Raging in South East Asia

Paris

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Some tower

Notre Dame

Montemarch

The Arch from the Eiffel Tower.

Cambridge and surrounds

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King's College school boys.

At the river cam with my bike.

The famous 'Orchard' tea house in Grantchester. Many influencial individuals have taken tea here, such as Stephen Fry, Alan Turing, and S Kellett esq.

Hoi An

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Hoi An is a great town near a great beach. I spent 4 days here swimming, drinking, and eating. Fun.

The beach: The river:

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Free shower in rural Viet Nam: Part of the actual Ho Chi Mihn trail:

Rice terraces:

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Local farmers often cultivate tapioca in the hills. Local bridges help with transportation of the goods:
This local tribe considered the water buffalo to be a sacred animal. Their long house is made to look like one (note the horns on the top):

I made for a good communist:

Local school kids:

More traditional buildings:

A local family uses a machine to strip corn off the cob:

The bridge into Buou Ma Thuot (BMT). Teh river below was a vital supply line for the North during the war:

Biggest waterfall in Viet Nam:

Locals use a thrashing machine to seperate rice from the chaff:

Elephant ride - we went into the lake where he tried to submerge, taking me and the driver with him:

Da Lat to Hoi An by motor bike

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I decided to take a 5 day trip from Da Lat to Hoi An (on the coast about half way up Viet Nam) on the back of a motorbike. My driver, Mui, also acted as a guide. This was a fantastic experience as I got to see the Viet Nam that sometimes gets missed by travellers. We met all sorts of people, including many from the hill tribes who still live a traditional life. I did not see another westerner for the whole trip.

Here are some photos from those 5 days, in no particular order.

The Mynong people still live a traditional lifestyle. Houses are built off the ground so animals can sleep below:

Mynong house under construction. Traditional methods and design are still used, even if the materials are modern (concrete and sheet iron are common):

The Mynong use long boats to travers the lake and get to fishing spots. This one had seen better days:

Rice drying on the road:

Farmer's house:

Road works:

Main street of a rural town:

My guide, Mui, with a rice wine distiller:

Me with traditional basket and blade. There are many hundreds of different hill tribes, but they all use the same basic tool. Their skill was used by the North during the war - it was this simple blade that was used to cut much of the Ho Chi Minh trail:

Elephant falls (named because the rocks look like elephant skin)

Labour intensive silk factory:

Da Lat

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Da Lat is in the central highlands of Viet Nam - north of Saigon and in the middle (but a bit closer to Laos). It is pretty much the swiss alps of Viet Nam. Many of the buildings are French (from when they were here), and it was complelty avoided by both sides in the war. It was pretty cold up in the hills, and I was forced to wear jeans and a hoodie for the first time in 3 weeks. I took a one day motorbike tour of Dalat and the surrounds:

Some waterfall:

Choice pagoda where monks still live:

Incects in Viet Nam are enormous. Don't get one of these in your pants:

Hard yakka. Show your gran next time she complains about having to work...

'Crazy house'. When the North took over, the new community party leader's daughter fell in love with an American. This was not a good look for the party, and so she was sent away to Russia to study. Pans out being away from her love drove her a bit mad. When she got back to Viet Nam, she moved to Da Lat and built a wacko guest house called 'Crazy House'. The place is a maze of walkways and corridors, and each room has a different theme (the eagle room, bear room, crocodile room etc):

Da Lat is the vegetable basket of Viet Nam. Traditionally food is sent south to the Saigon to be traded for rice (from the mekong). Much of the land has been given out in small blocks by the government to families from the north, hence the patchwork effect:

The Vietnamese believe that they decend from the phoenix and the dragon. The tortise and the unicorn are also important, but I did not get good photos of them...

Mekong Delta

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From Saigon I did a one day tour of the Mekong Delta. The delta is in south Viet Nam and produces most of the country's rice. Trip was a tad boring, and it pissed with rain. Class. Did meet some nice French people though, and bought some coconut candy (a speciality of Ben Tre, one of the provinces in the Mekong).

Passed out french person:

Awesome Japanese garden:

Canals near Ben Tre. The palm fronds cover the canal completely:

Honey tea on Tortise island. Chin chin.

Our boat...

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One hour north west from Saigon are the Cu Chi tunnels. These are a vaste tunnel system (some 200km of tunnels were built) in Cu Chi province. First developed by the locals in the war with the French, they were re-vamped for the American war. The Ch Chi tunnels were the southern most point of the Ho Chi Minh trail (the trail used by the north to move men and supplies, it wove through mountains, jungle, Laos, and otherwise impassible terratory). Cu Chi was also used as the jump off point for the North's major I(and final) offensive against the South.

The tunnels have three levels, going as deep at 10m. There are whole rooms underground, including cooking and medical facilities. Underground wells supply the residents and tapioca was the major source of food.

The tunnels themselves are really small. I had a hell of a time wedging myself into this one. The Vietcong (VC, North Viet Nam) were great at disguising the entrances. I was not:

This American tank was stopped by the credit crunch. And mines.

The tunnels needed breathing holes, and were usually disguised as termite mounds. The gap (bottom right) is the air hole. These would be invisible if a path had not been swept around it:

The VC man traps were deadly and ingenious. It also meant that VC long drops were the most dangerous in the land.

