After such flurried ride the last month through SE Asia, I think it all finally caught up with me in Hanoi. Things were going too smoothly. After flying into Hanoi I still had all intentions on heading though Laos before I went home, but alas I learned of that impossibility. In most cases booking tours, rooms or travel only 1 day ahead is plenty, however a 1-way flight to the USA is an exception. I knew this, so I was in contact with an online travel agency out of Bangkok since the beginning of November to ensure I had a good deal on a flight back home (in the end, they basically kept me on hold the entire time). It was about this time of the trip I had deduced how far my money would take me, so I picked a date and ran the motions of getting home. The trick is: travel agencies are typically quite cheap out of the country the flight originates in, because the agencies create so much traffic for the airlines.
So, being in Vietnam for the remainder of the trip, I was stuck with few options to book a flight out of Bangkok because Vietnamese travel agencies quoted ridiculous prices on such flights. However, flights out of Vietnam all of a sudden became reasonable. After I got back from my trip to Halong bay, which I'll talk about in a minute, I got quotes from a multitude of agencies for flights home. Also, I learned that a bus ride to Luang Prabang - a beautiful spot in Laos - was a 2 day / 2 night endeavour. It then became clear that there was no way I could travel through Laos and fly out of Bangkok.
One agency in particular had a severely discounted rate on a flight with only 2 seats left on the aircraft, so I put a deposit down only to discover the next day that the price had risen $70 because of a complication with the layover in Taipei and they'd have to put me on a flight through Bangkok instead! The next day I come to pay the full amount and discover the price has raised again! Oh joy! Poor receptionist =\.
On top of all that, the staff on the liveaboard to Halong bay basically ripped me off, I've got a cold now, and I can't go to Laos or anywhere else for that matter because my flight is out of Hanoi in 6 days. It's probably a blessing in disguise for me to recuperate though. It would be no fun to be sick on a bus and roughing it through Laos.
So I'm making the best of it, and relaxing in a this wild city (as best as I can). There are many things to do and see here, and there are worse places to be stuck in!!! Halong bay was stunning and the other travelers on the boat made it a blast. Saigon was really insane, but a hell of a good time.
I depart the morning of the 19th and layover in Bangkok for I think 7 hours, then land in LA around 7pm. Lily and Brandon are going to pick me up at the airport and give me a place to sleep that night, thanks you two! They'll drop me off at the airport early that morning and I'll land in Denver at 9:30am on the 21st. Home sweet home.
This, of course, is assuming all goes to plan, which we all know is a heavy assumption ;), but that's travelling!!! See you all soon!
Oh yea. Nov. 23rd. Boulder. Outback Saloon. 9pm. Be there or be [].
Muse - Feeling Good
Muse - Glorious
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Singapore, Cambodia, Saigon
I'm told I've been slacking on this blog thing, so here ya go :D. I think it's mostly because the trip is coming to that inevitable end, and I'm trying to squeeze every last bit of fun out of Southeast Asia.
Lets see, I left the Cameron Highlands on a very long day of travel. The bus left the highlands around 1pm to arrive in Kuala Lumpur around 5pm which left enough time for me to hang out a bit and catch the overnight train to Singapore at 11pm. I love the sleeper trains. You get a little bunk in a rail car and sleep the miles away! The beautiful part is that it's really cheap for the ride - about $10 from KL to Singapore. The hard part is: if you don't get a good night's sleep on the train, the next day still starts at 8am when the train comes to a stop at your destination which can make for a loooooong day.
Singapore:
Was rad. The gueshose I stayed in was fun and clean and in a good part of town, well, sorta. It was in Little India which was much more sketchy than the rest of Singapore, but it was really fun anyway, and close to the subway and downtown. It's a big city, so I didn't walk the whole time; luckily they have a pretty sweet subway system for when I got lazy. It was really nice to be in a westernish city, but not so nice to see that Levi's jeans were all over $100!!! I tried to go up this skyscraper for a cocktail the last night I was there but they wouldn't let me up because I didn't have long pants on, just shorts (and I didn't have any pants whatsoever!). Anyways, Hooters took it's place. I even saw a movie at the theatre, Rendition, pretty sweet.
