Through the Delta

Howdy Ho,

It's Tuesday afternoon here in Ben Tre. I know I've been slacking on updating the blog, I'll try to update more often. I tried to update yesterday, but the oh-so-friendly people at the internet cafe felt it was a good idea not to tell me when they closed. Instead they just turned off the computers in the middle of me writing. Man, was I ticked.

I spent the rest of Friday (when I last updated) chilling around town. I spent a few hours at the cafe I've been going to, everyone there is very welcoming.

Later, I went to the Banh Mi place. It's close to the hostel, and Teung, the guy who works there, is always saying hello and calling me by name as I walk by. I had Banh Mi and a Bia Hoi there.

(This second hand smoke is really getting under my skin. It seems like every male smokes.)

I took a nice nap at the hostel.

I went out and explored the market (again) and walked around. Later in the evening I made my way to the riverfront. I had a snack of corn on the cob. Nowhere even close to as good as home, I didn't like it at all. After, I took a seat on the bench, watching the people walk by and the boats go past.

Not after long 2 young ladies sitting on the bench next to mine began talking to me wanting to practice speaking English. It turns out that they were recent college graduates, like myself, who had majored in English. We talked for a long time, about Vietnam, where I'm from and so on.

I've found that it's particularly easy to meet people here in Vietnam.

It was getting late and before we parted they showed me a great street snack. It was a thin, flexible waffle (like a soft pizzelle) wrapped around black sticky rice, a big spoonful of sugar, and a small fistful of shredded coconut, capped with a small, thin, round edible shell. It was fantastic. It's always best to get somebody who knows the area to show you the food.

I had planned on going to the floating market the next morning, Saturday. I overslept though, it's best to go early in the morning, before 7.

When I finally did wake up I went to the cafe again and had some coffee and chilled out with my new friends.

For lunch (I knida missed breakfast) I went to a restaurant nearby that was suggested by Teung (the guy at the banh mi/bia hoi place). They gave me a ton of food, though it was very tasty. I got a few pieces of baked fish and a huge plate of rice. That was served with soy sauce with chili peppers. I was also served an enormous bowl of soup filled with cilantro and cabbage and pork meatballs. The soup was ok, very light. The fish though was fantastic and very fresh.

I poked around for a bit and organized my bus ticket for the next day.

Walking around the city I was convinced by a family to sit down at their sidewalk cafe and have a beer. I sat down on one of the tiny plastic stools. They brought me a Saigon Beer, and they hung out at the same table as me. The son and daughter (around my age) spoke a bit of English. They beganto prepare dried squid, which means grilling it and shredding it. They also snacked on it as they went (it seems to be an ingreident they just keep around). They kept giving me pieces to snack on as well. It tastes great. They instructed me to dip the shreds into a bit of very spicy chili sauce they had in a little dish on the table. Very hot, very good.

That evening I chilled out on the riverfront again with one of the people I had met the night before there.

I woke up early the next morning, Sunday, to go to the floating market. For $10 I hired a boat to take me there from the city, and cruise around the Delta for 4 hours. The market was cool, a really bustling area right there on the river. There's lots of boats carrying all sorts of produce to be distributed. We went through all sorts of tiny canals. The scenery was great. For a while the boat driver turned off the engine and rowed, standing up. She was very friendly, pointing out all sorts of intersting things around. Then she made me row for some time, while she chilled there in the seat. She would motion me to go over to the side of the river/canal so she could collect the ends of these plants that were growing in the water, floating on the surface. I guess she thinks they're really delicious, she took a ton. After I got tired, we switched again. Along the way we also picked up some dragon fruit to eat. Also, we stopped at a little cafe where I had some delicious coffee with condensed milk. Nearby the cafe she showed me a place where they make rice noodles. That was a really neat to watch. Basically they take this thick liquid (made from rice) and pour it on this fine cloth screen, which is over boiling water. They put a lid over it, and it steams. they remove the lid, pick up the now solid (though soft) round of batter and place it on mats to cool. It all happens very fast. Later, they cut it to make noodles.

Making the noodles

Can Tho

After getting back to Can Tho I went back to the guesthouse. I got my stuff together and was picked up to go to the bus station. I got on the bus to Vinh Long. I talk with a fellow named Ty, a government environmental worker, from Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). He had been visiting parents and was making his way back to the city (Vinh Long is a stop along the way). As the bus got onto the ferry across the Bassac river he told me abou the Can tho Bridge. It is under construction, and will eliminate the need for the ferry. However, there was an accident in the bridge's construction recently, killing 52 people.

After about 2 hours riding on the bus, including about 15 min on the ferry,I arrived at the Vinh Long bus station. I got a xe om to the Cuu Long tourist agency, which is state-run, to organize a homestay. Within a short time I was on a boat going through the Delta again. First was a visit to a fruit farm. I didn't really get to see the farm, but was able to try some of the fruits. There was pomelo (a favorite of the group I was with in Laos and Cambodia...), jackfruit, longan and something else I can't remember. It was all very good. It was my first time having jackfruit even though its so plentiful here. They also served tea. Additionally, a bottle with some of the local whiskey was put on the table with a small shot glass, so I could "sample". They started to do some really cheesy singing and acting. At that point the whiskey really came in handy...

We cruised around some more through canals. A new refrigerator on a little boatWe ended at where I would be staying. It's a small place run by a family that has some extra rooms at their place. I spent quite a bit of time lazing in the hammock. I took a bicycle out and cruied around the area for a bit. It was very serene there. The area has plenty of scenery, lots of bridges over small canals, fruit farms and more. I was going to get pictures on my way back but the sky started getting very grey. I booked it back to where I was staying. I was just in time, it started pouring.

I had a great dinner there. A whole fried elephant ear fish. It was served with rice paper wrapper, lettuce, herbs and cucumbers. The idea was to take some fish with the lettuce, herbs and cucumber and wrap it up. It was dipped in nuoc cham (fish sauce, water, sugar, lime, garlic and chili). That was spectacular. It was amazingly fresh and clean tasting. The fish was cooked perfectly and was moist. And the vegetables were great too. The sauce was excellent as well, I love fish sauce. I was also served a couple of huge, head-on shrimp which were great. The obligatory rice was there, too. A few grilled pork cutlets were served as well. I also was served a huge bowl of soup with greens. It was a lot of food. I wasn't quite able to finish, though I must say I thinkI did a pretty good number on it.

