Land of the Rising Smog

I am writting this as I am returning from my second two week trip to China for work. I am not uploading this until I return, as the cold war between China and Google prevents me from easily doing so. Aside from the Internet, I have found China less outwardly communist than Vietnam. The people here also seem to have no issues with foreigners, any perceived rudeness or inappropriate behaviour is shared equally with the locals.

I spent my time in the city of Nanchang. There is a lot of manufacturing, and it houses more people than it is sensibly capable of doing. There really isn't much there for travellers, which is why there are none. Dilapidated high density housing is the order of the day. Everything is made big - houses, roads and airports - and then not maintained so everything is either new or falling apart.

After 4 weeks of careful study of the traffic management operation, I have concluded that the traffic rules are as follows:
- You may not enter an intersection if all of the following conditions are met:
a) You are driving a car-sized vehicle or bigger (home made motorised carts do not count).
b) You are not turning in any direction, and are not on a side street.
c) The traffic light is red.
d) You do not have a pressing engagement.
Unless all of these conditions are met there are no limitations on how you may drive.

Although it can get cooler than Melbourne, staying in the city results in similar conditions to suburban Melbourne. The big difference is that due to the protective layer of emissions rain seems unable to properly penetrate the atmosphere and instead of a proper down poor, things just get wet. This is particularly bad as the streets and buildings are in a dire need of a thorough clean and heavy rain /may/ help.

Behaviours are quite different here. The locals are completely baffled by constructs such as queues and allocated seating. It is also quite difficult to get out of a taxi when the next passenger is already getting in on top of you. They do, however, understand labels, as everything must be so adorned. Every vent in the hotel had a fancy gold plate proudly letting me know of the 'mechanical to send air'. There was also the door labelled 'S&M Department' - I didn't ask.

People seem outwardly hostile, but usually try to help you. Some of the workers at the factory were always insistent on offering us some of their lunch. Food here is mostly limited by available ingredients. To compensate for this issue, most dishes have very strong flavours added, in an attempt to mask whatever you may be actually eating.

Reading back on this is Melbourne it is more negative than I intended it to be. So rather than rework it, I will simply add that you should add your own positive spin.

Family and Flights

We only had one full day in Phnom Penh the first time, which we used to visit many family members. Navy's father's family is not well off and lives very differently to her mother's side who are among the upper class in Cambodia.

After than we were back on the road again to Sihanoukville on the coast. The road is much better as there is a significant shipping operation in Sihanoukville, and factories along the road to Phnom Penh. Outside of the shipping area Sihanoukville is rapidly becoming a tourist resort location along the lines of Phuket.

After two nights we returned to Phnom Penh for general activities. At this point I aquired gasto, which was not a planned activity, but fortunately I did not miss much (primarily the S21 prison).

The many flights back were slow but relatively painless. It was nice that the cheap stop over hotel in Bangkok turned out to be one of the best we stayed in.

Kingdom of Dragon Flies and Lizards

Cambodia is a country for which water is in no short supply. From the air it appears as a lake with occasional trees. Many of the buildings are barely above the water line (or not in some cases).

After landing in Phnom Penh we stayed with Navy's family for one night. The rooms here typically all open to the outside (no internal corridors) and outdoor kitchens are common. Our room was tiled on all surfaces but the roof. We also had great difficulty in determining what was a towel and what was a blanket in the items provided.

As you would expect from a tropical climate most of the houses are build on stilts to prevent flooding. What was not expected is that it appears that the height of the stilts is something of a status symbol, resulting in houses with 3m stilts alongside others with 200mm stilts, which looks quite odd.

Dragon flies are everywhere here, and their are accompanied by an abundance of lizards attempting to reduce their numbers. Most rooms have at least one gecko hanging out on the wall.

We drove to Siem Reap to meet up with the rest of Navy's family from Melbourne. The roads are poor at best, we are told there are areas where people will accept money to fill pot holes for the cars, then remove the dirt again for the next vehicle.

Our travel group became 13, which somehow managed to function, or at least appear to. We spend the majority of our time in Siem Reap exploring the many ruined temples in the area. These are straight out of films, I recommend a visit. The city itself is almost entirely a tourist trap now. Almost everyone speaks very good English there and is determined to sell anything they can get away with. It is also very clean, safe and not too adventurous for westerners.

Today we drove back to Phnom Penh (all 13). This is a very different city, but there is still a tourist area, which we appear to be in.

