Click here to see pt. 1 of this post. And double click on images to enlarge. Ingenuity – People in poorer countries have, of necessity, highly developed ingenuity to use what’s at hand for multiple purposes. We saw many examples in both countries, none perhaps more impressive than the traditional […]
Tag: Travel Pursuits
ON THE ROAD WITH ANN – Cambodia and a loss of words
Tra is not his real name, but it is what we call our Cambodian guide for the sake of simplicity. If you are unaware of the name Pol Pot and the unspeakable atrocities he committed in the name of the Khmer Rouge between 1975-78, you may want to Google it. […]
GUEST BLOG – Gary Schoepfel from the Mekong
When I travel I sometimes forget my ears. I venture out with camera in hand and eyes wide open. I search for the perfect photo op: that traffic stopping almond-eyed girl, the perfect sunset or moon rise, the Buddhist monk wrapped in mysterious yellow-orange, the twilight mountain silhouette, or that […]
ON THE ROAD WITH ANN – River Kids in Cambodia
Do not feel sorry for these kids. These pictures cannot fully convey their exuberance, their lithe gracefulness, their playfulness, their ease with and kindness to one another, their inventiveness, and their quick responsiveness to gentle commands from parents or teachers, their squeals of laughter, play and surprisingly good efforts at […]
ON THE ROAD WITH ANN – The Mekong at night
It is cocktail hour on the ‘sun deck’ of the RV Bassac Pandaw. It it pitch black outside and we are on a narrow portion of the river. The warm and humid breeze is strong and luscious. We can see the occasional electric light or fire on shore and hear […]
ON THE ROAD WITH ANN – Final thoughts from Vietnam
We are in Phnom Penh, Cambodia and have been on the Mekong River for the past few days, without Internet. Before thinking about what we are experiencing in Cambodia, I want to offer a few more reflections on Vietnam. We are discussing short stories written by Vietnamese writers. They are […]
ON THE ROAD WITH ANN – a post from Ann’s ‘elf’ back home
Hello friends. We may have a few days of silence from Ann while the Travel Pursuits group drifts down the Mekong — not a lot of Internet along the way. So as we all wait for the next post, I thought I would share this clip that I stumbled across […]
ON THE ROAD WITH ANN – Saigon’s Yin to Hanoi’s Yang
(click on photos to see full size images) We tend to toss around the terms ‘yin’ and ‘yang’ with some hazy notion that they represent something to do with balance. What we read before we came and what has been confirmed by all we have seen and been told, is […]
ON THE ROAD WITH ANN – Confused by Communism in Vietnam
On flight from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City (formerly, and often still, known as Saigon). First, I want to say how the hearts of all of us on this trip are concerned for those who have borne the wrath of the benign-sounding Sandy. I hope you are all safe […]
ON THE ROAD WITH ANN – You put your right foot in, you take your right foot out …
HANOI, Oct 28 2012. I am both in and not in Vietnam. After a long journey from Madrid and through Moscow, I landed at 8am local time in Hanoi. I flew on Aeroflot, the Russian airline, from Madrid. I had wondered who my fellow passengers would be. Since the fall […]