Lions, Tigers and Bears! Oh my!

The bus ride from Sihanoukville to Ho Chi Minh city was the longest one that we have been on yet. We left Cambodia at 8am and did not arrive at our hotel in HCMC until 9pm. We may have been able to shed an hour off that time but we had a small complication when we got to the Cambodia-Vietnam border. Our passports and visas checked out just fine but when the health officials boarded the bus to check for swine flu symptoms one of the passengers on the bus had a fever. This caused a chain reaction of officials getting on the bus, then off, then back on, then the traveller with the fever got off, then back on with a mask. After about an hour of being held up and not being allowed to get off the bus we were on our way.

The bus pulled up in Ho Chi Minh city and since we had done a little research before we showed up, we found our hotel just a block away from where the bus dropped us off. The Elios Hotel is gorgeous and we have completely enjoyed our stay here so far. Free breakfast at the rooftop restaurant is very tasty and the view from the outdoor terrace is amazing. There is a great park across the street from the hotel. After dinner the park is a hive of activity. Vietnamese people use the park for large aerobic sessions, walking, stretching, and all types of exercising.

Our second full day in Ho Chi Minh was spent at the Saigon Zoo which is one of the oldest zoos in the world. It was built in 1865 and was much better than we had anticipated. There were lions and tigers and bears! Also, hippos and pygmy hippos, rhinos, crocodiles, and giant squirrels. Our favorite by far were the Asian leopard cats. These are the cats that form the wild percentage of our cat at home, a Bengal named Naji. I could have stayed and watched them all day. Their mannerisms were so similar to our cat that it was like being with her for a little bit.

After the zoo we hopped in a cab and headed back to the hotel so that we coud find a nice place for dinner. I must add that the cabs and the cab drivers here have been phenomenal! They always put the meter on and the prices are very reasonable. Many of them don't speak any English but our hotel staff have been very helpful translating which was required yesterday when we tried to get to the Independance Palace.

Going to the Independance Palace was like going back in time to the 70's. They have left the palace in much the same condition that it was in when tanks broke down the gates and ended the war in 1975. There was a replica of that tank in front as well as an american plane and helicopter. The highlight for me was the basement which housed the command center and radio equipment. The presidents office and reception room on the second floor were also magnificent. There was also a gambling room with a round sofa, mahjong table and barrel bar and a private movie theater.

Our next stop in Vietnam is Hue (which we have mispronouced many times to the travel agents amusement) and we will be travelling there by train on Tuesday. It is about a 20 hour train ride and we have soft sleeper seats booked. I'm so excited, I've got dibs on the top bunk!

Want to see more photos of HCMC? Click here!

Cows Have the Right of Way

We haven't been in a car for about a month at this point so it was a bit of an odd feeling when we hopped into the late 80s model Camry with our driver to head to the Kbal Chhay waterfalls located about 30 minutes outside of Sihanoukville. Our driver brought his daughter with him which was appropriate since it was Father's Day back home in Canada. The falls are a very popular spot with the locals to have a weekend picnic and this day was no exception. There were families everywhere enjoying the wonderful weather and cooling off in the water.

Two boys that were hanging out in one of the tiers of the falls almost got more than they bargained for and were in a tough spot when we saw them. They had been swimming and clamouring around when the smaller boy slipped and ended up in a precarious position. The older boy tried to save him but you could tell they both needed some help. They were in very real danger of being swept over the last tier of the falls and down a long drop. Luckily there was a well placed rock that they were able to grab hold of.

At this point there was a crowd on both sides of the waterfall watching the drama unfold. The boys looked like they wanted to try to get back to shore by themselves but everyone was motioning for them to stay where they were. One wrong move by them and they would go over. People started searching for something they could reach the boys with and eventually a man came down with a long stick and another found a harness. The rescuers slowly made their way out while trying not to slip themselves. Once they got close enough they formed a human chain and grabbed the boys, first the younger one and then the older boy. Both boys made it back to shore much to the growing crowd's relief. It was a very dramatic way to start our trip to the waterfall.

We decided to check out the other side of the falls and headed over to the narrow rickety bridge that went over one of the streams feeding the falls. On the other side were Cambodia style picnic areas and vendors selling drinks and snacks. A little ways past some of the picnic spots was a smaller stream with many levels of smooth rock and tiny rapids. There were lots of Khmer people hanging out in the water, splashing each other and just having a good time. Ryan and I both waded into the water and wandered around a bit enjoying the coolness. The rocks underneath were very slippery and unfortunatly I was not careful enough and fell on my butt. I scrapped up my hand a little but it was nothing serious. My pride was injured more than anything else.

On our way to go back over the bridge Ryan peered into the trees and saw the biggest spider we have ever seen. This spider had a leg span as wide as my face. Once we had gotten over the shock of that we started to go over the bridge. It was at that point that I noticed that a cow had decided to cross the bridge coming right at us. We both figured that the cow had the right of way there and backed off to let him pass.

