The Saga of Heather's Travels

Good Night Vietnam

heathergay — Wed, 26 May 2010 16:17:00 GMT

Hello again after a long delay. I have found the internet in Vietnam very inferior, I am not able to upload photos easily, and can get online only sometimes. Some websites are blocked, all in all internet use is pretty censored here, so have been discouraged trying! However as my time in Vietnam draws to a close, I feel sad to be leaving, as well as very excited to be seeing my family again. I fly from Hanoi to Singapore tomorrow, and after a few lovely weeks with my precious grandaughter, Eva (Oh and Deb and Ramesh of course!) I will then carry on to Mumbai, to see my wee Nikita, and Michaela and Kishore. Then in August I am heading home folks! I never thought I'd say it, or feel it, but yes, I am ready to settle down again. It has been the most satisfying, enjoyable and exciting year of my life, and I hope to get the opportunity to do some more travel one day, but for now, I am so ready to put down some roots again. I am so grateful to my former boss Marie who suggested my taking a years leave instead of resigning, which I did just to humour her really, thinking, there's no way I'll be back after a year! Well thank you Marie, I am so looking forward to getting back to work, seeing all my colleagues, and getting back to a routine, and most of all not having to pack up every few days. Anyway, I digress!! Vietnam....it is a while since I updated, this could be a long one, so thought I would just list the places I have been since the last update:

Hoi An:I had two stints here, as after I'd left, I heard that my lovely friends Melissa and Paul were in Hoi An on their funnymoon, so I hightailed it back there! So first time round, I stayed in the gorgeous wee town, which is totally overrun by tourists, but still manages to retain its quaint oldworldliness. Very ancient buildings crowd together in narrow little streets that are so charming and pretty, you just want to keep wandering. There are cafes, restaurants and everywhere, tailor shops. (Someone said over 300 tailor shops in the wee town!) This is Hoi An's main claim to fame, people come from all over to have dresses and suits, etc made to order. I had a few things made to replace my worn out travel clothes, but sadly was most disappointed in them. They weren't that cheap either, but it was one of the "cheaper" options I chose, and it wasn't a good choice, but of course that is easy to say in hindsight. I went on a river "cruise" which was most interesting to see life on the river again, so many people rely on it for their livelihood. I ventured to the beach, but struck a very windy day so was unable to enjoy it. Then I moved onto the beach made famous by the TV program "China Beach", half way between HoiAn and DaNang. I stayed one night in a us$7 per night guesthouse called "Hoa's Place" it was pretty rough, and the beach was quite disappointing so next morning moved onto:

DaNang: This is the city that was at the centre of the american war in Vietnam, and you see here the american airforce and army bases. From my memories of the war on TV, reports always seemed to come from Da Nang. It's not a usual tourist stopping place but I decided to stop and have a look, and found it quite charming. Didn't do much more than wander around the streets looking, finding nice wee cafes, and a ?? totally empty of people shopping mall - those overpriced designer shops weren't doing a roaring trade thats for sure. Again a large river dominates the city, which always makes for photo opportunities. Then it was onto

Hue: The ancient capital of Vietnam, until the 1950s, this pretty town is steeped in history and of course historical places to visit. I did a tour here of ancient houses, temples, pagodas, and kings tombs. It included a river cruise on a gorgeous "dragon boat" (When I can get photos up you can see this, so amazing) and the obligatory craft village, where, surprise surprise, you can buy stuff! I found it interesting to watch a woman making incense sticks, using cinnamon and sandalwood, but I remind myself that everything I buy must be carried on my back! Its a good deterrent. There is also an amazing large walled citadel that takes a whole day to explore, which was the main central ancient city, and home of some of the kings. Then just as I had booked my overnight train to Hanoi, I found out about Melissa and Paul being in Hoi An, so changed my bookings and headed back there. I had 2 lovely days with them, they were staying 5 star on the beach, so I hung out at their hotel during the day :) It was incredibly amazing and wonderful to see these lovely friends and spend this time with them, swimming in the pool and the beach, drinking lovely wine and cocktails, eating excellent 5star meals, and not being allowed to pay for a thing! It's hard to explain the thrill of seeing/being with loved ones after being alone and so far from home. I felt so nurtured and just LOVED my time with that gorgeous couple! So we parted company, they heading south, and me heading north, this time on overnight train to Hanoi, it was a 14hour trip, but trains are so amazing for sleeping, we seemed to be there in no time, even though I had a top bunk!

