Hue and the DMZ

(10.5.30.08 Noble House, Room #305. Cat Ba, Vietnam 6:15pm)
Later that afternoon (9.22.08) we arrived in Hue. I made my way through the hordes of people trying to get me to stay at their hotel or give me a moto bike ride and found my way to the backpacker area. It was a small alley with about 8 different guest houses. I walked from house to house trying to find the best rate, taking advantage of the fact that it is slow season. I was able to find A/C rooms for 8USD at most and non A/C for 6USD, however at one guest house I found a room next to the lobby with no AC, and no windows for 4USD. It had a fan but was literally a sweat box. I walked to an internet café to check emails and shipped off a box of presents back to Maui. I went back to Sinh Café and booked a tour of the DMZ (Demilitarization Zone) for the following morning. It was an all day tour which cost 20 USD. This is the area that some of the fiercest fighting took place in the N/S Vietnam War. I set it up that the bus to Hanoi would pick me up at the end of the tour, rather than me coming back to Hue since the DMZ was about 2 hours north of Hue. Returning to my room I called Cang, Thai and Nhi, the CS’ers I had been corresponding with. The three of them already knew each other and they brought another friend, Yen, from one of their English classes to meet me at the guest house. They took me out for dinner to a small house way down a maze of alleys to have Com Hen (Rice Shell) and Bun Hen (Noodle shell). Both dishes consisted of pork rines, peanuts, spices, vegetables and of course “shells”. At first I thought they were saying “Snails” but when I drew a picture of a snail they laughed and corrected me. Through a lot of picture drawing and hand signals I later found out that “Shells” is either oysters or muscles. After dinner they took me out for Nucc Sam Dua, which is milk flavored with ginseng and pineapple. They all had me write in their books the Hawaiian words I had taught them and they wrote in my book. Cang then took me back to my guest house. It was sooo hott in my room I slept with the door open all night.
I woke up at 6am the following morning (9.23.08) to check out of my room and grab breakfast before the tour. On the way to the first sight I realized that I had left my passport at the guest house. All guest houses make you leave your passport at the front desk til you check out. The thing is, at 6 am neither I nor the guy I woke up to check me out, were awake enough to remember that I needed it back! I quickly called the guest house, as soon as I said “Passport” they said “OH, Tim Lara! Yes we have” I got the bus driver to sort it out that they would take it to Sinh Café and they would have one of their bus drivers bring it to me before I left for Hanoi. A couple of hour bus ride later we pulled into a restaurant for breakfast. We were met by our “English” speaking tour guide here as well. Once back on the bus she explained, in broken English, the intenarary for the day. I could barely understand what she was saying and looked around the bus to see if I were the only one struggling. Blank stares from all the passengers re-assured me that I wasn’t. I felt bad for those that English was their second language, because I was certain that they weren’t even picking up on the bits and pieces that I was able to understand. Our first stop was “the rock pile” we pulled off the road and the guided pointed out a mountain in the distance and explained that this is where the Americans set up a surveillance camp. Five minutes later we back in the bus. Our next stop was a bridge over the river that divided the North from the South. This bridge was also the beginning of the “Ho Chi Minh Trail” which was used to smuggle supplies and weapons during the war. Our next stop was Khe Sang Military Base, which has now been turned into a museum. From the literature in the museum and what the tour guide told us, this was a strategic and vital base for the Americans and South Vietnamese which was overtaken by the North Vietnamese after 6 months of heavy fighting. I was told by others on the tour that it didn’t go down exactly as it was being portrayed by the museum and tour guide. Apparently movies like Hamburger Hill and other Vietnam War movies are about this battle. There were two men walking around the grounds of the museum selling artifacts from the war that they had found with metal detectors: US dog tags, Vietnamese medals and bullets. I bought a Viet Cong medal after much hassle from the guy to buy something. We got back on the bus and had an hour and half bus ride back to the same restaurant for lunch. The next 4 things on the itinerary were a joke. She pointed out a tank and bridge on the side of the road as we drove by on separate occasions without stopping. Then we stopped at a large statue in memory of the Northern Vietnamese fighters. The final stop on the tour was tunnels just north of the DMZ where an entire village lived for 6 years. There were three different levels underground and many chambers for sleeping, giving birth, community room, bathing. We were given a 25 minute tour of the tunnels and at one point joined by a man that grew up in the tunnels. An hour bus ride took us back to the restaurant that we had eaten at all day and I got off to wait for my bus to Hanoi. Two hours later the bus showed up and low and behold the driver actually had my passport!

Viet Nam Surfing!

(10.5.30.08 Noble House, Room #305. Cat Ba, Vietnam 4:30pm)

Our first stop the following morning (9.21.08) was in Hoi An, where I had the option to stay however I decided to skip it and go to Da Nang. During the 1 ½ break I had breakfast and then we loaded back on the bus. We stopped again only a half hour later at Marble Mountain. I bought both my parents a Buddha made out of Jade Marble from mountain. Dad got a “happy Buddha” and mom got a “lucky Buddha”. We only had a 20 minute break there and I almost missed the bus because I was inside the mountain taking pictures of the caves and carvings. Thirty minutes later I arrived at the Sinh Café bus station in Da Nang where Mike, my couch surfing host picked me up. We went to a lil café to have some coffee and chat. I asked him if he would mind taking me to China Beach to see what the surf looked like, so we went home to drop my bags. We sat and talked with mom for about 20 minutes and were off to China Beach. We checked two spots: Tam’s Surf Shop and Hoa’s Guest House. There was no surf what so ever! Every once in a while a tiny lil wave would break but nothing you could ride. I spoke to some people at the beach that reported the surf gets better first thing in the morning and at night. We headed back to Mikes house for lunch and I took a nap while he went to his afternoon class. After school he picked me up and we headed back to the beach. I told him it would probably be too small for me to surf but big enough to teach him and some of his friends if they wanted. He was STOAKED! I rented a board from Tams surf shop and Mike my first International Surf Lesson. I started the same way I start a lesson on Maui, with a land lesson, making sure he knew everything he needed to know before we hit the water. The small inconsistent waves made it difficult for me to pick proper waves for him but after a few unsuccessful tries he caught his first wave! He was beaming as he paddled back out. A couple more and his arms gave out on him so that he could no longer paddle nor jump up. I decided to see what I could make of the surf. I taught him to use my camera and went at it. I was surprised that I was able to actually catch quite a few waves. Plus mikes camera skills made them look like decent waves! He went back in to talk to his girlfriend and I remained until the sun had set completely. However on my way in I stopped near a group of 6 Vietnamese guys and allowed them to play with the surf board. One after one, I motioned for them to climb on and I gave them a push. Two of them actually stood up but then quickly jumped off. After returning the board, Mike insisted that he would take me to dinner since I paid for the board and taught him to surf. The three of us went to a pizza joint and then for coffee. We stopped by Sinh Café, my bus company, and check me in for the bus in the morning. Next morning (9.22.08) we woke up and headed out for breakfast. After breakfast mike took me to a coffee shop so I could use my laptop before hitting the road. As I was powering down my laptop Sinh Café called and told me the bus was waiting. I told them I was literally two blocks away and on my way, to please hold the bus. When we pulled up the bus was gone! The lady inside pointed down the street. “Mike lets go. We have to catch the bus!!!” as I jumped back on. Mike flew down the busy street, weaving in and out of cars. We spotted bus and I told him to pull right in front of it. As we pulled up on the side I motioned for the driver to stop but he didn’t respond. I again told mike to pull in front of the bus. Now in front of the bus I put my hand out, motioning for the bus driver to stop. I pointed to myself, then the bus. He finally understood and pulled over. I climbed on board and got sour looks from people as I made my way down the isle.

