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Southeast Asia Summer 2023
  • Lani
  • Lani

Southeast Asia Summer 2023

Vietnam, Cambodia, Siam Reap, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapur, Indonesia Read more
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  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    Bicycle Tour

    July 10, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    In Hue the motorcycle tour and in Hoi An the bicycle tour.
    Everyone who knows me, knows that I do not really like cycling. BUT the landscape is flat and the riding easy.
    To be honest, it was the best bike tour I have ever done.
    We started early in the morning. It's hot and the ride breeze is super comfortable. After a few minutes you are out of the city and standing in the middle of the rice fields. Lakes full of lotus flowers alternate with the rice fields.
    We are on the road for about 4 hours.    Read more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    I had a unique encounter:

    July 10, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    Approximately in the half I have removed myself in a small village for a while from the group. That because I wanted a cold coffee. But I did not find it. But I had a unique encounter:

    A old man stood in front of his house and tried to talk to me. As little as I speak Vietnamese, he speaks English. We communicate with hands and feet. He pulls out his cell phone and starts showing me pictures. Of an old Vietnamese couple. I realize that these are his parents. And that his mother has apparently died. Then he shows me pictures of his father's 100th birthday. After a while he asks me to come into his house and leads me into a room where the over 100 year old man is actually sitting. He is blind, but shakes my hand and tries to tell me something. There are these beautiful photos of him and his wife hanging everywhere.
    Without coffee, I then went back to the group and told about my encounter. HuyHuy then tells me that on of the most famous photo of Vietnam are just this man and his wife. I am speechless and am incredibly happy to have met this person.

    More about this wonderful love story here:
    https://www.boredpanda.com/true-love-story-coup…    Read more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler
    11111

    Coocking Class at: Oodles of Noodles

    July 10, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 34 °C

    STREETS is an NGO-Social Enterprise that prepares vulnerable, orphaned, out-of-school, and disadvantaged youth for professional careers in the hospitality and tourism industry. STREETS provides a comprehensive no-cost 14-month culinary and hospitality training program, including classrooms instruction and hands-on apprenticing. English languages and Life Skills training are critical components of the program.

    Every Trainee is provided with all study materials and living support, including meals, supervised housing, clothing, uniforms, an active social community, monthly allowance, health examinations, and basic medical care. There is 100% employment upon graduation.

    www. Streetsinternational.org    Read more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    Bar-Night

    July 10, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌙 27 °C

    The road home by night or rather early in the morning😂

    Conclusion of the night: never try to keep up with Irishmen and Scots when it comes to drinking. They always win!

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    Golden Bridge & Bana Hills

    July 11, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    Pictures: Thx Liam Klein
    The 150-meter-long bridge is located in the middle about 25 kilometers west of the Vietnamese coastal city of Đà Nẵng. A cable car takes tourists up the mountain peaks. Once at the top, visitors can expect a spectacular panorama over the jungle and majestic mountain flanks. Those who arrive in good weather can enjoy views as far as the South China Sea.

    Cầu Vàng (German: Golden Bridge) is the name of the structure, which allows pedestrians to walk across a gilded bridge held by two giant stone hands at an altitude of around 1,400 meters.

    The impressive building plan was realized by TA Landscape Architects in just under a year (!!!!!!) and demonstrates attention to detail. For example, the gilded parapet of the bridge was equipped with a hidden flower bed.

    The Ba Na Hills theme park sits high up in the mountains outside of the city of Da Nang. Ba Na Hills is run by Sun World who have several theme parks all over Vietnam. The park’s main attraction is its replica French Village complete with its own cathedral. Aside from the architecture, Ba Na Hills has a world record-breaking cable car network and a huge indoor amusement arcade called ‘Fantasy Park’    Read more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    Arrived in Saigon

    July 12, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 33 °C

    Ho Chi Minh City (formerly known as Saigon) is a city in South Vietnam, known for its central role in the Vietnam War. It is also known for its French colonial landmarks, such as the Notre Dame Basilica, made entirely of materials imported from France, and the 19th century Main Post Office. Food stalls dot the city streets, especially around the bustling Bến Thành market.Read more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    24h Sleep

    July 13, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌩️ 33 °C

    Saigon is too much for me. It is a crazy city. Hanoi, on the other hand, is a village.

    I am just tired and fall into bed first in Saigon and wake up only 24h later.

