TravelStream™ news feed for member hildine on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/hildine en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Thu, 22 May 2008 09:41:32 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1211203680/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1211203680/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1211203680/tpod.html Thu, 22 May 2008 09:41:32 -0400 Angela´s Little Bit of Everything Trek

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Luang Prabang, Luang Prabang, Lao Peoples Dem Rep

Luang Prabang is home to the best night market ever!!! I arrived at night and had no clue that it existed so imagine my delight when I wandered into the center of town and there it was. Piles of handicrafts, scarves, duvet covers (which I am now lugging around), pillow shams, slippers you name it...needless to say after 3 nights here my bag is certainly a lot heavier. My first day here was pretty lax for a change...I'm so used to moving everyday that it was nice to just leisurely wander the city without being a taskmaster. I did go to the Royal Palace (not as impressive as others) and a very beautiful wat (temple), a nice gold and green one. I didn't get very far when I ran into 2 fellow Canadians that I had met earlier so we decided coffee was necessary and then dinner and then more shopping and then drinks...so a great day!The next day started off lazy and then found me in paradise. While leisurely strolling the streets I met some other Canadians (there's lots of us and we're all so friendly lol) which then found me on a Tuk Tuk on my way out of town heading to a waterfall. It was fantastic!!! The waterfall was 3 tiered so we hiked all the way up. At the end there was one huge incredible waterfall that was so enchanting as it cascaded down through the rocks. It fed into smaller waterfalls below where you could actually go swimming it was great!!! Then at night we found this little alley full of food stalls for super cheap. I sampled my way through spring rolls then we came to a place serving all sorts of veggie dishes (rice, noodles etc.) and you could get a heaping plate full for less than a dollar and the food was soooo good!!! I had such a great time here!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1211116680/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1211116680/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1211116680/tpod.html Thu, 22 May 2008 09:28:20 -0400 Angela´s Little Bit of Everything Trek

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Vang Vieng, Vang Vieng, Lao Peoples Dem Rep

My next stop in Laos was the town of Vang Vieng, a little backpacker haven right on the water surrounded by mountains, just beautiful. As I was eating my breakfast on my second day (let me interject that in almost all the restaurants you sit on little elevated wooden bed like seats with pillows and there's always a continuous loop of Friends playing on the tv's)...anyways so a rocket festival was just getting underway. From what I could gather it's a local festival where all the men in the town get together and make rockets to shoot off later in a competition. So while we were sitting eating out breakfast groups of men kept passing by on their way...some were on little trucks, decorated and displaying their rockets, some were on foot dancing and drinking in the street and playing instruments, it looked like great fun and they all had names on their groups such as Handsome and PlayBoy so it was quite funny. They shot off a couple rockets and they literally went up and disappeared into the clouds, it was unreal.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210942680/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210942680/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210942680/tpod.html Thu, 22 May 2008 09:18:17 -0400 Angela´s Little Bit of Everything Trek

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Vientiane, Vientiane, Lao Peoples Dem Rep

I could tell from the first moment I arrived that I would love this town. Even though it's the capital, it's got a small town feel and you can easily walk everywhere. It's along the Mekong and the pace is relaxed which was so welcomed, I didn't feel like I was going to get hit by a motorbike everytime I crossed the street. I love it! I found this great little cafe with great iced coffed which fuelled me up well to set off exploring all the temples in the pouring rain. Even though it poured rain I had a great day here. A few of us rented a Tuk Tuk to bring us around to some of the sights. First we went to Wat Si Saket, which is the oldest temple in Vientiane built in 1818. The central temple was great, I just love the architecture it never fails to impress me. This one is Thai-style with a five tiered roof. Inside is a typical Buddha statue with all the offerings. The real gem of this wat that set it apart from the others I've seen is the cloisters, which are filled with over 10,000 Buddha's, it was quite the site. The walls are covered with little carved out niches containing 2 Buddhas each, plus larger ones lined the walls all around it. I've never seen anything like it (I feel that phrase is becoming redundant but it's true).Next up, Vientiane's answer to the Arc de Triomphe, Patuxai, built to commemorate those who've died in war. It was really beautiful although the imposing size of it did make it look slightly out of place in its smaller surroundings. You could climb it to get a view of the city but I didn't bother because of the rain.Then we went to Pha That Luang which I think is one of the most incrediblest things I've ever seen. I was completely mesmerized!! It is a massive golden stupa and it is phenomenal!!! I'm not even quite sure how to describe it. Although you can't go inside it's enough to just wander the grounds, I can totally understand why it's the most important monument in Laos, it's just stunning and at 45m high it just overwhelms. After satisfying my tourist duties I went back for more iced coffee yum.Nightime had a tale of its own...while I won't go into details, after a few beers riverside which was just amazing we found out the hardway about the national midnight curfew when we came back to our hotel to find a metal door closed down over the entrance way...all was well in the end but it was definitely an experience to remember!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210909980/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210909980/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210909980/tpod.html Tue, 20 May 2008 00:02:49 -0400 Angela´s Little Bit of Everything Trek

