CAMBODIA: The Khmer's Empire and Other Temples

 ANGKOR THOM AND THE BANYON TEMPLE

Angkor Thom, one of the last capital cities built in the Khmer empire, was constructed in the late 12th century as the capital during Jayavarman VII's empire. 

It was the centre of the king's massive building program to outdo his predecessors and covers an area of 9 square kilometres. The city is believed to have had a population of 80,000–150,000 people.

The city was highly developed with a system of roads and waterways, as well as four hospitals.

The city is surrounded by high defensive walls, three kilometers long on each side. 

Access to the city was through five gopura gates, one at the center of each wall, and an extra one (the Victory Gate) on the road to the Royal Palace.

CAMBODIA: Angkor Wat

The Khmer kings ruled one of the largest, most prosperous, and most sophisticated kingdoms in the history of Southeast Asia. 

The Khmer dynasty lasted from the 9^th century to the 15^th century. 

The empire consisted of present-day Cambodia, as well as a lot of Thailand, southern Vietnam and Laos.

Over the 600 years, numerous construction projects were undertaken by the different Khmer Kings, each trying to outdo their predecessors.

Angkor, which served as the royal center, was once the largest pre-industrial city in the world with over a million people! 

Angkor Archaeological Park contains the remains of some of the Khmer Empire’s cities, buildings, temples, urban plans and water reservoirs. It comprises of more than a thousand buildings and it is one of the great cultural wonders of the world.

The Park is HUGE, stretching over 400 sq km’s and is a testament to the Khmer’s advanced civilization.

The park is one of the most important archaeological sites in South-East Asia and is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

CAMBODIA: Floating Villages Near Siem Reap

Tonle Sap is Southeast Asia’s largest freshwater lake.

The lake’s tributaries are home to between 2000 – 3000 residents who have built their houses on wooden stilts. 

The village of Kompong Phluk is located 16km, as the crow flies, southeast of Siem Reap and fishermen call it home.

Kompong Phluk and the greater Tonle Sap Lake is a UNESCO Biosphere reserve and contains unique plant species, fish, and animals, many of which are endangered.

CAMBODIA: Phnom Penh's Royal Palace

Phnom Penh became Cambodia’s capital in 1866.

It is situated where the Mekong and Tonlé Sap rivers meet, making it a historic trading hub for both the Khmer and the French colonialists.

The Royal Palace was started in 1866. 

Some buildings were dismantled and rebuilt as late as the 1960s. It is a complex of buildings including the official home to the Cambodian royal family.

The complex is divided by walls into four main compounds, the Silver Pagoda, the Khemarin Palace and the central compound contains the Throne Hall, and the Inner Court.

VIETNAM: Life on the Mekong Delta

The Mekong River is one of the longest rivers in the world running through six different countries in Southeast Asia. 

It originates at the Tibetan Plateau and flows nearly 3000 km in a south eastern direction.

The Mekong River unravels into nine rivers which creates the fertile Delta before it empties into the South China Sea.

The Mekong Delta is situated in Cambodia and southwestern Vietnam.

In Vietnam the Mekong delta is intensively developed for agriculture. The area is one of the most productive and intensively cultivated areas in Asia.

It is called “the ‘rice bowl of Vietnam.

VIETNAM: School Kids Practicing Their English in Ho Chi Ming City/Saigon

Learning a new language is tough.

Especially if you are linguistically challenged like I am. 

These young schoolkids approached us and asked us if they could speak to us.

How can you say no?

This was definitely a highlight of the day! 

VIETNAM: Ho Chi Ming City, Formerly Known as Saigon

Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), also commonly known as Saigon, is the most populous city in Vietnam, with a population of around 9.3 million in 2023. 

Saigon was called "the Pearl of the Far East" or "Paris in the Orient".

In 1976, upon the establishment of the unified communist Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Saigon was renamed Hồ Chí Minh City in honour of the late communist leader.

Bustling with energy, innovation and traffic (for more on that see https://lindaofnofixedaddress.blogspot.com/2024/04/vietnam-traffic.html) Ho Chi Minh City is the economic heart of Vietnam and the main hub of the southern region.

