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India & Southeast Asia
  • Clark Conlisk
  • Clark Conlisk

India & Southeast Asia

A 296-day adventure by Clark Read more
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  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

    February 1, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌙 28 °C

    Formerly known as Saigon, Ho Chi Minh City was easily one of the most pleasant surprises of my travels so far. While in the city, I hit the eight-month mark and was fortunately able to celebrate with top-notch coffee and bakeries. Saigon's cafe culture was other-worldly, said to be one of the French legacies of the region.

    The caffeine did go to practical use, though, as I honed in my motorbike skills on some of the most chaotic streets I have ever seen. The motorbike-laden expressways here are only rivaled by those of Delhi and Mumbai. After white knuckling it for a few days as an influx of Southeast Asian tourists arrived in the city ahead of Tet (the Chinese lunar New Year, Vietnam's largest holiday), I finally got a feel for the way Vietnamese roads work and promptly headed south to explore the Mekong Delta region.    Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Mekong Delta Region, Vietnam

    February 4, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌙 28 °C

    My first long-distance trip with my new buddy, a Yamaha Nouvo motorbike, was from the chaos of Ho Chi Minh to the relative tranquility of My Tho, Ben Tre, and Can Tho, all Mekong-side towns. The villages in the region are sustained by the business brought by the river and famous for their vibrant floating markets. If you want an idea of what they look like, google it because my pictures are worthless :)

    The trip for me is best summarized as a test drive of the new bike. The first high-speed encounter with my, as of today nameless, bike wasn't without its problems. But lucky for me, everyone in Vietnam seems to be a mechanic. Everything was resolved for less than $20 and appears to be ready for launch ahead of my 2000 km+ journey toward Hanoi and Sapa near Vietnam's Chinese border.    Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Mui Ne, Vietnam

    February 6, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ -6 °C

    A few hours northeast of Saigon sits Mui Ne, a coastal retreat from the chaos of the big city. While fishing traditionally sustained the sequence of villages, wedged between desert to the west and the sea to the east, tourism now supports a large portion of the population. Though it is no surprise that tourism caught on, the sights and sounds of the area attract visitors from all over the region, with an additional draw from Russia (russian menus and signs everywhere, oddly enough).Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Crazy House, Vietnam

    February 8, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Built by architect Dang Viet Nga in the Dalat hill station, the Hang Nga (Crazy House) was built in the late 1980's as a stark contrast to the uniformity of typical young communities of socialist Vietnam. It looks like what I would imagine a building built by Frank Lloyd Wright and Salvador Dali on acid would look like.Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler
    1

    Da Lat, Vietnam

    February 9, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    I celebrated the Lunar New Year in the Da Lat hill statio, an eclectic town with a history of French colonialism and architecture. Over the years it has evolved into a getaway for wealthy Vietnamese business families and is therefore filled with trendy cafes, posh villas, and luxury hotels. Nonetheless, the scenery and gardens in the town were cheap and worth the visit.

    The final two pictures are shots from my ride into the city, which weaved back and forth through countless hairpins and highland villages. I stopped off in one rural town and was invited to gamble and celebrate the new year with some locals. I hope they enjoy my money.    Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    En Route: Da Lat to Lien Son

    February 10, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌙 3 °C

    Day 250's assumed easy cruise through scenic mountain roads quickly became a dirt-biking escapade on grades too steep for the scooter, through streams and over rickety wood bridges.

    A mainstay navigation app for most travelers, Maps.me recommended the route, which I was unaware consisted of 28+ kilometers of dirt trails that would have made for great trekking, not biking. The trail led away from the main road and deep into secluded jungle villages. For the vast majority of the several hours I had the back brake fully engaged and the front brake pumping as strongly as possible without skidding. About halfway in, a forge through a knee-deep stream flooded my engine. Luckily, with the Tet holiday (Lunar New Year) still in moderate swing, the nearest village was full of families enjoying some time off. Unlucky for [all 12 of] them, a mechanically ignorant tourist came in and ruined it. That said, working on my engine seemed to become an attraction of sorts and several children rushed out to watch and, presumably, make fun of my peculiar pinkish pigment. Families laughed as I attempted to converse about the bike in Vietnamese, given I only knew how to say (1) hello, (2) thank you, (3) delicious, (4) guest house, (5) key repair, and (6) One-Two-Three Drink!

     An hour of tinkering with only a Swiss-army knife (thanks, Dad) and throttling resuscitated Governor Martin O'Malley (my newly named motor scooter, for looking great for his age but significantly underperforming on the trail). "DELICIOUS!" I shouted, throwing my clenched fists into the air and dancing in circles.