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Paksan, Paksan, Lao Peoples Dem Rep

After an extremely long day of being on buses I crossed into Laos. However, the border crossings were a joke because of stupid crooked border officials! First it took forever to exit Vietnam and then they wouldn't give me my passport back unless I gave them "one dollar" because everything always seems to cost "one dollar" no matter what it is....so that was annoying. Then after obtaining my visa for Laos they did the same thing and woudln't give me my passport back unless I paid "one dollar" even though I'd already paid the visa fee...hrmm so crooked. Other than that my first impressions of Laos are favourable. The drive was beautiful, I haven't seen vegetation like this since Costa Rica, not to mention there's alot less people here so it's no as hectic. The bus wound through several small communities of the hill tribes in the mountains so that was really neat to see, simple wooden houses with thatched roofs. I was only in Paksan for one night because it's basically just a stopver near the border to break up the travelling.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210823400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210823400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210823400/tpod.html Mon, 19 May 2008 23:52:40 -0400 Angela´s Little Bit of Everything Trek

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Hanoi, Hanoi, Vietnam

Check back soon for entry.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210591500/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210591500/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210591500/tpod.html Fri, 16 May 2008 07:35:24 -0400 Angela´s Little Bit of Everything Trek

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Halong Bay, Halong Bay, Vietnam

I arrived in Halong Bay completely and utterly exhausted after not sleeping a wink on the night train due to the rancid stench of durians which I have decided are the most wretched smelling fruit ever. Plus the ride was quite rough and I was certain I was going to be flung from my bunk at any second. With no time to rest I was soon on a boat to explore the absolute beauty of this area. So far this has been the most breathtaking scenery I have ever seen. There are over 3000 islands and rocks in all sorts of formations, I really can't describe it. It was absolutely phenomenal like nothing I've ever seen before! After a delicious seafood feast on the boat we stopped at a cave which was also amazing. It was quite large filled with all different formations of limestone which were really cool. Plus there were red, green and blue lights placed just right to make it look more surreal. This whole experience by far has been one of my all time favourites!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210503780/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210503780/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210503780/tpod.html Fri, 16 May 2008 07:24:30 -0400 Angela´s Little Bit of Everything Trek

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Hue, Hue, Vietnam

The drive from Hoi An to Hue provided some pretty excellent views and I also got to visit an American bunker from the war. I arrived in the Imperial City of Hue late afternoon hoping the dreay grey rainy weather would be gone by morning... no such luck so raincoat it was. Since Hue was Vietnam's political center from 1802-1945 there were definitely some impressive sights. I opted for a guided tour of a few sites so I could learn about the history and background of them...sometimes I find the limited signage takes away from the experience if I don't know what I'm looking at. First up, a boat ride down the Perfume River, where I got to see more of the floating houses. This ride led us to the Thien Mu Pagoda, which is famous for being the home pagoda of the monk who publicly burned himself to protest Diem's policies. Apart from this the pagoda was quite peaceful, there is an octagonal tower of seven levels, each one dedicated to different principles of Buddhism, lots of lovely grounds and the main altar which was home to three gold Buddha's representing past, present and future. This monastary is the oldest one in the city built in the 17th century.Next we went to the citadel, although most of it was destroyed by bombs what remains is quite elaborate and at only 35% left I can't even imagine how immense this complex must have been. My first glimpse was of the huge walls surrounding the complex which is apparently 6 square km with 10 entrance gates all accessed by bridges crossing the moat. The inside is divided into different areas, we got to visit the Imperial Enclosure which is essentially a city within a city where the Emperor did his official business. This area was quite beautiful with courtyards surrounded by Chinese influenced buildings, in one there was an altar dedicated to each of the kings. Also within the enclosure is the Forbidden Purple City, which as the name implies was remodelled after the actual Forbidden City in Beijing. Unfortunately though most of it was destroyed and what is left was under reconstruction so I wasn't able to see it. This is the area where the emperor would have carried out his private life. Pretty soon after this I was catching yet another night train...
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1209300300/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1209300300/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1209300300/tpod.html Fri, 16 May 2008 07:02:59 -0400 Angela´s Little Bit of Everything Trek