Hanoi: I'd been looking forward to Hanoi for a long time for a couple of reasons: my girls had loved it when they were here 5-6 years ago, and had told me "Mum you'll LOVE Hanoi" (they weren't wrong!) and also I was meeting up with my dear friend and colleague Judy Bailey from home. We had about 10days together before Judy was joining up with her tour group, to head south, and then on into Cambodia to Angkor Wat. I had a few days before Judy arrived, so took the time to go on a 3day/2night cruise of Halong Bay - Wow!!!That cruise would be one of my highlights of the whole year, along with maybe Angkor Wat, and the Plain of Jars. The scenery is just sooo stunning it is indescribable, but I'll give it a go! In the bay there are over 1800 islands, all made of the Kharst rock, like small mountains growing straight out of the sea. The water is calm and flat, and the boats just cruise around the bay, between and around all these gigantic rock monoliths, it is breathtaking. You get the chance to swim, jump off the boat, kayak, visit caves and an amazing fishing village out there somewhere, with no dry land available to the people at all. Some of them spend all their lives on the water, and hardly ever go ashore, there is a school, shops and seemingly great social interaction, all on the water. The meals on the cruise were excellent, all fresh seafood, crab, giant prawns, clams (always wondered what they were, just pipis! very nice though) fresh fish etc etc, every meal. There was quite decent wine, and good company, my cabin had the most comfortable bed I've had on my travels, so all in all it was a great 3 days. Then the 4 hr bus trip back to Hanoi, and the excitement of meeting up with Judy. It took a few days talking to catch up with each other's news, then we made plans and headed off to Sapa. This is an incredible little town up in the mountains northwest of Hanoi. Once again it is an overnight train trip to get there, lovely comfortable clean train. We rather foolishly some might say, did a fullon day tour of Hanoi before catching the train the same evening, then getting off the train in the morning to join another day tour to the sunday market at Bac Ha. We hadn't realised quite how far this was, and as it was before we even reached Sapa, let alone check into a hotel we were pretty exhausted at the end of the day! You live and learn, but it was an amazing day all the same. The Bac Ha market is where all the many many different hill tribe people come to buy and sell their wares, all in their different traditional costumes. The glory of it is that they are not dressing up for tourists, this is their normal lives, they wear these amazing clothes all the time. I have so many photos, and will upload hopefully in the next week or so from Singapore. It is hard to put into words, the colours, smells and noise from this crowded and so incredibly different market. For once the tourists are the minority, and they are as fascinated by us as we are by them. Don't get me wrong, there are many tourists, just far more local people, they are from so many different tribes, known as the Montagnard groups which include Flower Hmong, Red Hmong, Black Hmong, Dzao, Red Dzao, Han, Nung, and many more. Each tribe wears different costumes, The Flower Hmong seemed to be the dominant one in that area, but when we got back to Sapa, about 120km, they were hardly to be seen, and the Black Hmong and the Red Dzao were more obvious. As you can imagine the photo opportunities here were endless, though you had to be sensitive, as some didn't like to be photographed, and some wanted to be paid for it. The wares on sale were interesting and once again I had to be mindful of my backpack, and bought little, but it was more about the sights to me. What a day, what an incredible insight to a way of life so very very different to ours. We were shown through some local villages too, I found it a little uncomfortable and insensitive to be invited by the guide to walk through peoples homes while they were sitting watching tv - the villages close to town have tv, but not when you get further out. The kitchens were so primitive, never again will I complain about a kitchen!! So finally we arrived in Sapa, and sunk exhaustedly into our beds! The next few days were spent exploring around Sapa, Judy went on a walking trek, which I didn't do as wasn't feeling too well. I was glad too, as they had told Judy it was "all downhill" when in fact there was alot of very steep uphill, and it was very very hot. The views in Sapa, have to be seen to be believed, enormous mountains that have been terraced over thousands of years, and mainly rice, but other crops as well grown up the slopes of very steep mountains. It is just breattakingly beautiful, and once again, many many photographs taken. The wee town of Sapa is like an alpine village, all perched on the slopes with breathtaking views everywhere you look. The tribal ladies in Sapa are very determined to sell their wares to you, and lie in wait outside the hotels, and the cafes, in fact anywhere you go! They follow you down the street, "you buy from me, maybe later??" but they are good natured. I lost patience one time and said (alright, quite loudly and rudely!) "NO no no, what part of no do you not understand?" and the lady just shamed me by laughing and kissing my arm! I did buy a couple of things from a petite 70yr old who followed us into a restaurant and obviously wasn't going to leave without a sale. She was so good natured though, and everytime we said no she bought something else out. It is a shame though that the whole experience of Sapa is coloured by the persistant touting everywhere you go. Apparently they have decided that tourism is more profitable than growing rice! So after our 5 days in the Sapa region Judy and I returned to Hanoi and had another couple of days together exploring, before she joined her tour group and deserted me!! Judy went with her group to Halong Bay where she texted to say she loved it as much as I did, and has now headed south to Hue. I went on another day tour yesterday which took me to Ninh Binh, 3hours southeast of Hanoi. We visited more temples, but the main reason to go was the gorgeous 2hr trip on a rowboat through rice paddies and 3 caves, it was stunning. The boats were mostly rowed by women, using their feet, and even though there were probably hundreds of wee boats on the river, carrying only 2 or 3 tourists each, it was peaceful and quiet, and so beautiful, with no motor boats, and I felt, a very fitting farewell to Vietnam for me.

On the road, heading north....

heathergay — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 21:10:00 GMT

Here I am again, now in Nha Trang Vietnam, Since my last blog I have seen a number of interesting places, Vietnam is so different to Cambodia, so much more developed, no comment on whether that is better or worse! I spent a fairly long period in Ho Chi Minh city, or Saigon as locals call it, as I was waiting for an extended visa, which seemed to take a while. This gave me a chance to get to know the city reasonably well, and also to experience living in intense heat, omg it was just killing. Impossible to be outside in the afternoons, so siestas were popular with me. Either that or sitting in airconditioned comfort with my friend Steve, sipping good quality wine in a jazzy cafe. I did the sightseeing tours also, and travelled downriver by hydrofoil to spend a day at Vaung Tau, at the Saigon river mouth. I found Saigon a busy bustling clean and vibrant city, the traffic has to be seen to be believed. It seems to me (unsubstantiated by any facts) that there are about 100 motorbikes to every car, bus truck etc. Crossing roads is to be dreaded! One day I was standing looking hopelessly across the road, plucking up the courage to take my life into my hands, when a vietnamese woman wordlessly tucked her arm into mine and led me across, weaving in and out of traffic most skillfully. There were no words from her, and at the end she just smiled as I said my thankyous, most gratefully and she went on her way - people are so kind and friendly and she did me such a favour, as now I am quite skilled myself at weaving through traffic. The little things that mean alot, and make great memories.....

Leaving Saigon finally, I headed by bus up into the mountain city of Dalat. Stunning french architecture, and spectacular views, what a surprise after the bus wended it's way up up up, narrow winding roads into the mountains, to find this big city! I found the high altitude affected my breathing, so only stayed 3 days, but went on a tour and managed to get a good look at the city and surrounds. It was so much cooler, no aircon or fan needed at night, lovely cool nights, and hot days but cool in the shade. They say it is the "Eternal Spring" city, and it did feel like spring, and of course, lush gardens and greenery everywhere, just gorgeous.