We got back into the car where our driver and his daughter were waiting to take us back into Sihanoukville. He decided to make a little tour out of it on the way back and took us up to the top of Sihanoukville mountain which was really more like a big hill. On the top was an amazing temple and an excellent view of the city spread out in front of us. There was a sense of peace on the top of that mountain and we strolled around the temple grounds enjoying the silence.

Life's a Beach!

Since our trip on the boat we have been just relaxing and enjoying all that staying near the beach has to offer. I have been reading alot while chilling by the pool and we go for wonderful walks down the beach when it's not raining. The rain comes and goes here at this time of year. It's not quite the true rainy season yet so we still get many hours of sunshine. When the rain does come it is usually a heavy downpour that is over quickly.

The power sometimes cuts out due to a storm but it's usually restored pretty fast and since they use propane to cook here we were still able to get a tasty Indian meal the other day while the power was out. The only part of our order they were unable to make was the lassi because they needed the blender for that.

We eat amazingly well for very little money. Our typical dinner costs less than ten dollars for food and drinks for us both and there is so much food that you can hardly finish what's on the plate. Highlights include pork and chicken schnitzel, coconut chicken curry, and chicken barbeque with baked potatoes. One exception to our tasty meals was when we went for an early dinner at the Twin Baby restaurant. Ryan had a cheeseburger that left much to be desired.

Our breakfasts have been excellent too. About a block away is the Cinderella cafe which has the best coffee and yummiest bacon we've had since we arrived in Cambodia. They make an excellent ham and cheese omelette and apple strudel with ice cream too.

We do more than just eat (occasionally, lol). There are always some errands to run. We found a little used bookstore within walking distance which is very handy considering I've read 9 books since we arrived in Cambodia. We also went downtown to a computer store to buy a mouse. It was getting tricky updating the blog and preparing photos without one. The computer store was definitely no Future Shop or Best Buy but they had everything that you could need.

At night after dinner we come back to the hotel and sit on the balcony facing the street watching the world go by. The smells from the barbeques that go on all down the street waft up to us. Last night we finally saw our first Cambodian convertible (a red Lexus at that). I would have thought convertibles would be more popular in this climate. We also saw a Aston Martin Vanquish which seemed very out of place in this impoverished country.

Tomorrow we are off to get our visas for Vietnam and we should be heading to Ho Chi Minh next week. It's funny that the only reason that we came to Sihanoukville in the first place was to get those visas but instead we have fallen in love with this little Cambodian beach town and are finding it very hard to leave.

Beer on a Boat

After one false start booking a tour to the islands around Sihanoukville, the weather cooperated and we headed off to Victory beach on a tuk tuk to meet our boat. We were the first people to arrive so while we waited for the boat to get to the dock we wandered around the beach and up and down the pier.

More people started to arrive at the dock and then we saw our boat come around the corner. Once aboard we were treated to coffee, tea, donuts and banana bread and then set off with our 21 fellow passengers to check out the rest of the ship. It had 3 decks, a sun deck on the top, a bar deck on the mid level and the kitchen with dining area on the low level. Robert, the owner, was very proud of the boat that he built and for good reason. It was very comfortable with lounging areas and relaxing seating on every floor.

Ryan and I grabbed two seats facing the back and drank our coffees as we started on our way to the first island. After we had finished our coffees and admired the view for a little while we headed to the bar and Ryan had his first draft beer on a boat ever. We toasted with the owner and hung out at the bar chatting with him until we arrived at our first destination.

The island was lush, untouched and gorgeous. Ryan and I dove into the water and enjoyed swimming around in the open ocean. Ryan originally had fins and a mask when he first jumped in but the fins were more hindrance than helpful and there was not much to see with the mask unless you went far away from the boat. Too much silt and sand had been churned up and visibility was not that great. After a very nice swim we climbed back aboard, showered off the salt water and headed back up to the bar. On our way to the next island we chatted some more with the owner and met an Australian woman who was currently working as a biologist in Vietnam.

On the way to the second island we had an amazing buffet lunch that was prepared on the boat. By the time we had finished lunch and had some fruit for dessert we had made it to our second destination. We saw Robert and his dog Lucy head into the water and swim to shore. After that a couple more people jumped in the water and headed to shore and we decided to do the same. It didn't look like that far of a swim but once we got into the water it seemed much further than we originally thought. We made it to the beach without a problem and wandered around until we saw Robert and Lucy come back from a path through the jungle. He pointed the way to us and off we went into the jungle in our bare feet.

The air was much cooler in the midst of all of the trees and the path that we walked down was covered in leaf litter and the occasional giant millipede or trail of ants. We had to make sure we didn't step on anything so we walked very carefully until the path turned sandy again. The path through the forest had lead us to the other side of the island. It was completely deserted except for a small group of wood huts. The beach was stunning but the most amazing thing was that the sand squeaked under our feet. We jumped into the water and played in the waves for a while before heading back to the path through to the other side of the island where we swam back out to the boat.

On the way back to Victory beach to catch our tuk tuk and head to the hotel, we laid out on the sun deck and relaxed while watching the water and the islands drift past us. We had such a great day that we have decided to do it again!