This is written after the ship moved down river and we had lunch, on the Sun Deck. Time now around 5:30 this afternoon.
Well, we are still seeing more than our share of Buddhist stuff, of course what would we expect?
We moored again at some river bank and walked up the steep bank, being assisted by the helping young hands of Vietnamese and Cambodian youths. Next stop the motor-driven Tuk-Tuks that seat four. By now we seem to have formed informal groups of like-minded folk and we sat with two Canadians, one with deep Italian Roots and his younger wife who is of recent Russian origin. Good company.
First stop was a sort of Buddhist park where we then went for a lesson on silk worm culture and seeing several looms operated by young women and mothers. Next stop was the inevitable shop that offers wonderful silk scarfs and the like of unbelievable variety for unbelievably low prices. Fellette bought one that will do for general purposes.
A short Tuk-Tuk ride and we were at an elementary school that houses 250 kids and is partially supported by Ama Waterways and it's guests, like people like us. Good for the soul and helps us feel a little less guilty traipsing around with a camera in a River Boat in air-conditioned comfort sucking on a cool drink while floating on a river that would kill us if we had a mouthful, but they swim in it. [And wash their clothes in it, clean their animals in it and Lord knows what else.]
I commend Ama Waterways for supporting such a worthwhile cause in this country. Education is the way out of poverty. It will be a long and hard struggle, particularly for girls and women as this world is truly a Man's World.
I commend Ama Waterways for supporting such a worthwhile cause in this country. Education is the way out of poverty. It will be a long and hard struggle, particularly for girls and women as this world is truly a Man's World.
We sail momentarily for Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, which at one time in the 70's had the same ring of absolute evil as Hanoi did. There, believe it or not, we spend three nights.
** . ** . **
A few comments if I may: It may be me, and I may have an issue with forgiveness, but everywhere we go in both Vietnam and Cambodia I am not sure sure that I really have developed complete trust in the people. There has been so much misery and war between these two countries, and in every place we go, it brings back TV News Hour programmes, newspaper articles, movie and TV programmes about the horror that took place in this part of the world.
In the next day or so one of the optional free shore excursions is to 'The killing Fields' and the school-turned prison where around 3,000,000 of the 8,000,000 population were brutally exterminated by Pol Pot and his evil lot. Not all were killed there, but it remains the centre of evil for those terrible years. We opted out of that excursion.
I/we have seen enough battlefields, war cemeteries, concentration camps in our travels so I do not need to be reminded of the possibility of evil that lurks just under the skin of mankind. How would I feel if one of my kin had lost his life in some futile battle here and now it was a tourist attraction. Not sure on that, but there are people on this boat in that situation I imagine.
Lastly, Litter and Garbage: My gosh, what a job to change the mind-set of billions of people in developing countries around the world who seem to have no sense of the mess this world is in because of pollution and wanton disregard for the water and land we live in/on. Cambodia is an interesting country, but my eyes are blinded by the litter and garbage that abounds here.
End of Rant!
End of Rant!
On deck for a light lunch.
Watching the countryside go by in the comfort of our boat.
The view for us. Happy no doubt ashore with expectations of what...
Family unit, not fishing for leisure, but for food!
Tying up on a couple of stout trees.
Silk Island.
Silkworm caterpillars.
Ready to be boiled and unwound.
Unbelievably beautiful product made with an unimaginable amount of labour.
Tuk-Tuk driver and her baby. Most people seem to be quite happy.
Primary school visit today, to sort of 'ground' us methinks.
One-on-one passenger to student time today.
'My' student, age 11.
Farmer and oxen cooling off at the end of the day,
right at the end of our ship.
Two terrible night shots of the view sailing into Phnom Penh. It sure looks and sounded like a 'Happening Place'. It is almost like Hong Kong on a night arrival.
Many of the passengers went ashore as soon as the boat arrived for a night out.
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