Gettin Muddy

(9.28.08 9:33am Room 305 Noble House, Cat Ba Island, Vietnam)
(9.19.08) At 7am I was picked up by a small bus headed to Nha Trang. I thought I would catch up on some sleep but bumpy windy roads ensured that it would be impossible. I had again grabbed the back row on the bus so I could lie completely down across the 6 seats. Most people don’t like sitting in the back of the bus because it’s too bumpy. On this leg of my journey I wish I had followed the crowd. Twice I bounced completely out of my seat and hit my head on the ceiling of the bus!!! As we neared Nha Trang the landscaped changed from mountains to beaches and shore lines. I called Lisanne my CS host when I got off the bus and she had her room mate, Gabe, meet me at the dive shop they worked at show me back to the their house. Lisanne is originally from Holland but had been traveling for about 6 mix months in Vietnam. She came to Nha Trang with Gab, who she met in Hanoi and they both ended up taking jobs at the Scuba Zone in trade from getting their Dive Master Certifications. They both had Vietnamese boyfriend/girlfriends that also worked at the dive shop. Lisanne had only been in Nha Trang for about a month and had hosted couch surfers for almost the whole time as she was the only host in Nha Trang. She gave me a tour of her house and showed me the hand drawn map of Nha Trang that she had made for CS’ers. It had her favorite restaurants, bars, internet cafes and her house on it. She was an amazing host!!! We made plans to have dinner and I left to explore the town. Not finding much more than restaurants and bars, I made my way to the internet café to play on the internet. I stopped and had photos made for postcards and filled them out at home. I was surprised to find that stamps for international post cards were 10,000VND which is about .75 USD which isn’t really expensive for western standards but with the cost of printing the pics made the postcards more expensive than my breakfast!
I joined Lisanne and her boyfriend Sea for noodles and then went to the Scuba Zone to talk to Gabe about diving in the morning. They offered two dives, lunch and boat ride for $40 but after looking through Gabes pictures I decided I would save my money and dive back at Maui for free!! Nha Trang is the best spot for diving in Vietnam but that doesn’t mean that Vietnam is a diving hot spot. There are a lot of fish and small creatures but no sharks, big fish, rays, ect.
I asked Sea if he wanted to join me for some kayaking the next morning and he agreed. We decided not to set a time but just figure it out when we woke up. In the morning (9.20.08) I didn’t see him so went for breakfast and scouted out the kayak rentals. The only place I found was at a beach front upscale resort and charged 6$ an hour!! I explained that I wanted it for the day and he said it was still $6/hr. That is REALLY expensive for Vietnam so I declined. I stopped and bought some paintings for gifts on the way home. They are black water color on white silk. Finding nothing to do in Nha Trang I told Lisanne I would be leaving later that night. She let me know that Travis was on his way and would arrive at 1pm. My bus was at 7pm so Travis and I decided to rent a moto bike and go to the mud baths/hot springs. The price was 80,000 for public baths or 150,000 VND for a “private bath” we were confused that they even asked us if we wanted a private bath so we laughed and told them the public would be just fine. The experience started with a hot spring water shower. Then the attendant led us to our mud bath and opened the pipe to let the “Mud” flow. I expected thick mud, but it ended up being thin water like silt. Either way we spent about 15 soaking it up. The attendant turned our pipe off when the tub was only 1/8 of the way filled so we turned it back on and filled our tub half way. Next you were suppose to sun bath and let the mud dry on your skin, but the overcast weather made that impossible so we headed back to the shower. From the shower we were directed to the High presser hot spring water; two walls with about 50 small holes spraying stinging streams of hot spring water. The next phase was a hot spring water bath. They gave Travis and I a heart shaped tub, it was special. After 15 in the tub and many strange looks, we had been getting the whole time; we headed for the pool which was again full of spring water. It was getting late so we took off back to Lisannes. I packed and we went for dinner, I was cutting it really close so Travis agreed to let me use the moto bike to ride to bus stop. I arrived right after the bus left so they directed me to the second stop. I called Travis and let him know I got the bus and that the moto bike was at the second bus station. As I rode away on the bus I realized I left my board shorts hanging on the moto and I left my Hawaii drivers license at the moto bike shop as a deposit. I called Travis again and asked him to grab them for me. I was sure we’d see each other again on the way.

"No one has died, yet"

(9.26.08 Good Bar. Cat Ba Island, Vietnam)