I spent the rest of the evening hanging out,playing with the friendly little dog there.

Early the next morning, Sunday, Hui, the boat driver, picked me up after breakfast. First, we went to Cai Be, another flaoting market.

That's a lot of dragonfruit

After the market, we went to a candy factory. That was insteresting to see. It's just a family run operation. That day they were amking some puffed rice candy which was fun to watch them pop the rice.

We headed back to Vinh Long. I picked up a Banh Mi for my bus ride which I had previously organized. I hopped on the bus to My Tho (pronounced Mee Tao).

Less than 2 hours later I arrived. I got a xe om to a hotel where I checked in. I explored the town some. There's nmot much to see, kinda boring. I had a tasty dinner though. It was grilled duck with pepper-lime sauce. On the side was some herbs, lots of cucumber, and plenty of sweet pickled radish and carrot. Mmmm.

That brings us up to this morning. Brunch (I slept late again) was rice with grilled pork, a slice of pate, pickled vegetables and some unrecognizable stuff that tasted good. For some reason there were some enormous boa constrictors in cages on wheels sitting out on the side walk nest to the restaurant. I'm talking big ones, like 6 feet and fat. There were 2 cages, with 2 snakes in each.

After checking out of the hotel I walked over to the dock. I got on one of the ferries to Ben Tre, across the river. The ferry is a vehicle carrying one. People on foot, such as myself, get to ride for free. The ferries go constantly all day long.

Ben Tre is a triangular island (its own province), seperated from the mainland by rivers on 2 sides, with the ocean on the third side.

I got a xe om to take me to the hotel in the main town. It was about a 25 minute ride. The town is pretty chilled out. It's not crowded like the other towns/cities I've been to in vietnam either. Not a ton of tourists come here. Today I walked around some,checked out the market.

That brings us up to now. I should be in Ben Tre for 2 nights. I hope to get a tour of the area by boat tommorow. The next day I hope to catch the bus to Ho Chi Minh City. I'm really looking forward to that.

Well that does it for now.

Take care,

Mike

My Happy Place

Vietnam.

Greetings from Can Tho, Vietnam. It's Friday morning. I last posted on Friday, so lets go back.

The hotel we had stayed in that night was a very posh. I was also starting to feel a bit sick. So,I pretty much just bummed it for the rest of the day, nothing exciting.

The next day, Saturday, I was feeling more sick. It was a cold, runny nose, itchy eyes, sore throat etc. In hind sight it's kinda funny that I had a "cold", granted it's the tropics. Anyways, my fellow travellers and I ventured out for a bit of lunch. We noodles in yellow curry. It was ok, though I didn't particularly enjoy it, maybe because of how sick I felt.


My new friends were leaving that day, so I said my goodbyes to them and went to find a new place to stay. I got a tuk tuk to go find one. A tuk tuk, if I haven't mentioned already, is a type of taxi. They're mostly found in Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia. From what I saw, Laos and Cambodia have few traditional taxis (that is, a car). Tuk tuks are a motorbike with an attached carriage that has seats for 2-4 people.

I made my way over, in the tuk tuk, to the Boeung Kak Lake area. This is where a few budget hotels/hostels/guesthouses are found. I got a room at the Buong Meas Guesthouse. I splurged and got a room with air-conditioning and private bathroom (I normally get a fan cooled room), mainly because I still felt crummy. Still, it was only $12/night. I didn't do too much the rest of the day. I went to the store for a few snacks.


I also went to the "pharmacy". It's a bit unnerving to buy medication in a developing country from someone with whom I share no common language. I mimed my symptoms, which the woman working there (something tells me she's not a trained and qualified pharmacist) understood. She showed me a few different packets, I saw one of the drugs, "Tiffy Fu" had pseuphedrine (sp?). Good. I know that one. It's Sudafed. It's made in Thailand, so I can maybe trust it too. There was some other stuff in it too, I'll have to read up on those later. I got 4 packets of 4 pills (8 doses, more than I needed). I stopped in an internet cafe and researched my new medication, I wanted make sure it wouldn't kill me. Everything seems ok. Company has a good reputation, the other components in the pill are harmless, etc.


My Tiffy Fu worked alright. Nonetheless, I still felt pretty crummy. The only other thing I did that day was buy my boat ticket to Vietnam, more on that later.




The next day, Sunday, wasn't too much better. I did manage to wander around a bit. Phnom Penh can be a really gritty city, as I think I've already mentioned. Nobody gave me any trouble or anything, but it's quite visible what life is like. Even though it's densely populated, with a population over a million, there's still dirt roads (like the one where my guesthouse was). And the dirt roads are very rocky and bumpy with plenty of holes. There's a lot of garbage around too. On the upside, though, people are extraordinarily friendly. Little kids say "hello" and a lot of people smile at you.



On Monday I was feeling better, ready to do my 2nd real day of sightseeing. I hired a tuk tuk for the day (though it wound up only being a few hours). I visited Wat Phnom, a temple on top of a small hill (Wat mean temple and Phnom means hill. Phnom Penh means Penh's Hill.). It's a central part of Phnom Penh. Honestly, it wasn't my favorite temple, but it was worth a visit, due to its importance to the city.



I also visited Independence Monument, which celebrates independence from colonial French rule. Nearby was Liberation Monument, which celebrates the Vietnamese freeing the country from the Khmer Rouge.




Next, I went to the National Museum. That was a good hour walkaround. There's lots of statues from Cambodia throughout the ages. I also wasted away quite a bit of time by feeding the fish in the courtyard.


Next stop, Central Market. I wandered around this very large market. it's quite lively and people are selling everything. I had lunch of noodle soup, delicious.


Next, I went to Sisowath Quay, the riverfront. Pretty boring, there's construction blocking most of it. It was getting to be late afternoon so I took the tuk tuk back to the guesthouse. After refusing my tuk tuk driver's offer to take me to the shooting range where I can fire anything from M-16s to AK-47s to Tommy Guns to Rocket Launchers, I made me way inside. By the way, this shooting range really does exist, it's quite famous with travellers, I really just had no desire to go.

I made sure all my stuff was ready to go for the next morning (leaving for Vietnam). I had dinner (I remember eating on some random street, but can't remember what I had, sorry I haven't been too good in this post about keeping up with the culinary aspect). I went to a nearby bar for a couple beers and talked to someother travellers. I called it an early night (I had to be redy at 6:30 the next morning) and headed off to bed.