Next it was on to the beach city of Nha Trang, where I am now. I seem to keep coming back to beaches, Vietnam is like that, long skinny country with heaps of stunning beaches, and Nha Trang is no exception. Miles and miles of beach, all safe and good for swimming, and many many people. This seems to be a favourite tourist spot as there are very many here, along with the local people, enjoying the beach during the day and the lovely evenings. Not as cool as Dalat, but certainly not as hot as Saigon, the evenings are perfect temperature for being on the beach, just lovely. I have been on a boat trip visiting 4 different offshore islands, which included jumping off the boat to swim in the sea and enjoy the worst red wine ever on a "floating bar" (a piece of polystyrene on a rope) It was the most fun ever, swimming round in the deep ocean on a flimsy life saver ring, with a plastic glass of red wine which kept getting filled, and singing "Happy Birthday, Merry Xmas and Happy New Year", of which, of course it was none! Probably very dangerous and would be outlawed in health and safety conscious New Zealand, but over here, anything goes, and it was so much fun! Tomorrow I plan to take a ride on the longest cable car in Vietnam, which crosses the ocean to another island, where there is a "Water World" sounds like fun and worth a go! In a few days I will head north, hopefully by train, to the much talked about and highly recommended Hoi An, and do it all over again!

Photos: Vietnam

heathergay — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 19:16:00 GMT

Good Morning Vietnam!!

heathergay — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 19:07:00 GMT

Since Katie returned to New Zealand, I have crossed another border, and am now in Vietnam, wow, Vietnam!! This is where this whole trip started from, my desire to see Vietnam. It sorta grew to encompass so many other countries, but Vietnam was my goal, and here I am! Not that much different from Cambodia so far, except for the level of development. Pol Pot has so much to answer for in Cambodia, by taking out a whole generation virtually, the country was set back so much, and will take a long time to recover. I loved my time there though, especially at Wat Opot, and hope to get back there some day.

Once again I decided to do it the hard way, and took yet another riverboat from Phnom Penh, down the Mekong and across the river border which is just out of the Mekong Delta city of Chau Duc. The trip was surprisingly uneventful, a comfortable boat built for 30(ish) with only 3 of us on board!! Amazing!! I spent 3 full on days in Chau Duc, mostly on the back of a "moto" (motorbike taxi) visiting temples, mountains, and caves. The Khmer Rouge have left their calling card around here too, many stories of brutal murders and torture, just unbelievable. I visited a smallish mountain known as "$2million mountain" as the americans apparently spent that much trying to bomb the VietCong out of the caves there. They were spectacularly unsuccessfull as the whole mountain is just riddled with caves, and provided a safe and unreachable hiding place. The temples here are called "Pagodas" and seem to have a much more chinese influence. The Buddhas are now the chinese style, of the laughing fat man, and painted colourful icons and gods. As yet I dont know if this is all of Vietnam or just this area. I went up another mountain where a Giant happy Buddha sits in front of a lake, towering over the whole area, and visible for miles around. The trip to these mountains was through many miles of rice paddys. The delta area is very rich agriculturally and they can harvest up to 3 rice crops a year. The richness of the emerald green fields, the canals, the geese, ducks, oxen, water buffalo, and the constant hard working farmers tending the crops made for such interesting trips. My friendly moto driver stopped and pointed things out to me to photograph frequently, which was great as my bum is not so used to sitting on the back of a motorbike all day, and was complaining strongly!! The 3 days passed quickly, and then before I knew it, I was on a bus heading to the larger Mekong delta city of Cantho (about 3 hours). It is a constant surprise to me to find these large vibrant cities that I have never heard of, which are just getting on with their business and oblivious to my "discovering" them!! Life in Cantho, as in Chau Duc, revolves around the river. The Mekong is very large at this part of its journey and it supports many many lives. The floating market here is incredible, and worth the 6am start to see. Not a touristy trinkety market but a place where locals come to buy their fresh fruit and veges wholesale, small bum boats, packed to the gunnels with bananas, pineapples, potatoes, pumpkin, rice, fish, and many many more staples that eventually find their way to the mouths of locals, and tourists I guess. I am struck here by the "woman power" The small boats for hire are all skippered by women, as are most of the businesses and restaurants it appears. Strong, loud, brightly dressed women, all keen to part you from a dong or two!! Even the hotel I was staying in had a woman manager and all women staff. That's a big difference to the way things are in Cambodia.

From Cantho I caught a bus and a fast ferry to where I am now, on the beautiful paradise island of Phu Quoc (pronounced Foo Wok) Who knew this sleepy relaxed island was here? I certainly didn't, but I guess that's good, as it has been able to maintain the quietness and beauty that many of the more developed islands in Thailand have lost. Even now, it is "high season", but I had no trouble finding my gorgeous wee bungalow, and though the resort I am at is full, the beach is not packed, there are no touts, it is cheap as chips, and just absolutely beautiful. There is an airport here, that has several flights a day, just to Saigon, so it is very accessible, and I have no doubt there are big beautiful and expensive resorts available also. There are 2 towns on the island, I went into the closer one Duong Dong just once, to book my ticket to Saigon, and once again was amazed at the size of it (I was expecting a wee village) There seemed to be a million motor bikes, and many traffic lights, and I just booked my ticket, got the taxi to wait, and came straight back here - time enough for all that once I hit Saigon! So, thats my next stop, I fly to Saigon, or Ho Chi Minh City, on tuesday, and with the help of my very dear friend there, Steve, who I met at Wat Opot and who lives here permanently, start planning the rest of my Vietnamese journey.