VIETNAM: Traffic

Traffic in Vietnam can be unnerving. 

Actually, to be honest, at first, it was almost terrifying for me. 

Especially in the big cities.

It seems like the rules are: "there are no rules!" 

So I did a bit of googling on the internet and found this piece of advice about crossing streets. It is a direct quote:

"The most important thing is that the traffic will flow, the group is important, the person not so much. You as a pedestrian have to manage somehow to cross the street, if you want to."

I am not sure what to do with that piece of advice. 

VIETNAM: Old Town Hoi An's Melting Pot

Located in central Vietnam on the west bank of the Thu Bon River, Old Town Hoi An is a well-preserved historic trading town dating to the 15th century.

Hoi An played an important role in international trade as a main SE Asia stopover in the Maritime Silk Road.

By the 17^th and 18th centuries it had become one of the most important Southeast Asian trading ports welcoming foreign traders.

They traded in silk, china, pottery, and spices.

In 1999 Hoi An ancient town was recognized by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage site because of its remarkably intact state.

VIETNAM: Central Vietnam's Coconut Basket Boats

Legend has it Vietnam’s basket boats originated as a way for local fishermen to avoid paying boat taxes that were imposed by the French during their colonial rule.

Most of the poor Vietnamese fishermen could not afford the taxes so they came up with a new type of boat, the “Thung Chai” basket boat.

It was made of bamboo in the shape of baskets so that it could not be counted as a boat. 

The government reluctantly agreed and the local fishermen were spared any tax. 

And ever since then these domed vessels have been a feature of the landscape in central Vietnam.

VIETNAM: Hoi An's Ship to Shore Life

Central Vietnamese culture is strongly linked to the sea.

Hoi An was an international port of Vietnam and an important place on the Silk Road of the world.

For local fishermen, the boat is seen as the most precious property. Many fisher families still live in their own boat as a house.

They paint eyes at the bow because they think that the boat needs eyes to see things clearly in the front, to navigate well and avoid dangers.

VIETNAM: Hoi An's Water Buffalo Tourism Industry

In Vietnam, water buffaloes are considered a symbol of hard work due to their indispensable role in traditional wet rice civilization.

Water buffalo were essential to the development of the country's agrarian economy. In a nation where rice is the main export buffalo is undoubtedly the most essential animal.

A buffalo can work for long periods, in variable weather conditions, pull plows in the rice fields and help carry heavy loads.

For the most part, they haven’t been replaced by machinery because machines will only be able to work in large fields and can’t work in small and narrow spaces with different topography.

Not to mention, buying modern machines takes lots of money which Vietnamese farmers can’t afford. 

VIETNAM: The Imperial City of Hue

Hue, located in central Vietnam on the banks of the Huong River, was the capital of Vietnam between 1802 and 1945. It is one of the most important historical cities in Vietnam.

The Imperial City was ruled by 10 emperors of the Nguyen Dynasty before its last ruler abdicated the throne in 1945 in favour of Ho Chi Minh’s communist government in Hanoi. 

The Imperial City was modelled after Beijing's Forbidden City.    

Despite violent wars throughout the years a small portion of the original buildings have managed to survive. 

UNESCO listed them as World Cultural Heritage sites in 1993.

VIETNAM: Bustling Hanoi

Hanoi, the capital and second most populous city in Vietnam, was founded along the Red River over 1000 years ago. Hanoi was named Thang Long (soaring dragon) by Emperor Ly Thai To in 1010.

Over a thousand years of various wars, occupation, natural disasters and new administrations the city grew from swamplands into the modern capital it is today. 

The streets date back to the 14th century and there are more than 600 temples and pagodas beside French colonial buildings, communist buildings and modern buildings.

Hanoi is described as a multicultural community with touches of Chinese, French, and Russian influences.

The people of Hanoi call the city the “cultural heartbeat of Vietnam”. 

VIETNAM: Halong Bay

Ha Long Bay is a natural wonder in northern Vietnam, near the Chinese border.

