October Holiday to Vietnam & Cambodia

I am the McVeigh Family's travel agent (non-paying gig but I get to tag along to some amazing places).  Some thought I was crazy to book Halong Bay AND Angkor Wat in ONE week!  They said it couldn't be done...'way too much to see in such a short time.'  Well...'they' were wrong.  It can be done but it was not terribly relaxing, oftentimes stressful and there was NO kids club.  So we needed a vacation from our vacation but it was AMAZING!

We flew into Hanoi, Vietnam on October 1st.  We were booked on a 3 day/2 night Junk Boat cruise.  Why is it called a junk boat?  It took this blog for me to google that little question.  Here's the scoop.

The type of Chinese sailing boat called a 'junk' derives its name from the Portugese 'junco' which came from the Malay 'jong', which is thought to come from the Javanese 'djong'.  The word 'junk' in this sense has been used in English since at least the fourteenth century and probably earlier.

Now that I have educated myself and you...let's get to some pictures.

This is our Junk

 

 

 

 

Pretty spectacular, eh?  We highly recommend the Paloma Cruises for your trip to Halong Bay.  We had a wonderful time and missed TWO typhoons...one day before we arrived and one day after we left.  Lucky lucky!

We were driven back to Hanoi for our short flight to Siem Reap, Cambodia where we just missed a Monsoon rain fall.  The road leading to our hotel was flooded as we were right next to the river.  By the time we left, the water had receded so I count this as our 3rd 'lucky' event on the trip. We should have bought a Lotto ticket!

The view from our hotel room

The first ruin we visited was Angkor Thom.  Here's a little info if you are interested in learning more about it.  If not, skip and get to the pictures.

Angkor Thom (literally: "Great City") was the last and most enduring capital city of the Khmer empire. It was established in the late twelfth century by king Jayavarman VII. It covers an area of 9 km², within which are located several monuments from earlier eras as well as those established by Jayavarman and his successors. At the centre of the city is Jayavarman's state temple, the Bayon.

Outside the South Gate

Bayon Temple

Chasing the Elephant

Waiting for our Elephant

Riding Our Elephant

Bayon Temple

Faces on Bayon

 

Sitting on Baphuon Temple

After visiting Angkor Thom, we went back to our hotel for lunch and a swim.  Then we were off to Ta Prohm, where the end scene in Tomb Raider was filmed.  

Ta Prohm was founded by King Jayavarman VII as a Buddist monastery and university. Unlike most Angkorian temples, Ta Prohm has been left in much the same condition in which it was found: the photogenic and atmospheric combination of trees growing out of the ruins and the jungle surroundings have made it one of Angkor's most popular temples with visitors.

Ta Prohm in the background

We loved Ta Prohm! The ambience was eery but incredibly cool. I loved the jungle reclaiming the ruin.

The next morning we took a boat ride to the flooded lake. It was interesting but not terribly picture-posting-worthy. Let's skip to the afternoon where we went to Angkor Wat.

Angkor Wat is a temple complex built for the king Suryavarman II in the early 12th century as his state temple and capital city. As the best-preserved temple at the site, it is the only one to have remained a significant religious centre since its foundation – first Hindu, dedicated to the god Vishnu, then Buddhist. It is the world's largest religious building.  It has become a symbol of Cambodia, appearing on its national flag, and it is the country's prime attraction for visitors. 

In a Tuk-tuk...on our way to Angkor Wat

Angkor Wat's moat

Angkor Wat in the background

Find this pic funny - Hindu god dressed up as a Buddhist

Our last morning was spent shopping at the markets.

Sad to leave Cambodia?

We flew back to Hanoi and stayed in the WORST HOTEL EVER!  I could go into a long description of why I chose it, why we stayed, etc but let's just say I wanted the night to get over quickly and I thought I might lose my travel agent gig for good.  ;-)