Photos: Siem Reap and Battembang

heathergay — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 01:06:00 GMT

3 weeks with Katie

Adventures with Katie

heathergay — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 00:40:00 GMT

Finally I have found some time to update the blog. Life has been full on for last couple of weeks since my friend Katie arrived from New Zealand to spend 3 weeks with me. What a joy it was to meet her at Phnom Penh airport, and take her back into this busy bustling city. So much to tell each other and catch up with, so fantastic to have a travel buddy, if only for 3 weeks. So, we had a couple of days looking around the city, then caught a bus to the gorgeous city of SiemReap, about 4 - 5hours north of Phnom Penh, and of course home to the famous and most amazing Angkor Wat. Wow! the books and photos don't do it justice, we spent three long hot dusty days wandering around the ancient temples, and were just blown away by it. We had a lovely patient and informative tuktuk driver called Songtheap, who transported us and stayed with us for the whole 3 days, he was lovely and so reasonably priced. He picked us up at 5am on the 2nd day so that, along with 10,000 others (literally!), we could watch the sunrise over the big main temple that is the recognisable shape of Angkor Wat. It was stunning. Angkor Wat was, to me, everything I had hoped, heard and expected, and more! So beautiful, so mysterious, and so damn thrilling! There were literally hundreds of thousands of tourists, of every nationality, it is one of the most visited tourist sites in the world I believe, but it is so vast that there were many times when we were not able to see anyone else. The vastness of it all of course makes it very tiring to visit, as the heat was just killing, and we were so happy to get back to our lovely hotel swimming pool each evening...such luxury! We also visited the incredible Aki Ra Landmine museum in Siem Reap, a butterfly farm, Katie went to a silk farm (I had done already) and we visited markets galore - morning markets, day markets, and night markets, they all sell the same things, and everyone has "special price just for you Madame!" We did a lovely sunset dinner trip on the beautiful Tonle Sap lake where we saw an incredible floating village (more like city!) and saw a crocodile farm, (poor creatures in little cages) and met and cuddled a very friendly python, he was gorgeous! Then, adventurous souls that we both are, we decided that taking the comfortable, aircon bus from SiemReap to Battembang (3-4hours) was too easy, lets do it the hard way, by crappy uncomfortable smelly noisy slow riverboat! ha ha, we were picked up from our hotel at 6.30am, and were on board by 7, sitting on bare boards, ready for our adventure along with about 40 others. Well, the boat broke down before it even started, the propeller hit the bottom backing out of the berth, and they eventually realised that it had to be repaired. This took much discussion, and tools dropped in the water to decide! After welding and panelbeating, swearing and cursing, while we sat in the ever getting hotter sun, we were finally on our way, only to discover the lovely "back viewing deck" that seemed so appealing was overcome by carbon monoxide fumes from the stinky and extremely loud engine.We had to move inside where the wooden bench seats were about 6inches apart, and don't accommodate long legs with any degree of comfort. Crossing the lake, the boat broke down 3 times and each time the captain and his mate took things in the engine to bits and put them back together and managed to get it moving again. The lake is very low at present and only about a third of the size that it is in the rainy/wet season, and so of course the rivers feeding it are quite small and shallow, and we were heading it seemed up the smallest and shallowest! All the way there are floating villages, many many fisher folk living on the river in the most humble little floating shacks, hundreds and hundreds of them, a whole community, with schools, shops, travelling traders, markets, dogs, chickens even pigs on the water in little cages. Most places at the lake end of this river had no access to dry land at all, except up or down the river by little dugout canoes. As the river got narrower and shallower, we wondered just how we could possibly keep going, and sure enough, not long after the 6th breakdown, we stopped at a little floating restaurant/shop for lunch, and were told that we had to change to a smaller boat. However they weren't changing our luggage, that would come along later! this caused much consternation, and some people refused to leave the boat that had the packs and luggage on, things were a little tense there for a bit. Katie and I felt reassured that some people were staying on this boat to protect the bags so we both got on the smaller, faster boat, which was even more uncomfortable than the bigger one, but by this stage, you just had to laugh!! We heard after the trip that the river is actually officially closed to these boats, and that most of our $22 fare would have gone to river people/officials as bribes! The remaining 4 hours of the journey in the smaller boat with around 20 people was pretty excruciatingly uncomfortable, no toilet, you couldn't stand up, etc, but even so, it was incredibly interesting and sobering. As the river narrowed the floating villages became riverside villages, (floating in the wetter seasons) and got poorer and poorer. Never have I seen people living in such poverty and squalour. But in spite of this, there were happy naked kids swimming in the muddy river at every turn, people fishing and going about their lives. Everyone waved out, and I pondered the fact that our lives are so different to theirs that we must seem like aliens to them, they cannot imagine our lives, and we can't begin to imagine theirs. Once again I am reminded just how lucky and priviledged we are. We finally reached Battembang at about 6pm, and were able to go and find a hotel, and relax a bit before the big boat with our packs finally arrived, about 2 hours later. The joy of a cold shower and clean clothes was never so exquisite!

Next day we were up early, and off on another adventure. This time with a very styly tuktuk driver called Samath with his Dior sunglasses - maybe not real, but damn they looked good! He took us to the "Bamboo Train" first, which consists of 2 axles with a 2.5 x 4m bamboo platform on top. Nothing to hold onto, and just a mat to sit on, you hurtle along at about 25kph between paddy fields and small villages. It is powered by what looks like a lawn mower engine, and works fine while everyone is going the same way. However when you meet someone coming the other way, the vehicle with the least load must be dismantled, and placed back on the track on the other side. Then off you go again, till you meet someone else. Locals use the train to transport all sorts, we met several piled high with firewood. Oxen grazing on the tracks is an occupational hazard! At the end there is a wee tour of a brick factory, the obligatory cold drink to buy, then back on for the 30minute return trip. Very hot and dusty, but lots of fun, and wonderful views. Then it was on to an Angkor type temple ruin on the top of a hill, which was very beautiful, but was up 359 very steep and uneven steps. Up we puffed and panted and sweated to the top, and it was most worthwhile, very beautiful, and had the most amazing views. The trip down was quite scary, but we made it safely, and after a lunch stop at a rural village, we rode on the back of a motorbike up a second hill to see a more modern temple. This had a hideous history from the Khmer Rouge days and was where many people, including children were brutally murdered and thrown into caves. Most of the bodies have been removed, but many remain, and the gruesome stories from our guide were chilling to say the least. It is truly remarkable that the Cambodian people have this recent tragic history, from only as far back as the late 1970s, yet are so cheerful and friendly and welcoming to tourists. This was a day of contrasts for us, from the fun and excitement of the bamboo train, the motorbike ride, and the challenging climb, to the sight again of bones, skulls, and gruesome stories of torture and pain. After the Killing Fields and the Torture Museum of Phnom Penh I thought I had seen it all, but this country continues to shock, chill, surprise and delight me.

