Thursday 5th November

New Hope is a Cambodian Non Government Organization that provides hope for some of the country's poorest families. In particular, they provide education and support for children and it was our privilege to see the place in action this morning. The visit began by our group being picked up by Tuk Tuk from the hotel and driven to the premises on the outskirts of Siem Reap. After some introductions and when the children returned to class, we were allocated rooms to visit, and in my case I went to a small English class of children 13 and 14 years old. The teacher asked me what my occupation was and after learning I was a retired teacher he handed the class over. In the short time available I read part of a book and explained words, sang songs and played a game. After that, our group was driven into the nearby village and we saw first hand the poverty in which the people were living. It was interesting that the girl assigned to look after us (Pipi) was a 'graduate' from New Hope and she was in her 3rd year at university. Needless to say she was a great ambassador for the organization and they were very proud of what she has achieved.

After our tour of the village we returned to the school for an early lunch at their hospitality training facilitity. All of the young people there had been students at New Hope and they served up a delicious lunch for us to enjoy with a drink they prepared as well. We had to leave by 12.30 to check out of the hotel although we did have 2 rooms allocated to freshen up before heading to the airport at 3.15pm.

Our plane was late leaving Siem Reap but there was no rush at Saigon as the Sydney link was a little late as well. A flawless 3 weeks in Vietnam and Cambodia and thanks to Tinh for his superb organization and attention to detail.

Part of the New Hope school and restaurant training facility

There were about 70 children in this class aged from 3 to 8

A beautiful moment, Dr Jill with a 6 week old baby from the village.

High 5's all round

Our village guide Pipi

Jill giving Chris a donation from 2 of our travelers. Chris comes from Umina and volunteers her time for 2 months of the year to look after sponsorship.

In the hospitality restaurant

The well presented meal they cooked for us

Wednesday 4th November. Siem Reap

We reached Angkor Thom by 8.45am this morning, the first of our 3 temple visits. The first thing I noticed since my visit in 2010 was the increased formality in ticketing. Everyone was photographed and a personal ticket issued. Apparently, the Koreans had been double dipping with tickets so this was introduced to stop the fraud. Another noticeable change is the number of Chinese people traveling and the contempt in which they are held by both the Cambodians and the Vietnamese, probably because they are so pushy in queues.

Angkor Thom is the ancient capital of the Khmer Kingdom and is a magnificent spectacle. The Bayon is famous for its BAS relief and the carvings depict much of the history of the time. In particular, their defeat of the Cham armies is well documented. From there we moved onto the Elephant Terraces and then to Angkor Thom. What was particularly good was the fact that our guide didn't go over the top with his spiel on each of the main attractions. Our guide in 2010 talked incessantly in very hot conditions and lost us, and, in addition took us to 6 temples. This time I limited it to the big 3 and this proved a wise move as the group was pretty much tired out by the time we finished at Angkor Wat. Angkor Wat lived up to everyone's expectations and it's sheer size and grandeur amazes. We arrived around 3pm and the late afternoon light looked great on the stone. We were also lucky that there was a little cloud cover with the occasional sunshine so while it was hot, it was bearable. It was a Buddhist holiday today so there were many monks in the complex and they had closed off the upper level of the temple for Buddhist prayer. 

Most people were pretty drained after the visit to the temples so the pool was too good to resist on our return. Tinh had organized a meal at the Apsara dancing show and I'd have to say I wasn't looking forward to it after a previous experience in a big venue. This venue turned out be very modern and intimate and we enjoyed the traditional dancers. The food was good as well and the whole evening was a fitting farewell to Cambodia.

The causeway to Angkor Thom

The Bayon

Part of the BAS relief on the Bayon's walls.

Part of the elephant terraces where the king stood to address the masses.

Ta Prohm which has had trees left to show what it was like when the French cleared the growth

The causeway to Angkor Wat

Traditional Apsara dancers

Tuesday 3rd November. Phnom Penh to Siem Reap

We were on the road promptly at 7.30am for the 6 hour drive to Siem Reap. Our guide Makara gave a running commentary for the first hour, the highlight being a personal account of his family's life under the Khmer Rouge. His father was a teacher and pretended to be a farmer to escape death, working in local fields. The military did find out and came for him twice but he was out working each time. The third time coincided with the Vietnamese army liberating their village in 1979, and he survived. Makara is still the most educated of his 6 brothers and sisters but had to defy his father to study at university. His father only found out when he had finished and wouldn't speak to him for 3 months. There is still the fear in the elderly that anyone with an education could suffer under a Pol Pot type government.

On the brighter side we stopped for lunch at an elevated restaurant in a small kampong about 2 hours drive from Siem Reap. They served what they called a picnic which was a tasty egg salad sandwich, a mini burger, sticky rice cake and 2 delicious spring rolls. We arrived in Siem Reap about 2pm. Tinh received a call from his company to say we were being upgraded so we arrived at the Angkor Paradise Hotel, a pleasant establishment in the Main Street. We had arranged to meet a friend of ours in the original hotel so Tinh jumped in a Tuk Tuk and retrieved her.

The highlight of the day was the cruise to Lake Sonlé Tap to visit the floating village of displaced Vietnamese migrants. It is interesting to note that these migrants are stateless as both Cambodia and Vietnam don't recognize their status. Sonlé Tap is the biggest lake in South East Asia and acts as a natural reservoir to store water during the wet season. This vastly increases the size of the lake and increases its depth up to 9 metres. For those readers interested in some impressive statistics Google this lake for more information. The cruise started from the same place when we visited in 2010, but instead of stopping at one of the floating establishments we cruised past and out into the lake for the beautiful sunset. We arrived back at the hotel with about 45 minutes to spare before heading off for our evening meal at a nearby classy restaurant.

