 4,500. Lots of farm land and lots of cows. I loved it. I always knew I'd travel the world someday. One day, something snapped inside of me, and I decided it was time to make this dream a reality. I got a taste of the world.... and the rest is history! Thankfully, I still have strong bonds with the friends I grew up with.


I chose an entirely different life path than they did. They live the conventional life with husbands and kids. My life is, well, unconventional. To each their own. We get along just the same. No matter where I am in this great big world, these girls will always be close to me.


4. My Vitamix.
In the states, hardly a day went by in my house when you didn't hear the deafening loud grind coming from my smoothie maker. In my opinion, this is one of the most spectacular man-made machines ever made. My usual was a delicious mixture of avocado, blueberries, strawberries, mangos, raspberries, flax seeds and almond milk. Thank you, Vitamix, for enhancing my life. I can't wait to bring you to Hawaii with me.


5. Almond butter.

Seriously! Have you tried this stuff? It's soooo good! This is my staple back home. My body must be confused from the abrupt cut-off from it. Sadly, I can't find it anywhere in these third world countries that I'm traipsing through. I guess the rest of the world hasn't caught on to this dreamy spread yet. In their defense, it is a little spendy.


6. Access to healthy food.

When I get back to the US, I'll convert back to my extremely healthy eating habits. No more fried and processed food for this diva. For now, I must eat what is available. It's called survival!
I'm also putting "lack of a regular workout routine" in this category.


6. Good ol' American customer service. *sigh*
Other countries don't quite grasp this concept. We take it for granted as Americans. It can be very frustrating to come across this utter lack of customer service in foreign countries. The conversation with the boyfriend on the phone is usually more important than helping customers. Oh, and sleeping on the job is ok, too. "The customer is always right" doesn't fly here. Quite frequently, I find myself thinking "This would never happen in the US!"

What I miss the most is the smoking ban in the US. As I type this, the bus driver is passionately puffing away on his cancer stick as he drives, with all the windows closed. This is the same driver that has refused to pull over for the last 5 hours to give his customers a bathroom break. It's NOT OK to deprive someone of such an important bodily function, and it's NOT OK to smoke on the bus! (cough, cough!) The more I travel, the more I realize just how easy it is to live in the US. It could be A LOT worse. So quit your complaining!
Safety standards also fall into this category. Sometimes it gets sketchy, and downright dangerous.


7. Driving a vehicle.
There's something about the freedom of the open road. These days I get around by bus, train, plane, boat, bicycle, tuk-tuk, moped, camel.....


8. Using my cell phone.
Being able to use the internet freely, without having to search for a wi-fi hotspot. I miss googling random things on my phone. It makes me feel smarter. Smarter than I already am. Ah hem!


9. Getting a good night's sleep in my own bed.
I long for my down comforter and fluffy mattress pad, along with my little doggie snuggling next to me. Simple creature comforts. I rarely get a good nights sleep when I travel. Many factors contribute to this. You wouldn't believe the places I've slept in during my journeys around the world. Airports, train stations, filthy hotel rooms infested with cockroaches, park benches, and local homes with large uninvited rats.
I've slept on beds that were soley a piece of plywood with a sheet on top, bumpy buses and creaky trains with fussy babies, bed-bug-biting hostel beds in eastern Europe, seedy hotels requiring a chair wedged against the doorknob in Egypt, shivering cold in a dark, dingy room in Tibet, scrunched up on planes for 17 hours straight, hotels in Bangkok with wall-shaking loud music all night, attempted 1am break-in by a drunk in Phnom Penh, a 3am funeral procession with a full-on brass band outside my window in Vietnam.... oh boy, the list goes on. My goodness, now that I think about it, it's a miracle I'm still alive!
My quiet, fluffy bed at home will feel like a 5 star luxury!
Words of advice: always have ear plugs handy while traveling!


10. Using big words and talking fast.
In most of the countries that I travel to, English is not the first language. Even if I'm talking to a local that does speaks English, I still have to talk slower than normal and use simpler words. Frankly, I just miss being around fluent English speakers. Skyping with my family and friends back home, I find myself speaking a lot slower and finding ways to say things more simply. I catch myself and realize I can talk really fast and use more complicated words with them. Yippee!


Maybe you've noticed from my blog, but my vocabulary is slowly slipping. But I'm just not exposed to people that use big words. Most of them only know basic English. So please forgive me for my kindergarten talk :)


So there you have it, the top 10 things I miss while I'm roaming the world. What's on your list?

I shot an AK-47 and I liked it!

Coming to Vietnam, I was naturally interested in the war that took place here. We call it "The Vietnam War", the Vietnamese call it "The American War". It's an important part of American history, as well as Vietnam's.