Photos: Watopot

heathergay — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 16:49:00 GMT

Wat Opot

heathergay — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 16:21:00 GMT

At last I am able to access the internet, and tell my story! Such a special one about an amazing place. I have spent the last week at Watopot, a very special health community in rural Cambodia, about an hour out of Phnom Penh. I am volunteering here for a month this time, but know I will be back and back to this wonderful place. The best way to describe it is to copy my notes from this first week into here, to give readers a feel for the place.....

Day 1: Culture Shock... This is the most amazing, and humbling place and a day that will never be repeated, ever. What was I expecting? I had no idea what to expect, but never in my wildest dreams.... a community of children and adults living with AIDS, not an orphanage as such, though there are many orphans here. It is a Health Centre and community for those whose lives are affected by AIDS. So many have watched their parents, or brothers/sisters, aunties, uncles, grandparents die. Wise and traumatised, old beyond their years, wanting to be touched and cuddled, held and played with, or just plain ignoring the world around them. 63 children, around a third are HIV positive, at different stages. Those who are negative still come from backgrounds of AIDS and loss. Some miracles like the negative 4 month old baby, with both parents positive, the ones who have teetered on the edge, then come back. Their stories are related to me by the other volunteers. There are 4 and 5 year olds on 2nd line medication, all lining up with "Papa Wayne" to get their meds in the evening. But despite all this it is such a happy place. Children who are too self sufficient for their tender years, older kids who look after younger ones, playing running, squealing with glee. The names are so difficult to my 58yr old english speaking tongue, that they have gone from my head moments after being told. They speak mostly Khmer, a few have a bit of english, and some are quite fluent, more the older ones. The youngest is 4 months, through to adults, all here for the common reason - a life touched by AIDS.

Day 2: The tour today, the different enterprises that are happening, fish farming in big ponds, craft and art work, a school for the wee ones, while the rest go off to a local school just outside the compound. Chickens, ducks, frogs, gardens, hydroponics being set up, an office/nerve centre, the kitchens, people working, supporting each other. The hospice for people to die with dignity, and the crematorium, where the bodies are burnt. And the photos......just some of the 500 who have died here - every photo has a story, and has pain in the telling. Grubby, happy kids, reaching out, wanting affection, giving cheek and always knowing that you won't be staying, people come and people go, volunteers always here but always leaving. Great food, cooked by the the kitchen women, fresh fresh vegetables, bountiful fruit, and good conversation over meals in plastic cups and plates, on concrete tables. No airs or graces here, just very real people with heartbreaking and heartwarming stories. The Volunteers house, currently 4 people in the women's side, sharing 2 rooms, with a toilet plonked in the middle - cold water running sometimes, power that comes and goes . Bodily functions not so private here, but noone pays any attention. Hot water, privacy, mirrors all sweet memories, but who needs them really? Early starts, the children start school at 7am, afternoon siestas, a quiet lazy pace to life during the day. Then the evenings, adults dinner at 5.30 (the kids have already eaten) more conversations, talking talking talking, and then prayers/chants to the dead, everyone has lost someone. Love and support and compassion. Papa Wayne is much beloved, his life devoted to the children. He doesn't even have a room, just sleeps on the porch of the men's end of the volunteer's house, in case any babies need him in the night. A selfless, deep thinking, endlessly giving laidback superman. My emotions run raw. I am gobsmacked, overwhelmed, incredulous. How can one place have so little yet give so much? No official funding, relying on private donations, yet it is free for me to be here. "Just be part of our community, share yourself, and be with the children" is basically all that is required. Any talents or gifts you wish to share are so welcome, but just being here is your biggest gift and priviledge. Dry dusty hot grounds, feeling constantly dirty, and the need to shower 5 times per day, but restraining self to one before bed, and maybe in the moning if water running. Priorities so shifted as to be unrecognisable. Life will never be the same.

Originally started by Wayne as a partnership between Christianity and Buddhism, Watopot is now non-denominational, and has an amazingly spiritual feel. The monks from the neighbouring temple are involved, and support Wayne in his endeavours. He has been let down badly by so called christian churches in the States, for not following their dictates. A deeply spiritual and deep thinking man, who has journeyed from fundamental christianity to his present state of spirituality and partnership with Buddhism he has my complete respect and admiration. His love for the children, each and every individual is palpable and unconditional and his life is completely devoted, he has nothing else, no money or possessions, a truely good man.

Day 5: Settling into a gentle routine, starting to recognise the children and remember a few names, and they recognising me, starting to trust me... establishing friendships with other volunteers, and still listening to the endless stories - each child has a complicated story and has endured so much. Little sign of this in their daily lives, I'm sure they draw strength from each other. They certainly have a sense of family, and a knowledge and acceptance of their place within that. Such different personalities, bright smart kids, not too shy to ask for a hug, or to crawl into your lap. You're walking along and suddenly feel a grubby little hand in yours, it'll stay there for a time, then just as suddenly let go and run off.... or demand to be picked up, to play, to tease, for some rough and tumble, or just to be held for a time. No words, but the language barrier doesn't seem to matter, the communication is clear. Like any other kid in the world, they just want to be loved, and they certainly have that here, never were children so loved and cherished. In the evenings, on hard tiled floors, or a hard wooden bench they sit to watch tv, play, chatter and tease each other. I sit down on the wooden bench and within minutes have 5 children vying for position on my lap, one on each side, and one even behind where he can hug me round the neck. After 5 days I recognise the same ones coming back to me, in fact watching for me to arrive, though new ones each day try me out. I love them all, and just hug and cuddle and rock, whose needs are being met here? We establish small conversations, "What's your name" they ask me again and again, it seem my name is as hard for them to remember as theirs is for me. The "th" part of Heather is not part of Khmer sounds, so they trip over it, and say Hevver Hevver. It is good to be communicating, and we start to do counting, one two three four five, they mostly know, but when they give me the Khmer numbers, I am lost, they leave me for dust!! But I am learning, and will continue to learn from these precious wee ones, my teachers