I got up early the next morning and walked down the the fron of the travel agency where I was to be picked up by bus, which would take me to the dock in Phnom Penh, where I would catch the boat to Vietnam. While I was waiting I had a bit of breakfast. It was Le Vache Qui Rit (Laughing Cow) on a baguette. I know what you're thinking. It's quite common in Cambodia, though (with locals). It's also all over Laos and Vietnam.


Then my Tuk Tuk picked me and the other guy who was waiting up. Wait a minute, I thought a bus was picking us up. No, the tuk tuk will take us to the bus. So after driving around Phnom Penh for half an hour, and picking up 2 other guys, we arrive at the guesthouse/travel agency where the bus will pick us up. We wait another 45 minutes. When the minibus arrives, the guy at the travel agency decides its a good time to take down our information that needs to be handed to Immigration. Could he have done this during the 45 minutes we were waiting. Of course he could have, but he didn't. The 4 of us took turns showing him our passports while he copied down information, excruciatingly slowly. He spoke alright English, the language on the form, but each one of us still needed to tell him we'd be arriving in Vietnam on the 23rd and so on and so forth. Meanwhile, the bus is waiting, we could be on the way already.


After getting on the bus, I started to notice something. We aren't going to the riverfront. We're heading out of the city. Fine, maybe the boat it somewhere close outside the city. After about half an hour I ask one of the fellow passengers if he knew where the bus was going. He had been told (correctly) that the launching point of the boat is an hour and a half away from the city! I had explicitly asked if the boat was in Phnom Penh. I had been told "yes".


Whatever, we'll get there eventually. Finally, after driving along a river, and through countryside, for a long time I see a big boat at a dock. It looks pretty nice and new. It has two stories. Nice boat.


Wait a minute... Why is the bus turning onto this dirt path? Ok, we're parked on the street. We're getting out here. Um, we're in somebody's backyard. There's a few rotting wood planks propped up on rocks leading out to a little wooden bumboat. That couldn't possibly be.... It is... Well this is gonna be fun.





After a precarious walk over the planks (with my big backpack) I got on the boat with the other travellers. There were already 5 other passengers on board, making a total of 9 passengers and a "crew" of 4 (though 2 of the crew just sort of hung out). The seats were just 2 benches running the length of the boat. The crew positioned us so we didn't throw the boat off balance.





As we made our way I took in the scenery and got a bit wet. I also chatted with some of the other travellers. Along the way the boat dropped off some bicycles at a village, giving us a bit more room inside. We docked and went out Cambodian Immigration. We then reboarded, went a km or so, and got off again to go through Vietnamese Immigration. We then got on anopther boat to go to the town of Chau Doc, an hour's ride away. The ride went through small canals/tributaries. I'm sure you've seen those romantic images of the Mekong Delta. Let me just say, it really does look like that. There's bamboo houses on stilts and floating houses. People row (often standing up) long, narrow wooden boats along. People are fishing. There's lots of trees with submerged trunks. Oh yea, and countless conical hats.





We finally arrived in Chau Doc. Chau Doc is a nice town of about 70,000 people. One of the other travellers and I split a Xe Loi (Vietnamese cyclo) to go to the hotel; everyone on the boat wound up going to this hotel eventually. We found out that the hotel is 2 blocks from the dock. The trip was much longer however. Our driver stopped at his buddy's hotel. His buddy tried to sell us a room there, we weren't gonna take any of that crap. After much refusing they finally got the picture and our driver took us to the right hotel.


We explored the town a bit. The market is great, all sorts of variety. In addition to countless fruits, vegetables, meat and provision, there's plenty of live seafood flopping around. There's tons of fish in wide, shallow buckets of water. Some of em flop out on the sidewalk, onlyto be quickly captured by their owner. There's tons of live shrimp (big ones with claws, like langoustines) in buckets as well. The fish are butchered right there on the street,on a block of wood. The butchering is done with amazing speed and efficiency, faster than I could ever hope to be. A firm whack of a wooden club to the head, scales come off, a slice and the guts are removed and so on. Oh yea, don't forget the live frogs jumping around.


Lunch was a lovely bowl of Pho, the ubiquitous Vietnamese bowl of noodles. The cost was 8,000 Dong, or about 50 cents US. This was my first meal in Vietnam, and I really enjoyed it. I wandered around some more and laid down for a while backin the hotel.

I made my way out later and had a little snack of sliced pork and cucumbers, yum.

I can't remember muchelse of what I did that day. I did have a late dinner of Bánh Mì, which was really, really delicious. Bánh Mì is a Vietnamese sandwich. It's made on a baguette with pâté (there's that French influence again) and various other items based on the stall owner's choice. This one has two kinds of pâté, one being like the traditional pâté made with liver and such, though in the form of a large wheel, and the other being a much firmer chicken pâté. The pâté is a touch spicier than the French varieties. This particular Bánh Mì had a scallion and some cilantro, and a bit of sliced chili. Wow! That chili is hot! Really hot! And its only in one spot on the sandwich (intentionally, my fellow traveller got 2 sandwiches, which were the same as mine). I was there munching away, then it hit me all in one bite. I gotta say, it's really not bad, I quite enjoyed the kick from it.


The next morning, Wednesday I had another bowl of Pho. I was picked up by Xe Loi at the hotel to go to the bus station. I was heading to Can Tho; I bought ticket the day before. Turns out it was a 16 passenger minibus, but there weren't too many other passengers. Before we left a vendor stood in the door of the bus and convinced me to buy a Bao, a steamed bun with filling. It was really good. It was slightly sweet with an also slightly sweet filling with onion and meat and quail eggs.


The bus ride was alright, lasting about 3 hours with a stop in Long Xuyen. We picked up and dropped off lots people along the way. The bus was shared with a chicken for a while; it didn't cuse any trouble though; it stayed under the seat.


Once in Can Tho (pronounced Can Tao) I hired a xe ôm to take me to the hostel. A xe ôm is simply a motorbike taxi. It's a bit uncomfortable sitting on the back of a motorbike with a big backpack. I won't complain, its not uncommon to see 3-4 people on one of these things, usually carrying a few bags/boxes. The most amazing was the family of 5 I saw on one bike (2 kids and 3 adults).


I checked in and made my way out into the city. Can Tho is a great town. People have been really friendly, with plenty of kids waving and shouting "hello!" I had a good bowl of Pho as a late lunch. I poked around the riverfront for a bit. I wandered around a market for a while too, it was quite busy. The city as a whole isn't too hectic, though it is a good size, about 1 million people.


