Angor Wat

It really is difficult to express the size of the thing. We rented a tuk tuk for the day and cruised kilometers around the site, going from temple to royal p

alace to bigger temple. It's eery, looking a millenium into the past and seeing these huge hulks of a faded civilisation.

It's also a long day -- and literally thousands of tourists everywhere.

Ingrid feels this is the proper way to see the place, since there would have been thousands there during its heyday.

After a 12-hour walk through the ruins yesterday, we are taking today off -- Ingrid has a sore back and we both have sore feet. Apparently the way you deal with such physical discomfort is shopping, which is what we now have planned for the day.

And I know this will not resonate much in February in Canada -- but it is way too hot here. Drinking copious amounts of water, wearing hats and 30 sunscreen and seeking the shade and welcoming the breeze -- I expect little sympathy, but do yearn a bit for some cold clear skies and the crisp feeling of a fresh wind!

Cambodia Now

Well things sure rush by when beer is cheap and the fresh experiences non-ending.

Laos was fascinating, but frustrating -- we chased the Ahka tribe until we realized we'd overshot by two days on the Mekong in an under-sized boat. This was a big deal for Warren because he was intent on photographing the matriarchs of the marginalized tribes. They have receded significantly in 10 years — and we thought we'd find the Akha living traditional lives in Laos.

Having just spent 2 long days in an open boat grinding down the Mekong from Huang Xai to find we had taken a wrong turn two days ago; that their village was one day the OTHER side of Huang Xai, we were dispirited — we just did NOT want to re-trace our steps along that route.

So here we are in Siem Reap where a BIG cold beer is 50 cents and rather alcoholic, it seems. Out hotel, though is $7.50, so I have to keep things in perspective -- that might be expensive beer!

I didn't know that Angor Wat was once the biggest city in the world -- almost twice the size of London in Elizabethan times. It's like being 1000 years in the future and walking arond a ruined New York City -- pondering how it was once the world's largest city, but now just ruins. Eerie.

We are a few days ahead of ourselves thanks to the elusive Akha, but if our first afternoon in Cambodia is any sign, we will quite enjoy it here.

Hope all is well for anyone reading this. It's kind of fun keeping in touch like this -- as I mentioned to my old Friend, Peter -- it's a long way from the old Poste Restante!

Laos

Today went much better than expected -- crossing the Mekong River at Chaing Khong to the tiny outpost of Huay Xia in Laos. It was just a morning of bouncing in a bus, then a $1 fee to get a boat across the Mekong River. Very nice folks -- and the good news is that a large (quart) beer is only $1.15

Our hotel room, for whch we are paying the princely sum of $15, has a nice patio overlooking the Mekong and we intend to retire there to enjoy a G&T with sunset.

I have momentarily evaded scrutiny by the USB police, so I am going to try to attach a few photos.

Tomorrow we begin a two-day boat voyage down tthe Mekong River to Luang Prababng, where we will explore the hinterland for a week or so.

Ingrid and I are currenty sitting in such a cafe across from the Chaing Mai bus station, killing an hour before the bus to Chaing Rai.

Although Chiang Mai has "developed" a great deal as a tourist destination since we were last here (it's starting to look like a buddhist Peurto Vallarta), it is still pretty magical in many ways.

Yesterday, for instance, we visited the Elephant Training Centre. Since the demise of elephant logging and popularity of tourism, many Thai elephants have found themselves crowded into small quarters in Bangkok, doing street trick for tourists -- that is, the few beasts who have survived.

The training camp in Chaing Mai tries to keep the elephants alive and well. It is spacious and forested with a stream running through it and many elephants -- even some great big tuskers with tusks as long as a man is tall.

The magic, though, came in the performance. These are very very trainable beasts and can exhibit personality in wonderful ways: every thime one would earn the approbation of the crowd he or she would do a huge but delicate curtsey. You have to imagine an elephant curtsey! The elephants clowned, tried to steal each others' thunder, acted silly, obeyed complex commands, beat a crowd volunteer at an oversized game of darts, played soccer and made penalty kicks-- but the most amazing was when these massive but delicate animals painted.

They painted pictures for us on big easels in the compound -- taking their time, handling a range of brushes and colours with astounding dexterity. Of course the mahouts were right there, touching the elephants, handing them brushes. But the results were amazing -- clearly representational but executed in an oriental style -- think of a stylized painting of a bonzai tree. Of the four artists, one did a mountain landscape with an aerial perspective -- one range fading into another.

It was 24 hours ago and I have still not entirely digested what I saw.

We also visited a "ring neck" village where the women were universally pretty and all adorned with brass rings making their necks seem very tall. We hoisted a set of rings and they were very heavy.

Bangkok

We will have to find a way to post photos from these internet cafes.

That's the way the flavor of things can come across -- words alone are pretty weak.

Warren now has three big blisters to account for the time spent on foot yesterday. Mostly walking to the Grand Palace & around and to many of the public piers and eating. OK. You don't get blisters from eating. I know that. But we've been eating so much if you could we would.

And the eating is wonderful. Every dish from even the most modest establishment (we're talking tiny little plastic chairs wobbling on uneven pavement here -- little vinyl tables) even these places have wonderfully succulent and spicy dishes, each tastier than the last. Last night we ate and drank at a nice restaurant until we could eat and drink no more and then had to settle up the $15 bill.

Later today we will head to the train station to take the overnight train up to Chiang Mai. As I post to the blog, Ingrid is out shopping for a bottle of gin, a few bottles of tonic (we hope) and some crackers to go with our deck of cards. It's a 12-hour train ride and we cannot spend the ENTIRE time sleeping!

Underway

Well, we've managed to get everything packed, even the dog ready to go.

We've tried to contact family to say "seeya" but if we missed you, please be forgiving of our last-moment rush: even when you think you've planned everything well ahead!

We are so well planned, in fact, that we have booked our first two nights' stay in a Bangkok hotel. Then off to Chiang Mai — hopefully on the overnight train. I look forward to a post with some colourful Thai photos and a note about delectable soups.

OK -- no colourful photos from this trip, but here's an Akha Lady from last time as a placeholder!