Just outside of Ho Chi Minh City, there are intricate underground tunnel systems that the Vietnamese lived in and used to escape American troops during the war. They are called the Cú Chi tunnels. I took a tour to see them with my own eyes.

First, we were shown a short documentary film. It depicted the American army as "crazy American devils" who shot their chickens and pots and pans. I stifled my laughter at this nickname given to Americans. I could hardly blame them though. I had no right to judge their one-sided portrayal. I was, after all, on their territory.

Next we were guided through the jungle and shown hiding spots underground used by the Vietnamese.
 

secret hiding spot

Yikes! Watch out for this boobie trap1

We finally reached the famous underground Cù Chi tunnels. We crawled through these highly claustrophobic spaces on our hands and knees. Unbelievably, during the war, the Vietnamese lived in these tiny spaces. They were obviously not made for the larger stature American.
 

Exiting the tiny tunnel

Later, we had the opportunity to shoot our choice of a gun. It cost $16 for 10 bullets. I vaguely remember shooting a rifle once in the basement with my dad as a young child. But guns have always given me the heebie jeebies. I usually want nothing to do with them. But traveling is about overcoming fears, right?

There were about 7 different guns to choose from. Machine gun, AK-47, M16 and..... um, some other big guns. I'm clueless when it comes to firearms. My weapon of choice was an AK-47, because it sounded good.

Earlier, during the tour through the jungle, the eerie sound from these machine guns rang out from the nearby shooting range, making the battles that took place on this very land imaginable.

Donning ear protection, a Vietnamese man guided me to the shooting range. I danced around a little with an excited fear. Speaking little English, he simply showed me the trigger and put his hand against my shoulder to lessen the blow from the kickback. My heart was beating wildly as I squeezed the trigger. POP! POP! POP! The shots were deafening even with ear protection on. The power from this piece of metal was mind blowing, causing a trembling adrenaline rush within me. I'll admit, I liked it! I felt like Rambo.
 

Now that I know how to shoot this dangerous weapon, you better watch out, if you mess with me, I could put a cap in your a$$! ;)

I'm kidding.
I'd use the machine gun.

On a more serious note, the Vietnamese war had a personal impact on me and my family. My uncle, Vern, fought in the Vietnam war and subsequently died in 1996 after a long battle with cancer caused by agent orange. Agent orange is the herbicide that was used by the US army to destroy the crops and foliage in Vietnam, with the intention of robbing the enemy of food and eliminating hiding possibilities. This toxic chemical was later found to cause cancer and birth defects.


American tank

It saddens me that my aunt was left as a widow and my uncle was prematurely robbed of his life from something so senseless as war. It seems so unfair. Agent orange also causes birth defects in following generations. The Vietnamese people have also suffered severely from agent orange and continue to 'til this day. Their soil is still tainted with the poisonous substance. The same soil that saw so much bloodshed in the past.
I'm not a fan of war. At all.

 When will the government come to their senses and realize that war is not the way to come to an agreement?

Cambodian orphanage

Angelina Jolie adopted her first son, Maddox, from an orphanage in Phnom Penh, Cambodia in 2002. She fell in love with Cambodia after filming "Tomb Raider" in Angkor Wat, and also helped put Cambodia on the map.

I wanted to see for myself what kind of conditions these less fortunate children live in prior to entering a more privileged world.


I asked my tuk-tuk driver to bring me to any random orphanage in Phnom Penh. After asking for directions 6 times, we finally arrived at the orphanage, but not before stopping at a toy store. I bought a badmitten set, a ball, puzzles, legos and a popular hacky sack game for the orphanage kids. I thought this would be more beneficial to them than candy, like some tourists feel the need to hand out.


The minute I arrived, a group of 10 energetic children bombarded me and grabbed my hands, arms and skirt. They greeted me with high-pitched "hello's", then immediately tugged me away to play with them. The coordinator of the orphanage told them to pipe down for a minute while I spoke. I told him I was interested in seeing the orphanage and how the children live. He agreed to show me around after I wrote down my name and passport number.

The majority of the children were off-site attending school. The children are aged 4 to 20. There are currently 108 living there. Some were abandoned as newborns, and some of them were orphaned after their parents were killed by land mines from the war. Throughout Cambodia, you will see many land mine victims with missing limbs, often begging for money. It's heart breaking, yet disturbing at the same time.


The children sleep in dorm style rooms with bunk beds. There was a classroom on site where English classes were given. There was also a garden where they grew vegetables, but this had come to a standstill due to the lack of supplies.


