More indochina trip photos on facebook

My A list shot
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9009&l=09feb&id=626372428

Khmer Rouge S21
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9259&l=eb5c6&id=626372428

Unusual
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9260&l=18dab&id=62637

Woman's painting
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9262&l=4981f&id=626372428

There are more videos posted on my facebook which cannot provide a link for external viewers. So please sign up facebook now & we can share more views.

heavingsingapore

to all my dear friends who spend time reading my little perspective of travelling, i have a 2nd season blog continuing with the same spirit of finding magic in a foreign land. except this time, i'm trying to find magic within already too familar place of singapore.

check out heavingsingapore.blogspot.com

wrap

Every travellers faces the same dilema of displacement when returned after a long trip, there is no exception for me. No matter how much we relish over the wonderful experiences, we have to move on to the current reality.

I met my yoga teacher yesterday, he asked what did i learn from this trip? That is tough to answer, there are too many things i learned. Then he asked :"Did you notice any difference in you?" Definitely, i realized i smile so much more when i was travelling. The minute i returned to Singapore, i become the same old boring singaporean who plastered an emotionless straight face when walking down the street. i forgot to smile back to a tourist who was standing next to me after a happy shopping trip to the last day of Great Singapore Sale. i was bounced back to the same old me the minute my trip ends. My yoga teacher replied :"maybe u should continue to pretend that you are still travelling." That is an wonderful advice. Yes, maybe i should continue to pretend...

I don't know how well i can keep this good advice, but i shall try. Maybe i shall keep travelling when i'm in Singapore.

me&me

once i start the ball rolling about myself there is no stopping to it. :P

well, u c, i leave singapore with an astonishing increased weight of 46kg!! (which is considered fat for me as i usually weigh about 43kg) I was so hopeful that 2 months trotting will help me to lose considerable weight. which it did! only for the first month in lao when all the activities like climbing mountain & hardcore bicycle trip for 4hrs sweat it all out. unfortunately, my stomach & apetite grew stronger with each progressing day. towards the end of the journey, i was enjoying food so much that i juz balloon. it takes me a lot of courage to post the fat foto of myself during my last few days in vietnam. ladies & gentlemen, u have to give me some rounds of applauds for this.

me&myhair

there isn't many photos of myself in this blog. to round up the trip, i decide to show some "intimate" moments of myself with myself with you.

i begin the journey well planned. everything possible inconvenience is thought of - including possibility of messy hair. i have a new haircut since january (i used to have long hair) & decided that it cost too much to upkeep my hair by going to the salon every 2 weeks as my hair grow super fast. therefore i have trained myself to trimmed my own hair. surprisingly it turns out pretty satisfactory for me. :) since then i have been changing my look every 2 weeks. they are very subtle, u hv to be truly observant in order to see the difference.

me,myfeet,myinjuries

collecting injuries seems to be one of the activity on this trip. i had varied way of bandages & keep myself REALLY busy in the trip with my wounds. Sometimes, i will give excuses of not participating some sessions by saying that "oh...i need to dress my wounds".

my 1st wound - hanoi tatoo =>a motorcycle burnt from hanoi) took me one month to recover
my 2nd wound - palm => fell down from a motorcycle riding attempt. i was doing fine until i get off the bike
my 3rd wound - mosquito bite => an infections from over scratching & thus result in ugly openings...tsk..tsk..never try that.
my 4th wound - a cut caused from a fall from a bumpy ride => i was literally throw out of my seat!

my poor feet has come a long way with me... surprisingly, there isn't one muscle cramps or aches i experience through some of the tedious activities. On the other hand, it shows some of my most relax moments too.

FACEBOOK

Dear friends,

I discover FACEBOOK recently. Its a new website that is cool to share loads with friends.

There are more photos of my indochina trip i uploaded to this site. They are features of my travelling mates & some shots of the locals. Visit them through the links below if u r not a members. Invite me as a friend if you already are a friend of facebook.

