Aussie Wendell

Well, I'm happy to have made it back to Sydney relatively intact, a few pounds (kilos) lighter, a bit jet-lagged, having only one item stolen during the trip, with very few material souvenirs but a huge array of memories to reflect upon.

The trip was amazing and I could go on and on about the various places visited, the people encountered, the culture, music food, etc...I could just as easily be a jaded American tourist and talk about the unbelievable heat, the street hustlers, the attempted robbery upon arrival in Cambodia, the incredible shopping or the poverty, but that would undermine the beauty and mystery of both Vietnam and Cambodia.
Instead, I'll just leave you with a few images from my trip...from top...me at the War Remnants Museum (I thought their version of "Historic Truths" was very interesting), young and old at Haan Kiem Lake in Hanoi, a farmer taking rice from his boat to the pottery kiln on the Mekong Delta, a boy in front of a Hanoi statue in front of my hotel (The Viet Minh declared the Democratic Republic of Vietnam with Hanoi as its capital in 1946), and school children visting the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum.

It is strange to be back in Sydney, walking on the left-hand side of the road once again on pristine streets, not a motorbike in sight, the air not visible to the eye and free-flowing, drinkable water. I might not feel as tall as I did the past two weeks, but I definitely feel more greatful for what I/we have...

Once again, I have so many photographs from Halong Bay, it is hard to choose which ones to share; here are a few...




By the way, Halong Bay (or Ha Long) is about 3 hours from Hanoi and is made up of 1,969 islands of various sizes; only 989 have been given names (I came up with a few if they need any suggestions).

These two formations are known as "The Roosters" that sit far from the other, larger islands.

"It has been proven by scientists that Halong was one of the first cradles of human existence." Our existence on the bay was not so bad in our "junk," an old Chinese sailing vessel that had a wonderful crew with our bedrooms below.

When you travel through/around this amazing archipelago you feel as if you've entered a lost world; its beauty/mystery is intensified by its silence.

We did, however, come across a few floating villages, complete with floating schools for the children, dogs, yes I said dogs on their front porches and a few even have electricity.

We traveled by smaller boat(s) through some of the inlets and caves...

I promised to be light-hearted today, so I'm posting some random photos from Hanoi. While Hanoi & Saigon are both great cities, each with their own culture and identity, I actually preferred Hanoi, with it's crazy streets, markets and Haan Kiem Lake. Pictured below are women doing their Tai Chi in the morning...at sunrise, there are literally hundreds of people doing Tai Chi in groups and individually around the lake.

















I was lucky enough to be in Hanoi while Vietnam's ruling Communist Party opened its 10th National Congress...a celebration of Communism in Vietnam filled with intense pageantry; everywhere you looked you saw the red and yellow hammer & sickle (symbolizing the unity between agricultural and industrial workers) and the flag of Vietnam....and I mean EVERYWHERE! I was lucky enough to come across some outdoor performances and capured my view from a restaurant at night...what is not shown is the crowd of hundreds of people watching from their motorbikes in the street.













Speaking of motorbikes, that is the main form of transportation and it is quite a site to behold. They say in Saigon, a city of some 8 million people, that there are almost 5 million motorbikes! It was a bit daunting at first as a pedestrian, passenger and then as a driver, but you get the hang of it...there are only TWO rules...don't hit anyone and don't get hit!

I thought I'd throw in the picture of the electrician....I just thought it was hilarious. I was walking down one of the side streets in Hanoi where everything is sold, from fruits, vegetables, meats (including whole skinned dog...sorry, but true), etc. and I saw this electrician fixing, well, who knows what he was fixing...looks like he has a lot of work to do!

(Random images; boy in Ho Chi Minh City, Mekong Delta, one of the floating markets on the Mekong Delta, Lunch main course...Elephant Ear Fish, Kumer & two sons' James and Shawn and myself on the Saigon River at night)

Vietnam has been quite an experience and I've only started to cover the southern region. By the way, I'm pleased to note that I had my first meal in three days this evening. After surviving on Ritz Crackers and the occasional yet obligitory beer, I managed to be oh, such the American and ordered pasta for dinner. Here I am, surrounded by some of the most exotic and delicious foods in the world, and that is the only thing that appealed to me. I guess I found an excuse to go shopping here...none of my clothes fit me anymore!

