It's been a bit longer than usual since I last posted, mostly due to my being sick for the last week or so. Had tonsils the size of golf balls! What started out the night I arrived in Saigon as a mild headache and a stiff neck ended up being one of the worst sore throats I ever remember experiencing. So bad that swallowing saliva would violently wake me up. Ended up on a liquid diet for most of the time, though not much at that. I just had my first full meal in almost a week tonight, and man was it delicious. It was a helluva way to experience the Mekong Delta, and not something I'd recommend to others.
Sorry bees, but my throat needs your honey.
When I wasn't willing myself to swallow a sip of water or seeing how much longer I had until I could next take an Ibuprofen, I did do some interesting things throughout the Delta. Toured a fruit orchard, watched some Vietnamese folk musicians, saw some fish farms, visited a floating market, went to a crocodile farm, and observed candy factories, rice mills, and rice paper factories all at work. "Meh" would be an acceptable way to describe all of those things.
At least I got to eat a tiny banana.
Then again, everything seems like a drag when you just want to close your eyes and sleep. I think I averaged about two hours of sleep a night from Tuesday to Friday. But now I'm in Phnom Penh, the capital and largest city of Cambodia, and have a room all to myself to sleep as much as I can in. It ain't much, but compared to the last bunch of days, I feel like I'm living in luxury. I think I might even go out to see a movie tomorrow. How wonderful. As for Cambodia, so far I find it a good deal more pleasant than Vietnam. The honking is down to Manhattan levels, the people are significantly friendlier, and nobody's tried to sell me anything yet! At lunch today, my waitress even filled my empty water bottle with free green tea. FREE! Sure the motortaxi and tuk-tuk drivers still pester westerners like a motion-activated advertisement, but this is still Southeast Asia.
The boarder crossing was the kind of thing you'd expect fifty years ago. I was on a boat taking me directly to Phnom Penh, so shortly before the boarder we docked at a riverside cafe-thing to wait while the man who seemed to be in charge took our passports, money, and info to get our visas set up. After an hour or so, he came back and we went on. After a little while, the boat slowed and pulled up to a plank of wood jutting from the riverbank. In my opinion, for something to be a dock, it requires multiple planks. This was not a dock. Walking up it and onto the bank, I found some garbage littered around (the norm around here), a few houses scattered here and there, a guy sleeping in a hammock over there, some stray dogs, and nothing hinting at a border. After walking what resembled a game trail behind some houses, I came upon a building slightly nicer than the houses, with bars on the windows and a sign reading, "Customs." Walking up to the windows, I found a man with a badge and some rubber stamps. Gave him my passport, he muttered in Cambodian for a few minutes, stamped my passport, and I was ushered back onto the boat. And that is how I passed from Vietnam into Cambodia.
I'm gonna lay low in Phnom Penh for a few days until I've regained my strength enough, then maybe head on towards Siem Reap. I'd like to give something of a shoutout to two New York expat sisters that traveled with me through the Delta and kept my spirits up even when I was going on zero sleep or food. They were fantastic company and I hope to one day return the favor when I'm not so much of a wreck.
Backpacking!
2 comments:
Hey Luke,
So sorry you've been sick. Glad to hear you're on the mend! Enjoy Cambodia. keep posting!
L.A.Jay
i hope your stay was PenhPhnomenal
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