    A few more hours of jungle biking through trails shared only with large black snakes and the occasional rice farmer resulted in a few spills. I started coming to terms with the prospect of having to spend a night in the great outdoors. Reluctantly I began to consider hiding my finicky Governor in the woods and returning to the village to ask for a place to pass out. Just as I found a small clearing, a lush expanse of terraced rice fields unfurled itself before me... At the opposite end, a flat, hardly paved road. At this point, it could have been a three-feet wide gravel footpath and I would have considered it the Audubon. Whooping and hollering, I raced through the trail in the middle of the fields, feet kicking on both sides of the handlebars and shouting celebratory obscenities of every variety as if I had just won the Super Bowl (shout out to Papa John's Pizza for his big win Sunday).

    The next few hours of late afternoon sun and dusk I made easy progress. Just after sundown I arrived at a small family guesthouse and assessed the damage to Governor O'Malley. The casualties: both side view mirrors, odometer, luggage rack, my sunnies, and my confidence in Maps.me.

    Day 250 was jam-packed with obstacles, triumphs, nerves, and celebrations. To be fair, it was a slightly exaggerated representation of the 249 days preceding it. And it ended the ideal way, in a local family's home downing beers, eating fresh spring rolls, and communicating via Google translate. Turns out adventure and sucking up to elderly hosts are never lost in translation.    Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Lien Son/Lak, Vietnam

    February 10, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌙 3 °C

    REFER TO PRECEDING POST

    The finish line to the longest, most rewarding day with the Governor so far. Turns out I made it out lucky, as a Frenchman and French-Canadian traveller I met at dinner got stuck in the jungle for a night.

    Oh yeah and I ran across some casual elephants...    Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Buon Ma Thuot, Vietnam

    February 12, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 9 °C

    A busy hamlet turned city on the back of coffee revenue, Buon Ma Thuot is in no way a destination for the regular tourist. For the inexperienced photographer using a cheap Chinese cell phone camera, the city is not necessarily photogenic. Furthermore, there is little to no english infrastructure nor even a trace of nightlife... Yet it was a perfect place to incorporate oneself into the lifestyle of the local. A morning of chatting with a Vietnamese woman over coffee resulted in an afternoon of exploring with her two kids, sister, and nephew in the village of Ban Don. We later had dinner and drinks at their house after some solid neighborhood street soccer.

    Anyway, Buon Ma Thuot can be described as a series of cheap coffee breaks serviced by robusta beans from nearby farms, steet-side beers, waterfalls, and ethnic minority villages that give the city a highland identity much different from those of central Vietnam's coastal towns.    Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Chu Se, Vietnam

    February 14, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    Where the bike broke down for two days in the middle of nowhere. Basically, the Vietnamese equivalent of Versailles, Missouri. No English was spoken for 50 hours. Shout out to Google Translate. A $50 setback on a new carburetor got me happily, albeit skeptically, back on the road and I made it to Pleiku within two hours.Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Kham Duc, Vietnam

    February 16, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    From Pleiku I decided to double up on distance because of the Ho Chi Minh Trail's top class scenery. Riding all afternoon, I started on arid highland hills and ended after finishing a mountain pass. Cloud cover rode in, or, more accurately, I rode into fog, over the first half of the day. On the northern side of the pass the terrain became a dark green, wet mountainside. Despite the tropical appearance, it was freezing, which made check-in to my dive hotel a huge relief.Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Kham Duc to Hoi An, Vietnam

    February 17, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    Today was one of the more beautiful of the days on the road, with panoramic vistas, water buffalo, and glassy mountain lakes surprising me throughout the afternoon. It began as an upward climb, back and forth, through the eastern portion of the Annamite mountains. The overcast weather lingered, but I was fortunate that visibility wasn't much affected. Through the damp mountain air, I coupled the sights of the Ho Chi Minh trail with the sounds of 1960s classics and let my imagination wander. In doing so, I didn't stop to take as many pictures as I should have. Only after descending the innumerable hairpin turns did I stop to take pictures; which, of course, brought me the attention of local children looking to practice English, take selfies, and relentlessly ask if I had any sweets. Apparently the "don't take candy from strangers" concept is lost to the far east.

    When I arrived in Hoi An I came across a hostel with a $5 dorm, pretty standard for me this year. Yet, when I was shown my room, it was this private little cupboard. Feeling a bit like Harry Potter but my room is the attic above the stairs, not the closet below them.    Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    My Son, Vietnam

    February 19, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    An hour west of Hoi An, the Cham ruins of My Son [pronounced: me son] sit tucked away in the foothills on the Annamite mountains. Between the third and thirteenth centuries, My Son served as the intellectual and spiritual center of the Cham era. They are not characteristic of other southeast Asian religious sites given the unique artistic inclinations and Hindu leanings of the Cham. Following French colonization, the ruins were restored. Their grandeur was short-lived, to the chagrin of archaeologists everywhere, for the Vietcong used My Son as a clandestine meeting point, which precipitated bombings from US forces. Bomb holes sporadically situated amongst ancient temples give the whole area a peculiar feel.Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Hoi An, Vietnam

    February 20, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    The former port city of Hoi An was the center of the region's trade through the 16th century, with traders and captains frequenting the area from as distant as Portgual. As such, the physical and cultural influences that developed the its identity were numerous. A heavy Chinese influence with Japanese accents and a myriad of European and Indochine architecture made obvious why Hoi An was named a UNESCO Heritage Site.