City of trains and temples

Bangkok is a city under construction. Large scale construction. We arrived in an airport much larger than required and proceeded into the city on a brand new rail system clearly designed for thousands to use, but was very convenient for the dozen people actually on the train.

Other transport systems are more well used. There are underground metro systems, overhead rail systems, airport connecting rail systems, rapid transport bus lines and a variety of ferries. All of these of course have their own operators and ticketing system. The tourist trap alternatives add to the confusion by presenting the tourist ferry as the main option when you walk to the pier, at 10 times the price of a standard local trip.

The older constructions in Bangkok are also not done by halves, with enormous temples and monuments not in short supply.

Unfortunately once you get past the transport and the temples it seems the only thing to actually do in Bangkok is go shopping for designer clothes, and try to put up with the constant nagging of taxi and tuk tuk drivers. Three days was more than enough for us to be done with Bangkok and on to Cambodia.

City of Red and Gold

Travelling to Vietnam was uneventful until arriving at Ho Chi Minh City. The Qantas staff had specifically informed us that our luggage would be checked though to Hanoi, and things started to get unstuck when we were directed to collect it at Ho Chi Minh. Those that have read previous entries here may realise that anyone from Qantas I have ever dealt with has only ever provided incorrect information. After struggling with what was going on we worked out that we had to go through immigration and transfer to the domestic terminal. Fortunately there was a bus for this, as the (very short) walk may have been an issue with the severe lack of breathable air.

Hanoi certainly has not done anything to make the air more breathable than Ho Chi Minh. Our driver fought his way into the city through the hordes of motocycles, many of which carried large stacks of goods or entire families. Vietnam now makes it's own motorcycles, because apparently they need to keep registering 15 thousand every month in Hanoi alone.

Almost by accident the Vietnamese declared Hanoi their capital after breaking away from the Chinese on 10/10/1010, and we are here for this peroid, which means that the entire city has been filled with statues and murals regarding 1000 years of being taken over by almost every other country at some point in time. As it is communist, however, the wording is more like 'glorious Vietnam the undefeated'. Or I am sure it would be, if I could read it.

The locals seem to buy in to the government line and have only good things to say for the running of the country. Looks like the almost comical stereo typical posters and bill boards actually work. All government posters also have the hammer and sickle up next to the Vietnamese star, as if they didn't get the memo that China bailed on their comrades.

Ha Long bay is increadibly still and clear. There are no noticable waves and is great for swimming. We did a cruise accompanied by (amongst others) some Irish. While the Vietnamese where quick to defend and support their government, the Irish like nothing more than to point out their country is run by some of the least competent people ever to have walked the earth. All of the buildings in the countryside are the same as in the city - very narrow, three stories, and sheer walls on either side with no windows. The theory must be that just in case someone needs to build a house right alongside and turn it into a city you are prepared.

Sunday night was the big night for the 1000 year celebrations. There were many people out and many people hawking goods, but I didn't really see the point. There was meant to be fireworks, which was cancelled, so I'm not sure what we were meant to be doing.

Tomorrow we fly to Bangkok. More to follow.

The Return

I have a correction to make on Buenos Aires. It is not that it feels like Melbourne, but that it is what Melbourne wants to be. Everywhere there are nice cafes open all hours, with nice coffee, chocolates and wifi everywhere.

On Sunday night I went to a public dancing night. It was really good and I found a nice local who spoke some English who helped me out with what was going on and frequently provided a dance partner. I also met some nice English tourists. I stayed till 1AM, at which point the place will still full and the locals showed no sign of slowing down though many of them must have had work that day. This is apparently quite common, as dinner will often go as late as midnight and then people will head out.

The following day I ran into my new English friends at a impressive old cemetery, which means by my probability theories that Buenos Aires has even less people than Melbourne*. I have had a very good time here, though going home is a good thing now. I will see people soon I am sure.

* 50, for those who do not know.

25

Buenos Aires feels a lot like Melbourne when coming from Brazil. The city is very clean, functional and vibrant. Many things have the same cost as Australia, but some (such as food) are much cheaper. I have looked around at some canes and cuff links in various stores and markets but not seen anything worth buying.

I have had a couple of meals with some family friends here who have been most generous. I have had dinner at their house with the family and last night I was taken out to a restaurant for a birthday meal. There was even valet parking, a first for me.

I have purchased some new dancing shoes which I plan to put to use tonight. I think I am going to a social dance place which may have some sort of class at the start of the night. Or not, I will find out! I have been walking a lot lately and my knee/ankle are complaining so today I am taking it easy. To this end I am about to venture out to view the latest Indiana Jones film.