Stupid Hotel Internets

My horrid luck with uploading photos onto local computers continues, so until I find a way to rectify that situation I will leave you with a photo you're sure to enjoy.



Now for a brief update:

Siem Reap
Absolutely fantastic. If my flight out had been cancelled and I had been stranded another week or so, I would have been quite happy. The people were incredibly warm and friendly, the town was a lot of fun with a great, laid-back vibe, and of course the temples at Angkor were spectacular. Much more so than words or pictures could ever convey.

Saigon

Not a fan. Had a nice evening swapping stories with John from Brisbane and his Thai wife Don at the bar down the street from my hotel, but I'm glad I didn't spend more than a night.

Hoi An

Early reviews are very positive. I flew into Da Nang without a hotel reservation and drove into town with a couple of fun guys from Denmark. The driver recommended a small place just outside of the Old Town, and it was a good choice. This is the place to visit if you want custom-tailored garments; I may buy a suit or two while in town (although as a Club Fed employee, that may not be the most efficient use of resources...). More importantly, it's a beautiful little town, right near the beach, with mountains and significant historical ruins nearby. And it's a great food town.

I'm thinking 3 nights here, maybe get a dive in, then a night or 2 in Hanoi before doing an overnight boat trip in Halong Bay. By that time, hopefully the Thai situaion will have been cleared up and I'll hit that on the back end (that's what he said).

Catching Up

I can't upload pics at the moment, but I'm due for an update.

Chris Befriends Yet Another Stranger in a Strange Land

After a day touring the downtown sights in Kuala Lumpur, I took the monorail (MONORAIL!) to Chinatown and hit the Petaling Street market. I meandered my way through the maze of crap-hawkers, and then stopped for dinner at a small outdoor stall/cafe. $1.50 for a fantastic plate of fried noodles (if I keep eating all these fried noodles I'm going to turn into a fried noodle) that beat the pants off of my $25 hotel restaurant buffet the night before (eh, I hadn't eaten all day and was feeling lazy).

I then hit a reggae bar around the corner, where I struck up a conversation with a gregarious young Namibian man named... well, I don't remember his name, but that's not terribly important. He was a nice guy, eager and brimming with idealism, and a tireless advocate for the notion that the world has become "one global village". Our conversation eventually turned to the US election and Obama, which led to a stirring oratory on his part about making the world (er, global village) a better place. By the end of the night, I had unwittingly signed on to be part of a three-person team that was going to change everything for the better - me, Obama, and my new best buddy from Namibia, whats-his-face. (He was so damn earnest, I just didn't have the heart to rain on his parade.) So relax, everything will be just fine. We're the Change Triumvirate, and we're taking care of it. Also, I have a free place to stay next time I'm in Namibia.

Misadventures in Air Travel

The first shuttle bus to the airport from my hotel left at 5:30 am, and I had a 7 am flight to Siem Reap. A van showed up around 5:40, and as I started toward it a gruff Aussie asked me which airport I was going to. "Whaddya mean 'which airport'?" He just cackled and got in the van. Before I could press him for further details, a hotel employee told me that if I was going to the airport, I did not want to get in that van; the airport shuttle would arrive shortly. After several more minutes, another van arrived. I was reassured that yes, this was the correct van for me, and so I hopped in.

Upon arriving at the airport, I looked for the Air Asia check-in counter. I saw a ticket sales counter, but no check-in. I stopped by the information desk and asked where I could find the Air Asia check-in counter, and I was told that I could find it at the OTHER AIRPORT. 20 kilometers away. And it was now after 6 am.

After scrambling for a cab, I got to the correct airport around 6:20. The check in lines were ridiculously long. It took me a few minutes to get my bag x-rayed, and once I got into the check-in area I saw a sign that all check-in counters close 45 minutes prior to departure. It was now 6:30. My flight was at 7. I frantically asked an airport employee which counter was handling check-in for the Siem Reap flight, and I was directed to one with no line whatsoever. Because, of course, it had closed 15 minutes earlier. I begged and pleaded with the attendant to cut me a break, told her my story about being taken to the wrong airport, etc., and finally she broke down and checked me in. After slapping a tag on my luggage she handed me my boarding pass and said "RUN!"

And run I did - straight to the painfully long line to get through the passport check. Thankfully it moved fairly quickly, and after I was through I ran once again, this time straight to another long line for security. And this line was not moving at all. My flight was leaving in 10 minutes. Thankfully, Dame Fortune smiled upon me yet again, as a second security line opened up and I was able to get through in short order. I got to my gate and discovered there had been a slight holdup, and they were just then about to begin boarding.

Long story short, I managed to catch my flight. I might not have been in such a frenzy to make it had there been another flight later in the day, but this is a once-a-day route. What an adventure. I felt like a contestant in the Amazing Race. Bonus: no fewer than 6 - SIX - times during the flight did I hear a bad Asian cover band's version of Billy Ocean's "When the Going Gets Tough" over the airplane's speakers.

Angkor

This deserves its own post later on, but I'm not sure words or pictures will do it justice. Absolutely incredible. I spent yesterday afternoon there by myself and most of today with my friend Todd, who's in town as part of his own Asian adventure. We'll see some more temples tomorrow morning and then we're off to Lake Tonle Sap in the afternoon to visit a floating village and some nature reserve-type-areas. After that, my plan was to head to Saigon via the Mekong, but I'm still debating that.

And now I'm off to take a much needed shower and do some laundry. I'm down to my last pair of clean undies.