    Yes, traveling makes you tired. We get up very early every morning and are already on the road at 7am and come back late in the evening. At my age, an average of 5 hours sleep is far too little.Read more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    Bunker and Tunnel

    July 13, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 33 °C

    From 1955 to 1975 there was a cruel war, the so-called Vietnam War. In 1954, Vietnam had become independent from the colonial power France. Shortly thereafter, the country split into North Vietnam and South Vietnam and war broke out between the two parts of the country. North Vietnam was communist and was supported by China and the Soviet Union with weapons and military advisors. South Vietnam was oriented towards the USA, which also supported it with American soldiers from 1965.

    On the one hand, Vietnamese fought against each other in a civil war. On the other hand, the Vietnam War was also a war in which the world powers USA and Soviet Union fought for their influence in Asia in the Cold War.From the beginning, there was great resistance in many Western countries against the USA's interference in the Vietnam War. This opposition continued to grow as it became clear that even half a million American troops in Vietnam and the use of terrible weapons were not enough to win that war. After eight years of combat operations, the U.S. withdrew its troops from the country in 1973. In 1975, the country was reunified by force by the communists in the north.

    At the end of the war, the country was devastated, millions of soldiers and civilians had died on both sides. About 60,000 American soldiers had also been killed.Many hundreds of thousands of South Vietnamese were killed even after North Vietnam's victory. Thousands were sent to camps where they were "re-educated." They were forcibly forced to embrace the communist worldview. For the United States, the Vietnam War was the first war it lost. The psychological and political consequences of the Vietnam War continue to have an impact in the country itself, but also in the U.S., to this day.    Read more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    Goodbye Vietnam. Hello Cambodia. Border

    July 15, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 30 °C

    I don't really like border crossings by land. You never know what to expect. There are many reports about the border crossing between Vietnam and Cambodia. You have to plan about 2h. To my surprise it was relatively easy.
    On the side of Vietnam I put 1 dollar in the passport. I got the passport back with the necessary stamps and the dollar was gone.

    Then youhave to walk about 500m. It is terribly hot, the sun is burning. Then we reach the border to Cambodia. After various paperwork and controls, they let me enter. Without a bribe.
    I buy an iced coffee and look for the bus. Next stop is Phnom Penh    Read more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    Phnom Penh

    July 15, 2023 in Cambodia ⋅ ☁️ 33 °C

    In 1863, Cambodia came under French rule and later became part of French Indochina. After independence in 1953, Cambodia was initially spared the military conflicts in Indochina, but was drawn into the Second Indochina War after a military coup in 1970. After years of civil war, the Khmer Rouge established a reign of terror in 1975 that, according to various estimates, claimed 1.7 to well over 2 million lives until the Khmer Rouge were ousted by Vietnamese troops in 1979. Cambodia remained occupied by Vietnam for ten years, and the ousted Khmer Rouge resisted with guerrilla tactics. After 1989, with the cooperation of the United Nations, a peace agreement and the rebuilding of state structures followed, ending in 1993 with a new constitution and the restoration of the monarchy. Cambodia, at that time one of the poorest countries in the world after two decades of war, terror and occupation, has since made significant progress in the fight against poverty and underdevelopment and is now one of the fastest growing economies in AsiaRead more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    Choeung Ek Genocidal Center

    July 16, 2023 in Cambodia ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C

    The Cheung Ek genocide museum is located in Cheung Ek commune, Dankoar district, about 15 km from the centre of Phnom Penh. This is the location where the Khmer Rouge took their prisoners for execution. The prisoners were made to wait here for 24 hours before they were killed by a blow to the head after which their throats were slit. Babies were killed by bashing their heads against a tree. There were separate graves for men, for women and for children. Former friends of Pol Pot who were executed here had separate graves too.Visitors can walk along 86 mass graves from which the remainders of 8,985 men, women and children were unearthed after the liberation of the Khmers Rouges. Some of those skulls, bones and pieces of clothing are now kept in the nearby massive stupa.

    In the rainy season, new bones, clothes and teeth are always washed up to the surface. Everywhere these can be seen.
    I only cry now.    Read more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    Tould Sieng Prison, or S-21

    July 16, 2023 in Cambodia ⋅ ☁️ 33 °C

    On April 17, 1975, two weeks before the fall of Saigon in Vietnam, the radical Khmer Rouge defeated the American-backed army of Cambodian President Lon Noi and marched into Phnom Penh.
    A social cleansing began: The goal was to create a pure, self-sustaining peasant society. Some 1.7 million urban and educated people lost their lives as a result of hunger, forced labor, disease, torture and execution.

    Tould Sieng Prison, or S-21 was once a school. Today it is a museum of genocide. Its empty rooms and small stone cells reflect the horror of the past. Thousands of black and white photos hang in the hallways. These were taken by the prisoners when they came to Toul Sieng. More than 12,000 people died under torture or were taken to the Killing Fields.
    During the 3 years, eight months and 20 days, millions of people died.

