Bangkok and Hong Kong again, details of the trip
Trip Start
May 18, 2005
1
25
Trip End
Jul 10, 2005
Bangkok and Hong Kong,
Thailand
Monday, July 11, 2005
Last time through Bangkok mostly just relaxing and eating more curry, more tom kha, more shakes.
We ended up in Hong Kong as a kind of decompression place before heading home. Since my first time there in 1966 or 67 on R&R from Vietnam, Hong Kong has been one of my favorite places in the world. Happy am I to be on the streets again, riding the Star Ferry again, eating BBQ duck again ...
We stayed at the Cosmic Guesthouse again (not that there is anything Cosmic about it - just good value for HK). While we were in SE Asia the Cosmic opened a new section and we stayed there. As before, the room was just big enough for three single beds in an upside down U with an 18 inch passage between the two legs of the U (see photo). New AC and an amazing complex shower with more features than I have ever seen. Room immaculate. Jeff and David spent a fair amount of time reading and sleeping and I was on the streets the entire time. I took the subway to somewhere and was completely lost in north HK. Finally found a bus that took me to Mongkok and then I was found. Rode the Star Ferry several times a day - just riding back and forth to the island and then back to Kowloon.
On what I thought was probably the last Star Ferry ride of my life I'm staring across the harbor, feeling the engines throbbing under the deck, feeling nostalgic ...
Cosmic room
a little girl, maybe 4 or 5 years old, sitting right behind me in her Dad's lap - starts singing over and over again, first in English and then in Chinese ..."Row row row your boat,
Gently down the stream.
Merrily merrily merrily,
Life is but a dream."
Another grace note for the trip.
On the last day David and I went to Big John's cafe on either Lock or Hankow Road, parallel to Nathan Road. Big John's is a small place serving Chinese and western foods - including salads that seem safe. Always good vibes in Big John's. This last time the music included the song from long ago ...
"Those were the days my friend,
We thought they'd never end,
We'd sing and dance forever and a day.
We'd live the life we'd choose,
We'd fight and never lose,
Those were the days,
Oh yes, those were the days."
Of course I'm thinking of Leslie - talk about nostalgic - yet thinking, yeah, that's pretty much how it's turning out.
Rode that big 747 to Taipei, on to LA, and then Dallas. Home.
********
What follows is a summary of the trip, focused mostly on practicalities. After Cambodia and Vietnam, rest of trip just kind of taking it easy - like a vacation. Here is how the trip went:
Travelers
- Charles Kemp, 60 years of age, Vietnam combat veteran, nurse practitioner, faculty at Baylor, author, and keeper of this travelogue.
- David Kemp, my son, 20 years old, student at Rice University, musician, and all around good guy - I mean, good grief, he spent two months traveling gracefully with two old men.
- Jeff Wiseman, 59 years of age, Vietnam combat veteran, adventurer, serious student of spiritual paths, and farmer in Oklahoma.
Transportation
Flew China Air from Dallas to Hong Kong and later on to Bangkok; then back to HK, Taipei, and LA.
Bus from HK airport is $33 HKD (aprox $4 USD).
Food on the street
Very easy. Stops right before Mirador and Chungking Mansions. Bus from Bangkok airport to Khao San Road is $100 baht/person. Metered taxi is about $200 baht + $60 baht toll fees. Our taxi KSR to airport got up to around 95 mph. Yikes! Backpacker buses available for 90 baht from guesthouses, but taxi or airport bus better value and more reliable.
Backpacker bus from Bangkok to Poipet, then taxi to Battambang.
Motos around Battambang (except for bamboo train) and Siem Reap (Angkor Wat). Took tuk-tuk to Angkor. From Battambang took boat to Tonle Sap and across top of lake to landing near Siem Reap. We were told that boat in this direction much less crowded than boat from Siem Reap to Battambang or Phnom Penh (which was very helpful, since boat not very comfortable).
One hour drive from landing to Siem Reap takes worst road prize - worse than out of Poipet.
Same type bus Siem Reap to Phnom Penh and also to Vietnam (arranged by Narin GH in Phnom Penh) to Cambodian-Vietnam border, then distinctly better bus from border into Saigon and Happy Tours office at 139 Bui Vien Street in heart of Pham Ngu Lao area where most budget travelers stay.
Happy Tours arranged for train (soft sleeper or 4 bunks in a compartment -which is clearly the way to go) to Danang for $30-something dollars.
Took taxi from Danang train station to Hoi An for $8 USD. Motos to where we fought in VN. Bikes around Hoi An. Train back to Saigon. Bus to Phnom Penh. Plane to Bangkok, Chiang Mai (bus to Burma), and back to Bangkok.