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Bangkok, Thailand

After a brief golf related hiatus and an exremely long flight I landed in Bangkok. Since I was only here for the night (I'll be back at the end of May) I wasted no time and was basically out on the town the second I arrived. THe night found me on Ko San, a street where backpackers loiter, rammed with vendors selling everything you could imagine from "Lacoste" shirts to mangos. I indulged in some pad thai and just wandered the vendors most of the night. I can't wait to come back!!!!!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210329480/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210329480/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210329480/tpod.html Fri, 16 May 2008 07:00:55 -0400 Angela´s Little Bit of Everything Trek

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Hoi An, Hoi An, Vietnam

Hoi An is my favourite place in Asia so far, a quaint little riverside town that used to be an international port so there is lots of Chinese and Japanese influence visible in the buildings. This town also proved to be slightly dangerous for me as there are over 300 tailor shops where you can literally get anything you want custom made, which naturally led to some binge shopping. Although I felt like a zombie when I arrived from lack of sleep on the night train I was on my way to exlore the riverside pretty much right away. Winding through the narrow streets lined with tailors I really couldn't believe how many there were, literally every single store street after street, the town is quite small and there really are over 300, it's quite overwhelming. After roaming for a few hours I settled on a few things and was off to my cooking course.Dinner was seriously the highlight of my trip so far. It was a one hour cooking class and then we got to eat everything we made and it was seriously some of the best food I've ever had. We made amazing grilled fish (stuffed with onions, garlic, ginger and lemongrass and cooked in a banana leaf), veggie spring rolls, stirfried squid and wontons with sweet and sour vegetables. The food was incredible and they gave us the recipies so I can't wait to try them at home.The next morning I was up with the sun to check out the My Son ruins outside of town. The were built by the Cham people dating back to the 7th century and was the capital of their civilization from the 9th to 11th centuries and used mainly as a religious sanctuary. Again the brick structures were quite fascinating with all the bricks just fitted together. These ruins are larger in scope than the ones in Nha Trang and surrounded by mountains so it was quite picturesque. Since I was up at the crack of dawn this left most of the day for wandering Hoi An. One of the highlights was the Japanese covered bridge which is just gorgeous. It's very intricate and was constructed in the 1500s and most likely used to link the Japanese community to the rest of town. I also saw several Chinese influenced buildings which were quite nice to look at. Mostly though I spent the day going around to the different tailors for fittings and then going to pick everything up...it was quite exhausitng.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210144860/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210144860/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hildine/latin_america/1210144860/tpod.html Sun, 11 May 2008 03:35:03 -0400 Angela´s Little Bit of Everything Trek

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Nha Trang, Nha Trang, Vietnam

After the craziness and running around in HCMC and a night train, I was ready for a day at the beach. It was beautiful and not too crowded, I rented a fantastic lounge chair for super cheap and it had it's own little thatched roof hut for when I wanted shade. I basically spent the entire day going in and out of the South China Sea and it was glorious. On the beach you can buy an abundance of seafood from ladies selling it right on the beach and they just grill it up on these little charcoal grills, from lobster to octopus to conch, it was great!After spending a day relaxing I was off to explore the next day. I went to the PoNagar Cham Towers and it was quite lovely. Beautiful brick structures that were built between the 7th and 12th centuries which have been restored. Only 4 of the original 8 remain and each one is a shrine to a different deity which were used by the Hindus for worship. Plus there were some pretty great views from the top of the hill. Next on the list, the Long Son Pagoda. I have decided that pagoda's mesmerize me...I really enjoy looking at the different architecture. When we got there it was closed but a nice monk let us inside anyways and it was quite nice, with carved wooden pillars. Then we started the Buddha ascent, the first one we came across was huge and lying down and is apparently a smaller replica of the one in Bangkok so I'll have to check that out when I go back. Then at the top of the hill is an enormous Buddha sitting in a lotus flower. It was really amazing to see plus you could go inside and there were bronze murals on the wall. All in all quite an enjoyable experience in Nha Trang.
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