(9.17.08)We stepped off the bus into light rains and about 65 degree temperature in Dalat! It felt amazing, coming from the 100+ humid temperatures of Southeast Asia. We were dropped off at a hotel and walked inside to check it out. The rooms were only 10$ for two and included breakfast, wifi and hot water. A/C wasn’t needed. Travis was ready to check in, as was I, however on principle you have to at least say no and try to get a better price. ESPECIALLY at the hotels that the bus drops you off at. So I carried my bags downstairs and told her the room was very nice however I was going to look for something cheaper. She lowered her voice, there were other travelers in the lobby, “ok for you” she looked around “8$, don’t tell anyone”. We took it. We dropped our bags on our way to grab dinner and see what Dalat had to offer. On the way out we were stopped by the “Easy Riders” they are a group of Vietnamese motorcycle tour guides. They offered tours ranging from Dalat city tours of major attractions, all the way to 5 day tours to Hanoi. Travis was ready to book a tour but I again, not one to buy something under pressure, wanted to wait and see what else was offered. I declined but told Travis to go ahead if he wanted. We went to dinner and walked to the market. We found to westerners in a bakery, the first we had seen, and ask where the “Westerners” hang out in town. They told us two streets over they had seen some others in a restaurant. On our way to investigate we passed several activity agents and began comparing tours and prices. The tours offered were: city tour, a few mountain biking tours, trekking tours, and a waterfall abseiling tour. I was sold on abseiling and as I negotiated the price down from $25 per person I was told that if there was a bigger group the price would be cheaper. Right then a couple walked in. “Hi, my name is Tim” as I extended my hand “wanna go abseiling tomorrow?” I asked them. “Actually that’s what we are here to check about” he replied. The agent agreed to $20 per person but insisted on 18$ and he finally gave in! We asked our agent where we could find other westerners and he told us at Peace Hotel/Café and pointed us to it. Sure enough there were a few inside drinking coffee and checking emails. It was cute lil café and they had free wifi so I was sold. I asked how much rooms were and she showed me upstairs to show me room. She also started at 10$ but when I told her we only paid 8$ for our room she agreed to the same. The benefit was that their free breakfast was actually breakfast and not a piece of bread like our hotel! We should have checked the menu before checking in. We recruited one more guy, Dan, at Peace to go on our abseiling tour. We were able to get our tour guide to pick us up early in the morning (9.18.08) so we could transfer to Peace. We dropped our bags and off we went on our tour. We had three guides; one spoke really good English (main guide) and taught us a Vietnamese song on the way: “Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh”. When we arrived we had the option of walking down to the first waterfall or taking a “rollercoaster” for an additional fee of 25,000 VND. I opted for the rollercoaster. It was a one or two seater cart on a railing. I was instructed on how to use the hand break as the attendant gave me a shove down the track. It was SICK!!! And a lil scary. (www.youtube.com/timlara ) Half way down there was cart stopped on the track “Stop STOP!!” they yelled. The only problem was I had my camera in my hands making a video and my foot was holding the break wide open! I dropped the camera and gave the break a pull, giving myself whiplash! They were working on the railing but moved the cart and let me continue down. Classic Southeast Asia for ya! At the bottom Travis, Dan and I joined the couple that opted to walk down, with huge grins explaining that they should have definitely taken the coaster! Our guide allowed us to pause for photo opts with the first waterfall and then we began our trek. Our first stop was a 15 foot wall where the second guide (ropes guide) gave us our harnesses, secured the lines and showed us how to tie into them. For the remainder of the tour the main guide simply took pictures and explained what we would be doing along the way. The third guide (grunt guide) didn’t speak English and was responsible for carrying the equipment and doing any other jobs the first two didn’t want to. At our first stop the ropes guide had us tie in and abseil twice; making sure everyone knew what they were doing. They also had us practice falling against the rocks flat, once on our front and once on our back, and getting back to our feet. These made for great photos. We trekked for another 5 minutes and came to an amazing overlook which was also our next abseil. This one was about 60 feet. Another 10 minute trek and we were given life jackets. We had to jump 20 down into the water below and then continue down the river to our next abseil. The water was freezing and the air temp was about 70. They made the grunt guide jump first; we followed, while the rope and main guides took the dry path! Our next abseil was about a 30 foot face and paused for lunch after we completed it. The main guide cut up local fruits and vegetables to go with the large bag of baguettes. Peanut butter or butter were our choice for toppings. After getting our fill we were directed to continue down the river. I noticed the rope and main guides were again taking another (dry) trail and I asked if I could go that way, not wanting to get back in the freezing water after having just finally warmed back up. They agreed but as soon as the others tried jumping on the ban wagon they insisted we get wet. And for good cause, the next part of our trip was the waterfall slide! Here was a small waterfall with smooth rocks that you literally lay down and slide down the waterfall (www.youtube.com/timlara) We all went twice; then they started telling us to go head first. I was out on that plan but Travis and one other went for it. He later said it hurt his back. We continued down the river and came to our last abseil; a gushing 50 foot waterfall. The first 15-20 feet were slippery as ice and the flowing water made it impossible to see your foot placement. As soon as we were ¾ of the way down main guide started yelling to stop. He motioned with his hands to let go and fall backwards into the water. Naturally your mind tells you this isn’t a good idea but I said “F” it and went for it. After a 15 foot free fall into a back slap I wished I had worn my lifejacket! Again we all went a second time. On Travis’ second turn the rope guide suggested that Travis and I go at the same time, no safety line, just both of us abseiling. Normally there is one line you use to abseil and one safety line that the rope guide holds to ensure you don’t fall should you let go of your line. I wondered how safe it was as Travis instantly said yes! (www.youtube.com/timlara) Again we went for the back slap drop. We regrouped and headed down trial until we reached the last part of our tour; a 40 foot jump into the water below. Actually there was the option of a 30 foot jump from a lower ledge, which our grunt guide opted for. I looked to judge the higher jump, once…. Twice… three times. I wasn’t sure I could make it out far enough to clear the lower ledge. “Is it safe” we asked. “yes safe, no one has died yet” the main guide replied. This was his token response to our safety concerns “how deep?” I asked. “deep enough, I don’t know, no one has die yet” we tried talking the grunt guide into going from the top ledge and he refused. No else was willing to go for it, they all said they would take the lower ledge. I took one more look, and went over my foot placements in slow motion three times. Then handed over my camera, took a running start and L_A_U_N_C_H_E_D out! My arms burned on impact and I hit the sandy bottom at the bottom of the river. Deep enough my ass, I thought to myself. My bravery inspired the others, Travis hesitated but after I called him a sissy (3 times) he went for it. Dan stalled even more. The couple decided for the lower ledge. We later found out that the tour guide had previously lost his footing while attempting the higher jump, hit the lower ledge, split his head and almost died. This is why he refused to jump from it! We trekked out of the woods and were picked up by a van and escorted back to our hotels.
We made plans to meet back at the Peace Café for dinner, drinks and share photos. I made an arrangement with the owner of the hotel that she would take 1$ off the price of our room for every person I got to stay at the hotel. I also got free dinner because I got everyone to eat dinner there. I got a call from Minirose one of the CS’ers I contacted in Dalat, she was on her way to meet us at the Café. She had a friend with her and the two girls suggested that we take a walk thru the markets and town. After a quick walk we came across tandem bicycles and decided to go for a ride. I took Minirose and Travis took her friend. They showed us the university they attend and other sites around the city. Returning to the hotel I realized there wasn’t anything else I wanted to do in Dalat, so I told Travis I would be leaving in the morning for Nha Trang. We decided to stay and do a moto bike tour of the city the following day.