The surrealistic Bay is dotted with 1,600 limestone islands covered in rainforests and islets. 

It covers an area of over 1,500 sq km.  

Most of the islands and the karst limestone pillars in the bay are uninhabited.

When we first arrived I was disappointed it was cloudy. 

But as I started taking pictures I realized that the clouds made it more mystical and ethereal.

The area was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994.

LAOS: Luang Prabang Markets, Traditional Cloth Patterns, and, Local Village Weavers

For the early birds, there is a market that is open from 4am to 10am.  

I wouldn't describe myself as an early bird, by any means.

But, after we got up before sunrise to offer our alms to the monks we went to the morning market.

There was an array of items for sale.

LAOS: Khouangsi Waterfalls

Kuang Si Waterfall is about 29 km south of Luang Prabang.

It is a popular retreat for locals and tourists. 

The Kuang Si Falls has 3 tiers leading to a 50-meter drop into shallow pools, before flowing downstream. 

It is a quiet oasis (although, it would be quieter if there weren't so many tourists.) 

Surrounded by lush tropical jungle, the pools have cascades of up to 5 meters high. 

We took the trails and walked from the village up to the top of Kuang Si Falls.

LAOS: UNESCO City of Luang Prabang

Luang Prabang is the former capital of the country and Laos’s best-preserved historic town.

Situated in the north of Laos it is surrounded by mountains and on the sacred confluence of the Nam Khan River and the Mekong River.

Translated directly it is the "city of the Golden Buddha Phra Bang".

It has a French colonial past, which is evident in the town’s architecture and culture. 

It is a religious centre with 33 gilded wats (temples).

It is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site because of its exceptional preservation of cultural, religious, and architectural heritage.

LAOS: Rice Farming

Rice farming is a way of life in Laos. 

They say "rice is life".  They eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, 

Our tour itinerary told us we would be rice farmers for a morning.

It seemed like a great idea at the time, until I realized I would be barefoot and knee-deep in mud. 

You have no idea how much I do not like to be dirty and how much I do not like to have dirty hands and feet. 

But there are times when "no choice" is a "good choice".

I now have an appreciation for the incredible amount of work that goes into a simple bowl of rice.

LAOS: Monks at Dawn in Luang Prabang

Sai Bat (morning alms) takes place between the hours of 5-6am each day and involves people placing food and personal care items into the alms bowls of passing monks. 

It’s a silent and sacred ceremony – one that is steeped in tradition.

Every morning the monks wake up at 3.30am and head to the temple house to pray for an hour . 

They then walk into town with their alms bowls to collect rations for the day. 

The monks collect alms as a way to keep their vows, while the locals give alms in order to gain merit for the afterlife – it is considered the first step on the road to Nirvana.

LAOS: Collateral Damage

There is a small museum in Vientiane that brings home the sobering message of the collateral damage by the Americans during the Vietnam War. 

Or, as it is called locally, the "American War". 

During the Vietnam War parts of the Ho Chi Ming Trail (running from North Vietnam to South Vietnam) passed through Laos.

As a result, parts of Laos were severely bombed 

Unfortunately, not all of the bombs exploded, leaving behind unexploded weapons (UXO's)

LAOS: Country Roads

Laos has a diverse landscape. 

There are forested mountains, upland plateaus and lowland plains,.

Transportation by road is not the fastest as the roads are not always the best. 

Patience is required.

Here are some scenes as we drove from Vientiane north to Vang Vieng and onward to Luang Prabang.

LAOS: Vientiane

We're trying to be more strategic about where we wander and decided that after Thailand we would do an Indochine Immersion and head to Laos. 

We started in Vientiane, the largest city of Laos. 

Vientiane became the capital of Laos around the mid-16th century.

It is located on the banks of the Mekong River, which creates a border with Thailand.

Vientiane has a recorded history that dates back to around 1,000 AD. It was originally settled because of the fertile land in the area. 

Laos is a landlocked country and relies heavily on its rivers for transportation. 

Vientiane's river port location provides transportation and makes Vientiane the major economic centre of Laos.