Wat Bang Phra and my Sak Yant!

Wat Bang Phra

I've wanted another tattoo for a while now. About a year ago one of my friends went to Thailand and got one that he liked and told me an interesting story behind it. At the time I hadn't planned my trip, but I told myself that if I did make it to Thailand I would get one as well. So thanks to my buddy Luke I have a legit Sak Yant, done by a real monk.

Amazingly the actual tattooing took only 5 minutes, it was getting there that was the hard part. Wat Bang Phra is about 30 miles from Bangkok. Everything that I had read, advised that we get there early, so Zoe and I woke up at 4:30 and took a taxi to Victory Monument. From there we caught a minibus, which drove us about 40 minutes outside the city, and dropped us off on the highway. From there we hired a motorbike to take us to the temple.

Bus we took back to Bangkok

Once at the temple, I had to pay 70 Baht ($2) for an offering of flowers of cigarettes to present the monk who would do my tattoo. I was surprised at how few people were there. Even though we did get there quite early, there were only 6 or 7 people ahead of me, and I was the only foreigner. I guess not many people know about this place.

It was finally my turn, and I presented my offering to the monk, and prepared myself for my tattoo. I had no idea what I was getting, the monk chooses it for you. Some people would be turned off by that, but it was half the fun for me. I sat with my back to the monk clutching a pillow, while two men held both of my shoulders. The tattoo didn't really hurt too much, but I have three others, and everyone's threshold for pain is different. It was over quickly, and I ended up receiving the same design as my friend.

Zoe and I inside the temple

Sak Yants are believed to give mystical powers, as well as provide protection and good luck. Once finished the monk blessed my tattoo, and I was done! Including transportation, the whole process cost me $12, while giving me an experience and souvenir that I'll never forget! 

The finished product!

Bangkok!!!

We left Sihanoukville and made the 20 hour bus journey to Bangkok. Another trip which involved multiple vehicles, and a slow (on Cambodia's part) immigration process.

The line to exit Cambodia

We finally made it though. I have been looking forward to Thailand throughout our trip, which is why I saved it for last. Bangkok is an amazing city. One of the few places during our travels where I feel like I could actually live, the other being Ho Chi Minh. We made our way to the infamous Khao San Road, found a guesthouse, and walked around. Bangkok has plenty to do, but it felt a bit like Shanghai in the sense that unless you love shopping and drinking, (and have the funds for it) there isn't a lot culturally to see, but Khao San is an attraction all its own. After being in relatively quiet and low key places for the past 1.5 months, it took a bit of readjusting seeing so many other foreigners jam packed into such a small area. Because of the recent coup, things have become a bit more chill on Khao San. The roadside bars close at 2, and sure there were people who were drunk and whatever else, but I didn't witness the debauchery that I saw on The Beach.

    

 Khao San Road during daylight

Even though we were a bit templed out we felt obligated to visit The Grand Palace. It was nice, and definitely the nicest temple/palace we've seen, but after a while they all start to run together. We spent the rest of our time exploring different areas of the city. Siam Square is a cool place full of name brand as well as boutique stores, and a good place for people watching. We also strolled along Sukhummit, which is supposedly where the more affluent tourists stay. That may be true, but vendors were hawking the same stuff there.

   

The Royal Grand Palace

I'm sure you are wondering, and no we did not visit any ladyboy bars or see any "ping pong shows." Both are massive tourist traps, and while the latter does sound intriguing, I'm not sure I'm even interested in seeing a woman shoot a ball out of her lady parts. I did do one other interesting thing while there, which I'll talk about in my next entry.

  
                Grafitti near Khao San                                 Zoe and I trying to meanmug at Wat Pho

Kep/Sihanoukville

Based off Zoe's friend Jamal's suggestion we decided to make Kampot our next stop. Kampot is a sleepy little town situated on the river, but we didn't mind that after coming from the capital. We hired a motorbike, and saw Bokor National Park. This place was a bit creepy. It's quite remote and has an abandoned church and casino. There is also a new casino that has absolutely no business being there.

       
   In front of the abandoned church                                Inside the church

Abandoned Casino

We spent the rest of our time in Kampot unwinding, before deciding to go to Kep, which had beaches for us to relax on. Apart from the beaches Kep, is famous for its seafood, especially its crab, and we helped ourselves to plenty.

Welcome to Kep

After deciding that we were done lazing it up in Kep, we moved on to Sihanoukville. Where as Kep was more family oriented, and a place where Cambodians went to vacation, Sihanoukville, was clearly geared toward foreigners. It was a bit more touristy, but I didn't mind. We were only there to enjoy the beach anyway. The only thing that was slightly annoying were the kids constantly begging or trying to sell us things. We didn't buy anything because it was crap they were selling and also buying stuff would only encourage them to stay on the beach selling, when they should be in school.