I got quite bit of exercise so I relaxed for a while, making my way out for dinner a bit later. I had rice with a charcoal grilled pork cutlet and pickled vegetables. Its served with fish sauce for pouring over the whole plate. It was awesome. The pork was really tender and smoky. The fish sauce made everything taste even more amazing. For those of you who dont know, fish sauce is the result of letting fish, water and salt sit in barrels for a few months out in the sun. This very stinky stuff is strained and the clear amber (though the color often varies) liquid that comes out is bottled. I know it sounds gross. It does in fact smell horrible. Its good though, trust me. It's used as seasoning and really brings out flavor (The Vietnamese use it instead of table salt, much like the Chinese and Japanese use soy sauce). Still think it's gross? Don't forget how cheese is made.

I crashed back at the hostel.


I slept late the next morning,not getting out until around 10:30. I started to wander and eventually found a cafe. I settled in and communicated that I wanted a coffee. They didn't have (or they didn't understand me) cà phê sữa đá (as a note, Vietnamese language uses our alphabet, but all sorts of crazy accents, often with multiple accents on the same letter). Cà phê sữa đá is strong Vietnamese coffee with ice and sweetened condensed milk. They served me black coffee with ice and lots of sugar. It was really sweet, but very good.


The people at the cafe were the best part of the experience, however. They were all very friendly, unfortunately, I don't speak Vietnamese. Two of them spoke English, but rather basic, heavily accented English at that. Nonetheless we had quite a bit of fun going back and forth. Just smile and nod and laugh. It became apparent, partially through the broken English translations, that they were trying to introduce me to a young lady there (I think part of the family that runs the operation). Too bad I don't speak Vietnamese and she doesn't speak English.


I had a lunch nearby of rice with chicken and vegetables. That was good.


I went for another long walk. I chilled out by the river for a while. A walking vendor sold me a snack of hard-boiled quail eggs and a bit of salt for dipping.


That afternoon I stopped at a street stall for a Bánh Mì. This one had 2 kinds of pâté and a few branches of cilantro, I can't remember what else. I sat down on one of the tiny plastic chairs at one of the tiny plastic table (both were only as high as halfway to my knee). There were a few friendly old guys chilling out, eating bánh mì and drinking bia hoi. I had a Bia hoi myself. Bia hoi is "fresh beer." It's made daily and sold that day, often as draught. It's served with large chunks of ice. I have no idea how they make it. I do know it's super-cheap, about 5,000 Dong, or 30 cents US. It's very popular with the Vietnamese, particularly older men. At the place I was eating at it comes in plastic bottles of various shapes and sizes. I saw the vendor filling up the bottles out of a larger one, screwing on a cap, and wrapping plastic around the cap. It's very light, and tastes alright, and the price is great.


I enjoyed my delicious meal with good company. Teung, one of the people working there, it's a family run joint with an indoor cafe, spoke English rather well. We chatted for a while, moving inside when the torrential downpours came.


I didn't really do anything exciting the rest of the day, it rained for a while; I stayed inside the hostel. I had dinner of grilled meat and rice and vegetables. It was tasty. Common foods in this area seem to be bánh mì, pho, and rice with grilled meat.

The ridiculous amount of second hand smoke is really starting to annoy me though. There's chimneys sitting all around me in this internet cafe.


I slept in a bit this morning. I had another coffee at the same cafe. I also had breakfst of more rice and meat and soup. I lingered there for a while.

On my way over here I had an interesting encounter. An elderly Vietnamese man was walking towards me on the street, and upon seeing me, he said, "Bonjour, monsieur!" Good thing I took all those French classes. He continued to speak French to me. We spoke back and forth a bit and then we both went on our ways, with him wishing me a Bon voyage. That made my day

Well, that was another long post. I should be heading on to the next town in a few days, don't know where yet. Tommorow I'll visit a floating market nearby, that should be fun.

Take care,
Mike

Ho Chi Minh

Angkor What? Angkor Wat!

Sweet!

Hello from Cambodia!

It's Friday afternoon as I write this in Phnom Penh Cambodia. When we left off I was still in Laos. Excuse me if there's a lot of typos in this post, the keyboard isn't very good.

Last Friday was spent in Vang Viang. Vang Viang has pretty much turned into nothing more than a backpacker ghetto. There isn't really any local culture left. On one hand it's a bit of a shame. On the other hand though, the local population is enjoying the economic benefits. The town is obviously wealthier than most of Laos.

The activity of the day was tubing down the river. We rented big floating inflatable tubes and took a nice ride for a few km. The tubing business is controlled by the town as a whole, and the profits are split amongst the citizens, very communist. The ride was relaxing. The views of the mountains were great. That's about it for Vang Viang.

The next morning we boarded a public bus to Vientiane. The bus station was located next to the defunct airport.The ride was a bit bumpy but alirght. The bus broke down, something to do with the clutch. We waited for about an hour along the side of the road while it was fixed. A bit later, during a stop in a town a food vendor stood outside the door of the bus. Se had a few delicacies on a stick for sale. One of these delicacies was tiny bats. That's right, bats. I can't say no to a new food experience so I had to buy one. The stick of 6 bats cost less than a dollar. When asked about how they taste, my response is, "They taste like crunchy." Indeed they did, they also had a bit of a meaty and salty flavor. The whole things were eaten, head, bones, innards and all.


We arrived in Vientiane, the capital, in the afternoon. Vientiane is very different from the hustle and bustle of other Asian capitals. It's very calm and not crowded at all. There's also no McDonald's, KFC, or 7-11. I haven't mentioned it, but Malaysia and Thailand has a ridiculous amount of 7-11s. It seems like they're on every block.

Anyways, Vientiane is a pleasant city. We had lunch on the Mekong riverfront. After we toured a few temples and went to the central market. I picked up a few souvenirs. There's honestly not a ton to do there. Though I would've liked a day just to explore. That's about it for Vientiane.

On Sunday morning we boarded our plane headed to Siem Reap, Cambodia. I had to wake up at 4 am, to meet at 4:30 for a 6:10 flight. Not fun.

The flight was a one a 60 seat propeller plane on Lao Airlines.

First we had to go to Pakse in southern Laos, which took an hour. Then we waited an hour. Meanwhile the plane re-fueled and I exited Laos through immigration control. We re-boarded the same plane and headed to Siem Reap, which took another hour. Immigration business was taken care of and I was in.

