hi all, just a quick note to say i arrived in sihounoukville! i've run into a few people i met in siem reap so it's been great catching up again. time is moving too quickly though. i'm leaving for bangkok in a few days, off to hong kong in less than a week!
my last night in phenom penh was interesting. i had dinner with a friend of a friend who works for the UN, got some further insight on cambodia, politics, social issues, corruption, etc from someone who has been living there almost two years. after being in the city for 2 days it's nice to come to the beach.
have to run for now... hope everyone is doing well!
love,
lauma :)
Friday, February 26, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Sewsadday! Sorry for the delay in blogging, connections have been
quite slow. I arrived in Phnom Penh yesterday after yet another
interesting bus ride. $4 for a 6 hour bus ride to the capital of
Cambodia. It's an interesting city, another with hardly any driving
rules, no lights at intersections, etc. Tuk tuk and motorbike drivers
in the "flow" of traffic, it's pretty chaotic!
Today we went to the killing fields of Choueng Ek followed by the Tuol
Sleung Museum, aka S-21, where many Cambodians were tortured and
killed. Quite heavy to see. In general I've learned a lot more about
the crimes of the Khmer Rouge than I ever thought I would. Scary to
think all of this happened so recently (1975-1978).
Later we walked through downtown a bit, along the water and past the
palace. Spending tomorrow in town and then meeting someone who works
in the Ministry. Should be another interesting day. I'll post photos
again when I get a better connection.
Thanks to everyone for your emails and your encouraging words, I'm so
happy to hear from you!!!
With love,
Lauma :)
quite slow. I arrived in Phnom Penh yesterday after yet another
interesting bus ride. $4 for a 6 hour bus ride to the capital of
Cambodia. It's an interesting city, another with hardly any driving
rules, no lights at intersections, etc. Tuk tuk and motorbike drivers
in the "flow" of traffic, it's pretty chaotic!
Today we went to the killing fields of Choueng Ek followed by the Tuol
Sleung Museum, aka S-21, where many Cambodians were tortured and
killed. Quite heavy to see. In general I've learned a lot more about
the crimes of the Khmer Rouge than I ever thought I would. Scary to
think all of this happened so recently (1975-1978).
Later we walked through downtown a bit, along the water and past the
palace. Spending tomorrow in town and then meeting someone who works
in the Ministry. Should be another interesting day. I'll post photos
again when I get a better connection.
Thanks to everyone for your emails and your encouraging words, I'm so
happy to hear from you!!!
With love,
Lauma :)
Sent from my iPhone
Friday, February 19, 2010
Last night in Siem Reap
sewsadday! the last few days in siem reap have been amazing. i've spent 3 days seeing temples of angkor wat, visiting a floating village, reading a lot at the landmine museum. meeting great people and enjoying having dinner meals for $1. not bad!
i'm leaving for phnom penh tomorrow. will write again soon. posting a few pics in the meantime.
love,
lauma
i'm leaving for phnom penh tomorrow. will write again soon. posting a few pics in the meantime.
love,
lauma
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Siem Reap, Cambodia
hi all! today was my first day at angkor wat. there is so much to see! i did end up renting a bike for a few dollars and rode around for about 6 hours, walking in areas of interest. i'm enjoying siem reap, meeting plenty of cambodians and other travelers. digesting a lot of thing i'm seeing and learning, so making it short this time. hope you are all doing well!
xoxo love,
lauma
xoxo love,
lauma
Monday, February 15, 2010
Siem Reap, Cambodia
hi! just a quick note to let you know i've arrived in siem reap, cambodia. make sure to ask me another time about my experience flying from lao to cambodia-- pretty hilarious. (and by the way, i didn't have to take off my shoes AND i took 2 large bottles of water through security!) anyway, the drive from the airport was incredibly interesting. there are extremely luxurious hotels lining the streets and in between, little shacks and houses. speaking with the driver i learned most were built about 6 years ago, high season average price is $200+ a night (USD). i myself have decided to go for luxury while i'm here, staying right near the center of town (my own queen sized bed, bathroom, shower & air con for $12/night). woo hoo! without air con it would have been $7 but it's really, really hot. really.
i'm heading to nearby Angkor Wat tomorrow to start my 3-day tour of the temples (37 square mile area-- lots to see). most likely renting a bike for a dollar or two and riding the 7km there.
i'll try to upload photos either later tonight or tomorrow. the connection seems better here than in lao.
xoxo love,
lauma :)
i'm heading to nearby Angkor Wat tomorrow to start my 3-day tour of the temples (37 square mile area-- lots to see). most likely renting a bike for a dollar or two and riding the 7km there.
i'll try to upload photos either later tonight or tomorrow. the connection seems better here than in lao.
