The Cambodia Experience continues

We had a relatively quiet afternoon on Tuesday, after lunch in town, Andrew and Orlo tried the fish foot massage, to great hilarity! 

Then, after an afternoon rest we all went in the TukTuk to the Artisans Angkor silk farm a little way out of town. We arrived with little time for the tour, as the employees were due to finish work, but we got the gist of  the process. The quality of these artisan's work is excellent and the silk is beautiful, however it is also expensive. I have seen very good quality silk products in the fair trade Craftlink store, in Hanoi, so I will be returning there if I want any more gifts.

Wednesday 29th was the Birthday!  We had a lovely leisurely breakfast with presents and Skyping with Deb and Jim. Orlo then wanted to build the Lego set we had brought, so Michael and I walked into Siem Reap, along the river bank. It is quite picturesque and atmospheric with tuktuk said and scooters on the road, and women collecting river weed from a wooden boat.

 We walked through the market, buying a couple of souvenirs . The central part of the market if produce, the noise and the smells were incredible. Fruit, veg and fish!

 We bumped into the rest of the Parkie Party at the local coffee/gelato cafe. We returned to the hotel for a swim and a briefing for our tRip the next day....of which more later. Back down the road for lunch at the Sisters Shrey cafe, then it wasmy turn for a bit of pampering. I had a pedicure and manicure in the spa....and now have new feet!!

Amanda had managed to source a tiny cake and some more candles so Orlo had another birthday cake, much to the delight of some other guests. In the evening we went to the 'circus'. It wasn't quite what we were expecting, a mix of wonderful acrobatics, contemporary dance and acting, but it was excellent. The  PhAre trains street children in the arts  with great success, they now perform, and have exhibitions all over the world. It was a great setup with a big top, but also  excellent shop and cafe space.

Bed quite late.....but an early start the next day.....

The Cambodia Experience

 Sorry there has been a longer gap than normal, but I have been recovering from a nasty tummy bug, but I got to Siem Reap, albeit using a wheelchair through the airports! I think today is Tuesday, we arrived Sunday. The others did some exploring on Sunday evening and then hired a tuktuk for the day yesterday. They started the temple hunting and came back to the hotel for lunch.

We all went to Angkor Wat for the sunset, but unfortunately it wasn't a good one, however it gave me a feel for the area. 

The Angkor metropolis covers 70 sq miles and was hidden in the jungle until over a century ago, of course the local people knew it was there.....

Large fortified cities, of which much stone work remains, quite remarkable. Many thousands visit each day, and Siem Reap is built on Ankor tourism, but despite the hoards it is worth seeing

We are staying at FCC Angkor, which is based around a former colonial mansion close to the town centre, the place is a little tired, but the service is excellent. Our tuktuk is supplied with a coolbox with cool towels and cold bottles of water, which is much needed after even short walks around in the heat....up to 36C today. We are following advice by going out early then returning to the hotel circa 11-11.30 for a swim and a cool off.

Today we visited the Angkor Thom and Bayon, the elephant terrace and the royal palace. Some of the carvings are fantastic, so detailed and crisp 

More later....

City sights today.

Today we visited some historic sites. The first port of call was the citadel, a large complex originally built in 1010 on the transference of the capital from Hue. The plan is similar to the Forbidden City in Beijing, but on a much smaller scale. This is a world heritage cultural site, and there is a lot of excavation going on. There are some spectacular exhibits of some of  the finds already. We particularly enjoyed the hundreds of bonsai trees, some so large that they must be hundreds of years old.

 From there we walked about 10 mins south to the KOTO restaurant, which serves Vietnamese and Western food. KOTO is a non profit organisation which trains underprivileged young people so that they can go on to jobs in high end hotels and the catering industry.  The food and service were excellent, the trainee waiters were very smiley and even entertained a five year old, bymaking masks from the leaves of the tree outside.

Amanda and Orlo left us after lunch and we went to the Temple of Literature, which was the first university in Vietnam, founded in 1070! It was lovely to see young graduates celebrating their graduation there, quite a few groups of them, all the girls dressed in white or cream ao dais, and the young men in derk suits, white shirt and ties.

There is a national holiday this week, In commemoration of the first King, Revolution Day and Labour Day, so the city is bedecked with the national flag and another colourful flag, of which we have not yet learned the significance.

When we left the temple complex we went to a craft shop which sells fair trade goods from all over the country. I made a few purchases for presents for birthdays and Christmas. Then we walked north to the huge parade ground and Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum,  and the new parliament building which faces it across a very impressive space. We then walked a couple of blocks further north to reach the West Lake again, where we stopped for a drink on one of the restaurant boat beside the swan pedalo station.

Then it was time to negotiate the traffic once again to cross the road to hail a taxi and come home. The weather has been good again today, warm but hazy And not too hot.