Photos: Family time

heathergay — Fri, 1 Jan 2010 21:00:00 GMT

My babies again

Goodbye Lao Hello Cambodia

heathergay — Fri, 1 Jan 2010 20:39:00 GMT

It seems so long since I last updated, so here goes to bring the world up to date with my comings and goings! I finished my time in Vientiane very happily after meeting up again with Sigrid, whom I first met on the Plain of Jars trip. We had such a lot of fun, and adventures together, such as taking the local bus to see the amazing "Buddha Gardens" and taking a very long walk to find Chinatown, visiting the morning markets, and the night markets, (Surpringly they all sell the same things!) and the evening food markets by the river. We had lots of laughs, lots of wines and beers, and great meals out, it is surprising how close you can get to someone in such a short period, but that is life on the road. Then we had to say goodbye as we were heading in opposite directions, however, we do have loose plans to meet up again, maybe in Vietnam. Then it was on to Phnom Penh, Cambodia for me. What a country of contrasts, from the splendid Royal Palace to the beggers outside the gate. The depth of the poverty is astounding. Small kids selling their wares, such as books (copys of course) flowers and newspapers on the street, when they should be in school, or in bed. It brings home again how priviledged our lives are in new Zealand, and most western countries I would say. I visited the Tuol Sleng torture prison and the Killing Fields, wow, what can I say about that? The millions of Cambodians who were slaughtered by Pol Pot's regime in the 1970s (only 30 years ago!) is on a par with the holocaust, except we dont hear about it. The pain for the people here will go on for centuries, it is just unbelievable what families have endured. It was a horrifying and barbaric time in history that the world kind of ignored, and I will never forget what I saw. Another disturbing thing is the maimed and disfigured people left to beg on the streets, disability is everywhere, but no government help it would seem. Some try to make a living selling postcards and newspapers and other things you don't particularly want to buy but what can you do? The Tuk Tuk drivers are like those in the other countries I have visited, quite pushy and almost aggressive, but just trying to make a living. I have a new name here, "Madame Tuk Tuk" it is astounding how many people call out to me when I go for walks! I try to stay polite, but it is not always possible! I saw deep fried crispy tarantulas, cockroaches, and other assorted bugs for sale on the street. Very nutritious apparently, but I wasn't even slightly tempted to sample, some things are best left to the locals! They wouldn't let me take photographs though but will work on that one!

I flew to Mumbai/Bombay for a wonderful xmas break with my family, where we were also joined by the Singapore branch of the family. I had both my wee munchkins to coo over, they are both so dam cute! At 12 and half, and 13 and half months, they both have distinct personalities, and it was so cute watching them interact with each other. I had 18 days there and loved every last minute of it, and found it very hard, once again to say goodbye. However it had to be done, and now I am back in Phnom Penh after an exhausting overnight flight, arriving yesterday morning. I was so jetlagged that I was in bed by 9pm New Years eve, without a single drink! I am now busy planning the next leg of my trip, up to Siam Reap to see the incredible Angkor Wat, and to visit the Landmine centre that Princess Dianna went to. Then I hope to spend some time volunteering at Watopot, an orphanage here that I have followed, and at last get the opportunity to do some small thing to give back to this lovely country.