The Kingdom of Cambodia!

Cambodia is very different from where I've been so far. It's hectic and lively, but also desperately poor.

We checked into the hotel and I was off into the city. First order of business... Lunch! I went to the market near not too far from where I was staying, just across the Siem Reap River.

I had a great bowl of noodles. It had scallions, bits of fried garlic, re-hydrated dried squid, beef (added to the bowl raw and cooked by the broth) and vegetables. It was very tasty. The squid was quite unique, I could pull it apart to shreds with my chopsticks.


The rest of the market was really cool. It was very busy, very Cambodia. Granted, the hygiene standards are not what you and I are used to, nonetheless it was a good look into the culture.

Later, I met with a few people from our group. We took a trip out to a floating village outside the city. It's located on the edge of Tonle Sap, Cambodia's great lake. The size changes drastically between the rainy and dry season, and the people living there move their homes and businesses accordingly. The boat toured around the area.
We went fishing, I didn't catch anything, but another guy did. We were able to get it cooked up, very good. We also picked up some water snake (we didn't catch it). That tasted really good. It had been salted, it kinda tasted like bacon. Mmmmm.... snake bacon.

After we got back I relaxed a bit. I went out to dinner, going to a street-side "restaurant", a real local place. I had soup in a very rich brown broth. The broth reminded me a bit of what is seen in French cuisine, I bet they had some influence in this dish. It had various vegetables, bamboo shoots, and little bits of goat (I think). It came with a big plate of rice. I also got a soda with it. The whole meal cost 2 bucks.

Oh yea, the official currency of Cambodia is the Riel. The preferred currency is the US dollar. It's what you get out of ATMs. Stores and restaurants like it more when you pay in dollars. They don't use coins though. Small change, any amount less than a dollar, is done in Riel. There's 4,000 Riel to a dollar. So if something costs $1.25, and I give them a $5 bill, I'll get change of 3 dollar bills and 3,000 Riel.

The next day was a trip to Angkor. Angkor is a World Heritage site, consisting of many temples and other old buildings built by the Khmer Emipre during the 8th to 13th centuries. It was a city, one of the largest in the world during its time. Angkor's most famous building is Angkor Wat. I got the opportunity to see it a sunrise, though I had to wake up at 4:15 to do so. It's quite a spectacular building. It really should be considered one of the wonders of the world. One thing, part of it was in scaffolding. crap. Otherwise, it was awesome.


After seeing the sunrise, we headed back to Siem Reap for an hour to get breakfast and pickup others who hadn't come for sunrise. During that time I had an awesome bowl of noodles. This was another one of the best things I've had on this trip. It was really simple. It was fresh yellow noodles in a light but flavorful broth. It came with a few pieces of roast duck (and a bit of dipping sauce) and some scallions. Pure deliciousness.

Angkor has lots of other temples too. My favorite was Ta Prohm. It's had a few trees grow over it, with the roots coming down the walls, giving a really bizarre effect.

Another temple was Bayon, which was many large stone carvings of faces. That one was great as well. Towards the end of the day rain came. I was soaked. It is still monsoon season.

After a long day of touring, I crashed at the hotel and took a wonderful nap. I went out for dinner, and found another street-side restaurant. I managed to order a beef salad. It came with grilled beef, onions, green tomatoes, green eggplant, carrot, Thai basil and mint. the dressing, served on the side, was Prahok based. Prahok is fermented mudfish paste. Yes, you read that right. It tastes like it sounds, but in a good way. It's very, very strong though, a little goes a long way. Additionally, I got a giant bowl of rice, a juice, and a large Angkor Beer (the national brew). Total cost, $3.25

The next day I slept late. I had another bowl of the yellow noodle soup. This time it also came with a few blood cubes (coagulated blood in cube form). Great.

I spent time wandering around the city some, checking out the streets a bit. The day was pretty chilled out, nothing too crazy.

The next day we got on a bus to Phnom Penh. Along the way we visited a silk business. It was very interesting seeing the whole processes, from silk worm eggs, through the life cycle, to the processing of the silk to the final product.

We also stopped in Skun for lunch. Skun is famous for one dish in particular, tarantulas (the big spiders). They're sold as a snack. They're fried with garlic. I tried one (alright, 2, I went back for a second). It was not all that flavorful, a bit crunchy, especially the legs.

I also got to try a tiny frog stuffed with lemon grass. Blech. Wayyy too much lemon grass.

That afternoon we got to Phnom Penh. I was pretty tired and took another good, long nap. I also got a massage (massages are really cheap, this one was $8 for an hour). Very relaxed. I also ran some errands, I hadn't stocked up on supplies in a while.

For dinner a few of us went to a Chinese restaurant. I know, I know, it's not Cambodian. It was really delicious though, authentic Chinese food. I tried jellyfish for the first time. It was served cold and shredded with abit of chili and lightly dressed. I really liked it. There was also some pig ear. Main dishes included fried pigeon, mushrooms, ostrich with peppers, and steamed fish and one other thing I can't remember. It was all very, very good.

The next morning, Thursday, we toured Phnom Penh. We took cyclos, cyclos are pedal powered transport. They're touristy, and cost more than taxis, but support the cyclo drivers. Cyclo drivers come from the poorest parts of Cambodia. Puhn, the driver of my cyclo, was the oldest of all of the cyclo drivers for the group. He musta been at least 60. Don't let his age fool you, he worked like a machine, powering that cyclo around.

We saw the Royal Palace and its grounds which were really beautiful. Later, we went to the market which was also great. I had lunch there, noodle soup (it's what powers SE Asia).

After that we got a bus to tour Choeng Ek (killing fields) and S21 (prison). See the previous post for a description of that. Most of the rest of the day was spent feeling pretty miserable about what I had seen.

The group and I went out for our final night together. We went to a restaurant called "Friends." It's part of a culinary school for street kids. They're provided with training at the school, and working in this restaurant is the final phase of their education. They usually go on to work in the big hotels and restaurants in the city, turning their lives around.

This morning I said goodbye to most of the people in the group. A few of us are staying on in Phnom Penh for another night (or in my case, another 4). We're splitting hotel rooms here.

That brings us up to the present moment.

That's about it. On the 23rd I head to Vietnam. I need to get it organized. I'll hopefully be taking a oat down the Mekong from Phnom Penh into the Delta in Vietnam. I can't wait to see Vietnam. I hope to update you all before I leave.