The group of children followed us around during the entire tour like little puppies. They were eager to see what I had brought them in my plastic bag. One at a time, I presented them with each of the toys. Their faces lit up and they squealed in delight like it was Christmas morning. I didn't see any other toys laying around. I'm guessing toys are not a priority around here. They drug me off to play with them and their new toys. Feeling like a kid myself, we played on the dirt ground in the orphanage's courtyard. The coordinator went back to his office, allowing me one-on-one time with these sweet kids. After the sun was too hot to handle, we sat together in the shade on a bench swing. I asked them their names and their ages. They were anywhere from 5-13. Some of the children's English was very good, some was minimal.

Rock, paper, scissors

I was surprised at how quickly they warmed up to me. They immediately trusted me. Soon, they were fighting for space on my lap, tightly wrapping their arms in mine and cuddling close to me. I was their new best friend. I asked them if they like it at the orphanage. They all responded enthusiastically with "yes!" Later on, the 13 year old boy that spoke the best English told me that all of their parents were dead. The coordinator said a lot of the children had been found living on the street and trying to fend for themselves. Some were working as garbage pickers at the landfill.


Can you imagine your 5 year old living this life?


Miraculously, after this rough start to life, most of them still seemed to have their innocence. It's incredible how resilient kids are.


I asked the 13 year-old boy what he wanted to be when he grew up, he said "a police officer."
"That's really good! You will have a very good job!", I encouraged him. I was happy to hear that he had goals.


As we chatted, the younger ones climbed on me, struggling for my attention. I acted as their temporary motherly figure. It seemed like they were longing for affection. I gave all of them my attention and tried to make each one feel special. "If I could just bring one home with me, I could show them a life they deserve" I thought.

Later I asked the coordinator if the children were up for adoption. He said that these children would stay here until they were adults.
"But they need more love, parental love!" I thought, sadly.


After a good amount of time spent with the smaller kids, the English class for the older boys was beginning and the Cambodian teacher invited me to sit in during the class.


The student boys were around 15 years old and very intelligent. Only English was allowed to be spoken in the classroom. That day, they were learning verbs, like "going to." They each gave examples. The teacher also asked for examples from me. His English was very good but there were still times when he asked for me to correct his English. It was apparant that they needed a native English speaking teacher.


In the classroom, there were inspirational quotes encouraging dreams and goals. They even had a couple computers......very old computers.


After English class, I hung out with 3 extremeley sweet little girls. They were beautiful.

The oldest wanted to use my camera. I handed it to her and showed her which button to press. I was amazed by how quickly she picked up on it. She took this adorable picture:
 

Soon it was time for them to eat supper (rice and vegetable soup), so I said goodbye to these precious children and left with a smile and warmed heart.


In conclusion, life at this orphanage isn't so bad. I know that orphanages in other corners of the world can be horrific, but this one was alright. Even though it's a tedious process, I would love to adopt internationally one day. I imagine it's a mutually rewarding experience. Visiting this orphanage was another step closer to this stage in my life.


I was still in a giving mood when I got back to my hotel, so I went through my backpack and gathered a bag full of clothes and shoes. Cambodia is a country filled with such warm locals, which makes me want to give back somehow. They've been so hospitable to me while I've been here.

With my bag in hand, I headed down to the river, where I had seen numerous poor locals earlier. I walked along the river, looking for the perfect person to give my belongings to. I saw a gentle looking lady with 4 small kids, all were barefoot, including her. Her weary eyes lit up as I approached her. I opened the bag and started to show her the clothing and shoes. A lot of them were brand name, such as American Eagle and Hollister. She's going to be stylin'! She was elated to see there were sandals in the bag. Her children feverishly tore the clothes out of the bag with such force that the bagged ripped in half. She scolded them, then appreciatively put her hands together in a prayer gesture to thank me. I returned the gesture. She needed them a lot more than I did. I walked away contently.


As the saying goes, 'Tis better to give than to receive....

Somber killing fields of Cambodia

While in Phnom Penh, I decided to visit the Choeung Ek killing fields, where thousands of Cambodians were murdered after the Khmer rouge regime took over in the 70's. These tragic events were very similar to what happened during the holocaust. I had the opportunity to visit Dachau concentration camp while I was in Germany, so I knew the kind of somber experience I was in for. The killing fields are an important part of the Cambodians history. It's absolutely unbelievable that something this atrocious happened. All together, nearly 4 million Cambodians were killed. 4 million!

One of the mnay mass graves

Whats even more shocking is the fact that it happened in the not-so-distant past. 1975-1979. Just shortly before I was brought into this world. It's hard to fathom the fact that genocides have occurred all around the world. How can human beings be so ruthless?


I hired a tuk-tuk to drive me to the outskirts of Phnon Penh to these killing fields. My tuk-tuk driver's name was "John". He told me his brother and sister were killed in the S-21 prison.


As I listened to my audio guide, I walked on the land where these horrific acts took place. The audio-guide provided commentaries from actual survivors. How can you ever be the same after going through something like that?