xoxo love,
lauma :)
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Vientiane, Lao
sabaidee! yesterday we arrived in vientiane around 6pm. kayaking was awesome!!! there were 11 of us with 3 guides, great views (much better than taking the bus)... went through a few small rapids, skipped the big one with huge rocks sticking out of the water (2 brave groups attempted, tipped, a few injuries). once we found a guest house after arriving vientiane we had a nice dinner and then were off to sleep after an exhausting day. today i'm going the buddha park with 2 of my kayaking friends, one from new zealand, one canadian. there also seems to be a few festivals here in the city for chinese new year. gung hoy fat choy everyone!
tomorrow i have a flight at 6:30am to siem reap, cambodia. looking forward to it! i'll post pictures when i can, so far lao has the slowest... internet... connection... on the planet. i was thinking what if the connection had been like this when i worked in nyc?-- we would have lost our minds, ha ha. hope everyone is doing well... thinking of you!!!
love,
lauma :)
tomorrow i have a flight at 6:30am to siem reap, cambodia. looking forward to it! i'll post pictures when i can, so far lao has the slowest... internet... connection... on the planet. i was thinking what if the connection had been like this when i worked in nyc?-- we would have lost our minds, ha ha. hope everyone is doing well... thinking of you!!!
love,
lauma :)
Thursday, February 11, 2010
posting photos...
updating the photo below (as a small, not medium like the others) just took somewhere between 5-10 minutes. i'll have to save the remaining photo posts for when i get a faster connection... there are so many i want to share with you!! have to run for now.
love,
lauma :)
love,
lauma :)
Laos - Luang Prabang and Vang Vieng
sabaidee everyone!! sorry it's taken me a few days to write, i've been having trouble finding a place where i can upload photos properly. so i've decided to write now first and see if i can try again... i think last i wrote i had crossed the border into Lao. i took a loooooong 14 hour bus ride from the border in the north to luang prabang. most people opt for a slow boat ride down the Mekong which takes about 2 days, which may have been a more comfortable experience, but i'm glad i took the bus. although it took me about an hour or two to figure out whether they drive on the right or left side of the road, (in thailand it's on the left, in lao on the right), and many parts are unfinished with large dips in the road, i saw places of the country i would not have seen otherwise-- many little villages with people hard at work farming, kids running around, chickens everywhere. kids would run in the street to stop the bus, and try to sell fish on a rope. (snacks i guess?) as it got darker, people were relighting their fires, and then eventually, everyone was walking around with flashlights!
waking up being in luang prabang was amazing. the town is unbelievably beautiful, i kept thinking 'really? this is lao?'... it's not at all what i expected. travelers in the town? yes. but definitely not as tourist-driven as places in thailand. it was really refreshing, and very peaceful... walking around, taking in the scenery- it's right on the Mekong surrounded by mountains. before the sun went down i walked up Mount Phousi with my new polish friend and saw the panorama of the city, the view is just breathtaking. the following day we took a slow boat to the Pak Ou caves about 2 hours away. after seeing the Buddha statues inside, i caved and bough a little bird from one of the kids. there's a lot of selling everywhere, and it's common to see kids selling little birds in small cages made of wicker. this little girl was following me with a little bird saying "madam madam, one dolla one dolla good luck for yooo" so i said ok (and of course then had 7 other kids come up to me with their birds...) in any case, i set the bird free near the top cave and was happy to give it its freedom. on the way back, we stopped by a village to see "real" lao living. it's amazing to see how people live on so little here. many of the village women were sitting weaving scarves they sell at the markets, the men building new structures, kids running around playing. after getting back to town, we watched another beautiful sunset over the Mekong, and enjoyed the night market a bit.
tuesday morning i left luang prabang, arriving in vang vieng in the late afternoon. after getting to know the area a bit, i got a room then went to eat at an outdoor eatery dedicated to looping episode after episode of "Friends" on their tv's. it was nice actually! i haven't been watching any tv since being here (and missing the new season of LOST! ahhh, don't tell me what happens!!) so it was nice to see something familiar. yesterday i went tubing down the Nam Song and today i've searched out options for getting to vientiane tomorrow. i'm pretty sure i'm going to kayak. get ready, arms!!
i'll try to upload photos now... hopefully it'll work! hugs, kisses, love, Lauma
waking up being in luang prabang was amazing. the town is unbelievably beautiful, i kept thinking 'really? this is lao?'... it's not at all what i expected. travelers in the town? yes. but definitely not as tourist-driven as places in thailand. it was really refreshing, and very peaceful... walking around, taking in the scenery- it's right on the Mekong surrounded by mountains. before the sun went down i walked up Mount Phousi with my new polish friend and saw the panorama of the city, the view is just breathtaking. the following day we took a slow boat to the Pak Ou caves about 2 hours away. after seeing the Buddha statues inside, i caved and bough a little bird from one of the kids. there's a lot of selling everywhere, and it's common to see kids selling little birds in small cages made of wicker. this little girl was following me with a little bird saying "madam madam, one dolla one dolla good luck for yooo" so i said ok (and of course then had 7 other kids come up to me with their birds...) in any case, i set the bird free near the top cave and was happy to give it its freedom. on the way back, we stopped by a village to see "real" lao living. it's amazing to see how people live on so little here. many of the village women were sitting weaving scarves they sell at the markets, the men building new structures, kids running around playing. after getting back to town, we watched another beautiful sunset over the Mekong, and enjoyed the night market a bit.