General shots
Indo Kids
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4636&l=8d0a7&id=626372428

Indowomen
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4634&l=03e44&id=626372428

Monks
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=5142&l=6da18&id=626372428



Travellers Friends
Laurence & Spainish Couple
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4609&l=9fef5&id=626372428

Daniel
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4621&l=610ad&id=626372428

Fausto
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4618&l=9840c&id=626372428

Sarita & Paul
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4617&l=e3c5c&id=626372428

Malaysian & Hoian Gangs
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4616&l=00ad8&id=626372428

Peter
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4613&l=31245&id=626372428

Patrick
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4611&l=4addc&id=626372428

Julie
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4610&l=c238a&id=626372428s

Jame
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4608&l=001d3&id=626372428

Maya
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4607&l=178ba&id=626372428

Phonsavan
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4491&l=cc733&id=626372428

Seng
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4492&l=b3010&id=626372428

MuangSing Trek
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4601&l=23921&id=626372428

Will
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4632&l=3cd4f&id=626372428

Different sights

@ HUE
I encountered some interesting sights.

OLD MAN READING
The weather is so hot & unbearable in the day. However, u will see vietnamese out in the street from 4pm onwards doing variety of activities. It was an awesome to spot this oldman reading by the bridge. He found a perfect spot (shade by the huge metal arms) & sit on his bicycle to read the book. By the way, there is a nice river view in front of him.

NEW TRADE
There is a man on the street who provides handphone lamination service. He will carefully cover the handphone with lamination paper & use a lighter to fine tune all edges. This service cost 10,000Dong = S$1! (slightly less than US$1) Very afforable! i was tempted. but decide not to display too much kiasuism when i'm abroad. And i manage to contained it. I'm proud. :D

Bae Yong Joon Copy

During one of the guided trip i made in Hoian. The guide told us that even the men needs to have fair skin in order to be consider handsome. I spotted a Bae Yong Jun's "白白胖胖" (fair fair & fat fat) poster in a market. Apparently that is their version of "handsome" man. And the stall owner in front of this poster seems to have some resemblance with Mr Bae. He said himself that he is a photocopy of Mr Bae.

My Fair Lady

Vietnamese girls believed that beauty lies with a fair skin tone. All of them will be fully covered when they are out in the sun. Even so when they visit the beach. The market sells gloves that allow the women to cover their arms fully.

I went out with a vietnamese girl, thuy(the dream girl in my earlier blog) when i returned to hanoi during my last 2 days stay. she will run across the pavement whenever there is a unshaded area. They do everything to keep themselves fair. So thuy is indeed a fair lady!

Recap Vietnam

Somehow i was unable to blog during my last week in vietnam. Let me make it up.

Vietnam remains the most exciting destination among the indochina countries (Lao, Cambodia & Vietnam).
My eyes are constantly busy with exploring different sights & sound of the places. Vietnamese have an amazing colour coordination when it comes to painting their house. They seems to love green & blue & yellows.

One of the night in Ho Chi Min. I had insomnia. Surprisingly, i turned on my camera & found the long exposure function. And i see another side of Vietnam when the iris opens wide.

HOME

Dear friends!

i'm now home!!! i couldn't update my blog for the past weeks due to some technical problem with blogger in vietnam.
its ashame. i hv some interesting shots to share about vietnam. will post them later.

like all other backpackers, returning after a long holiday builds up some anxiety. after finishing 2 months journey, there is a longer journey back home awaiting.

1st dirty reality is a huge pile of bills!!! i'm heavily in debt now! gotta spend sometime clearing them.

I will be back to do a roundup for this trip! so keep tuning in. you may see ur photos up here.

blogging can be addictive. i'm considering opening a heavingsingapore blog to keep all my other travellers friends informed about my life here. watch out!

Streets of Ho Chi Min

@ Ho Chi Min City

I was in Ho Chi Min 3 years ago. But i didn't have much time to scout around the city. This time i stayed in a place off the backpackers area along Co Giang Street & this is probably a good choice. When i went out in the morning, Vietnamese street life is playing out in front of me. The most interesting observation- vietnamese women of all ages will come out in the pajamas to do their marketing. You will see a big selection of pajamas parade in the market. Should be an eye candy for the men.