There were stories of babies being bludgeoned to death and guards smashing the prisoners skulls on a tree in order to save bullets. Loud music was played to drown out the screams of the victims. Different torture devices were also used. Pieces of clothes, shards of bones and teeth can still be seen on these haunting grounds, more continue to resurface with heavy rain. Numerous skulls were on display, many with fractures.

teeth and bones from victims

It gave me goosebumps to be present in a place that saw such a great deal of suffering. A place where so many lives were taken. It was uncomfortable.


After visiting the humbling killing fields, I visited the Tuol Sleng museum, the location of the S-21 prison, where many Cambodians were held as prisoners and tortured before being murdered. There were countless eerie mug shots of the victims upon arrival.

Many of them had blood splattered on their faces. The look of horror in their eyes was heart breaking.

I shuffled through the display slowly, looking into each of their black eyes, deeply sensing their fear and paying my respect. It made me outraged that such horrific crimes were committed against these people that I truly have grown a liking for. My sweet, friendly Cambodians! Such beautiful people! How could someone have treated them like this?!

I choked back tears as I saw pictures of woman with their precious babies. The babies were murdered in front of them. In one mug shot, a mother held her sleeping infant, who looked so peaceful. She had no idea what was going to happen next. She never had a chance to experience all the wonderful things in life.


I read witness accounts from lucky survivors of the gruesome sights they were exposed to and terrible conditions they endured. The girl standing next to me was sobbing. I had to walk away before my own tears fell.


There were pictures of dead bodies of prisoners in the electrocution rooms that were tortured to death. They did nothing to deserve this atrocious treatment.

I walked by a picture of Pol Pot, the Cambodian man responsible for these horrific acts, the leader of the Khmer rouge regime. I felt an intense hatred towards this man. What was wrong with him?! How can anyone be so cruel? I just don't understand it. I felt a little bit of peace knowing he was now rotting in hell. What's even more perplexing is the fact that the ones that committed the killings were Cambodians! Cambodians killing Cambodians.

I floated out of the prison with a blank face, trying to process everything I just saw, my throat tight from holding back tears. As we drove back through the city, I looked at the passing faces of my beloved Cambodians in a different light. I now knew what kind of pain they had suffered. And still, they smile, always smiling! What an amazing culture.

I apologize if this was difficult for you to read. Can you imagine what is was like to actually be there? As hard as it is to visit these sites, it's so very important we are aware of what happened, so this may never happen again.
There aren't too many things I can think of that are more senseless than war.

A walk through Phonm Penh market

A stroll through a market in Phonm Penh, Cambodia. A plethora of sights, sounds and smells. Everyday stuff for me.
The meat and fish section is extra difficult for this vegetarian!

Exploring Angkor Wat

The #1 attraction in Siem Reap, or all of Cambodia for that matter, is the impressive ruins from the ancient city of Angkor Wat. One of the 7 wonders of the world, it was built in the 11th century and is the largest religious monument ever constructed.

I decided to buy a 3 day pass to Angkor Wat, which cost $40. The other option was a 1 day pass for $20. I didn't think this would be a sufficient amount of time to explore the sprawling 37 sq. miles of the ancient city.

Due to the massive size of Angkor Wat, it's a good idea to hire a tuk-tuk driver for the day. This will cost about $20 for the entire day.
Each site is about 1-2 km apart. At each stop, locals rushed over to try to sell me anything from postcards and hand fans to water and clothes.

One time when my tuk-tuk arrived at a temple, I saw a lady get up out of her chair with such abruptness it made my heart jump. I thought her hut was on fire or something! Out of fear, I held my hand over my heart. I saw she was grabbing the menu for her restaurant and rushing over to me before anyone else got to me. "Hello, lady! Are you hungry? Cold drink?" she yelled, running up to me frantically. Relieved, I started laughing and said, "You scared me! Oh my gosh!" We laughed together for a while before I bought a bottle of water from her. I figured if she had to go to such extreme lengths to make a sale, life must be hard.

They have their children in on the act, too. 2 or 3 surrounded me at a time. With a voice that would get progressively more whiney, they would beg me, "Buy postcard, lady? Need money for school. You buy. Ok, lady?" towering above them, I looked down into their pleading brown eyes. "How old are you?", I'd ask. I got answers anywhere from 4-10 years old. They were so small for their age. I wanted to bring them back to the US with me and show them what a good life is like.
I did buy the postcards from them. Now I have 10 postcards to mail to friends and family :)

In the early morning hours, some of the ruins were void of any tourists. As I traipsed through the ancient city solo, the only sounds I heard were the buzzing of bugs, singing from birds and the soft tapping of my sandals on the ancient stones.

I tried to imagine what the city looked like at the height of the ancient Khmer era.

