Our boat, the “Toum Tiou II”, was our home while cruising down the Mekong River into Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. While we don’t normally travel in such luxury we were thrilled to enjoy Western amenities on this boat cruise. We booked with G Adventures for an eight day “Mekong River Experience.” The boat often sailed at night letting us spend much of our daytime on land. The pace of the tour was very relaxed, requiring little walking and there was always a refreshing cool drink and damp towel waiting on our return. We ate many of our meals on board and food safety was carefully monitored by the chef and staff, as well as fresh drinking water provided throughout. We felt very spoiled and had frequent giggles over being so pampered but were thankful to have such nice amenities.
On the bus ride to the start of the boat cruise we stopped for sticky rice. This is a rice and coconut milk mixture that is packed into a bamboo section, which is then plugged with a wet banana leaf. The tube is slowly roasted until the outer husk of the bamboo can be peeled away, leaving a tasty, slightly sweet rice.
Some of my highlights on the boat cruise were meeting the other 28 interesting travelers. We met people from all over the world, each with a unique (to us anyway) life story. They came from Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand, a few Americans, Canadians and others. I found a lovely woman, Linda, from Canada who taught knitting, so was able to spend significant time learning new techniques. Thank you Linda! (there she is in photo on right watching the pottery maker) Making traditional clay pots is an impressive process- no potter’s wheels are used. Instead, they start with a loaf of bread sized lump of clay, and gradually shape and hollow it, adding more clay as necessary as they expand the pot sides. The potter walks around the pot, instead of the pot spinning on a wheel. Although most pots today are made by modern methods, these hand crafted posts are still in demand as decorative craft and display items.
We enjoyed oxen cart rides through the town and out to a country temple in pairs, and got a chance to bike in some of the villages.
Below, we were given cyclo cab rides (rickshaw or peddling bike).
Phnom Penh, Cambodia: Monument
Phnom Penh, Cambodia: Monument
Phnom Penh, Cambodia: fireworks
Monk in temple guiding prayers. Below, some of the many Hindu gods and statues.
As we were walking around after visiting the temple, we ran across a large group of school children on recess. They were shy, but curious about us. We started “talking” and soon attracted a large throng of kids. One of them wanted to high five Tim, and this was a great chance for them to interact with us. Kept busy for several minutes with high fives, until recess was over.
One generally doesn’t see tractors here, instead this “general purpose” drive unit can be used to tow a wagon, plow a field, or power a pump.
The rice paddies are vibrant green.
It was very relaxing cruising down the Mekong. The boat had a full length upper deck with comfortable seating, with a sunshade over most of it. We were cruising down both the Mekong and some side canals, so were up and close to the villagers and boaters. The Cambodian houseboats traditionally follow the seasonal flooding of the river as they move up and downstream, but that is now being disrupted by power dams across the river. During the time they stay in one area, they will put stakes into the river and grow water hyacinth to attract fish that they can catch.
Fishermen on their boats making a living. Note the typical outboard motor- just and old car engine on a long driveshaft, with a propeller that can be angled into the water. Looks very dangerous in unskilled hands!
Selling goods from the floating markets on the Mekong River
We toured a brick making facility, met bee farmers, tasted tea and chocolate locally made, all while visiting with our new tour mates. We completely enjoyed the entire experience and enjoyed going with a tour guide to minimize our time in a hot country where the navigation is difficult. We also had a chance to see a number of rural villages that are well off the normal tourist routes, which was a nice experience.
We spent much of a day touring the killing fields area from the Pol Pot regime. During his attempt to turn Cambodia into an agrarian society, over one fifth of the population died. About half from starvation, half from government torture and executions. In an attempt to create a peasant society, all property was confiscated by the state, and all educated and business people were murdered. Phnom Penh was deserted- all cities were emptied. An amazing and sobering history.
One of the Tuol Sleng Prison rooms where upper level prisoners were held. Typical prisoners were chained side by side on the floor, packed into a room.
Killing Fields of Cambodia. Even today bits of bone and clothing work their way up through the soil.
One of the few survivors of Tuol Sleng Genocide Prison.
And, to end on a more pleasant note, a couple more pictures of a Cambodian village, and the local night market set up with “picnic areas” for people to enjoy their food. More cruising soon as the Vietnam post will be coming soon.