I also sported my favourite dish "chi chiong fun" in vietnamese style. they called it the Banh Cuon. They can have this dish for dinner as well!!The one i had was delicious!!

Still in the middle of somewhere

I have finished my cambodia trip. Will be moving on to Ho Chi Min tomorrow. I will move from south to the northern part of Vietnam for the next 2 weeks before i fly back to singapore on 24 June. Some friends complaint that i seems to be on holiday forever!! This is so not true. Most of the traveller i met are on a 6-12months trip, mine is comparatively short.

I picked up a new skill while travelling alone. I learned how to make flowers with toilet paper. This is an excellent way to keep yourself occupied while riding on long bus trip.

A different perspective

There is a tree outside my bunglow with a hammock hang at the top of it. I managed to climb it but didn't pluck up enough courage to sleep on the hammock.

Being a Singaporean, I have to admit that I'm a low risk taker. :/

play dead

A new lesson learned while staying in nature.

Do you know spiders like to play dead? i spotted this spider at the edge of the ledge in my guest house & thought that it was dead as he was on its back his leg was facing the ceiling. However, when i approached it again the next morning, it was up on its four legs. & when i returned 10 mins later (before i get out) it was back playing dead on its back!!! What an amazing acting skills. (i also wonder why didn't he run away instead???!!!)

After speaking to the owner, i realized that all these wild creatures are probably 10 times more scared than you of them.

Nature Lodge

@ Modulkiri, Sen Monorom

This is the southeastern part of Cambodia. A less beaten track even by the backpackers. I went over on a low season & found myself checking in with only 2 visitors for that day. There is always 2 sides to a coin. During low season, you can easily step into any guest house without advance booking & get a good deal. However, most of the time, you will find yourself having only yourself when going out on certain activities.

The elephant track i did in Sen Monorom was such a disappointment that it wasn't worth mentioning. However, highlight of this trip is the place i stayed in - NATURE LODGE. This lodge is owned & designed by a talented couple (husband-cambodian & wife-israeli/australian). The guest house literally was designed in the nature with lots of natural materials cleverly used. the basin is made of bamboo with water draining at the tip of the snip bamboo. The couple told me that result of all these design is due to limited budget. they simple take things from nature & built into the structure. I was luckily to get this bunglow as it used to be the owners' home. Since its low season, they let me have this 2 storey bunglow at only US$5! That was a luxury!!

Sweet Young Things

Later we went shopping & took some photos together! I'm glad i can blend in with these sweet young things! they don't believe that i'm 12 years older than them!!

initially we planned to go to the disco. unfortunately, the girls couldn't get a car out for the night so the idea was scrapped.

Phnom Pehn is a very modern city. The young people lives pretty much like rest of the world. Eating, shopping & dancing on a weekend night!

Girls Outing!

The girls took me out on their motor bikes & we went to eat their popular cambodia soup (in Singapore version, hot pot). This was utterly delicious! better than any hotpot i had in Singapore. Wander could it be the element of cow's brain that gave much flavour to the soup.

Cambodia Young Thing

I met a group of young girls (21 & 22 yrs) while trying to ask for directions. We get aquainted quickly & the girls asked me to join them for a weekend night out!!

Cambodia Smiles

I'm pleasantly surprised by the number of smiles greeted by the cambodian. They are not sulking in pain from the sad history at all. This place is thriving with prosperity with each increasing day. I may not be watching a tragedy film afterall.

Tomorrow, i will head down to Phnom Pehn. Looking forward to a change of scene.

Civilization

Sometimes i wonder do we progress with civilization? Is today's world a more civilized compare to 1000 years ago? If work of art is a mark of civilization, then we have certainly deterioriate over time. The vandalism of Love signs found on Angkor Wat are so much pale to the old civilizations.

On the other hand, there are tones of reconstruction works in progress to help restore the much eroded architecture. Quite a number of them are supported by the Japanese. No wonder i heard a rumor (while travelling) that the Japanese have bought over Angkor Wat!