One of the temples I visited was where Angelina Jolie filmed "Tomb Raider".

The large trees are desperately trying to engulf this city, intertwining it's way through windows, doorways and scaling up walls.

Watching the sunrise over Angkor Wat is a must. Brushing the sleep from my eyes at 5 am, I made my way to Angkor Wat with my hired tuk-tuk driver. I found a spot on the mats set out by the little pond that provided the perfect view of Angkor Wat. I sat next to an older German gentleman that had a gentle spirit and the prettiest baby blue eyes I've ever seen.

We chatted sporadically as we patiently waited for the big ball of fire to make it's appearance.

As it began to rise, the sky turned from pinkish purple to an orangish yellow and eventually to blue. It was magnificent....

Angkor Wat, just another reason to love Cambodia!

"Hello, Lady!"

Entering another country is like opening a Christmas present. You never know exactly what you're going to get.

2 things are essential when arriving in a foreign country: obtaining local currency and learning how to say "hello" and "thank you" in the local language, at the very least. In Cambodia, it was easy, they speak English and the US dollar is widely used. They have their own currency, the Riel, but prefer to use the American dollar. Works for me!

The "15 hour" bus journey from Laos to Cambodia turned out to be an excruciating 29 hours, exactly as I predicted. It still boggles my mind why the local Laotians fabricate stories about how long it takes to get to your destination. I chalk it up to the fact that tourism is fairly new in Laos. Hopefully this will improve over the years. Bus journey lengths are a hot topic among tourists traveling in Laos. But, you have to learn to deal with it. Always double the time they tell you, problem solved. Ha!

I immediately felt a different vibe after crossing the border into Cambodia. It was a very good vibe, which provided me with tremendous relief. Cambodia's vibe is much lighter and happier than Laos.

The first thing I heard from a Cambodian man when I stepped off the bus was, "Hello, lady! Tuk-tuk?" I burst out laughing.

"Lady?" I replied to the brown skinned man smiling ear to ear. It sounded so funny to hear such plain English coming out of his mouth. I was accustomed to Laos, where locals speak little to no English. I guess "Hello, Lady!" has been determined by the locals to be the best way to get the attention of a female foreigner.

These days, I get called "lady" at least 50 times a day. Each time it cracks me up. Sometimes I respond to their "hello, lady!" with "hello, man!" They seem to think this is pretty funny.

Cambodians are extremely friendly. They have a vibrant charisma to them. A zest for life, if you will. They are beautiful people, inside and out.

The children are especially adorable. They wave and also greet me with the ubiquitous "hello, lady!"

Venturing into the rural landscape outside of Siem Reap, I see scrawny Cambodian children riding a bike 10 times too big for him or her. It's quite comical. They can't even reach the seat. They are so cute! Maybe I'll follow in Angelina Jolie's footsteps and adopt my own Cambodian baby :)

Even though this is one of the poorest nations in the world, the people are resistantly happy. Cambodia should be dubbed the land of smiles, instead of Thailand. Their smiles are bountiful and purely genuine.

I'm still puzzled by the fact that everybody stares at me in Cambodia. I don't think much has changed since Laos, where they barely acknowledged my presence. Its a very curious stare and is always accompanied with a smile, so I don't mind. Their happy attitude is contagious, which causes me to wear a permanent smile. I feel so happy here, I don't think it would be possible to feel any happier. There's something about this country....

But it hasn't always been unicorns and lollipops for Cambodians.

They've seen their fair share of hardship. In 1975, the Khmer Rouge's totalitarian regime left 4 million Cambodians dead. Very sad. Not to mention that in the 60's the US was dropping bombs on them.

As I breeze through the peaceful green countryside in a tuk-tuk, it's hard to imagine that these horrific times ever existed.

We should all be grateful that we don't have to collect our own cow's poop to burn for cooking and staying warm. Because that's what they do in third world countries, in case you didn't know. Using their bare hands, they pack the poo into patties while it's still warm. Think of this the next time you nonchalantly turn the dial on your stove.

through Cambodia on a tuk-tuk

I feel like a good portion of Americans are clueless when it comes to third world countries. Since Americans aren't known for being well trodden travelers, we rely on information from the news. Well, my friends, sorry to burst your bubble, but that's an inaccurate perception.

Traveling is the best form of education money can buy. Forget Harvard, go travel!

Hello, Lady! Its a big world out there, go explore it!

So long, Laos

I was afraid that my travels through Morocco had broken my travel spirit. It left me feeling jaded. Once I arrived in Thailand, I realized that Morocco had actually renewed my spirit. Everything seemed so much better after that. I felt a lot more tolerable, like I did when I first started traveling. This quality helped me tremendously while in Laos.