Sunset on the beach

After about three weeks in Cambodia, it was time to head to Thailand, the last country in our three month journey!

Phnom Penh

Phnom Penh's atmosphere sat nicely between the calm of Vientiane and the craziness of Hanoi. The city was gearing up for the water festival, Cambodia's version of the Laos boat festival, so it was a bit more lively than usual.

View from a tuk tuk

We visited the king's palace and a few temples, but the main tourist attractions in Phnom Penh are connected to Cambodia's not so distant dark past.

Tuol Sleng Museum aka S21 Prison

After the French left Cambodia, Pol Pot came into power and made everyone migrate from rural areas to cities. From there they would round up people and imprison them before they were executed. S21 is a prison that has been preserved and turned into a museum to highlight the genocide that took place. We hired a guide who took is on a tour through the prison and told us how the majority of her family had been killed. Like the war museum in Ho Chi Minh, it was a sobering experience but something everyone who visits Cambodia should see and learn more about. Prior to the research I did before coming to Cambodia, I knew nothing about this atrocity.

                   

Prisoners were for to relieve themselves in this box            Prisoners had their pictures taken upon arrival at S21

Graves of the last 14 victims at S21, killed right before the prison was liberated

The next day we visited the killing fields. After being tortured and made to confess to crimes they had not committed prisoners were taken here to be executed. The fields have been turned into a memorial now, but plenty reminders remain of what it used to be.

Tree where the Pol Pot soldiers beat children to death

Zoe and I pictured with Chum Mey, one of 7 survivors of S21. He lost all of his family. We purchased his book detailing his time at Tuol Sleng.

Phnom Penh wasn't all grim however. Since we were in the capital city there were more nightlife options and we met up with one of Zoe's old co workers a couple of times, and we managed to put together costumes for Halloween. 

Halloween. I was supposed to be a zombie Heisenberg, and Zoe the wicked witch.

Siem Reap and Ankor Wat

After another long journey and border crossing (where I was referred to as "that one" and was the only one asked where I was from, because apparently only black people have ebola) we made it to Siem Reap.

Offerings from the market.

Siem Reap is famous for Angkor Wat, and I was very much looking forward to exploring the ancient ruins. Rather than join a tour or have a Tuk Tuk drive us around, Zoe and I decided to bike around the numerous temples. This allowed us more flexibility and let us explore at our own pace. We set off around 630 in the morning and made it back to our hotel around 530.

Peekaboo!

Angkor

The temples were amazing up close. The manpower and detail that went into them is unbelievable. I haven't had the opportunity to visit Egypt yet to see the pyramids but I can't think of many other man-made structures as impressive, that have withstood the test of time.

It may not look like it, but this was pretty high up, and by the time i got up I had an audience.

One of many temples.

Apart from the temples there isn't much to do or see in Siem Reap so after recuperating from our day long exploration of the temples we decided to move on to the capital city, Phnom Penh.

Not a real elephant, obviously.

4,000 Islands

From Luang PraBang we moved on to Si Phan Don, aka 4000 Islands, after a quick stop back in Vientiane to break up the trip.

Since Laos is land locked, the islands are part of the Mekong River, and while there may be 4000 islands, only three are populated.

View from our bungalow

 There wasn't much to do there, but that was kind of the point. We found a cheap bungalow on the river, ($5/night!) and chillaxed. We biked around, saw the largest waterfall in Southeast Asia, and got some reading done.

     

  

Various sights from our biking

Khone Phapheng Falls

Luang PraBang

We made it to Luang PraBang after enduring another uncomfortable journey. Luang PraBang is a UNESCO World Heritage City, and the former capital of Laos. If you're into temples and monks, Luang PraBang lacks neither.

We visited the former royal palace, which is now The National Museum. 

Former Royal Palace/National Museum.

We also made the short hike up Chomsy Hill, which gave us a good view of the city.

We were greeted by many Buddhas on our journey up Chomsy Hill.

At the top.

 My favorite attraction, by far, however, were the Kuang Si Waterfalls. They were gorgeous and provided a nice relief from Luang PraBang's notorious heat. We spent an afternoon swimming, and enjoying the surroundings.

Yea, I jumped from that tree.

Waterfall selfie:)

La Pistoche, a swimming pool/bar, is another great place to visit if you're in Luang PraBang. Zoe and I spent an afternoon there relaxing. Just be prepared to be transported back to 2005. They were blasting classics such as Nelly's "AF1s" and "Laffy Taffy."

At La Pistoche

I enjoyed my time in the former capital of Laos, and I am happy that they seem to take their UNESCO status a bit more seriously than Hoi An.