Drive back over the border from Cambodia to Thailand. Border crossing very slow. It would be three hours, but we paid a $10 bribe each to shorten it down to 1 hour. Final farewell dinner with the group. Lots of snacks on the street. Guy sampled worms, crickets, and a scorpion claw. I declined this […]

Up early to view the magnificent Angkor Wat at sunrise. Some cloud cover, but still a superb sight. We are amazed by the number of tourists biking to see the sunrise  – no helmets and no lights on the bikes or on the road. A morning visit to Ta Prohm, the site where Angelina Jolie’s […]

Today we temple hop near Siem Reap, Cambodia. Our first stop is the spectacular Angkor Wat, a vast complex beautifully reflected in the surrounding moat with its 5 towers. Intricate carvings cover the walls depicting the 37 levels of heaven and the 37 levels of hell, as well as life on earth in between.  The […]

Our next adventure is a visit to a small village for an overnight stay.  On the way we visit ancient ruins of Sambor Prei Kuk. These are not Cambodian and look to be Hindu perhaps from the images. The countryside is definitely poorer. The village of Sambor has 600 people who welcome us to their […]

Have arrived in Cambodia to the capital city of Phnom Penh. On the way our bus had to cross the Mekong River. The travel company had a policy that we must wear life jackets so only Intrepid passengers had to leave the bus and wear life vests. We had to stand on the ramp at […]

A fantastic day trip to Cu Chi tunnels near Ho Chi Minh with a couple of brief stops on the way. Our first stop was to a factory run by villagers affected by agent orange, followed by a brief stop at the rubber trees one of Vietnam chief exports. The Vietnamese people used the 250 […]

Short flight to Ho Chi Minh City (formerly known as Saigon). It is very warm and humid here – 27 degrees at 9 a.m. In the afternoon we have a cyclo tour – a bit nerve wracking moving slowly through the frantic traffic, but enjoyable to relax and view the city without having to focus […]

Last day in Hoi An – many in the group are still shopping! We head out on a 12-km walk to Cau Dai beach. Coconut palms shade the golden sand and we enjoy the cool ocean breeze. Lots of breakers and lots of people jumping the waves. The Vietnamese ladies selling goodies on the beach […]

Happy New Year! Highlight today was Goian Cooking School. We start with a visit to the market to learn about Vietnamese veggies/fruits and pick up ingredients. We each are issued an apron, chopping board, and knife. The chef soon has us chopping and dicing telling jokes and critiquing our technique (we all need more practice). […]

New Year’s Eve here in Hoi An, a 4-hour dive from Hue through mountains and along the sea. Lots of water buffalo and rice paddies. We stop at China Beach, famous recreational spot for US soldiers on leave during the war. The sand is golden and clean, the surf boiling with breakers – a surfer’s […]