I could literally post hundreds of photos from Cambodia & Vietnam (of which I have), but will not do that to you (I'll just make my friends in Sydney suffer when I get back). I could equally share with you hundreds of stories (you'll be happy to know that there aren't too many "Wendell Stories" to speak of just yet, but there's still plenty of time to get caught in quicksand again...yes I said again), but I won't do that to you either. Instead, I'm going to tell you one story (true) that happened to me yesterday involving prejudices, foregone conclusions, stereotypes, predilections, call them what you will, but something that made me think twice about the way I/we choose to look at others.

We all have our own of the above mentioned, (whether we admit it to ourselves/others or not), shaped perhaps by political or media influences, but there nonetheless. Where am I going with this? Well yesterday, I went on a boat trip along the the Mekong Delta (and this is not going where you tnink it is); I was the last to enter the bus that was to take us on our three hour ride to the small wooden boat. Seated (in order), an older German couple, a middle-aged French couple, a man of Indian descent and his two teenaged sons, two backpacking girls from Sydney, myself (the only American and yes, the only one traveling by himself) and a rather hard-core looking couple in their late 20's from Melbourne (girl with closely-shaved head and guy with mohawk); a veritable United Nations (and probably more effective than the current one). I must preface this by saying that some of the above mentioned passengers actually lived up to the stereotypes created for/about them...but I won't say which ones. Anyway, during the ride, I immediately formed a bond with the hard-core looking couple, possibly because they were the closest in age to me (I said close, 20's is kind of close...OK, I'm closer in age to the middle-aged couple...uggh), or perhaps because I heard their Australian accents and thought I would have the most in common with them or maybe it was just because they were sitting behind me, I'm not sure, but given the opportunity to interact with anyone on the trip based merely on first impressions, I hate to admit it, but the Indian man and his two sons would have probably been last on my list. Why?...perceived cultural differences, language differences, prejudices...I'm sure if I searched hard enough, I'd find an answer for you, but it's hot, humid and I have to get up early tomorrow morning for Hanoi...any excuse to avoid introspection, huh?

While traveling through the floating markets of the Mekong Delta on our small boat, I started a conversation with the father (now sitting next to me), who as it turns out, lives in Sydney and has for most of his life. His name was/is Kumer and son's, James and Shawn 13, are fraternal twins. The boat ride, and this trip for that matter, would not have been the same without them.

Under yes, the weirdest circumstances, along the Mekong Delta in Vietnam, an unlikely friendship was formed between people from different backgrounds, that as it turns out, aren't that different after all. What struck me most about the three was the amazing bond Kumer had with his boys. He was so much more than just a father to them, but a best friend and since their mother has not been in the picture since the boys were six due to a psychological illness, he's their mother too, raising them on his own. The CFO of a multi-national U.S. based company, Kumer tries to take his boys with him on overseas business trips whenever possible to give them the opportunity to experience different cultures. On a trip like this, where tremendous beauty is juxtaposed against overwhelming poverty, you can already see the humility in James and Shawn and get a sense for the people they will one day grow up to be; with any luck, they'll be like their dad who I had the privilege to spend a few days with in Vietnam; we've already planned our "Mekong Delta Reunion" barbeque in Sydney when we all return.

What is the point to this sory? Does there have to be one? No, it's my blog...just kidding. There is no point for you perhaps, but this experience made me realize that I almost missed an opportunity, almost missed out on a new friendship and almost missed an "epiphany" of sorts due to my own, falsely created first impressions. This trip has changed me in many ways, but this singular experience yesterday was the most surprising yet welcome of them all.

What happened to this blog? It started off so light-hearted! No worries, I promise to post nothing but nonsense tomorrow...off to bed now!

More pictures from Cambodia. From the outskirts of Siem Reap to the temples at Angkor Wat, the beautiful people and their culture to the floating huts on Tonle Sap Lake, it is an amazing place. Pictured above, children bathing, offerings at Angkor Wat...to the right and below, life outside of Siem Reap, me at one of the excavation sites at Angkor Wat and the view from my Tuk Tuk (Mr. Min driving)...nice elephant, huh?