Food, more food
It turned out to be a very good idea to take buses and trains early in the trip when we were stronger and fly later in the trip when we were tired.
Transportation included 747, airbus, other planes; backpacker bus, tourist bus, people's bus; motorcycle and bicycle; train; bambooo train; boat; ferry; tuk-tuk; cyclo; taxi; walking.
Guidebooks
We took Rough Guide to Thailand, Lonely Planet SE Asia Guide, SE Asia - the Graphic Guide by Mark Elliott, printouts of info pasted from Thorn Tree (Lonely Planet website), and printouts from Tales of Asia website. Lonely Planet book and Thorntree/Tales of Asia printouts were most helpful to us. Every imaginable guidebook is available for a couple of dollars or less in KSR area.
Health
We drank mostly bottled water and avoided leafy salads, but did drink non-bottled water and enjoy fresh vegetables, cooked and uncooked. Had iced drinks every day, ate street food daily, and in general, didn't worry too much. Together we had about 150 person days traveling and a total of about 1.5 sick days combined. Carried much more medicine than used (see Lonely Planet suggestions for SE Asia travel), which proves nothing. Had one or more of us gotten sick, however, we would have benn mighty happy to have the medicine.
Equipment and related
I started with a duffle bag and replaced it in HK with a $12 backpack which was damaged when bus guy in Cambodia rammed it through an open window of the bus. There also were some seams starting to rip.
HK harbor at night
In Saigon on street off Bui Vien Street in Pham Ngu Lao area I bought a very nice backpack (well-known brand - seems to really be that brand) for $30 USD which stood up perfectly to rest of trip. Some backpackers believe any pack >50 liters capacity is too big. Mine is 75 liters and I filled it and then some. Different sizes for different people. In Saigon we also bought a semi-hard sided rolling suitcase for the items we were accumulating and planned to get when back in Phnom Penh. Overall I took a little too much of this and not quite enough of that. In the traveler's centers just about everything is available now - there is not even a shortage of toilet paper (or bidets). In retrospect I would not have brought two pair of shoes (if monsoon had been heavy I would have needed them though). I'm glad I did not wear sandals (part of the backpacker uniform) as we saw many people with foot and toe injuries related, I expect, to wearing sandals everywhere. No, my feet were not hot and no, they did not smell. In my work back in The World I get closer to more feet than most people (except podiatrists and diabetes specialists) and guess what - people wearing sandals tend to have smellier feet than those who wear shoes and socks.
Hong Kong
Stayed at the Cosmic Guesthouse in Mirador Mansion in Tsim Sha Tsui. Triple was about $30 USD for a tiny room with shower & commode in the room. Second time through we again stayed at Cosmic, but got a new room. About same size as old, but nicer and the best shower I have ever been in - about 12-15 functions - odd, enjoyable).
HK harbor in the day
I planned on us staying in Chungking Mansion, but angry looking Arabs, loud talking Africans, and endless touts (about all we saw on the ground floor) were not inviting. A really great new feature of Chungking is that they have security guys making people line up for the hopelessly crowded elevators. Ate most breakfasts at dim sum place across Nathan Road and around the corner on Hankow Road; after we tired of dim sum, ate several semi-western breakfasts at Big John's near dim sum place. Walked all over the place. Bought a backpack for ~$12 USD at women's market - should have waited for Saigon, where name backpacks are available for fantastic prices (~$30-40 USD). Ate BBQ duck and pork at a number of places, rode ferry, went up Peak, walked all over the place.Cambodia
First time through went from Bangkok to Poipet and from there (via taxi) to Battambang on advice of my friend Lance. I think this was much better than more common route of Poipet to Siem Reap and on to Phnom Penh. Poipet is a grim, dirty place. Battambang is very laid back, food great, no night life, just straight Khmer culture. In Battambang stayed in Angkor Hotel for ~$13 USD for triple with balcony overlooking river. Ate mostly at White Rose Restaurant, which ties for best mango shake with Soi Buttri guy near Khao San Road in Bangkok. From Battambang, took boat up the river to Tonle Sap and across top of lake to landing near Siem Reap. In Siem Reap, stayed at Two Dragons Guesthouse ~$10 USD for double and $8 for single.