Take care,
Mike

Reality

Life for many in Cambodia is no easy task.

I know I haven't updated in a while, I've been busy. I promise I'll try to get up one of my regular, proper posts soon. If you don't know, I've made it to Cambodia. I've visited Siem Reap and Angkor and now I'm in Phnom Penh, the capital.

Meanwhile, there's things I want (reluctantly) to address.

Today consisted of a visit to Choeung Ek and Tuol Sleng. These are known in English as The Killing Fields and S-21 prison. These 2 sites exhibit the horrific crimes of the Khmer Rouge.

Before I go any further I want you to know this is graphic...

I'm sure you've heard of the Khmer Rouge. It was the hard-line communist regime in Cambodia, led by Pol Pot, that terrorized the country from 1975-1979. The genocide committed killed around 1.5 million people, close to 1/4 of the population. The people targeted were anybody considered to be of "The New People", those who were educated, wealthy, supported the opposition government, or fit any other idea of what the Khmer Rouge considered to be undesirable. Children, even babies, were killed too.

The Killing Fields are located outside Phnom Penh. There's lots of other similar sites around Cambodia, this was the largest. The first thing I saw there was the tower full of shelves with skulls, over 8,000 skulls. Mass graves, sinking into the ground, were all around. We were led by Sam, who spent part of his childhood in forced labor out in the fields during the Khmer Rouge era.

As one walks around, bits of the surfaces of bones, exposed by the heavy rains (monsoon season), appear in the paths. Scraps of clothing are exposed as well.

There's a tree with a group of nails sticking out of the trunk (now overgrown). This was used to bash the heads of infants.

The murders were not done quickly, such as by gunshot, rather it was a gruesome, drawn out experience. Microphones with loudspeakers were rigged so the screams of those being killed were amplified.

S-21, located in Phnom Penh, is horrific too. This prison, converted from a high school, detained many prisoners. Many means of torture were used here. People were shackled to "beds" and tortured 3 times a day. Others were held in tiny cells. The water provided was disease-ridden. In the front grounds of the prison stood the gallows. Here, the Khmer Rouge drowned students in filthy water.

Simply touring these two places is one of the hardest things I've done in a long, long time.

It's hard to want to do anything more today, I could barely drag myself out of the hotel just now.

Poverty.

Cambodia is desperately poor. People are begging everywhere. Landmine victims are everywhere. "Street Children" (orphaned children eeking out a living by begging or selling trinkets) are all over the place. The most uncomfortable feeling is that of a tiny hand tugging on your arm.

It's best not to give them money, this encourages them. Rather, it's best to give to orphanages and other charities. I went to tour one of these orphanages in Siem Reap. It gives a bit of relief to see some of these children with a place to sleep and food to eat (though both very basic) and school to go to.

People seek out a living by any means. This morning, as I walked around in the city, I saw one of those means. I came near the end, but what was going on became apparent. A dumpster had been emptied onto the street. People had been picking through the garbage, salvaging whatever they could. The smell was choking. A few people remained, walking and scanning over it, while others pitchforked the remains back into the dumpster. Of course not everything makes it back into the dumpster, leaving garbage on the sidewalks. There's rubbish all over the streets.

It's hard not to feel guilty. I know it's not wrong of me to have the very comfortable life I have. Nonetheless, it's frustrating. I have a home, or a hotel room, to go back to when I can't stand it anymore. The people who live these lives I've described above have nothing more than another day of the same to be prepared for.

Well, I think that does it for now. I promise the next post I put up will be more upbeat. There's a lot of good in Cambodia, too.

Thanks for reading,
Mike

Buddhas and Baguettes

Good Afternoon from Laos,
It's Thursday evening righ now, here in Vang Viang, Laos. A lot has occured in the past few days, so let's go back.

When I left you last I was in Huay Xai, Laos. The next morning we hopped on a slowboat to go to Pakbeng. The boat was pretty nice, and large. It was staffed by a family of three. Dad was the Captain, Son was the the Helmsman, and Mom looked after everything else (like it or not, thats how things work around here). It was a 7 hour trip of some of the most spectacular scenery I have ever seen. It's been a dream of mine to see the Mekong, and my expectations were exceeded.


We stopped along the way in a small village of 238 on the banks of the river. This village obviously gets close to zero tourists. This was the tour guide's second visit in his 10 years as a guide. He stops at different villages on different trips, depending on the accesability, which varies according to the level of the river (which is always changing).

The village was very, very basic. All the dwellings were made of bamboo, no electricity or other modern amenities. They make a living from slash and burn agriculture. We were told this by the Chief, the only one in the village who speaks Lao (translated by our tour guide, Kum-La). Everyone else in the village speaks the language specific to their ethnicity. I got some fantastic photos too of people in the village. It was a novelty to have a photo taken and shown to them on the little camera screen. Everyone was very hospitable.


After an hour we got back on the boat (where we had lunch). We continued and arrived in small but busy town of Pakbeng in the late afternoon. Pakbeng is a tradin town on the river, a common stopover. It has electricty for 1 hour in the morning and 5 hours in the evening (7am-8am, and 6:30pm-11:30pm). I woke up before sunrise (5:30) to go see the market opening up and spend some time in town before we left. The roosters didn't seem to mind helping me get up. It was kinda eerie that early in the morning. The mountains were shrouded in clouds up and down the river(as they are much of the way). It was very quiet, another one of those "I'm very far from home" feelings. I had a great bowl of noodle soup in the market for breakfast (I'm really liking the spicy noodle soup for breakfast thing). I wandered around the market for a bit, which was really cool. I took a walk through town too, and was greeted by countless school children with a "Sabaidee!" (which means "hello").





We got on the boat and made our way to Luang Prabang. We made a stop at a Hmong village (which does get tourists). I picked up some souvenirs. I also got to taste Lao Lao, aka "Mekong Moonshine." Boy, is that stuff strong! It's made from fermented and distilled sticky rice, pure burn all the way down. I got a bottle of that. They just use old bottles and fill em up. A 750mL for about a $1.20.

We got back on the boat and later stopped at the Pak Ou caves, which were cool. My camera battery died so I didn't get any photos.