"Up to you"

(9.26.08 Bus Station. Hanoi, Vietnam 9am)
Next morning (9.16.08) I woke up, said goodbye to Bill and Janina and left to meet Travis for breakfast before our bus. When the bus arrived I realized I didn’t have my tickets. I searched and re-searched my bags but they weren’t there. I called Bill and he didn’t see them at the house either. Travis said he would try to hold the bus and I caught a moto back to the house to search for my tickets. As we pulled away, so did the bus! Back at the dungeon I found my tickets and grabbed a moto back to the office. I was able to find another bus to Mui Ne but I had to eat the cost of my original ticket. I arrived to Mui Ne about one hour after Travis. Travis had already found a guest house on the beach for 10 USD so I spent the next half hour trying to find it. We rented a moto bike took off North towards the town of Mui Ne to explore. Every once in a while we would pull down an alley to get a glimpse of the shore line and see what we had passed and where were heading. We made it thru town and down the only major road heading north. We eventually came to some sand dunes and decided to check it out. Travis had heard from some other travelers that they went sledding down sand dunes in Mui Ne. He was told that children would come and let you use their sleds for a fee. Soon three children came running up, they pleaded “mister, mister, you go sled. You use my sled” “how much” I replied as we pointed and asked where the BIG hill was. “follow me!!” they enthusiastically answered, realizing they had just made sale. “How much?” I inquired again. “up to you” in an innocent, playful voice they returned. “Really? It’s up to me? Soooo 500 VND (3 cents USD) per slide?” I jokingly asked to test the water. Travis had already told me that his friends paid about 2000 VND per slide. “ok, up to you” they again replied in the most childlike, innocent, playful voice. They had me convinced; I really thought they didn’t care about money. For the first time I felt as if they were simply there to play and if they could make a little bit of money and meet some tourist that was a bonus. But I asked again just to be sure “ok 500 Dong” again the same answer “Ok, up to you. you sled. you use MY sled, ok mister?” they continued to badger as we walked along and I continued to try to make small talk; “what’s your name?”, “how old are you”…they would answer “Doa” and then quickly revert back to “ok if you go you go with me first, OK?” I would simply ask another question. “and what’s your name?” “Kim... you use my sled second, ok mister” “Kim?” I inquired. “Tim” as I pointed to myself. Kim smiled big but Doa wasn’t impressed and he again cut me off “mister you use my sled first, ok?” “No, No, No I go with Kim first” I teased him. “Ok, ok, you go with me second??” as he attempted to grab and carry my bag for me. I told him I would but I could handle my bag. Doa appeared to be around 7 years old would have been struggling to carry my bag which now had two helmets and sets of slippahs strapped to the outside. Also by this time in my travels I had learned nothing is for free. I looked across the dune to Travis who was about 50 yards away and being trailed by three other kids, I now had 5 kids myself. Every time I took a picture Kim would reach for my camera “I take photo, I take photo”. “no its ok, thank you” replied. “I take photo, of you” came back and it worked. I did want some photos of me. I handed her the camera, and she began to shoot, she even set the shots up for. “you stand over here” she pointed. One of the small children was now dragging my bag since I set it down to have my photo taken. I explained to Kim that I would jump and I wanted her take a picture. She spoke pretty good English and understood what I was going for. On just her third attempt she nailed the “jump shot”. Now I convinced them to jump. All five of the lined up “Ok, 1…2….3… jump” I counted down. We tried several times but they were all out of sync. I pulled some of the small ones out of shot and tried again. Again it didn’t turn out. I finally got down to two kids and was successful at getting a “jump shot” of them. The small child again grabbed by bag as we walked away and I took from him. Kim instantly grabbed it from me. She was about 12 and the largest of the kids so I decided to let her take it. I was already gonna have to pay her for taking pictures and using her sled so I figured I would let her carry my bag as well. When as we approached the “Big One” Travis came flying down. I was sold, I had to try it. I sprinted for the top and the kids gave chase. At the top the set the sled down and prepared it for me. I yelled to Kim at the bottom to make a video for me. “Hey Travis, make sure its on video for me” Kim cut me off as she pulled away from Travis “I got it!!!” I was directed to sit down and shown and how to hold the sled. Then they all began to push me. Five kids screamed and cheered as they got me up to speed and then let me go. It was a short but fast run and it was actually pretty cool. Doa came running down the hill “ok you go with me again” “no I go with Kim this time” I replied. Travis took the camera and we headed to the top for another run. This time was far less exciting than the first. Only two kids pushed to get me going and the speed just wasn’t there. I decided I needed Doa’s expertise if I were gonna have a good run and solicited him to take me up again. Travis had gone twice and was finished so I decided I was done too. When we let them know we were done they told us to pay them. “no we’ll pay when we get back done to the road” Travis assured them “NO!!!! you pay now!! There are many kids down there, if you pay there they will want money too” they all replied. It made sense so we decided we would pay up. By this time our crowd had grown to about 10 children however I had only used the services of Kim and Doa and Travis had used two kids as well. I pulled out 2000 dong and they all screamed and whined “noooooooo, not enough! We carried you bag… we took pictures… you go three times…noooooo” I reminded them they agreed to 500 Dong. Again they all whined, screamed and cried. “not enough, not enough, 20,000! That one, that one” as they pointed into my wallet and tried to snatch money! One girl, about 15 years old, had just arrived and was brokering the deal for the kids. I agreed to pay 20,000 for Kim and Doa to split and as I pulled it out of my wallet she snatched it and ran away. Kim’s eyes instantly teared up and bloodshot red. “WHY YOU PAY HER!! SHE DIDN’T DO ANYTHING FOR YOU!!!! YOU PAY ME!!!” she demanded. She was literally crying! The scene was getting bad and Travis told me to just start walking to the road. “this is all part of their act” he assured me. I could simply ignore Kim and doa’s cries so I tried to explain that the money was for them, that she stole it, I hadn’t paid her. Kim wasn’t hearing it, she angrily snapped back “YOU PAID HER, WHY!?!??! I carried your bag, I took pics, you used my sled” she whined. I became convinced it was all for show and got more firm. “You need to talk to her, don’t bother me about your money, she has it, go talk to her” They were really intense and forceful. I decided I had to get this on film. I told Travis I was gonna make a video and as soon as I pointed the camera there was complete silence. They stopped whining and covered their faces with their sleds. They didn’t want me to record THIS side of them. Earlier it was all fun and games and they lined up have their pictures taken, but now it was another story. My camera had just become my greatest asset. Every time one would approach I would just say “video” and point the camera. It was like garlic to a vampire, they recoiled back! Travis dubbed it the “Show me the money” video. (see www.youtube.com/timlara ) They retreated and we rode our motorbike back to the beachy resort strip of Mui Ne. Next afternoon (9.17.08) we caught a bus for Dalat!

