Goodbye, Vietnam! After 10 days of exploring the country from Hanoi in the north to Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City in the south, we have crossed the border into Cambodia. Our last few days in Vietnam were spent in the beautiful beach town of Mui Ne, the quiet and supposedly peaceful alternative to beach party town, Nha Trang. From Mui Ne, we took yet another bus to Saigon (this one only 5 hours) where we spent 1.5 days exploring the Vietnam's history, taking in the local flavors of the city and even seeing a movie from back home. Another potential custom? Vietnamese come to the movies to chat, not to watch. We're not sure this is official enough to add to our sidebar so we'll bury it in this post.
We're now in the middle of our stay in Cambodia, after spending 11 hours on a day bus from Saigon to Siem Reap. Luckily, there were only 4 of us on the bus. Our companions were two Greeks named Antonis and Fanis, and they were excellent conversationalists. They're on the road to celebrate their 30th birthdays...for an entire year. Not a bad way to ring in a new decade!
According to Jake, Siem Reap has changed a lot in three years. I have to admit, it's not at all what I expected. The Old Market is 100% geared to tourism where three years ago it was not. Think restaurants that serve western food, spas on every corner, vendors selling silks, bags, T-shirts and more, and clubs blaring "Shots, shots, shots, shots, shots, shots..." If you know what song we're talking about, it's perhaps the worst in history.
On the flip side of this, there is the Savong School and Orphanage, a wonderful institution founded in 2005 by a Cambodian-born man named Svay Savong. Savong's school is dedicated to teaching young Camobodian kids English and it is absolutely voluntary and free for kids to attend. Jake and I are in the middle of volunteering this week where we've spent mornings at the orphanage and afternoons teaching English. Despite our total lack of teaching skills, the experience has been our best so far. Cambodian people (and Jake had told me about this) are some of the most kind-hearted we've encountered on this journey - full of smiles and a sincere desire and interest to get to know people.
When we finish up our volunteering this week, we'll head to see the temples including the biggest and most well-known, Angkor Wat. Jake will be leading this expedition as it will be his second time to explore the majestic structures. Following this post, we'll tell you much more about Savong School and hopefully share pictures of the beautiful people we've had the chance to meet. In the meantime, visit Savong's website for more information - www.savong.com.
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