Photos: Phnom Penh

heathergay — Fri, 1 Jan 2010 16:05:00 GMT

Photos: Rest of Lao

heathergay — Fri, 1 Jan 2010 15:08:00 GMT

Vientiane

Great times in Lao

heathergay — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 20:48:00 GMT

Recovery from that boat trip took a few days of sitting in gorgeous cafes in Luang Prabang sipping wine, and browsing at the night bazaar! This cute wee town is just captivating, and I had such a peaceful nice time there, just wandering around visiting temples and the Museum. Had a great day trip, in the morning to the Pak Ou Caves which are where the old buddhas are retired to, amazing trip down the river again, and then climb up many steps to see. It was crowded, a popular trip that everyone does, but still really worth the trip. The afternoon was a visit to a very beautiful waterfall, but serendipitously for me, as it wasn't mentioned in the blurb, at the waterfall I stumbled across a black bear rescue sanctuary, something dear to my heart, I really loved watching the bears. It was soon time to move on, and I managed to get onto a Plain of jars trip (3days, 2 nights) with a very dear irish/aussie couple, Aisling and Gerry. We hit it off straight away, and with the addition of our bright, bubbly Lao tour guide Noy, off we set. There were so many highlights on this trip, I just had a wonderful time. (Apart from the car sickness going over those mountains with a too fast driver!)For me it was great to have a short period of travelling with people again, and opportunities to socialise (and drink a bit of red wine!) So many stories from that area, of the jars, but also the "silent war" Who knew that the Americans had bombed the soul out of this area of North/central Laos, in the 60s and 70s? We met a real aussie bloke, working with a company there for 6 years now, 6 weeks on and 2 weeks off, and still pulling out live bombs and landmines every day. He told us there are so many there, he doesn't believe thay will EVER clear them. I didn't need to be told twice to keep between markers at the 3 Plain of Jars sites we visited. We also visited a cave that was used as a field hospital during the war and another one that was a shelter from the bombs. Medicines were stored there and the remains are still visible and there are bomb craters all through the plains, gigantic ones, So so incredible. We partied well both nights in Phonsavan, then on 3rd day headed back up the mountains. I was dropped off in a wee mountain tribe village to catch the bus on to Vang Vieng, as I didn't fancy doing the whole trip twice. Had a scarey experience, as I somehow missed the stop for Vang Vieng (my silly fault entirely) and when I realised, I walked to front of bus and told driver, and he just stopped and put me and my pack out on the side of the road!! OMG it was a bit daunting to say the least, I had to walk about 10mins back in the heat and dust, (thank goodness for lighter pack!) till I came to a wee village shop, NO english, but managed to make "Taxi" understood, and eventually, found my way back to Vang Vieng on the back of a dirty, dusty crowded pickup truck taxi. It was quite scarey at the time, but once I was safely back in town I could see the funny side! Didn't love Vang Vieng! It is an adventure tourism spot, where many many young backpackers go to tube down the river, then drink and drug themselves silly. The main street is ALL little guesthouses and restaurants that all look exactly the same, and surprisingly all seem to have the same menu. There was no character or soul in this town at all, that i could find, and was very glad to get on a bus a couple of days later, heading for Vientiane, the capital city of Lao and arrived here yesterday. After Vang Vieng I didn't hold out high hopes for Vientiane, but I have to say, so far I just love it. It is very colonial french, I am having to brush up on my Bonjours, and merci's. the streets are all Rue's, and there are Patisseries, and bakerys, and art galleries, and craft galleries, and coffee houses, and croissants and baguettes - all sorts of restaurants, some bars, but there is a nightime curfew of around 11.30, so not sure of the nightlife, but not really interested. I wandered around today, and couldn't stop smiling. The vibe is friendly, and the town has soul. The Lao people here are not pushy (exception to rule: the Tuk Tuk drivers!)they are happy to chat to you, and give information. It is much warmer than further north, but not stifling, altogether a place to linger and enjoy I think. I have no further plans other than being in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, by the 12th December to fly to Mumbai for my other baby's 1st birthday, and for christmas. Will be great to see what more Vientiane has to offer.....

Photos: Lao PDR/ The Plain of Jars

heathergay — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 18:55:00 GMT

The story of my most eventful journey....

heathergay — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 20:17:00 GMT

Well I always said I liked adventure, and I've just experienced the 2 most challenging days of my travels so far! I have survived it, and in hindsight, it was great fun! It started with an early morning pickup from guesthouse in ChiangRai, to go to the Thai border town of ChiangKhong, where Lao visa application, and customs formalities were completed. Then I along with my newly found french friends, Djamila and JeanMarc piled into a very precarious small boat for the ferry crossing to Huay Xai, Lao, in the pouring rain I must add! (The country is actually now called Lao PDR [People's Democratic Republic] not Laos anymore, I wish sites such as this would catch up) the next hour then was waiting for Visa approval, completing customs and immigration etc, and into taxi truck for short drive to the slowboat jetty. This is the trip I had been looking forward to for so long, 2 days down the Mekong, and we board the boat to find it already crammed and the only seating is tiny narrow wooden bench seats, a bit like but smaller than church pews (from my distant memory!) Fortunately I had been warned and had purchased a cushion to sit on as had everyone else on board, what a racket, why cant they just supply them? I found a pew, hoping to have it to myself, however there was to be none of that! the skipper came along and told everyone to move along, double up, seats are money to him! As well as the seats, a great number of people have found floor spaces to sit, in fact it is hard to get from one end to other of the boat. And the skipper's not leaving till every last person wanting to make the trip is on board, even if it is 2 hours late. By the time of leaving, there are 100+ people in a space I estimate designed for 60-80, and there is only one toilet on board and it's stinking hot! Good times! However as we motored along, the breeze and the scenery made it all worth while, it is stunning, wilderness, rain forest, small villages, boats and craft on the river, fishermen (no didn't see any fisherwomen!) traders, villagers, water buffallo, goats, so much to look at and to photograph. However after about 2 hours we came to a halt, it appears the motor's clapped out! When not moving, there is no breeze, and did I mention that it is stinking hot? OMG, we sat there for about 2hours! the braver souls climbed overboard and waded ashore, some even swam, but there was no shade as it was a very large wide river beach we had pulled over to. I felt it was safer to stay put where at least there was some shade. There was NO communication, so noone really knew what was happening, but finally after about 2 hours another boat arrived and pulled up alongside on the riverside (as opposed to the shallower, beach side of our boat) Then it was every man for themselves as we all scramble across the side from one boat to the other, so dangerous, but noone fell down the gap. Now the new boat had some very comfortable looking seats, but few in number. It was first in first served and this boat is designed for even less people. There were some stacks of red plastic chairs, a couple of tables (??? I know! crazy!) By the time we had all distributed ourselves through the boat there was not an inch of space to spare. No aisles, and if someone needed to pass through to go to toilet, everyone on red chairs had to stand up and hold their chair over their head to let them pass. and still some people had to take turns standing all the way.You had to laugh really it was so dangerous that it was comical! But we were off again, and after all the delays, it was soon turning dark. Wouldn't you know it, there are no lights! The Mekong river is very rocky, huge outcrops of rock everywhere, and we were told that that is why there is an overnight stop, as captains don't like navigating in the dark! hello!! Surprisingly (or not) we finally made it, and the scramble out of the boat with so many people, trying to find your pack in the dark, (a few people had torches) and then the scramble up the rocks and steps to the village, must go down as one of my all time favourite events! My friends and I had booked a guesthouse while waiting for visa at HuayXai, unsure if we were doing right thing or not, as were we being ripped off??? However, turned out it was a great move, they came looking for us, and we were led straight to guest house. It was about 8pm at this stage, and in this particular village, the power goes off at 9pm each evening, so we rushed straight to the dining area, and managed to get a pretty decent meal. After that it was cold shower by torchlight, and sleep of the dead in rockhard bed! In the morning we were told that they were splitting us into 2 groups and there were 2 boats. One was the comfy nice seat one, and one was another wooden bench seat job. Guess which one I got?? Another day on the narrow wooden seat, I'm loving it! At least with the split there was room to have one to myself so at least you could stand up when you liked and move around. However the 2nd day was freezing cold. The weather had turned overnight, and fortunately I had a light jacket in my daypack, and a sarong, and with both of these I was still freezing, some other poor devils had nothing warm. I was tempted to offer my sarong to one old chap, but resisted the urge! Apart from the cold, the 2nd day was reasonably uneventful, and we arrived in Luang Prabang at around 4.30pm. What an amazing place, after having been through and seeing such primitive conditions. This town is classy, french bakeries, cobbled streets, good coffee, great international cuisine, dozens of restaurants and cafes and wine bars, I actually had a decent glass of wine for first time since leaving NZ! I was surprised to find they drive on the "wrong" side of the road, and have to be careful when crossing. The currency is Lao kip, and/or US$$, everyone takes either. There are interesting temples, caves and waterfalls, and lots of opportunities for trekking, white water rafting, kayaking and other extreme sports. The main industry is tourism here, but it is relatively unspoilt so far. I am off on day trip tomorrow to see some of the attractions, so far have spent 2 days just exploring around the town and just loving it, wow, so stunningly beauitful and so surprising after my 2 days on the river. Still trying to decide whether or not to do the rest of the way to Vientienne by slowboat (another 2 days) or to take the easy option and fly! What a decision.....