    A side note: The educated people recognized the Khmer by the white skin, glasses and the lack of calluses on their hands.    Read more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    For me, the Kambocha trip ends today.

    July 16, 2023 in Cambodia ⋅ ☁️ 34 °C

    Man is a fucked up race, whether in WW2, here or anywhere else on this planet.

    The soldiers during the Khmer Rouge were children. 14, 15 years old. Boys from the peasant villages. Many of the killers of that time are still alive. Living in the midst of society.
    I look at people's faces and think, maybe you are one of them. And I can't stand this thought.
    Like everywhere, there is a law. So if I kill my neighbor because he killed my whole family, I have to go to jail. That doesn't do anyone any good, especially the men here who feed families and women and children stay at home. So who would take care of them? Pay for food and education? So that peace can be, there is silence and looking forward.
    For me, the Kambocha trip ends today. I stay in the hotel and read the books I bought from 2 survivors. Both of them I met.
    My eyes are blown away.
    Tomorrow it goes directly on to Siam Reap.    Read more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    On my way

    July 17, 2023 in Cambodia ⋅ ☁️ 30 °C

    Yesterday totally threw me off track.
    We learn a lot about WW1 and WW2 in Europe school. But nothing about the Indochina War.

    On Netflix I found a movie that I can only recommend. It corresponds 1:1 to what the history professor told us yesterday. And now I can understand the child soldiers better.

    And my guess was right. The tuktuk drivers in Phnom Penh are almost ale former Khmer Rouge.
    I left Phnom Penh early this morning and am now heading north by bus.

    While in the city large SUVs rush past homeless families, the picture now changes significantly. Simple huts, naked children, free-ranging animals and beautiful landscapes alternate. The country is poor and hardly anyone can afford school.

    During the first bus stop it becomes clear that the food on offer has also changed. Tarantulas, grasshoppers and whatnot are offered.

    What I would like to tell you is that in Cambodia you have the opportunity to try out all kinds of weapons. You can shoot with them and for about 400 dollars you can shoot a cow. These are the weapons that have already been used against people. The offer comes from none other than the military. The revenues are then such for the military. So everyone makes money with tourism in his own way.
    In the meantime I found on YouTube contributions of tourists. What I think about it, I do not have to say, that is clear.

    Cambodia will not be my favorite destination. But I am grateful, this country opens my eyes so.    Read more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    Just arrived in Siam Reap

    July 17, 2023 in Cambodia ⋅ 🌧 31 °C

    With every km distance to Phnom Penh, I become me again.
    The Chinese have taken the city Phnom Penh during Covid.
    Everywhere high-rise buildings sprout from the ground. There is building and more building. The difference between rich and poor is much greater than in Vietnam.
    I researched on the bus why the USA had abandoned Southeast Asia in such a way. I was not aware that children were starving to death in the US at that time. The race wars were in full swing, minorities like Indians, Latinos or just people with dark skin were discriminated against in the worst way. Also for the education or the health system in the USA only about 6% of the sum which flowed on the Viet Nam war was spent.
    And yes x- 10'000 Americans died in a war that could not be won.... J.F. Kennedy was assassinated and a short time later also Bobby Kennedy. Not to mention Martin Luther King Junior and Malcom x. The USA had enough problems with itself.

    Now I stop talking about my Phnom Penh trauma 😉 .

    I just took my clothes to the laundry and am looking forward to fresh, nice smelling clothes. And I want to go to the theater tonight. Later more😉    Read more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    Royal Ballet

    July 17, 2023 in Cambodia ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    Through the work of Queen Sisowath Kosamak, the Cambodian royal family created it as a national treasure to showcase Cambodian dancers and Khmer traditional dance.
    In 2003, during the reign of King Norodom Sihanouk, this dance was placed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.Read more

  • LaniSoutheast Asia Summer 2023Traveler

    Angkor Wat

    July 18, 2023 in Cambodia ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C

    Get up at 4 o'clock in the morning. At 4:45 the bus leaves.
    I have already bought my entrance ticket for Angkor Watt the evening before. That was a good idea.
    For the ticket, one is photographed and receives a pass. This costs about $62 for 2 days.

    Unfortunately, the sky was cloudy and the sunrise was not visible.
    Angkor Wat is impossible to describe. You have to see it, feel it and smell it.

    I was again very lucky to have an incredible good historian by my side.
    If you are interested in the history and architecture of Angkor Wat, you can find the information on Wikipedia and various other sources. Therefore I leave it to tell more about it here.
    Except: this place you simply must visit and should plan at least 2 days    Read more

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