I got a general "fed up" attitude from other people traveling through Laos.  They were sick of all the shenanigans. Nothing was ever as it seemed. A 2 hour bus ride was actually 5. Not to mention it was the most bone-jarring ride of your life. It was bewildering to me why the locals would knowingly tell us it took 2 hours when it was downright impossible to drive that road in less than 5.

If you choose to hoof it to one of the sights, the dirt roads make it a miserable journey, unless you desire dust-coated lungs.

Laos is definitely for the hardy traveler. I was shocked to see a few travelers in their 70's, one on crutches. Omg, hardcore.

I prayed I didn't require any emergency treatment while in Laos, I could only imagine how prehistoric their facilities were. My best bet for mediocre care would be a hospital in Bangkok, but that would still be at least a half day of travel away.

 I'm going out on a limb and declaring Laos to be as dirty as India. Don't get me wrong, there's a lot of spectacular scenery here. It's a shame it has to be a third world country. I wonder what Alaska would look like as a third world country. Ufff, that makes me shudder.
 

The predominantly Buddhist locals working in the tourism industry will do anything to make a penny from the tourists. They feel the need to make false claims to make things look more appealing. They will say things like, "There's a toilet and air conditioning on the bus."

We buy the ticket for the bus.

There's no toilet. There's no air conditioning.
 

Another example: I bought a bottle of shampoo, it was half full :(

Sometimes at a shop, when you pay they will say "Sorry, no change."

After I pleasantly say, "Ok, I just won't buy it then.", they magically have the correct change. It's frustrating. There's so many inconsistencies in Laos that we take for granted in the US. You have to take everything with a grain of salt.
 What do you expect? We've come to one of the poorest countries in the world. The camera hanging around my neck costs more than the average Laotian makes in 6 months. All this money is tempting to them. They think a few swindled dollars from tourists is no big deal to us.

I sympathize with the locals. This is a poor country and the living is hard.

 Even though it's a communist country, it feels like there are no rules here, and definitely no safety standards. Anything goes.

However, as hard as I try, I really can't empathize with the fact that Laotians eat dogs. I'm not even going to get into that on this blog, but it does happen. They also eat rats. Why? It's beyond me.
 

grubs to eat~ yum!

All in all, Laos was a great experience for me. I've had a lot of fun here and I'm grateful I met my temporary travel mate, Ember, she is such an awesome girl. We got along so well.

I'm also delighted with the amount of tolerance I've found myself to have while in Laos. You learn so much about yourself while traveling.

 I'm on my way to the bus station, where I'll be catching a "15 hour" bus ride to Siem Reap, Cambodia. But I know better. That really means 30 hours. I'm sure it will make an interesting blog post.....

Peace out, Laos!

40 miles on a bicycle through Laos

The American girl, Ember, turned out to be a pretty groovy gal. We've decided to continue to travel together through Laos. It's probably better to stick together with all the shady business that goes on in Laos.

Me and Ember in bamboo hats

We are constantly discovering similarities between us. It's almost scary. She's also on a solo round-the-world trip.

After the loooong boat ride, we ended up in the nice, smaller town of Luang Prabang.

We both thought it would be a great idea to rent bikes and head out to see the stunning Kuang Si waterfall. We both knew we had an ambitious feat ahead of us. It would be a 40 mile trip!! We were both up for the adventure.

I can't seem to get enough adventure in my life. I think I'm an adventure addict.

It had all the makings of a perfect day: ADVENTURE, PHYSICAL ACTIVITY and NATURE, all wrapped into one CULTURAL experience. All of my favorite things!

After a little bargaining, we scored rugged mountain bikes for $5 a day. Sweet! We had an early morning rise and were on our way to the waterfall by 9am.

We passed through small villages lined with wooden shacks and locals going about their daily routines. We were able to see the scenery at our own pace, instead of whizzing by on a bus or taxi. The road began fairly flat, but then, much to our dismay, turned extremely hilly. We pumped as hard as we could up the steep hills, our quads feeling like there were hot pokers embedded in them. Everyime we saw a steep hill ahead, we would grumble "Arghh, another hill!" Once at the top of each hill, we coasted down with the warm Laos air streaming through our hair. Southeast Asia has a funny way of making you feel FREE! It's so much fun here!

At times, we reached dangerously high speeds and our brakes would squeak loudly as we attempted to avoid a deadly situation on the windey roads.

We passed by so many surreal sights along this lengthy journey. As the green rice paddy fields passed us by, I thought, "This is exactly what I pictured Laos to be."

We passed by cute Laotian kids playing unsupervised on the road, they would reach their hands out for a high-five as we passed by. We breezed by cock-a-doodle-do'ing roosters, lazy water buffalo's, woman nursing infants on their porches, flimsy bamboo huts, locals walking under umbrellas for shade, woman washing clothes in streams, local schools with uniformed children congregating with friends in the schoolyard, workers in the fields wearing coned bamboo hats, and families eating outdoors together.