Gallery: THAT boat trip!

heathergay — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 17:40:00 GMT

Last days in Thailand......

heathergay — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 14:44:00 GMT

Hello there again, I am back in the far north of Thailand after leaving Malaysia, and having a lovely week in Singapore with my family. We celebrated my elder grandaughter, Eva's 1st birthday on the 6th November, and it was a very special time for me. It was so lovely to be back with my family, after 3 months of pretty much solitude, and to see the change and growth in Eva was a joy to behold. On the morning of her birthday Ramesh, his Mum, Achi and I (Deb was at work) took Eva to their Hindu temple for a special blessing, what a cultural treat for me that was. I have posted a heap of photos of her on here, for me being with her, and Deb and Ramesh of course, was a big highlight of the trip so far. It was hard saying goodbye, as always, but at least this time I will see them again soon, as we are all meeting up in Mumbai, India for christmas. I am going a bit earlier and will be there for my other lovely grandaughter's 1st birthday, on the 15th December. Soo, I returned to the beautiful ChiangMai earlier in the week, and have been chilling there for a few days. met up with my dear friends, Eric and James, had another therapeutic massage with Eric, excruciating, but wow, the results are amazing! 4 hours of torture is well worth it for the painfree, grounded, balanced and centred feeling afterwards. And it lasts, 3 days later I still feel great. James cooked a lovely dinner party which I was invited to, and was able to meet some lovely interesting people, and enjoy some NZ lamb (cooked to perfection) and mint sauce, along with many other things. It was so nice to have an opportunity to socialise and meet people. Then yesterday I took a bus north and am now in ChiangRai. From here I am going to organise the border crossing into Lao, and my long awaited slowboat down the Mekong, so I think my next post will be alot more interesting! I ventured out to explore the town last night, and thought that ChiangRai is very charming. Much much smaller than ChiangMai, but it has a character of it's own, and I stumbled across a night market/bazaar which was amazing. After emptying out my pack to reduce the weight while in Singapore, I am now starting to refill it! Ha, but it was mostly xmas shopping, you gotta take the opportunities when they come! OK folks that's it for now, I hope to start my river journey tomorrow or the next day, and am very excited about it. I am also looking forward to seeing a new country, and what new adventures will unfurl before me.

Gallery: Singapore

heathergay — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 19:49:00 GMT

Just hanging out being a Nana

Perhentian Islands and the North East Coast of Malaysia

heathergay — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:25:00 GMT

Here I am back at last, for the last week or more I have had only brief and expensive access to the internet, and not on my laptop, no wifi where I was. It has been an interesting time, as I had been looking forward with great anticipation to seeing the Perhentian Islands, Malaysia's jewel, and said to be among the most beautiful in the world. I think I must have been spoilt in the Thai islands as I confess to being a tad disappointed. There were some beautiful spots, but the price of the resorts in those spots was way outside my budget. I stayed in a medium budget resort, but as it was the end of season for them, they were winding down, very little food available in restaurant, much better to eat out in the wee cafe on the beach, where I had some fabulous meals which were actually incredibly cheap. A 20 min walk through the middle of the island took you through to another beach where there were alot of night spots and many young backpackers, lots of beer and wodka funnily enough. Went one night for dinner with some lovely friends, Rosie and Lex, from Portsmouth in England, and we had a great night. The highlight would have to be the day snorkelling trip, that included swimming with sharks and seeing giant turtles. No photos though, as transport was in small longboat where everything was very wet and not safe for cameras. There were many sunburnt bodies that day, but luckily I am so brown now that I dont seem to burn anymore. The day included about 5 different snorkelling spots, and each time, it was over the side of the boat, then the agonising haul back in, luckily there was a ladder (of sorts!!) Oh to be young again! I managed it and had alot of fun. Malysian people in this area are predominately Muslim, and have a lot of trouble coping with the fact that I am on my own, much more so than in Thailand. It seems an unbelievable thing to do for a woman alone, let alone one my age! I am so sick of answering that question, but I don't want to be disrespectful, so try and explain, though often use the "he died" way out, as they seem to get that ok!! I am now in the city of Kota Bahru, which is at the very northern part of the east coast of peninsula Malaysia, and fly back to Kuala Lumpur tomorrow, then take all day train on saturday, down to Singapore for my beautiful granddaughter Eva's 1st birthday. So looking forward to being with family again, I am loving life on the road, but there's nothing like being with family after all this time.

Gallery: Perhentians and Kota Bahru

heathergay — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:02:00 GMT