Angkor Wat to Vietnam...

(11pm The Dungeon. Saigon Vietnam)
I set my alarm for 4:15 and went to bed at around 2am. The girls were suppose to be up at 4am as our Tuk Tuk was picking us up at 430am. When my alarm went off the girls were still asleep but quickly woke up and took over the bathroom. At 4:29am they told me to get out of bed as they rushed from the bathroom right out the door. Nih our Tuk Tuk driver showed up at 4:35 am and informed us that we would have to go with his brother since his Tuk Tuk had broken down the night before. His brother hardly spoke English so we stopped him a mile down the road and made sure we were all on the same page as far as where he would be taking us, for how long and how much it would cost us. We were the second vehicle thru the payment office and soon arrived to Angkor Wat under the pitch black night sky. The cars poured in. We thought by going this early we would be able to get some alone time and good pics with the temples, but we were dead wrong. The girls rushed into the temple as I set up my camera to take some photos while the sun rose. People hurried by me in the hundreds. The girls yelled for to come and I hollered back “we’ll just meet up later”. After taking a series of photos I wondered inside what I thought was the temple, it turned out I had only been shooting the temple gate and outer walls! Now inside the walls I hurried into the temple. The first thing I noticed was that all the statues of Buddha had been either decapitated or their faces had been removed? I continued around taking pics and I came across a lil old lady sitting by the active temple of active wat selling incense. I pointed at my camera asking if I could take a picture of her and she replied “one daaaaalllllar”, I hardly understood her and I again motioned with my camera. After repeating herself I realized she was asking for money. I gave her a dollar and took several stunning photos of her. On my way out of Angkor Wat I began looking for the girls and soon saw them about 150 yards away, quickly approaching the out wall. I sprinted after them yeller “Heeeela”! Finally she heard me and stopped. I honestly didn’t think I was gonna be able to find them in the hoards of people.
The girls and I were clearly on different agenda’s as far as the temples went. They hurried thru temple after temple as I stopped and took several pictures before even making it through the front entrance. After each temple we would meet up again over by the tuk tuk’s. I asked a tour guide why none of the faces remained and he informed me that most of them had been stolen while the country was in turmoil. He also told me that the temples were built in about 1000a.d. At one of the temples I stumbled across four young student monks. I asked if I could take a few photographs and one of them agreed. His name was Skyli. He was a former tuk tuk driver that was going to school to become a monk. His parents could afford to send him to school so this was his only other choice. He said he wanted to join the army to support his country but I couldn’t help wonder if it was just once again it was his only option?
On the way into and out of most temples there were groups of children trying to sell all sorts of things: clothes, souvenirs, food, drinks, etc. Except rather they were fierce sales people. “mister, mister. You buy! You buy!” or “cold drink, you buy, cold drink?”, I would quickly reply “ak tay a khun” which means no thank you in Khmer (Cambodian) and they would say “ok but if you buy, you buy from me, OK?” I did end up buying quit a few things from them: bottles of water, music instruments, pants, and shirt. I’m a sucker, the Israeli girls said. But they were the ones telling them to go ask Tim. It made saying “No” that much harder when they know your name. “mister Teem, mister teem” as the pulled on my arm. I did make the mistake of buying from the wrong girl one time and will never make that mistake again. Apparently which ever kid talks to you first has dibs on you. Well one girl asked me on the way into a temple to buy pants and I said no, but on the way out I bought some from another lil girl. The first girl got very upset and followed me. “why you don’t buy from me?”…”I saw you first”…”buy from me too”…”you’re not a nice man”. So lesson learned.
It was now about 12:30 and we had visited 4 temples and only had one remaining, which we were supposed to take in sunset from. One of the girls wanted to take a nap for 5 hours and then watch the sunset, but I was definitely not sitting out there for 5 more hours. It was completely grey sky and even raining off and on. There hadn’t been a sunrise and there definitely wasn’t going to be a sunset. Also by this time I had grow irritated by the speed that the girls mad their way through the temples and remember exactly why it is that I travel by myself: I don’t have to worry about what anyone else wants to do or how. I just do what I want. So we walked up the hill and we were we arrived at ________ we were the only people there. We climbed the top of the temple and views were spectacular!!!!! You could see 360 degrees, lakes to one side, the city to another and Angkor Wat poking out of the forest. We sat up top for about 20 minutes, taking in the views and cooling off in the wind. The girls yelled to me from the bottom as they made their way out the gate. I climbed down, took some pictures and then jogged down the hill after them.
Returning to the guest house, I began downloading the 400 pictures I had taken and jumped in the shower. When I got out, they asked me if I were going to go down stairs to use the lobby internet. “no” I replied. They informed me that they had wanted to take showers and I told them to go ahead. “Well can you just leave for about 30 minutes, we want to be able to get dressed and stuff”. Now I had just got back from walking and sweating for about 8 hours, had taken a hot shower, and was lying in bed in my air conditioned room. The last thing I wanted to do was go down to a hot, dusty lobby! I told them to take showers and get dressed in the bathroom like normal people; I just did it without any problems. As I began to brush my teeth. They walked out the door as they said that they would me alone for two hours but wanted about 30 minutes in the room when they got back. I downloaded my pics, updated the blog, added the ads to the blog and checked emails. Megan, one of the California girls I met in Chiang Mai and watch the Thai boxing with, wrote me a message telling me they were in Siem Reap and invited me to dinner at their guest house. I got dressed and took a cab over there. When I arrived, Vanessa was gone and Megan was in the shower so I found two cute girls from Portugal in the downstairs restaurant to sit and chat with. The girls came down later and at dinner together with our new friends. After dinner we went to the night market and I educated the girls on how to get the best bargain their. The idea was to walk completely thru one time without buying ANYTHING, just check prices of the items you like. Ask again and again for the price of the same item and then make your way back thru a second time and make your purchases. Most of the vendors had the same products. Megan didn’t make it past the first booth before buying a headband and not only that, but convincing me to buy one as well!!! As we walked away I told her she wasn’t doing so well on the “don’t buy anything yet” program. After shopping and drinks at the Island bar I headed back to the guest house around 11pm. Next morning we woke up at 6 am were picked up by the bus, we said our brief goodbyes and took off on separate buses. Me for Phnom Penh while they headed Vietnam.