This stretch of land was unspoiled by tourism. But, Laos as a whole isn't exactly a popular vacation destination.

It feels very primitive here. The undeveloped infrastructure makes it very difficult to travel here. A 2 hour bus ride can easily turn into 5 hours.

As we pedaled through these small villages, we called out a friendly "sab-ah-dee!" (hello) to the locals. Some would giggle shyly.

Once we arrived at Kuang Si waterfall, we were greeted by small descending pools of clear blue water. It was a tropical paradise oasis.

A short hike through the jungle brought us to the spectacularly big waterfall. It was breathtaking and definitely worth all the sweat and hard work.

Me and Ember were looking forward to soaking our sore muscles in the water, but one dip of our toes changed our minds quickly. It was ice cold! But we still winced our way in half way. We enjoyed a much needed rest at this idyllic spot and gained back our strength with fresh fruit bought from a local vendor.

The 20 mile ride back went by surprisingly quick. Once we got back to Luang Prabang, we started to see the familiar sights of shaved-head orange-robed monks, the night market and heavier traffic. I felt exhausted, but in a good way. It was a perfect day. I would say it was one of my best day in Southeast Asia so far. Good views with great company. What more could I ask for?

That night, we slept like babies..... babies with very sore bums :)

Getting swindled in Laos

I'll admit, I'm pretty proud of my ability to see through the lies I'm told from people trying to make a profit from me as a tourist. It's a trait that can only be achieved after logging many hours in your travel book, and learning from your mistakes along the way. Some locals lead a sad existence of preying on unsuspecting tourists to make a quick buck. It seems like I've seen every trick in the book. Same scam, different place. When I encounter one of these attempted shenanigans, I laugh in their face and declare, "that one's not working with me." Their demeanor changes quickly as they realize they're dealing with a seasoned traveler.
During the learning process, when I happened to get ripped off, sometimes I felt stupid, sometimes I felt angry and sometimes I'd laugh and say "that was a good one!" I'll give the local a little credit for their sneaky ways, if it's done in good nature. But sometimes it's done mean spiritedly, and that makes me angry.

Due to my vigilance, I've never had any large amounts of money swindled from me while I've been overseas. A little in Egypt, a little more in India. Nothing significant. There were times that I knowingly let it happen, knowing they needed the money more than I did. Their family needs to eat.

However, Laos takes the cake.

Here's the swindle story:

Laos is pretty undeveloped, so getting around can be difficult. It's best to go through organized tours when navigating the country. I bought a package deal that included 3 days of transportation from Thailand into Laos by slow boat along the Mekong River. 6 hours by mini-van, then two 8 hour days on the boat. This is a popular route among backpackers. I imagined the scenery being little riverside villages among picturesque green landscape. It was exactly that.

views along the Mekong

One of the village stops along the Mekong

On the mini-van ride to the border of Laos, I met the travelers that would be joining me on this 3 day adventure. 3 girls from Ireland, a girl from Chile and an American girl, named Ember. We all meshed well and shared lots of laughs. Our first night, in the town of Chiang Khong, we stumbled upon a celebration at the local temple. There were dancing performances by doll-like Thai children with faces full of make-up. It was adorable.

The locals warmly greeted us, joyful that we wanted to be a part of their culture for the night. We mingled toward the dance floor and had several happily intoxicated small-stature Thai men try to pull us onto the dance floor. Thailand is full of friendly, happy locals. This was my last night in Thailand, and I was saddened to be leaving this cheerful country.

The next morning, we lugged our back-breaking backpacks down to the river and hopped on a small unstable wooden boat for a short ride across the muddy river. Minutes later, we stepped off the boat and were in Laos!

Standing in Laos, looking at Thailand across the river

The visa process went through without a hitch and soon we were on our way to the slow boat. The tour coordinator met us at the border. He explained that he needed our passports, so he could make copies of our visas. He also advised that we should exchange our Thai bahts for Laos kip with him because it was much cheaper. He informed us that there would be no access to an ATM or money exchange for the next 2 days. Everyone reluctantly handed over their precious passport and Thai bahts to the seemingly trustworthy man. He passed around a piece of paper to write down our name with the amount of money we were exchanging. He did not count the money with us. We could have wrote any amount on the paper and there would be no evidence otherwise. I instantly had a bad feeling about the whole situation. No one asked any questions. I felt like I was the only one with any common sense out of the group of 20. I said to the man, "Are you crazy?! You want me to give you my passport and all my money so you can run off to the exchange office with it? Why can't I just go myself to exchange my money? This sounds shady. I don't trust you."

