if i were a travel writer... i'd write of places near or far... of places i've arrived to by plane, bus, train or car... and along the way, i'll take some photos... and so, here my story goes...

I hope you had a wondeful Christmas! Did it snow over there yet? Being here, wearing skirts and sandals, it's hard to imagine that kind of weather! We took the 6 hour bus ride on Christmas Eve from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh, Cambodia's capital. One of our favorite trips thus far was the bus ride. Not only did we see the fields and shacks on stilts that made up the countryside, but were sitting among native Cambodians who, without communicating verbally, were able to say so much. At each stop we made, for the squat toilets and mini marketplaces, they would bring back something in a plastic bag for us to try. At the first stop they offered us grapefruit. At the second stop, this thing that we assume is fried duck embryo. And at the third stop, they walked onto the bus with a plastic bag full of leaves and live tarantulas. I had read that fried tarantula was an entree often eaten by Cambodians, but to see these huge, live, poisonous things in a tiny plastic bag, that by the way, had a hole in it, was a little scary. The woman's 10 year old daughter seemed to have no problem sleeping with the bag inches away from her and somehow after they assured us that it was okay, we handed them another bag to double bag the tarantulas and were able to take a little nap. We arrived at the bus station and had the guest house owner pick us up in town. There was a big celebration and everyone was wearing these Santa hats and wishing us a Merry Christmas when we got off the bus. Who knew a mainly Buddhist country was so crazy about Christmas? Our guest house was located in the backpacker area of the capital, something we really haven't encountered on our trip. It's a kind of grimy area and reminded me a little of the red light district in Amsterdam - not in terms of sex shops, but just the feel of the streets. We found a little place down the street from us to have Christmas Eve dinner and actually met an American-Canadian who has been living in the capital for over 3 months. He took us to some of his favorite local bars, which were mainly filled with what I would call long-term travelers who are "floating" through their travels and aren't really ready to commit to any sort of plan, traveling or anything else for that matter. Afterwards, we headed to one of Cambodia's clubs. It was probably one of the first nights we weren't in bed by 10pm. I know, we're old ladies. Anyway, it was an absolutely disturbing scene. There were tons of older white men and a swarm of young Cambodian women, and you knew what the deal was standing there and watching them interact. They don't call themselves prostitutes. Instead, I think they are "taxi girls." We watched couple after couple leave the bar together and it was actually really sad to know where they were going. As those of you who know me well know, I don't know much about history and I don't really read. Spending time in countries like Cambodia has made me realize how important history is. I didn't know that there was a genocide in Cambodia in the late 70's or that fighting was happening here in the 90's. It's so hard to imagine a country filled with so many peaceful faces was once a place filled with fighting and the Khmer Rouge. We spent Christmas Day getting to know the capital - visiting the Royal Palace, the Vietnam-Cambodia Friendship Monument and the S-21 Genocide Museum. S-21 was the school that the Khmer Rouge took over and converted into a prison which became the site of the genocide. After walking through the schoolyard and in each of the classroom cells, we decided to not visit the Killing Fields, which house the skulls and bones of those who died. It was quite an interesting way to spend Christmas Day. We ended our night by getting massages from the blind, one of the most touching parts of my trip thus far. I can't even describe the power of the sense of touch that you feel when a blind person is working on you in that way. We left Cambodia early this morning and again, almost didn't get on our Air Asia flight to Chiang Mai (via Bangkok). But we're here, in a really great guest house that's a little off the beaten path. We took a walk into town. The one thing I've noticed so far in Thailand is that you can't even walk down the street without feeling suffocated by the exhaust around you. It's like standing behind a NYC bus for an hour straight. Well, I've never done that, but I imagine that's what it's like. We'll be staying in northern Thailand until Sunday morning, when we fly to Bangkok to spend New Years Eve... and then jump on a plane back home on January 1. It hasn't even been 2 weeks and it feels like it's been so long since I left NY. I guess it's good that vacation feels so long! Until next time, Deanna