For the first leg of the bus ride I slept but at the lunch stop I met cute young women from Australia. Returning to the bus I asked the Khmer guys sitting next to her if he would switch seats with, he did. We spent the next few hours chatting it up. She was taking the bus all the way thru to Ho Chi Minh. Turns out she was on CS as well and was staying with Tim, a CS’er in the city. We exchanged info and made plans to meet in the city when I arrived a few days later. When I arrived in Phnom Penh 6 hours later Sonja, a CS’er picked me up at the bus station and we went for lunch. We ate at Green Vespa, a Irish Pub right by the river. When I went inside to use the toilet a monkey climbd down from the roof and stole the remainder of my breakfast. She told me the main things to do in Siem Reap were the S-21 Museum, The Killing Fields and some Wat (temple). I decided I would go to the museum that day and the killing fields the following day before catching a bus to Vietnam. Sonja took me to a guest house in the backpacker’s district and dropped me off. 3$ a night with common bathroom or 5$ us with a bathroom, I opted for the 3$ room. My visit at the S-21 museum started with an hour film about the Khmer Rouge and what exactly had taken place at S-21, Killing Fields, Phnom Penh and Cambodia during the 70’s. S-21, former school turned military prison, housed those who were thought to be conspirators against Khmer Rouge. They tortured, and forced to give false confessions. There was no medical facility and the conditions were atrocious. Many starved to death and the remainder later met their death at the Killing Fields. To learn more: www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuol_Sleng_Genocide_Museum
It was a chilling experience and I had never even heard of the Cambodia Genocides prior to my visit.
I returned home my guest house and Sonja picked me up for the night market and dinner. On our way out there was fight between a Khmer (Cambodian) and a Nigerian guy. The Nigerian was lying on the ground, beaten pretty badly. The Khmer had broken a guitar over him and was still wildly swinging the handle. I asked Sonja to hold my camera as I walked back to try to bring peace to the situation. Someone beat me to it and it looked as if everything was going to be ok. Sonja told the Nigerian deserved, apparently he’s always high/drunk and groping women and starting trouble. The night market was a completely local event and we were the only westerners there. We quickly made or way thru the small market of clothes and carnival games and then headed back to the back packing district. On our way back in to the guest house we came we were stopped a large crowd blocking the road. The same Khmer was standing along the side of the road bleeding really badly and there were large puddles of blood everywhere. During our walk at the market I found out that Cambodia is a very unstable country and most people carry knifes and guns. I couldn’t help but think, that might have been good info for Sonja to tell me before she almost let me break up a fight! We later found out that the Khmer got into a fight with some French guys and was cut by the bottles he was attempting to use as a weapon. We went to a guest house to meet some German girls I had acquainted myself with earlier. There were four English kids, and two other Americans, Sonja and the two German girls. We talked about CS.com, religion and politics late into the night. I even got an opportunity to finally eat some bugs! I ate a beatle, and it was DISCUSTING! Leaving some blanks in the story, I’ll just say that I went to bed at 4 am.
Next morning I woke up at 6:30 am and told my motorbike driver that we should sleep in and go to the killing fields at 8am. He agreed. A half hour motorbike ride got me to the Killing Fields, and I walked around for 15 minutes and returned to the guest house. I was a little disappointed that there wasn’t more to be seen. It literally consisted of a few acres of land that were once, and partially still are mass graves from the genocide. Large pits only remain and there is a large monument in the middle to those who perished. The monument is a pillar of skulls in glass case stretching upwards into the sky.
It was 10:30 when we made it back to the guest house and I bought an 11:30 bus ticket for Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. I slept for the entire way with the exception of having to get off at the border. At the border I met a Canadian who was living in China and suggested I go to China after Hanoi and fly out of Hong Kong instead of Hanoi back to Bangkok. He said it would be much cheaper even with the extra travel expense to China. Its food for thought! I had two couches lined up in Saigon (Ho Chi Minh): Tim, a traveling journalist’s house and Natasha, the Vietnam CS ambassador’s house. Tim had several other CS’ers staying but there was room on the floor and he lived right in the city. Natasha had a bed for me however she lived about 20 min out of the city. I opted for Tim’s house and called him from the bus station. I took a motorbike for 2$ to his house and the driver tried to only give me back half my change from a USD 10 bill in Dong (Vietnam Currency) Bill, one of the people staying at Tim’s house told me I was being robbed and I got more money back.. When I walked inside I met Tim, Simon and Pascal from Quebec, Erika and David who also lived there and Inbal a friend of Tim’s who was visiting. I hung out and check emails then we went to meet Jamie, the Australian I met on the bus, for dinner. She was also Couch surfing at Tim’s. At dinner I met Travis a Couch surfer from Texas who was staying at Natasha’s.
Simon, Jamie and myself slept on a full size mat on the floor, as the other couches and beds were already spoken for. The next morning we woke up at 6am and went for breakfast. Simon and Pascal caught their bus to their next destination while Jamie took a ½ tour of the tunnels. This left me and Travis, who was waiting for his bus to the Mekong. He got on the bus and two minutes later he got back off! He said he couldn’t handle all the tourist. He told me about the Easy Riders motorcycle tours in Vietnam and we decide to go riding together. We sat and went over possible itineraries and ended up buying “open bus tickets”. They allow us to go from Saigon to Hanoi with 8 stops along the way for about 53$ USD! Tim completely changed my travel plans by showing me an article about surfing in Vietnam. I decided I wanted to check out some of the surf breaks up the coast. I had couches lined up for 3 places already but put in request for two more along the way. Travis and I did some shopping and then went to get pedi’s and mani’s. Ok I did while he got a massage. I was actually really disappointed with them; I was expecting a hand and foot massage as well but ended up just getting my nails done. They didn’t even exfoliate my hands or feet!! At 2pm we met Jamie and went to the Market on our way to a Museum, which ended up being closed. I did a lil more shopping before catching motorbike back to Tim’s while Travis and Jamie walked back. We all went for dinner and I met Janina, a new couch surfer to the house. Dinner was hilarious at the non English speaking vietmanese restaurant. They kept bring out food we didn’t order, that didn’t taste good and we kept eating it! We paid the bill, half of which we didn’t order, nor eat. After dinner Janina and I walked for dessert but got distracted by a school where they were doing waltz lessons on an outside balcony. We tried to get in but the language barrier prevented us. After ice cream walked home and watched a movie with everyone and now are about to go to sleep. I have no idea where everyone is sleeping tonight but I’m about to claim stake and grab the mat on the ground!! A Hui Ho!

