Cambodia - Sihanoukville Revisited Again

http://tinamue.blogspot.com/2013/03/cambodia-sihanoukville-revisited.html

The beaches of Sihanoukville are beautiful, superb, unspoiled, and relatively unused although the main beach can get crowded on weekends. Here in the rainy season, they are not much of an attraction because when it rains in Sihanoukville, it pours.

However, if you visit during the dry and warm seasons head east of town. There you will soon leave the crowds behind you while the beauty of the beach increases. Soon you will end at an estuary where your main risk is to have the tranquility disturbed by a herd of cows.

There are also beaches to the west of Sihanoukville – for example, Hun Sen Beach located a few kilometers before the oil depot - that are totally deserted. Almost no tourists venture west of the Port of Sihanoukville. The most likely reasons are that the first kilometers of road are in a terrible state of repairs and that this first stretch of road goes through slum-like fishing villages. Those facts will deter most tourists daring to venture outside of town on their own.

Cambodia - Phnom Penh

I like Phnom Penh. In the area around Wat Phnom, there are still several buildings in short distance from each other that showcase the architectural splendor the French colonial masters once provided.

Head office of the Cambodian postal service

Despite the increasingly jam-packed traffic, the pace is still relatively sedate. Based on my personal experience, the relative chaos lends itself best to either getting around as a pedestrian or by renting a motorcycle.

Motorcycle taxis (with two or three wheels) are inexpensive alternatives to the less adventurous visitor. One has to be more adventurous than me to try out the local snacks, which are for sale in the markets and by street vendors.

Fried snacks

Laos - Bajieng Resort

In Champassak province, the heights of the Bolaven Plateau are just east of the Mekong River. The area has numerous waterfalls and coffee plantations.

Green coffee beans

There is also a “cultural theme park”, which has become a hit among Thais traveling on guided tours. If you happen to be in the neighborhood, it is worth a visit.

The “cultural theme park” is actually named Bajieng Resort. The resort opened in December 2003. A Thai national, Wimol Kijbamrung, had worked hard for five years to turn a large undeveloped tract of land into a resort with nature and culture as the its underlying themes. However, one week after the official opening, Khun Wimol came down with a serious bout of malaria and lost his eyesight.

Tad Pha Suam Waterfall

Inside the resort area, there is a stunning waterfall (Tad Pha Suam) with a couple of bridges crossing the river downstream thus creating good spots for taking photos. “Original” houses from different tribes have been erected plus people have been hired to dress up in “original” ethnic outfits, play instruments, play children’s games, weave or whatever so as to create an impression of being in a real rural village. 

It is of course fake, but it seems less fake, less commercial than what can be experienced at assorted hill tribe (long-neck etc) villages in Thailand. The park’s restaurants are quite good and since part of the revenues supposedly goes to support local tribes, one should accept the falseness and consider it “edutainment”. 

Sabaidee

Thailand - SCUBA

http://tinamue.blogspot.com/2012/10/thailand-off-deep-end.html

There is a normally unseen world beneath the ocean’s surface. There are many companies offering trips and certification in diving with Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus (SCUBA) equipment. If you have time and loves the sea, diving is definitely a hobby you should consider taking up.

Don't get too close or I'll bite

Underwater photography can relay the sights that can be had, but diving is an activity that involves all senses (except maybe smelling) and is an exciting and rewarding experience. 

Can you see me?

Moreover, speaking from personal experience, it is an activity that is much more relaxing and overall better in tropical waters than in colder climates.