I was the only person that spoke up. I would guess the others were less experienced travelers.

I interrogated the man, "What's the exchange rate?" "What percentage do you keep for commission?" He said it was 1% and the exchange rate he told me was excellent. He said, "Listen, I have no reason to steal from you. I understand you don't trust me, but I'm a good man. I'll only be gone for 15 minutes." He looked at me with pure sincerity in his eyes. My intense stare shifted from one eye to the other, searching for any twinge of criminal in him.

Even though my gut was screaming "Don't do it!", I handed over my passport and money, as everyone else had done.

We are shuttled 2 minutes away by bus with the promise of the safe return of our passports and money in 15 minutes. We are dropped off at a small snack shop to wait. As the antagonizing seconds ticked by, I sat as nervously as someone awaiting the condition of their loved one after a risky surgery.

30 minutes later, 2 unknown Thai boys came back with our passports and money. I felt a rush of relief, but intuition told me there was a scam in progress. They feverishly pass them out, then shout, "Time to get on boat! Boat leaving!" Everyone rushes down to the dock about 100 feet away. I'm the only one that has the brains to count my money. I tell the Chilean and Irish girls to count their money also. I flip through the stack of Lao kips and hastily punch in the calculation on my iPhone. I soon discover I'm $58 short!!! 58 dollars!!! I frantically recount it 3 times. "This is the wrong amount!" I announce. The other girls chime in, "yea, mine is wrong too!"

We tell the boys that delivered them, but they pretend they don't speak English. On the verge of acting obnoxious, I explain to him we are all short money. He pretends like he doesn't understand, then says "boat leaving!" We're frustrated with no options available and are keenly aware of the fact that the boat is seconds within leaving. I feel so helpless. Half way around the world, getting stolen from, with no one that allegedly speaks English. It's times like these that I don't like traveling so much.

I scowled at the boys and sprinted down the hill to the boat dock. As I'm running, I spew out a string of foul swear words that would make Mother Theresa faint. Swearing always makes me feel better for some reason. :)

We are the last ones on the old wooden boat and it leaves the second we step on. Whew! Me and the Chilean girl, Gabriella, shuffle to the very back of the boat, searching for a seat. The only seats remaining are next to the deafening loud, smoking engine that spits out black oil. We are absolutely miserable in these horrendous conditions.

The good seats in the front of the boat that were all taken

We plop down in our seats, pissed off. Gabriella is in a frenzy. In her thick Chilean accent, she says she is $40 short. I see tears swell up in her brown Latina eyes. I try to comfort her but I'm severely upset myself.

Gabriella, in happier times

We eventually talk to the other travelers and realize everyone is short money. I fared the worst at $58, the others lost $20, $30, $40. That criminal just made hundreds of dollars off of us! We are so stupid! I bet he does this everyday. He must live in a mansion! It was obvious that his tactic was to give us our money back at the very last minute so we didn't have time to go back to retrieve the missing money. We would have missed the boat, and he knew that! What an evil weasel!! How can that crook sleep at night?!

I was outraged. $58 is a whole lot of money to me right now. It's a lot of money to anyone traveling for an extended period of time, just ask them. I'm on a strict budget and frequently refrain from buying things I want because of it. Then this weenie comes along and steals from me! $58 is probably more than most Laotians make in a month! You could probably buy a couple water buffalo's with that much money! I couldn't believe his level of greediness. He just ripped off HUNDREDS of dollars from us! I worked long hard hours at the hospital for that cash! There's just so many things wrong with this situation.The worst part is that he lied to my face. He looked me right in my eyes and lied. The deceit hurt, but I know there is a lot of bad karma coming to that sleazeball. My guard is up even more after this sneaky scheme.

I understand Laos is poverty stricken, but it still doesn't make it OK to steal my money. It's sad that they must go to such great lengths to dishonestly obtain money any way they can. I wouldn't have minded if it was $10, or even $15. But $58!!!!

This was a very negative first impression of Laos. Are all Laotians like this?, I thought. I knew I had to step it up a notch and be extra vigilant here. These people are pretty sly. It's like a game, trying not to get ripped off. I'm embarrassed to admit I let this happen. I should have known better.

Needless to say, the 8 hour boat journey was unbearably uncomfortable. We get our money stolen, then have to sit in the worst seats on the boat! This is so unfair! Hold on, I'm going to throw a temper tantrum......

On the bright side, when we docked, me and Ember (the American) found a sweet bungalow overlooking the Mekong river from our balcony. Oh, and there were also plenty of ATM's and money exchange offices there, contrary to what the thief had told us. As I gazed out into the Mekong river, I thought, "Let it go, Rach, let it go. You're too blessed to be stressed."

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

View from our room