To Cambodia

(11:30pm Guest House in Siem Reap, Cambodia)
Shortly after our lunch break the bus pulled over. A Cambodian man, who I assumed worked for the bus company, gave the following to us: “The road to Siem Reap is VERY bad, it is dirt and there is no A/C on the next bus. So if it is not raining it will be very dusty, if it is raining the windows will be up and it will be very hot. You can take a cab and it will be much quicker and more enjoyable. Second we will now walk a quarter mile to get to the border, there will be many kids coming up to you. Some will try to hold an umbrella for you; others will simply beg for money, they are all pick pockets. Make sure all your valuables are in your bag and carry it in front of you. Ok now grab your belongings and make sure you leave nothing behind on the bus” This is how we were welcomed to Cambodia. We stepped off the bus into a dusty roadside market area. The guide took the first five of us to the border. The others came with other guides in small groups as well. On the other side we waited for a free bus which took us a few hundred yards down the road to a bus station/taxi zone. The Israeli girls were told a cab should be 800-1000b ($25-30 usd). I had heard $25-50 and our guide insisted that it would be $60 or 2000b. They use Thai Baht and USD in Cambodia. They have their own currency as well but like Laos it is very unstable. I learned after Laos that I didn’t need to exchange money for the local currency there nor Cambodia. As a matter of fact I got stuck with 668b worth or Kip (Laos money) because no money exchangers outside of Laos will take it. I eventually found someone in Bangkok that was heading to Laos and sold it to him for 600b. Ok so back to Cambodia. We walked inside to the window that said “TAXI” on it and asked how much. “2000b”, “no way, too much” we replied. “ok how much” he inquired. “800b” said Hila (one of the two Israeli girls, the other is Nita) “you’ll never find for this price.” He said, and we walked away. We decided to walk up the road and see what we could find. No keep in mind it’s raining, the streets are made of dirt and I’m wearing “locals” (for those not from Hawaii, locals are cheap rubber flip flops). As we walked I slung mud all over the back of my legs, shorts, shirt and bags. The guy from the Taxi zone chased us down. “OK 1500b”. “no thank you, 800b” we stood firm. “you’re crazy; you’ll never find this price. Gas cost more than that” he explained. We moved to 1000b. but still no luck. We told him we’d look around and he said good luck. He got on the back of a motorbike and followed us down the road. Every time we spoke to a taxi driver he came up and spoke in Cambodian to them and they raised their price to 1500b after several times of this happening over a quarter mile thru the mud we realized we were fucked. I told the girls we should sit and have food so he would leave. Only problem there was no restaurants. We got water and I left the girls and bags to find a driver. After several attempts I finally scored one for 1200b. I jumped in and told him to pick the girls up. When the girls and walked to the street with our bags the Stalker and a cop were talking to our driver. We were told he wasn’t a licensed cab and he couldn’t take us. The stalker then slipped the cop some money. Now we were being followed by the stalker on a motorbike and a second taxi with the cop sitting shotgun. I began to worry. Here we are in a poor, third world country being stalked by a mad taxi pimp and now the police. When we stopped at a corner the cop and stalker approached us. The cop explained we could not take an unlicensed cab. The stalker dropped to 1300b and I snapped back “For YOU, 1100b!!!! no more” “Ok I’m sorry, I’m sorry. 1200b, I’m sorry I’m sorry” as he dropped his head. After we got in the car he told us we had to go back to the Taxi station to do paper work. The cop got in the front seat and tried to assure us “It’s ok, I am police” in broken English as he pointed to the POLICE embroidered on his hat. The fact that he was trying to make me feel secure actually made me even more uneasy. The girls were afraid as well. The cab headed back the wrong direction and I pictured us being taken to a dark grimy room to be beaten, rapped and robbed. However, we did go back to the station and in 5 minutes were headed to Siem Reap. Our cab driver didn’t speak any English and listened to loud, whinny (Cambodian?) music the whole way. I reflected on the fact that we just spent 20 minutes walking in the mud haggling over a few dollars. The girls weren’t ready to laugh and said they’d feel ok once we got to siem reap. About 1 mile out of town the mud turned to nice fresh pavement. I felt cheated. If it stayed this nice I was going to be really upset that I didn’t take my bus. A few miles later it was back to dirt however and I was happy to be sitting shotgun in an A/C cab. About 30 minutes into the ride it began raining again, harder and harder. Soon we came to stop. Apparently a truck had gotten stuck in the mud and as cars tried to make their way around him, they were getting stuck too. The cars backed up and as renegade cab drivers tried to be hero’s they got stuck as well. It was a complete mess, and stand off situation as cars opposite directions blocked each other in. I asked if we should get out to help, using hand signs. He shook his head no. A few minutes later, seeing him roll his pants up, I took my shirt off and went to take a look. There were about 10 large supply trucks, 15 cars and 1 bus in front of us going the same direction. Cambodia truck drivers stood looking and a few cab drivers as well. One man was using a shovel. The rest watched. Off to the side a cab tried again to go but got stuck. Four Cambodian men and I tried to push it thru. He gained a few hundred feet, but was eventually blocked by stopped cars from the other direction. Seeing this another cab went for the same route. We again pushed, however there were two many people inside. I opened the door and told the 4 Japanese kids to get out if they wanted to get to siem reap. They listened. I then made my way to other cars and began open back doors “If you don’t want to spend the night here, get out and start helping” The Cambodian cabbies got a kick out of this. I don’t think they would have been able to tell their clients to get out, into shin high red clay/mud and push their own cab. More and more westerners began to get out. Soon we had about 40 people, Cambodian and foreigners working together. “Teem, Teem (Tim), this one, this one” one Cambodian man kept saying as he pulled me from cab to cab to push. I’m by no means a big man, but I was twice the size of most the Cambodians. There were three men, dress in designer jeans and dress shirts, standing on the floor board of their cabs, leaning out with the door open. “how’s it look” one asked as I walked back to my cab to check on the girls. I told him it was fucked but if more people would get out and help we might actually go somewhere. He responded something about me asking nicely and not using threats, as one of the others whined about the fact that he had expensive shoes on. “So take them off” as I walked to check on the girls and tell our cabbie to stay in the car so he could drive when we got things going instead of all the cars passing ours like they had been doing already. Making my way back to help one of the three men asked again, “do you think we’ll get through” angry that they were still sitting like sissy’s in their cars I fired back “not if you sit in your fucking car all night. If you get out and help like the rest of the men here, maybe. Look