There is unanimous agreement amongst the group that Tinh has given us some amazing upgrades with both hotels and meals over the last 3 weeks. Tomorrow has the potential to be the most tiring of the trip to date - the visit to the temples.

Monday 2nd November Chau Doc to Phnom Penh

A 7am start this morning from the pier in front of the Victoria Hotel. Our travelers have rated this hotel the best so far because of its colonial feel, location beside the Lower Mekong and the quality meals. Our boat was one of the Blue Cruisers and we were scheduled to arrive in Phnom Penh around 11.45am. 

About 20 minutes into the journey the Lower Mekong joined the Upper Mekong to become one large river. I estimated it to be around 800 metres wide in places and with a channel depth of around 18 metres it is a mighty river navigable by good sized ships. Some early morning cloud burnt off early and we had a warm sunny day yet again. We were excited by a tropical downpour last night however and it rained heavily for about 15 minutes after dinner.

The red tape passing out of Vietnam into Cambodia on the border is something you come to expect but it took us at least 45 minutes to be on our way again. This pushed back our time of arrival in PP to 12.15. The Blue Cruiser had an indoor area with comfortable seating but it was fairly crowded with people and hand luggage. Some of us preferred to sit up the back in the more open part of the boat where it was breezy, noisy but a little less claustrophobic. It was interesting to look at some of the big tourist boats plying the river over several days but the attraction would have to be in the onboard facilities because the scenery, while interesting, is much the same throughout the journey.

The transfer to the hotel was smooth and we were checked in by 12.40pm. At 2.30 we travelled with our Cambodian guide to the Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda for a guided tour. Being a kingdom, Cambodia has a monarchy and royal family but they take no part in the decision making of the government. The ornate temples and stupas reflect Buddhist and Hindu cultures.

Tomorrow we head for Siem Reap.

We travelled a few kilometres to a riverside restaurant tonight and had seats overlooking the river. It had a fold back roof which had to be rolled back into place because of another tropical downpour. A great place to enjoy the food and the ambience of the Mekong at night.

The following photos reflect river life along our journey

The bridge across the Mekong linking Saigon to Phnom Penh

The Royal Palace in PP. The red carpet was out for the arrival of the King.

Sunday 1st November. Can Tho City to Chau Doc

An 8am start this morning and the run of beautiful weather continued. The reason for this earlier start was to catch the action in the floating market, so we boarded a traditional diesel powered boat for a 45 minute ride down the Mekong to the market. The banks of the river were dotted with poorly constructed dwellings, many of which looked like they would disintegrate in a flood. The floating water hyacinth is common along the river and this tends to accumulate in pockets where river flow is impeded. Combined with rubbish floating in the river it tends to spoil the integrity of the river in places. 

The floating market is just that. At least 30 good size timber boats anchor in the river and wait for boat traffic to make a purchase. There are a few small traders trying to earn some dong selling to tourists but most of the sales are for local consumption. Boats tended to specialize in produce, although a few had 2 or 3 different types of fruit and vegetables. I watched the outer leaves of cabbages being trimmed off for a sale and you can guess where all the rubbish ended up. Overall, the markets were a good cultural experience for everyday life on the Mekong.

There are few what you would call modern boats on the river. Most of the larger timber planked wooden boats are driven by diesels with shaft drives but there are many boats powered by motors mounted on the rear with very long shafts. (Thai style) These motors varied from small 4 stroke engines to quite large 6 cylinder petrol car engines. This type of propulsion has a distinct advantage in shallow areas of the river.

The road from Can Tho to Chau Doc runs west to the Cambodian border. The influence of the Mekong and its sub branches is evident along the whole route and it brings home the importance of the river in the lives of the South Vietnamese people.

We arrived at the Victoria Hotel around 2pm not quite knowing what to expect in this more remote town. We were pleasantly surprised with the quality of the room and would rate it as one of the best of the trip so far. It has a distinct colonial feel about it that is reminiscent of the Das Cateras Hotel near Iguassu Falls. The timber is a glossy mahogany type wood with flooring matching the cupboards and huge desk. The outlook from each of our rooms is over the Mekong River.

Every now and then you get an unexpected highlight for the day and today was no exception. We headed off to a Cham village at 4pm with about half the group and gently motored up to a large floating village that farmed a variety of fish including basa and fresh water barramundi. Tinh threw in fish food to one of the baskets of fish and there was a feeding frenzy as they all competed for the corn pellets. From there it was on to the Cham village. Their jetty was very basic being supported on sticks with 2 pieces of 3x2 nailed between the sticks. Old pieces of timber were laid across to form the pathway. There was some interesting traditional craft being made and on sale and the children of the village were delightful. I had visited the remains of a Cham village in Central Vietnam 5 years ago and it was interesting to see where these Islamic people migrated to. We headed back about 5pm and the late afternoon light on the river and the buildings gave the whole panorama a special charm.

Some of the shanties along the river

Everyone has something to sell

The sale of melons

This young boy was helping mum selling bananas to tourists

Taking home the produce. Not much free board!

The Victoria Hotel in Chau Doc

The feeding frenzy

Part of the floating village