I managed to catch these two unawares

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People in Viet Nam love two things. Motorbikes:

And suspicious wiring jobs:

Viet Nam

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Reunification Palace (orginally called something else) was built in 1966 to work as South Viet Nam's Presidential Palace. It has rooms for the President and his or her family, meeting rooms and a cabinet room for the government. On 30 April 1975, North Viet Nam tanks (pictured below) crashed through the gates and Saigon surrendered. The building was renamed 'Reunification Palace', to represent the reunification of Viet Nam. Nothing has been changed since 1975, although the building is still used by the government for official meetings on occasion.

Me and 'Uncle Ho':

Replica of the President's escape helicoper. On the fateful day, someone else buggered off with it, and it has never been recovered. The red circles in the foreground are when North Viet Nam bombs landed during the assault.

Replicas of the actual tanks that burst through the gates. The real ones are usually housed in an Hanoi museum, but often go on tours of the counrty.

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The management team at Cambodia Water Inc water were pleased with their branding efforts. 'Steve' water was now only second to 'Nigel' in the market.

Great for a growing family. Features river side views and excelent ventilation. A handyman's dream.

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I took a quick boat trip on Cambodia's main lake, Tonle Sap. My guides were pretty lax, making me do all the work until the police boat went by...

It's free to live on the water, but conditions are rough...

There is even a school on the water:

I'm going to pull this one out when my kids complain about having to walk to school:

Back to school! I bought the kids some supplies from the local shop. They let me sit in for a bit to learn english as a reward.

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Finally, the stunning 'Angkor Wat'. This temple is part of the national psyche. It appears on the Cambodian flag, and is the basis for the national beer, 'Angkor'.

The temple is massive. After crossing a wide moat you enter a gatehouse. Beyond is a vaste grass plain. Crossing the plain to get to the temple itself. At the centre of the temple are 5 tall towers. Walls surround the inner complex and contain the magnificant bas relief galleries.

I spent about 6 hours at Angkor Wat, on three return visits. Walking the corridors is like walking the halls of power - this was the centre of the Khmer empire. It is simply incredible. All I can say is 'go there'.

Angkor Wat at sunrise:

The moat that surronds the whole complex. It must be 100m wide at least:

Crossing the moat. One side of the bridge has collapsed in the past and been repaired:

On the other side of the moat you reach the gatehouse:

Walking through the gatehouse you come to the massive plain. The temple of Angkor Wat is in the distance.

Getting closer!

Standing at the main entrance, looking right:

In the centre of the temple are 5 tall towers (in an X formation). It's hard to get a shot of more than one at once, as it's a bit cramped on the ground - so here are a bunch of random shots. Sadly we were not allowed to climb up into the towers becsaue of repairs.

Two of the 1876 celestial nymphs carved around the temple:

Standard detail carved into door frames:

And a close up:

Bas relief gallery. There are four of these, running round the perimiter of the temple itself. Each is some 100m long and the carvings run the whole length. They depict famous battles, mythical wars, deamons, gods, heroes. Many have been damaged by water, but restoration is underway:

One half of one gallery (the rest is behind me). Carvings are on the left.

That's it from Angkor. Hope you liked it!

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The 'Bakong' was the first real pyramid in Cambodia. Rad.

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'Eastern Mebon' has giant elephants guarding each corner of the terraces:

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Next on the adgenda was 'Banteay Srei'. This the the 'Citadel of Women' and is dedicated to the god Shiva. The temple is made from red brick as has some of the most detailed carvings. Every wall and door lintel is covered with inticate works of art. Just amazing.

'Kbal Spean' is off the beaten track, but worth the visit. A 30 minute motorbike ride to get there, and a 30 minute climb up a hill takes you to a river. The bottom has been carved with thousands of 'linga', symbols of fertility. The roads out here are all red dirt, which turned to mud when the ran set in. Fun.

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The magnificant 'Ta Prohm' is found east of Angkor Thom. Build in 1186 , it was basically used to store booty. The site was used to film some of the Tomb Raider movies. Many of the buildings have trees growing on top of them - their roots both holding the buildings together and tearing them apart.

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There are lots of other temples in and around Angkor Thom. Ta Keo, a giant three level strusture, was one of my favorites. The stairs between each level were nearly vertical.

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South of the Terrace of the Leper King is the 'Terrace of Elephants'. This is some 350m long and 2m high. Royal war elephants are carved along the side. Seated atop are warriors and hunters, just out of reach of the tigers' claws. The terrace was originally used as a reception hall for guests where they could look at parades and processessions on the flat land below:

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Northeast of the Bayon is the 'Baphuon', a three tired pyramid temple. Leading up to the temple is a massive causeway. At the moment it is undergoing massive repairs and you can't go in.

Around the rear of the temple, a giant reclining Buddah has been build into the wall:

North of the Baphuon in Phimeanakas, another pyramid:

East of all this is the 'Terrace of the Leper King'. This is a real highlight as the walls of the terrace have 7 layers of carvings. Seven was a sacred number to the Khmer people, representing the 7 heavens.

As always, these things are more impressive close up...

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On my first night I made a visti to Ta Prohm, a temple on a hill, to watch the sun set.

Temples of Angkor

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Southern gate into Angkor Thom, a walled complex holding a number of temples:

At the heart of Angkor Thom is the 'Bayon'. This was the King's state temple and held an extensive library. The temple has 54 towers. Each is topped with 4 smiling faces of Avalokiteshvara. The faces point north, south, east and west. There are some 216 in all.

Welcome

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To my travels in Cambodia and Viet Nam. Enjoy!