Hong Kong street
Food at Two Dragons was excellent and expensive ~$3/entree), but we were purchasing cleanliness as well as food, so no complaints there. Our first time through Phnom Penh we stayed at the Narin 2 GH and paid ~$12 for a triple with poor AC. Restaurant was pretty good. Went to Chhoeun Ek ("killing fields") and Tuol Sleng (torture facility) for a true bad trip. Really, Phnom Penh is the the most menacing place I have ever been outside of combat. Russian Market was good shopping. Took bus from Phnom Penh to Saigon - arrangements via Narin Guesthouse. Bus from Phnom Penh to border pretty basic; border to Saigon very nice. Second time through Cambodia was via bus from Saigon. We stayed at Indochine 2 on the river - nicer hotel (~$12 for double), but more expensive neighborhood than Narin. Went back to Russian Market and bought some old and used things from Mrs. Khai Sreang at back of market and from a young man in same area. Took Bangkok Airways flight to Bangkok and then Thai Intl to Chiang Mai.
Vietnam
Several accounts (guidebooks and in Thorntree) of traveling in Vietnam are clear that Vietnam is not a good experience, e.g., on Thorntree one person wrote, "Vietnam sucks." To the contrary, we had a great time, encountered few beggars, were never scammed, and found most Vietnamese friendly and helpful.
First time through Saigon stayed at Ly Ly Hotel at 40/2 Bui Vien Street in Pham Ngu Lao area. Good value for ~12 triple. Very clean and quiet. We were only there for two nights (went back later for 5 nights) and then caught train to Danang.
On the street
Took taxi from train station to Hoi An, where we stayed in Thanh Xuan hotel at edge of old area. Cost about $12 USD for triple room. AC worked okay, hot water good, internet bad news, best banana pancakes of the entire trip. Hoi An very nice (except could not find pho we liked very much) and beach was good. Got around by walking and bicycle. Took moto to Hill 55 area where Jeff and I fought for about 6 or 7 months in 1966 & 67. The crux of the trip for Jeff and me - people where we fought were extraordinarily welcoming. Jeff and I spent a couple of days and a night in Hue. Very nice, laid back city. We stayed in Hoi An for about 1 week and one of us (Jeff) stayed in Hoi An while David and I returned to Saigon and on to Phnom Penh to meet up with David's birth father. Second time in Saigon we again stayed at Ly Ly in a $9 double - my favorite hotel/guesthouse of the trip. While David and I were in Saigon, Jeff went back to Hill 55 area and again had a good experience. In Saigon I got deep into rice plates with pork chop for about $.50 USD - WooHoo! David had pho 2-3 times/day. Big market about half a mile from Pham Ngu Lao area has great and cheap food area. Took bus from Saigon to Phnom Penh.
Thailand
Took bus from airport to Khao San Road and walked around the corner to Soi Buttri - much quieter than KSR. See Transpo for airport to KSR costs. Found AC triple at Merry V Guesthouse for $15 USD - good value room, good AC, nice waitresses, bad news otherwise. The two women running the place were unhelpful and usually unpleasant - the heavier of the two spent much of her time screeching - to the extent that we quit eating there.
Rainy day in HK
Took an outcry from travelers before the woman agreed (in a surly way) to show Wimbeldon finals over yet another lame movie. Saw very funky van arranged by Merry V travel agency -packed with hapless backpackers. Discovered almost everything we needed was there at KSR area. Most meals cost about $1 - $2/person, except when eating street food - then about $1/person, e.g., pad Thai for 20 baht + 2 sticks satay for 5-10 baht. The shake guy on Soi Buttri tied for best shakes of the trip with White Rose Restaurant. Mr. Yim's place on the lane off the back of Soi Buttri (behind wat) had best breakfasts we found in the area. Chicken stand at back entrance to wat had good grilled chicken + sticky rice, all for 30 baht.
Chiang Mai was, as usual, really good. Stayed at Roong Ruang Hotel at 398 Thanon Tha Pae Road near Tha Pae Gate. Large double with great AC was about $12 USD. Food everywhere we ate was good. Best pad Thai of trip was at a street stand about a block from the hotel near. Enjoyed the Time Thai Restaurant on Tha Pae Road near Roong Ruang - good food, decent coffee, good vibes, and AC. Night market not near as good as in past. Walking around was our main activity - very pleasant in this garden city.
Took day trip to Burma from Chiang Mai. Turned out to be a visa renewal trip for long stayers and what I thought would be 4 hour RT and 4 hours in Burma turned out to be 8 hour RT and 1 hour in Burma. Oops - but a scenic drive.
Skipped many of the sites around Chiang Mai (and islands in southern Thailand) as I went to these in previous years and David and Jeff not all that keen on these places.
Regrets
Missing Burma.
Comments
great summary!
charles, i love reading this overview. i wish i could have been there for many things you describe, but i think i love the bamboo train the best. really quite clever. keep writing when you can. see you in 2 1/2 days.
i love you, leslie