A little later we arrvied in Luang Prabang. The whole city is a UNESCO World Heritage site, so nothing can be demolished. It has 32 temples, and Saffron robed Buddhist Monks everywhere. It also is filled with Colonial French architecture. You can still feel the French influence, baguette sandwiches are everywhere. Near one temple I saw a group of Lao guys playing Petanque (a French lawn bowling game). It's a bit odd to see the heavy French influence in Asia, but I guess I'll be seeing more.

Much of my time in the town was spent exploring. The temples are really amazing. I got a chance to see the monks in the early morning collecting alms (rice given by the locals).


(I'm a bit pressed for time, so I'll kind give a rather brief overview of what lese I did)

I spent time at the Night Market which was cool, and did a bit of souvenir shopping. I also visited waterfalls outside the town. I forget the name now, but it was very powerful and a lot of fun to see.



I also ate of course.

I had a little sparrow which was really good, covered in a soy-based sauce. You eat the whole thing.


I had plenty of noodle soup. You get herbs like mint and basil, veggies like green beans and watercress and condiments. The condiments include dry chili, chili sauce, sugar, fish sauce and I can't remember what else. It's always tasty and cheap (about 1 dollar).


Me and a few of my like-minded fellow travellers also had a bit of a pig-out on street food. These delicacies included grilled pork intestines which were really tasty. They were a crispy in parts and soft in others, with a great sauce.


Bits of pork belly on a stick were also really good. It was grilled with chopped garlic on it. One of the best things of the trip. We all know how much I like pork fat and how much I like meat on a stick. Put the two together and you have perfection.


Grilled fish was really tasty. It was grilled whole. It was a freshwater fish (Laos is landlocked) and very fresh (one could tell it wass caught the same day).


There was also these little eggs wrapped with minced meat and spices wrapped in a leaf. Also, we had a sort of pâté wrapped in a leaf. It had ground pork with liver and spices and was pressed into a small loaf. That wasn't my favorite thing.


This morning we took a very uncomfortable mini-bus ride to Vang Viang. It's stopover for Vientiane. We spend 2 nights here. The ride was ver, very uncomfortable. The first 3 or so hours went through the mountains. It was very, very steep and twisty. You could see parts where half the road had just fallen of the side of the mountain in landslides, and other parts where landslides had covered half the road. Not a very reassuring feeling when you have to dodge these obstacles. The rest of the trip was not as steep or twisty. However, it was much, much more bumpy. The road seemed to radnomly go from paved to dirt. This part was very unpleasant too. We finally made it though. I'll be checking out the town tomorrow.

Well that does it for me. I hope everyone is well at home. It's great to be able to hear form you all via your e-mails and comments.

Take care,

Mike

Laos

I'm in Laos. The town of Huay Xai to be exact. It's Saturday evening.

Wednesday I joined the tour group. There's 11 of us in total. There's 9 Australians, 1 Irish, and me (it's an Australian tour company). I didn't do too much during the day, we didn't have to meet until the evening. I checked out the area near the hotel a bit, near downtown. It was cool to see, but is a bit like other big cities. I prefered some of the other neighborhoods.

Once we all met we headed out for dinner. We had all sorts of Thai food. I was able to get some very, very spicy pork with rice. Everyone got to get to know eachother a bit. Everyone is getting along well.

On Thursday there was some sight-seeing to do. I hadn't really done any up to this point, as I knew we would hit the big sights. The city itself seems to be the big draw.

We visited the Grand Palace which was spectacular. It was very ornate and grand (whodathunkit?). The tour guide, Tiger, mentioned that the amount of tourists there was only about 30% of normal (thanks to the protests). We then visited Wat Pho, the big temple in the city. That was also really cool to see. There were Buddha statues everywhere, including an enormous reclining Buddha with mother of pearl feet. Additionally, there was the Emerald Buddha which was beautiful.

After sight-seeing in the morning, the tour guide showed me to a place where I could have some fish stomach soup (nobody else wanted to come). It was delicious. It was in a thick broth with vegetables and bamboo shoots.

After lunch we took an hour long river/canal cruise. It was interesting to see Bangkok from that angle. I got a bunch of great photos (sorry, can't upload them today, connection is too slow). After that I wandered for a bit around the city on my own.

We met up for the overnight train to Chiang Mai that evening. The ride went well. Let me say that sleeping trains are far superior to sleeping buses. It was vry comfortable. We left at 7:30 pm and arrived at 10 am.

After we settled into the hotel we split off into smaller groups according to what we wanted to do. I, along with a few others visited the Hill Tribe Museum. Honestly, it was pretty boring. After that we headed to Wat Doi Suthep which is on top of a mountain near Chiang Mai. We got a bit of lunch first which was great. I had a bit of pork with basil leaves, papaya salad and sticky rice. It rained buckets for a while while we were in the restaurant. We made it to the temple (skipping the 300 steps in favor of a inclined elevator). There were spectacular views up there. The temple itself was quite nice as well.

We made it back to the hotel and I wandered the city a bit. It's a really pleasant place, pretty laid back and scenic. We all went for dinner by the river. I had a lovely dish of fried pork in red curry with rice. It was very spicy and very good.

After dinner aome of us went to see Muay Thai (kickboxing) matches. That was a lot of fun. The arena was pretty basic. WE lucked out and got some ringside seats. The atmosphere was very gritty. There were people shouting and gambling and chainsmoking and drinking beers. Traditional music was being played (horns, bells and drums). It was a lot like you see in the movies (like the first scene in "Kickboxer" with Jean Claude Van Damme). And if your're wondering, yes, it is pretty brutal. We saw two knockouts. I bet a local guy 500 baht ($15) for one of the matches. I lost. Gambling is a big part of the event.

After the matches I did a bit of souvenir shopping at the night market then went ot bed.

This morning we started to make our way to Laos. We had a 3.5 hr bus ride to Chiang Rai. Then there was another 2 hour bus ride to Chiang Khong, the border town, arriving mid-afternoon. We went through Thai exit formalities. We then hopped a long boat (which was uncomfortably low in the water) and crossed the Mekong River. It was really cool to see the Mekong for the first time, something I've wanted to see for a while now. Upon arrival we were in Laos. We went through immigration and that was it. We met our Lao tour leader (different from the one in Thailand). The town, Huay Xai, is a pretty small, basic town. The accomodation is alright though, there's hot water, 24 hour electricity, internet (obviously). I had some spicy grilled duck for a snack from a street stall, my first food in Laos. In a bit I'm heading to dinner.

Tommorow we hop a boat to Pakbeng. The next day we continue down the river, arriving in Luang Prabang which should be awesome.