Cambodia:
K, from Singapore I flew to Siem Reap. That night out in the city lasted longer than expected, and my flight was earlier than expected. So I got home, drunk, at 2:30am to find that my flight was at 6am, which meant I had an hour to pack and catch a cab to the airport. Ahhh another night without sleep, the joys of traveling. I caught a few hours in the morning at my guesthouse in Siem Reap and found a driver and set off for the next few days around the city and the temples. Pictures do justice for this section, go check them out. Mr. Lee was my driver and took me to all the right places and I really felt like I got to see all sides of Cambodia. Rich to poor, local to foreign, ancient to new, depressing to downright awesome. It was a great experience. I met some really cool people in Cambodia which also helped keep the mood positive in such a deteriorated, impoverished, tainted country. Despite all their hardships, most Cambodians were extremely friendly and fun to talk to.
Saigon:
Well, I just got here last night and it's been fun so far. I spent a few hours this morning shaping things up with flights and online jizjaz and am ready to go face the chaos that is Ho Chi Minh City.
I Fly out to Hanoi tomorrow to see Northern Vietnam. Halong Bay and Sapa are two amazing places I hear, so I'll try to spend a few days at each then head into Laos to hit Luang Prabang and Vang Vieng before I get to Bangkok to fly home. I'm trying to catch a flight that leaves the 20th so I'll be back for a good Thanksgiving weekend back home. Keep your fingers crossed, I hope everything works out these last 2 weeks.
Fort Minor - Kenji
Radiohead - Backdrifts
Lets see, I left the Cameron Highlands on a very long day of travel. The bus left the highlands around 1pm to arrive in Kuala Lumpur around 5pm which left enough time for me to hang out a bit and catch the overnight train to Singapore at 11pm. I love the sleeper trains. You get a little bunk in a rail car and sleep the miles away! The beautiful part is that it's really cheap for the ride - about $10 from KL to Singapore. The hard part is: if you don't get a good night's sleep on the train, the next day still starts at 8am when the train comes to a stop at your destination which can make for a loooooong day.
Singapore:
Was rad. The gueshose I stayed in was fun and clean and in a good part of town, well, sorta. It was in Little India which was much more sketchy than the rest of Singapore, but it was really fun anyway, and close to the subway and downtown. It's a big city, so I didn't walk the whole time; luckily they have a pretty sweet subway system for when I got lazy. It was really nice to be in a westernish city, but not so nice to see that Levi's jeans were all over $100!!! I tried to go up this skyscraper for a cocktail the last night I was there but they wouldn't let me up because I didn't have long pants on, just shorts (and I didn't have any pants whatsoever!). Anyways, Hooters took it's place. I even saw a movie at the theatre, Rendition, pretty sweet.
Cambodia:
K, from Singapore I flew to Siem Reap. That night out in the city lasted longer than expected, and my flight was earlier than expected. So I got home, drunk, at 2:30am to find that my flight was at 6am, which meant I had an hour to pack and catch a cab to the airport. Ahhh another night without sleep, the joys of traveling. I caught a few hours in the morning at my guesthouse in Siem Reap and found a driver and set off for the next few days around the city and the temples. Pictures do justice for this section, go check them out. Mr. Lee was my driver and took me to all the right places and I really felt like I got to see all sides of Cambodia. Rich to poor, local to foreign, ancient to new, depressing to downright awesome. It was a great experience. I met some really cool people in Cambodia which also helped keep the mood positive in such a deteriorated, impoverished, tainted country. Despite all their hardships, most Cambodians were extremely friendly and fun to talk to.
Saigon:
Well, I just got here last night and it's been fun so far. I spent a few hours this morning shaping things up with flights and online jizjaz and am ready to go face the chaos that is Ho Chi Minh City.
I Fly out to Hanoi tomorrow to see Northern Vietnam. Halong Bay and Sapa are two amazing places I hear, so I'll try to spend a few days at each then head into Laos to hit Luang Prabang and Vang Vieng before I get to Bangkok to fly home. I'm trying to catch a flight that leaves the 20th so I'll be back for a good Thanksgiving weekend back home. Keep your fingers crossed, I hope everything works out these last 2 weeks.
Fort Minor - Kenji
Radiohead - Backdrifts
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