I'm going to try and upload a few pictures...we'll see what happens. In the mean time, Cambodia is/was amazing. The temples combined with the people made for an incredible and unforgetable experience. As always, I try to get off of the beaten path so to speak, so I rode my bicycle an hour outside of Siem Reap and found myself in some of the most poverty-stricken areas I've ever experienced, but you didn't see it in the faces of the people. As I was riding along the river, it was around 4:45 PM, and apparently it was time to bathe; people went to the water pumps down the street to pump water for their family. The children played as if they had not a care in the world, and basically didn't, as their basic needs were being met; food, water, shelter (but not much clothing) and a loving family, and they all took time to wave to me and say "Hello" as I passed by. I had to ask myself, with all of our material posessions, living in the richest country(s) in the world, are we any happier? A rhetorical question of course (don't get me wrong, after experiencing food poisoning last night/today, I'm very happy with running water...I should have known better than to order a dish called "Amok," a curry dish that did exactly that to my stomach), but food for thought....I digress.


Pictured above is me at the Ta Prohm temples, my three favorite monks (in training) at Angkor Wat and a night market selling flower offerings for Buddah; I went to one of the local temples last night and was blessed by the monks (little good that did me at 1:30 AM when "Amok" attacked...) Sorry I can't post more...takes entirely too long!

As the title suggests, yes I had breakfast with some Khmer monks before heading off to Angkor Wat, Preah Khan, Ta Prohm and Bayon to name a few of the unbelievable temples, sites and ruins visited and experienced today.

I'm at an outdoor Internet cafe, it is 105 degrees with 100% humidity and the keys are sticking to the keyboard like this shirt is to my body, so I have to keep it short (not to mention the fact that it will probably take 20 minutes to download this message). I would be remiss if I did not say that what many consider to be the seventh wonder of the world is truly that, a wonder that mere words cannot begin to describe...makes you question current day life against a civilzation that no longer exists except in the reminders left behind....

Sorry, no photo's today; it just takes too long to upload...I tried.

In honor of my leaving for Cambodia and Vietnam tomorrow, I thought I'd introduce you to my favorite (and only) Cambodian friend Chivorn...a.k.a. "Chevy." Just your average, ordinary housewife as you can so clearly see...yeah right!

A Cambodian feast before I left for Sydney with honorary Cambodians, husband Andy and Tony & Robin who came in from Boston to see me off....and then the morning after! What time is it Tony?...."Time to Eat!"

"Easter Monday Lunch" you ask? Well, just another excuse to have a few beers and get together with friends; trust me, it's not about Easter, but Malcolm Stewart, the consummate host (pictured next to the Easter Bunny), knows how to put on a spread. Can you tell he and Steven have a kid?
But, we weren't able to eat until we went on an Easter-Egg hunt in the backyard, found all of the chocolate eggs and assembled the prizes found inside (some assembly required did not sit too well with Steven & Virginia).



A much deserved dessert for the hosts, Malcolm & Steven.

Not my housewarming party (I'll wait until August when I move again...you're all invited), but one for Paul & Jamie (below). Angela and I were the last to leave...

Yes, I went to church this morning, and NO, lightning did not strike. I didn't quite make it to St. Mary's (pictured above), rather, I found a small church in my neighborhood that had 24 people in attendance (including priest & piano player...I counted). A beautiful Easter Sunday here....Saturday night there. You'll probably get sick of seeing Opera House pictures, but it truly is spectacular....find the Easter Bunny...

Yes I live in Sydney, but today I was much like the Japanese tourists to my left and right at Archibald Fountain...camera in hand (not around the neck though), stopping strangers to take pictures for me.


I went to Hyde Park to take a few more pics of the outdoor photo exhibit....Diving Woman from the 1938 Empire Games (now called Commonwealth Games), Old & New, St. Mary's Cathedral from the 1800's and today in the background, and a photo of me with "The Duke," Duke Kahanamoku, the "Ambassador of Surfing" who introduced Sydney to surfing in 1915; he came here from Hawaii and had to cut his own board from local timber...
http://www.hawaiianswimboat.com/duke3.html
See, I'm learning the local history...

Friday...the "Easter Show at Bicentennial Park/Olympic Park is under way and is huge! Everyone knows that Aussie's get a lot of vacation time, but also a lot of holidays. They get today (Good Friday) AND Monday (Easter Monday) off....hey, no complaints here! Next Tuesday they (we) celebrate ANZAC Day with another day off!



I rode my bike out to Olympic Park and through the wetlands this morning...long ride but worth it. Then spent the day like a tourist at Circular Quay with a few friends from Melbourne...cruise ship at bay....didn't spend much time there...in search of a good pub with a few less people!