there are even women out here helping” now mind you, all three of these guys were 200+ and only one was fat. After working for 20 minutes I went to check on the girls and give them an update. This time, puzzled that the three men were STILL in their cars, I asked them where they were from. They hesitated and finally answered “Australia, why where are you from?” I cut him off “that’s funny I thought they had men in Australia, I’m from Hawaii, USA, where we work together as a family, as a group, as people for the better of all. Not selfishly sitting in our cars while everyone else does all the work” it just came out that way and I now realize that most Americans would probably sit in their cars too. I think we just truly are a lil different in Hawaii, or Maui at least. I kept walking because I realized that if stopped I was probably going to end up fighting one, or all three of these guys. When we got a few cars all the way thru, cars from the other side began coming our way. This just created another stalemate. Very frustrated that all our work had just been spoiled by the selfish of a few cabbies again, I began soliciting the help of some of the Cambodians. I used hand signals to explain that we need to be organized and allow three cars from one side, then three from the other. Eventually we got things going smoothly and created a lane for each way. Everyone was excited and many westerners and Cambodians alike thanked me for being the “sergeant” as one of them said. At this point I’d like to give a plug to the JAPANESE, French, Germans and Finland MEN that helped. Oh, ya and the two NYC women as well. Ok and I guess the one lone Australian (not part of the three, sissy’s) And of course the many Cambodians that finally started helping once they saw all the westerners getting dirty. After our car made it through we stopped and the cabbie and I ran back to help a cabbie whose car was stuck on the side. I saw the Japanese kids car and thanked them for helping. We took pictures and got back on the road. About 4 miles down the road 8 cabs pulled over in a small town so we could wash up and rinse the cars off. It was mini celebration and again people thanked me for organizing the effort. Now by this time my ego had taken over and I began to dream up stories of the Cambodians talking about “Teem” for years to come and the story of “Tim from Maui: saved the day” being passed from traveler to traveler across southeast Asia. To be fair, we probably would have spent the night there had I not got out and started making others help as well, but I don’t think any monuments will be built soon! Ok so back on the road this going well, but every once in a while hitting very slick muddy sections where cabs, including ours, spun out of control as if on ice. Soon we were stopped again. There was another truck off to the side and cars being stuck in the mud. No gridlock yet so we quickly pushed the cars thru and as our car made it, a few cars began to back up from the other direction. As we drove away I wondered how long before complete mayhem at this spot as well? 6 hours after we left we completed what was suppose to be a 3-4 hour journey. Our cabbie dropped us with the rest of westerners way outside of town where there were Tuk Tuk drivers waiting to take advantage of us. I called Phansy, a Cambodian man from CS (couchsurfing.com), who said he would pick us up and have dinner with us. It was 10pm and we were suppose to be in at 7:30ish. He said he would come get us so I handed the phone to our driver so he could explain where we were. The driver handed the phone to tuk tuk driver, and after a short conversation in Cambodia he hung up. The tuk tuk told me Phansy said he was busy and wouldn’t be able to make it. The girls gave him three names of guest houses they read about in lonely planet and he told them they were full and offered to take us to another house. They get commissions from the guest houses. He also wanted to charge us $1 per person, when it was only suppose to be $1 all together. As I offered to give him $2 to take us to our guest house, Phansy pulled up on a motorbike. He explained that the Tuk Tuk told him the wrong location. Phansy thought I was alone which is why he came by bike but he told us to wait and he called a car. When the car arrived he took us to our guest house, free of charge and we made plans for lunch the following day. We checked into Popular Guest House, one recommend by Lonely Planet and suggested by the girls. Mandalay Inn was across the street and was what Phansy suggested. Popular was 17$ a night for three of us, one single and one double bed, while across the street it was 18$ with free internet and wifi, but they were booked full. I put our name down for a room for the following day. Next morning we moved across the street and met phansy for lunch. He answered all our questions about Ankor wat and the surrounding temples, how to get around, what to do in town…everything we needed! He was great. Again I am going to RAVE about how amazing www.couchsurfing.com is. I paid for his lunch and we went to buy our bus tickets from Siem Reap to Phnom Phen. Phansy said we needed to go ahead and get them before the busses were full. We decided we would make a full day of temples the following morning, sunrise to sunset and then leave first thing Sunday morning. The girls bought tickets all the way thru to a lil beach area while I decided to stay in Phnom Phen for a night to see the “Killing Fields” and then continue to Vietnam the following day. We returned to our guest house and played on the very very slow internet and the girls left for smoothies while I worked out our transportation for the temples. Rin, another CSer, is a tuk tuk driver so I called him to see if would drive us. He met me at the guest house and we discussed our itinerary. We were to be picked up at 4:30 and stay til sunset, with transportation to 5 different temples. The cost was 15 USD, the same that the guest house had quoted us. The returned at 7pm and we left for the Night Market. I stopped for food at a street vendor that was full of Cambodian people eating. I told the girls to go to the market and I’d see them there or at back at the hotel later. The food ended up being _________, a Cambodian dessert that was AMAZING. Bread, fruit, that clear jello stuff, shaved ice, milk and some kind of white syrup on top! It was only .50 USD. On my way into the market I ran into the Japanese kids and the asked to take pictures with me, again I dreamed of the stories they would tell! I asked them to write in my book of people I’ve met. I have everyone I spend any significant time with write in this book. I explain that later down the road I’ll read it and remember our time together and that I won’t be reading for at least a few weeks or month to come. So far I’ve only read Andy’s, Natalies, Akes, Ploy’s and Alicia’s. There are still a lot to read. I saw for girls sitting at the “Island Bar” a gazebo bar in the middle of the market and I asked if I could join them for a bite. They were from England and leaving the next day for Thailand on a bus. I told them they might want to consider hiring a taxi instead and told them about our adventures. Behind the bar a young Cambodian man was doing some amazing bar flaring and I walked over to give it a go. He was happy to have someone to play with and showed me some new moves. My flaring skills were nothing compared to his. I walked around the market a full lap and then went back a second time to make my purchases. Now I’m back at the guest house, where I found the girls fast asleep in bed. Its now 1 am so I should be sleeping too! Good night