tuesday morning i left luang prabang, arriving in vang vieng in the late afternoon. after getting to know the area a bit, i got a room then went to eat at an outdoor eatery dedicated to looping episode after episode of "Friends" on their tv's. it was nice actually! i haven't been watching any tv since being here (and missing the new season of LOST! ahhh, don't tell me what happens!!) so it was nice to see something familiar. yesterday i went tubing down the Nam Song and today i've searched out options for getting to vientiane tomorrow. i'm pretty sure i'm going to kayak. get ready, arms!!
i'll try to upload photos now... hopefully it'll work! hugs, kisses, love, Lauma
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Sabaidee from Laos!
hi everyone, sorry i've been mia... just wanted to let you know i've crossed the border into Laos! had an interesting bus ride to luang prabang, going through many small villages in northern laos. the scenery was beautiful, the nature untouched. of what i've seen of this country so far it's just beautiful. i'm going to try to set up a tour for tomorrow to see some of the caves in the area via boat on the mekong. i'll take photos and post again in the next few days. have to run for now, just wanted to let you know i've alive & well!
love, lauma :)
love, lauma :)
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Pai... See photos below - Chiang Mai and Pai
hi everyone! please see i've posted a few photos below from chiang mai and pai. yesterday i ended up renting a motorbike (yikes, glad i got the hang of it...) and rode around pai and the surrounding area. after driving around town to check out the hospital, school, police station etc, i went to a waterfall which was pretty anti-climactic because it's dry season. but the scenery/ride over was nice (with the exception of having little old ladies stopping me in two places to ask me if i want some opium... uhhh, really?) after getting back to town and eating lunch i got back on the bike and rode to a hot spring in the other direction, passing a few elephant camps on the way. the scenery is just amazing. i also saw a lot of little houses and huts where people live- quite different from anywhere else i've ever seen. i sat in a hot spring for the first time, pretty cool! later after dinner, i met up with friends and heard a few bands play in town. really great music scene!! tonight i am leaving for chiang rai, where i plan on spending a few days. all in all everything going well! wishing everyone could see through my eyes... i'll write again soon!
xoxo, lauma (p.s. the thais call me loh-maaah, it means dolphin!)
xoxo, lauma (p.s. the thais call me loh-maaah, it means dolphin!)
Monday, February 1, 2010
Piece of Pai
sawatdeeka! i've got soooooo much to write!!! i know i'm behind on updates... getting from krabi to chaing mai last thursday was absolutely hilarious. i took a bus from au nanag (waaaaay south) to bangkok which took about 14 hours. the bus was a double-decker, a lot more spacious than something like greyhound- and everyone got a blanket which added to the comfort of the overnight trip. arriving before 6am, i got on the 7:25am bus to chiang mai, which was about 11 hours. once in chiang mai i went to the hotel that mara had booked, checked in, and went to my room. to my complete surprise-- toilet paper!! hot water!! towels!! soap!! q-tips!! a TV!! air con!! it was awesome!!! (i forgot to mention in my last post that in ton sai there was electricity only from 6pm-7am and i shared my bed with a bunch of "cuddle buddies" (ants)... believe me, you just get used to it, it's pretty unavoidable no matter where you are.) in this case at the chiang mai gate hotel, we only had ants in the bathroom so i slept (seriously) like a rock. mara and i had a really exhausting weekend. we got a lot of errands done, went to the chiang mai zoo, went up to doi suthep around sunset (the most popular wat, temple, up in the mountains near chaing mai.) we got there right around the time that the monks began a ceremony, in which we ended up participating: carrying a flower, lighting incense, circumabulating the temple 3 times. we also enjoyed the night market (did a lot of walking!) and enjoyed a delicious dinner outdoors on the ping river on the riverside. was so great to hang out, mara!!! i had such a blast. (ps. for all you LV's, i joked to mara on saturday "so what are you wearing to ballite tonight?" there was a moment of 'we're not at smij, not at kongress, but sharing a hotel room in thailand...' LOL)
today i took a bus from chiang mai to pai (about 3.5 hours northwest) because i heard over & over that "it's a must." a very cute little town, i've got a few options as to what to do tomorrow. there is a waterfall you can hike to, hot springs, i thought about taking a reiki class (though not sure i can schedule)... we'll see! i'll update again soon and will post pics next time. hope you are all doing well. i miss you!!!! ps. congrats larissa and jeff on baby charlotte!!! :)
today i took a bus from chiang mai to pai (about 3.5 hours northwest) because i heard over & over that "it's a must." a very cute little town, i've got a few options as to what to do tomorrow. there is a waterfall you can hike to, hot springs, i thought about taking a reiki class (though not sure i can schedule)... we'll see! i'll update again soon and will post pics next time. hope you are all doing well. i miss you!!!! ps. congrats larissa and jeff on baby charlotte!!! :)
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