    The city and its many ancestral roots are also a sort of focal point for food enthusiasts, with enough local "Hoi Anese" dishes, such as Cau Lau, to keep anyone stuffed.    Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    The Marble Mountains, Vietnam

    February 21, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    The Marble Mountains, made of limestone and, you guessed it, marble, are just a few minutes outside of downtown Danang. Home to Vietnam's largest pagoda, riddled with caves, and dotted with spectacular mountainside gompas, it was easy to spend a day exploring largest of the formations. As one ascends the seemingly endless chain of carved steps, chanted mantras echo through the mountain's corridors and swallows rush past your head. From the top, the city of Danang, the sea, and the neighboring peaks are easily visible.

    It is said by several former U.S. soldiers that the Vietcong optimistically established a military hospital in the caves of the Marble Mountains, which was purportedly within earshot of an American airfield, out of faith in the American's ignorance of the local terrain.    Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Hai Van Pass, Vietnam

    February 22, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌙 22 °C

    This motorable oceanside mountain pass was featured by the TV series Top Gear for its allegedly challenging layout. After my day in the jungle two weeks ago, it was a breeze. There were very few places safe to stop and take pictures, unfortunately, so these will have to do! Included: what would have been an awesome picture, covered up by the elusive photographer's finger.Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Hue, Vietnam

    February 23, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    Hue is the former imperial capital of Vietnam and is thus very centered on the culture and lives of the Nguyen dynastic rulers. The "Imperial City" and "Forbidden City", sprawling albeit poorly preserved complexes, had several special exhibits in English about all aspects of life during the Nguyen's rule in the 19th-20th centuries.Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Abandoned Amusement Park, Vietnam

    February 25, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌫 16 °C

    On the outskirts of Hue sits an abandoned aquarium and amusement park, as derelict and spooky as I expected. Empty cages and a crocodile pit still packed with crocodiles until 2015. Having a former family destination, huge and overgrown, to one's self is more creepy than serene. Pretty suhweeet.Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Vinh Moc Tunnels, Vietnam

    February 26, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌙 17 °C

    A whole village of civilians moved underground to avoid bombings during the Vietnam War. Their expansive network of underground tunnels and trenches, with sleeping and meeting quarters, was a great way for me to get out of the wind and rain on the northbound highway.Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Phong Nha, Vietnam

    February 27, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌙 17 °C

    Home to the some of the world's biggest caves, including the record holder, Son Doong, Phong Nha is a headquarters of caving and adventuring around Ke Ba National Park. Today a few friends and I hit Paradise Cave and Dark Cave, both cavernous underground worlds with miles and miles of tunnels and openings large enough to fit a battleship. In Dark Cave, a swim-in entrance and a mud-pool on which one could effortlessly float. The whole park also boasts incredible and strange mountains, as the alkaline landscape has been quickly and sharply eroded by rainfall.

    Because of the mess inside Dark Cave, I didn't bring my camera. The last two pictures are from Google and are accurate portrayals of my day there.    Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Ninh Binh, Vietnam

    March 1, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    Many refer to the limestone landscape of Ninh Binh as "Ha Long Bay on Land". The karst formations rise around the local rivers, forming countless caves accessible only by boat. The landscape was unflinching and in many ways unique to northeast Vietnam. Apparently I wasn't the only one to notice; Titan Productions, the company in charge of the Kong, was filming here as well as in Phong Nha. Seems Samuel L. Jackson and the rest of the crew are following me northward.Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler

    Mai Chau, Vietnam

    March 2, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌙 10 °C

    Got back into the homestay scene in Pom Cong village of Mai Chau district. "White Thai" and H'mong minorities live in stilted bamboo homes amidst rice paddies, water buffalo, and grazing cattle. Both groups are known for their textile work, and beneath most homes are scarves, shirts, and other goods for dirt cheap prices.Read more

  • Clark ConliskIndia & Southeast AsiaTraveler
    1

    Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

    March 5, 2016 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 5 °C

    For a fraction of the $100+ cost of leaving from Ha Long City, I booked a $14 day all-day cruise out of Cat Ba Island. It took me and my small group around Ha Long and Lan Ha bays. Despite a gloomy, overcast day, the haze added a mysterious air to an already surreal seascape. We passed through several floating fishing villages, stopped off and trekked an island, and kayaked through a lagoon riddled with wave-carved caves.Read more

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