Tomorrow we leave for Siem Reap, so we will be packing in the morning, I think we will have to be at the airport circa 1.30pm.

Next blog will be from Cambodia!!

A lakeside walk - with a difference!

 Michael and Andrew picked up a nasty tummy bug in their expedition, Michael suffered yesterday and Andrew started in the night. Fortunately M was feeling much better today and we decided to attempt to walk round Tay Ho/ West Lake. The map said it was a 3 hour walk, well, it took us 20 mins to actually walk to the lake, then we set off in an anti clockwise direction. There were fascinating sights along the way, the usual street vendors, lovely planting schemes, fishermen/children,

 chickens amongst hte parked motorbikes, turtles for sale, and a tethered hawk! Oh! And fancy a pedalo with a difference anyone?!

 It was cloudy and hazy again today so the views across the lake were not good

We stopped for a coffee, and eventually stopped for lunch in a French Bakery, then did a bit of food shopping And then hailed a taxi home. I think we we got about two thirds the way round The lake, so we will do the rest anothertday.

Once home I was into domestic duties, until Orlo came home with a schoolfriend and Mai his nanny. Mai and I left the two boys with Michael and went off to find a tailor, who she said might be able to make me something. I went on the back of her scooter, quite an experience, weaving in and out Of the rest of the traffic at rush hour!

Once home safe and sound, I made food for Orlo and ourselves, Andrew emerged for a short while, then retired back to bed! We knew Amanda was going to be home late as she wanted to clear her desk before the holiday. All for now......

Birthday Party Day!!

O

Orlo will be 6yrs old next week when we are all away in Cambodia, so he had his birthday party today. The whole class was invited along with a couple of friend from another class and his old school...21 kids in all of which 6 were girls. Very sensibly Amanda had booked MyGym!

I made the cake yesterday and decorated it today, not difficult, as you will see 😉

I used Amanda's Grandmother's recipe, adapting it by using orange zest and making an orange syrup to drizzle over. I made some orange flavoured butter cream to 'glue' the KitKats and Smarties.

Prior to the party I went over to the Tay Ho area with Amanda this morning to have coffee and breakfast, and then to reacquaint myself with the area, as this was where I spent most of my time on the last visit.. I had a leisurely shop then returned to the Joma coffee shop where Amanda was catching up with work.  Andrew and Michael turned up about 11.0am after a very successful jungle trek and cave visit in the Phong Na National Park.

We came home and prepared the party food, then Amanda and I went to the school for the 'home language ' session where the children split into them national language groups for a twenty minute session which is usually taken by a parent. In this case it was taken by a Granny! I read Peter Rabbit to them, explaining a little bit about Beatrix Potter. The children seemed to enjoy it.

Then the bell rang and it was time to assemble 17 children to walk them to the party venue. All their bags were put in a car, the children were paired up and each given a large soft pretzel to eat....and we set off!! Amanda in front and me at the rear. There is a 'safe' cycle/pedestrian path all round this development , but we had several roads to cross, and of course we got a bit strung out at times. Anyway we finally got them to the destination, it probably took us about 20 minutes, it was quite an accomplishment for some of these children, as many are driven everywhere .

Once at the Gym, the staff took over and the kids had an hour of games and activities, culminating in them all having a turn on the flying fox. Then it was downstairs for snacks and cake......and presents! What a haul!

We got home about 6.0pm  ....a G&T.....Mission Accomplished!!

Exploring!

I have had a great day today. After we took Orlo to school, Amanda and I took a taxi to the city and I was dropped off at the Women's Museum. This is excellent.

The first floor contained exhibits and information about marriage and birth customs (in that order !). Some lovely exhibits of both older and modern dress along with typical gifts and videos of wedding parties etc. The second part showed the care of the newborn, along with information for mothers about feeding.

The next floor was all about women's role in the wars, particularly the last one. Women were relied upon to keep the farming going, but they were also very involved in defence and resistance, and campaigning for a place in modern society.

The third floor was women's fashion, with some great exhibits of typical tribal dress, culminating in some beautiful Ao Dais ( the Ao Dai is the typical dress ), by modern designers.

The top floor was an exhibition of modern art, which I did not rate!

I then braved the busy streets and walked South about 5 blocks to the Cho Houm market,. The ground floor had mainly clothing stalls with fruit stalls behind. Upstairs were more fabric stalls than you can imagine! They were cheek by jowl with tiny alleyways in between. I bought 2 separate metres of cotton shirting, and a 2metre length of silk to make a dress.....one day! I explored further round the back of the market where they were selling meat, fish, shellfish etc. the crabs and prawns were alive and being kept fresh in bowls of water. I wended my way back through the market to emerge to find a 'fabric' street. One street with shops selling nothing else but fabric. The one that really caught my eye sold Ao Dai silks. They were beautiful!

