I am drawn to children for their innocence and spontaneity. Cambodian kids were a really friendly lot, always eager to practice their English and general knowledge they picked up from travellers. I was amazed at how much they knew (they were particularly good at capital cities of countries) and when I asked them where did they learn all of that from, they said they learnt it from "us, tourists". That was when I realised we could give so much more apart from an extra dollar, if we just sat down and spoke a little bit more with them.
We didn't have much to give, but I tried to make it a point to talk to any kid who approached me, as I believe the gift of knowledge and attention is more valued above most other things.
Muddy and I talked about portable photo printers and I think it's a great idea if we can give the villagers some printouts of the shots we take. Now, to hunt for a cheap and really light printer will be my next thing to-do..
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
"Where you come from, Lady?"
Friday, January 11, 2008
Upcoming - Siem Reap
4 more days to Siem Reap and this time I have nothing planned for it. Due to the recent ongoings in my life, I have been too caught up with other things to really plan for this trip. Moreover planning was also part of the reason why I was feeling so stressed out so Marcus told me let's not plan anything and just go.
In fact, I was feeling so distressed lately I was on the verge of calling it off but it was good that he was around to hold me in place. I don't feel like doing much trekking or anything in particular, not even trying to travel on a shoestring budget.
Perhaps for a change, I will just not do anything and let myself sleep all day, and probably visit some temples and linger around there for a long time for some quiet moments. I have a lot to think through, a lot to expect in the coming weeks.
I don't know what to expect for this trip anymore, except to come back feeling much better than what I feel right now.
In fact, I was feeling so distressed lately I was on the verge of calling it off but it was good that he was around to hold me in place. I don't feel like doing much trekking or anything in particular, not even trying to travel on a shoestring budget.
Perhaps for a change, I will just not do anything and let myself sleep all day, and probably visit some temples and linger around there for a long time for some quiet moments. I have a lot to think through, a lot to expect in the coming weeks.
I don't know what to expect for this trip anymore, except to come back feeling much better than what I feel right now.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Vietnam Day 4 - Nha Trang
This was written on the notepad when we didn't have internet connection
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If I had to compare between Da Lat and Nha Trang, I prefer the latter for its unkitschy sort of tourism, even though it caters more to the foreign tourists rather than its domestic tourists. Nha Trang screams of consumerism. Every imaginable kind of service can be found at every turn of the street. Whether it is foot massage, dive shops, or beauty salons, or even book exchange cafes. I guess it is very much like Pattaya, except that there isn’t as much sleaze like Pattaya.
Below is the videolog Brother and I did when we just reached:
Brother and I just did a quick calculation on how much money we’ve left, and turns out that for the entire trip, we probably need about US$100 per person to budget comfortably within our means. However it is highly recommended that if you have any remaining USD from other trips, use them instead of exchanging SGD for VND because the difference in cost is about 5%. We made a mistake by bringing less USD and more SGD to change into VND as we thought it might be better. Now we are carefully budgeting our USD so hopefully we can avoid using VND at most places whenever possible. Our meals are usually settled at one of the many streetside stalls selling local delicacies. A bowl of pho bo would cost around 8000VND ($0.80) per bowl as compared to restaurants where it costs us about 60,000VND (S$6) per person in general.
The moon is shining so brightly in Nha Trang tonight, and here I am blogging from the rooftop terrace of the hotel, where I can have a relatively clear view of the sea even though it is slightly out of the main cluster area where most shops and bars are located. Our room comes with a balcony and it is just 1 floor below the roof terrace hence other than going to sleep, whenever we are back in the hotel we just slack around the roof terrace. All these for just US$12/night.
Along our bus ride here we made some new friends and tonight we will most probably see them around at a bar around the area. Drinks are dirt cheap over here, with a doubleshot vodka with mixer costing 15000VND (S$1.50). The night is much longer than day, as sun sets around 530pm here. Now the brother and I are here at the roof terrace doing our own stuff, waiting for time to pass before we head down to the bar.. *hic*
--
If I had to compare between Da Lat and Nha Trang, I prefer the latter for its unkitschy sort of tourism, even though it caters more to the foreign tourists rather than its domestic tourists. Nha Trang screams of consumerism. Every imaginable kind of service can be found at every turn of the street. Whether it is foot massage, dive shops, or beauty salons, or even book exchange cafes. I guess it is very much like Pattaya, except that there isn’t as much sleaze like Pattaya.
Below is the videolog Brother and I did when we just reached:
Brother and I just did a quick calculation on how much money we’ve left, and turns out that for the entire trip, we probably need about US$100 per person to budget comfortably within our means. However it is highly recommended that if you have any remaining USD from other trips, use them instead of exchanging SGD for VND because the difference in cost is about 5%. We made a mistake by bringing less USD and more SGD to change into VND as we thought it might be better. Now we are carefully budgeting our USD so hopefully we can avoid using VND at most places whenever possible. Our meals are usually settled at one of the many streetside stalls selling local delicacies. A bowl of pho bo would cost around 8000VND ($0.80) per bowl as compared to restaurants where it costs us about 60,000VND (S$6) per person in general.
The moon is shining so brightly in Nha Trang tonight, and here I am blogging from the rooftop terrace of the hotel, where I can have a relatively clear view of the sea even though it is slightly out of the main cluster area where most shops and bars are located. Our room comes with a balcony and it is just 1 floor below the roof terrace hence other than going to sleep, whenever we are back in the hotel we just slack around the roof terrace. All these for just US$12/night.
Along our bus ride here we made some new friends and tonight we will most probably see them around at a bar around the area. Drinks are dirt cheap over here, with a doubleshot vodka with mixer costing 15000VND (S$1.50). The night is much longer than day, as sun sets around 530pm here. Now the brother and I are here at the roof terrace doing our own stuff, waiting for time to pass before we head down to the bar.. *hic*
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24, female. A fashion addict who loves the outdoors as well, and globe trotting as a 