Well thats about it for now. I should be able to update once I get to Luang Prabang.

Take Care,
Mike

An Assault on the Senses

Bangkok.

Hi everyone,
Its late Tuesday afternoon here in Bangkok. This place is nuts. Food, smells, noise, traffic, pollution, lights, touts, scams, heat, humidity, history, temples, and more prostitutes than you can shake a stick at. Bangkok has it all.

When I left you, I was in the Krabi bus station. I boarded the bus at 5 pm to begin an overnight journey to Bangkok. That ride was no fun. I couldn't stop thinking about the time when Andrew took the sleeper bus in China. The one upside of this trip was that it took 12 hours, even though they said it would take 13. It was really uncomfortable though. It was a "VIP 24 seat bus" with seats that recline far. There's a problem, if the person in front of you reclines, you have to as well. Additionally, there's no way I could move my legs (front to back). Also, the foot rest was too high up, even when fully extended, and caused cramps, and I couldn't close it. These things are built for Thai people, not Westerners (read: I'm too damn tall for Asia). Anyways we arrived at 5 in the morning. I went to a real hotel (not a hostel). It was still rather cheap. I had to take a taxi from the bus station to get there. I got completely ripped off by the driver. I was too tired and cranky to have my senses about me. I don't want to say how much, but I probably paid close 8 times the proper price had he used the meter (like they're supposed to). I mean, it wasn't an enormous sum of money by any means, but it still left me pretty irritated once I took another taxi ride (using the meter) and thus figured out what fair prices are for a distance. Now I know.

Still, I really like Bangkok. I headed out to find breakfast. I had a fried fish with rice and a bit of Thai curry. Very good and fresh. A great way to start my first day in Bangkok. My favorite thing to do in a city is walk around aimlessly. Really. I find that I stumble upon the most interesting things. It also gives me a sense of the neighborhood. So, I did that, all morning. I had a few little snacks too, nothing big. Some fried chicken feet which were pretty good. The outside was really good and crispy with all sorts of cartilage and connective tissue inside. I also had some taro. It was cut in thick rectangles and deep fried with scallions. the pieces were then cooked with sugar and seasonings in a large wok, creating a sort of crusty, candy exterior. Those were also quite good, the stall was really busy with locals.

Fish


Rice and Curry


Taro


Chicken Feet


I was aching a bit, so I stopped for a traditional Thai massage. You have to be careful about the massage places, the open air ones or ones with lots of windows are the ones to go to for the real thing (I think the other ones hidden away offer "other" services, more on that later). I had heard about the massages, and it lived up to its reputation. It pretty much consists of the body being stretched and pulled and pushed and twisted. I left feeling very relaxed, though the massage itself proved to be slightly painful at times.

I walked around more, getting used to the ambience of the city. It's hot, really hot. It's also very humid, I think maybe more than where I have been previously. I'm pouring sweat all the time. The locals keep noticing and handing me tissues and towels to wipe the sweat from my head. They sometimes ask in broken English about where I'm from (and thus they realize why I am in fact sweating so much).

I had a good, basic lunch. A bowl of noodle soup with 3 kinds of pork. There was roast pork, boiled pork and fried pork with mustard greens. I really enjoyed it. I went back to the hotel and took a nap.

After I got up, I walked around even more. I know with the tour I'll see the big sights, now, I just want to wander. I happened upon a small temple (also called a Wat). I went through the exterior gate and was walking around the perimeter. A Monk was sitting at a picnic table nearby and began talking to me as I walked by. He, like many others I have met, asked me where I'm from, and about my trip and so on and so forth. I took a seat and he answered my questions about the temple. He told me about travelling to Laos, his life as a Monk. He then continued to tell me all about Thai food. He also tried to teach me Thai, which went poorly. Nonetheless, it was a really cool experience to have a talk with him. We must have talked for 20 minutes. It was a unique experience.

The Temple



I had dinner of grilled shrimp and boiled clams. It was very good and fresh. The head juices are the best part of the shrimp (it's true). I also had some of the delicious Thai papaya salad. I took it pretty easy at night. I did find a vendor selling crickets (or grasshoppers, not sure). They had been fried and were sprayed with soy sauce. They were crispy, and tasted mainly of soy. The exoskeleton has the same effect as when you're eating popcorn and the bran gets stuck in your teeth.

Shrimp


Clams



Crickets





Yesterday, I wandered more. I had a fried noodles for breakfast. I really didn't like those. It was really heavy, and just generally not to my liking.

Fried noodles


I don't have much to say about yesterday other than the food. I saw really cool stuff, but nothing specific. Lunch was noodle soup, again. Very tasty. It rained buckets for a while, which was no fun. I can't even remember what I had for dinner. I did get a chance to call home, which was great.

This morning I woke up and found a breakfast of roast duck with rice and soup. That was good and basic. Later, was a little snack of these little sweet shells witha sweet filling (like Fluff) and something orange, I dunno. Here's a picture


The air quality is really bad today. I realized I have never really really experience living in that kind of air quality. It's no fun. I took it easy in the hostel for a while. It rained a bit too (which didn't help the air). That's really all for now. I wanna wrap this up. I'll be getting pictures for the previous posts up soon.

On Bangkok as a whole...
This place is unliek what I've seen so far. It, like the places I have been, is very developed. However, it's quite overwhelming at times. The traffic is mad. There's lots of noise. It's also a very large city. And, I feel it must be addressed, Bangkok as you probably know, is famous (at least in the West) for one other thing, prostitution. You really do see it all over the place. I don't know that much about it, but a few things are clear. The Thai, who are famous for tolerance, have a very different attitude towards it. In this culture, it's simply a job providing a service. They aren't second class citizens, seen as dirty or disgraceful or anything of the like. It's an established part of the economy. The mindset here is very, very different from the West.

There's an elephant in the room...
Protests. I'm sure you've seen or read about it in the news. I've known all about it. I didn't know how big it was in the news in the States, thus I haven't addressed it. I don't want to worry people. However, it's become apparent that it is well publicized there. The protests are the reason I took the bus, not the train, to Bangkok. Trains in the South were closed, as were some airports. I know generally where the protests are, and am avoiding the area. I'm completely safe, there's plenty of other tourists here. Neither the US nor Thai governments have said not to go to Bangkok. I am exercising caution. I really do feel quite safe, I haven't seen anything.

Well, that does it for me. I hope everyone is well back home.

Take care,
Mike