For some reason Blogger is playing up, so I am having to put photos in in a block. 

I then strolled North back to the more tourist area. I was the only Westerner in that market and on the streets until I reached the Government buildings and Hoan Kien lake. Lots of tempting shops on the way, including Cath Kidston bags for about £21!!! Lots of shoe shops too, mainly casual and sports shoes, like Nike, Keen, etc. After a pleasant lunch at the Avalon cafe, I got a taxi home. I met Orlo from school, and started making bags for his party. They are being recycled from newspapers.....as recycling is very much the vogue at present. 😉👍

 .

Tomorrow,I am going to bake the birthday cake and help prepare for the party which is after school on Thursday........

An easy day!

I've had a very easy day today, I went to Orlo's class sale and bought one or two things, then came home for breakfast!

 Later I set off for a wander and happened to find the local French bakery/cafe, so coffee and a brownie were a 'must'!! Then I walked down to the Tay Ho/West lake, bravely crossing several roads in the process. Fortunately it was a relatively quiet time for traffic. I sat by the lake for a drink in the shade, and on the way back I found a wonderful designer clothes shop called Chula. I might be going back there!!

It has been very hot and hazy again today, I have been using my neck cooling scarf to good effect.

Michael and Andrew left at 5.30 this morning, and have arrived safely at their destination, which M describes as a "one road town". Apparently it was 39.5 in their room this afternoon !!!

Amanda, Orlo and I are having. 'movie night' this evening, to watch Paddington! ( which we brought with us) I am really looking forward to seeing it.

I am planning to go into the city with Amanda in the morning to try to find a market and maybe the Women's Museum, which has an excellent reputation.

All for now......

The first weekend!

We arrived mid morning on Friday, after good flights with Cathay Pacific and Dragonair, around 20 hours door to door. We were very impressed with Cathay Pacific, excellent food and service and good landings!

Friday was spent unpacking, getting a feel,for the neighbourhood, meeting Orlo from school. I managed to keep going until 8.0pm here, which is 6 hours ahead of the UK.......With only one hour's sleep on the way.

We got up about 6.30 on Saturday morning, in preparation  for Saturday Soccer. Amanda's cousin, Johnathan and his friend, Bart, arrived the  previous evening. Andrew abandoned us for a 200km bike ride whist the rest of us went off to Saturday Soccer at UNIS, Orlo's school. Both Andrew and Amanda help out.

The purple team won at the last minute, 2:1!

After showers and a snack we all set off for the city centre. We had lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant which serves typical street food.

Then we were off on the sightseeing trail beginning with the old market,Dong Xuan, where all manner of good are piled high! I had a quick look at the fabric, and we also went to look at the live song birds, household equipment including rat traps and barbed wire!

, 

We found Johnathan and Bart enjoying a typical street side drink and joined them

It was very hot, so Amanda and Orlo headed home whilst the four of us went walking to explore the Old Quarter. we split up but kept bumping into the 'boys'. It was incredibly busy but we negotiated the scooters, bicycles, the pavements, the street vendors, shoe cleaners, and packs of tourists in rickshaws.

We got lost a couple of times as these streets are a real maze and we didn't have a map with us, however we eventually arrived out at Hoan Kien lake and made for the Avalon cafe for a drink in air conditioned surroundings. M and I then took a taxi home, where we had time for a cuppa and a shower before going out for dinner at the Tet restaurant on Tay Ho lake. Andrew took Orlo home and we had a walk through the narrow residentsial alleyways, bought a 3G SIM card for my phone, for about £3! We then had a drink at the Red River Tearoom, definitely not tea, overlooking the lake. Home to bed at a reasonable hour!

This morning we had leisurely breakfast, then took a taxi to the Museum of Ethnology. This is an excellent museum with reconstructed building outside, and some wonderful exhibits inside.  We arrived in time to see most of the water puppet performance. Once again it was very hot, I think it got to 37C today. We had a beer and light lunch at the Hanoi Social Club, which sounds much grander than it is !! We spent the afternoon at home, preparing salads etc for our BBQ this evening

Tomorrow morning Michael and Andrew leave for Phong Nha National Park, flying to Dong Hoi. They will do a jungle trek with an overnight camp in Hang En Cave on Tuesday/Wednesday arriving home Thursday morning. I am trying to arrange to go to the silk village one day, but the priority is Orlo's class recycling sale at 8.30 in the morning.....and I need to bake a birthday cake in time for his party on Thursday......

All for now, watch this space..

Ready to go!

Just waiting for the taxi 

GrannyLiz and Grandad prepare to go to Vietnam

Hello again! This time we are both going to Vietnam to visit the family. Friends have asked if I am going to blog so that they can keep up with our travels. I will try, as I know there are some interesting trips planned for us. So....watch this space. We leave on Thursday !