Flowers and Camping

Even though we’ve been home long enough to need to do laundry and grocery shop, we are still beaming from our trip. While images of open-air markets from Vietnam and temples from Cambodia are still swirling, we would be remiss not to write about and share images from Singapore and the Philippines.

Singapore

While on the bus transit from the airport to our hotel, I spotted an elevated highway with the lush fuchsia bougainvillea flowers hanging off the railing. I squealed at Daniel to turn and look at the flowers flinging themselves off the railing, but we had passed them. I was disappointed that I had enjoyed the view too long and did not make Daniel look at the flowers until it was too late. As I chastised myself for missing a flower opportunity, I saw the bougainvillea again…and AGAIN. Every overpass had buckets of hanging flowers, vines, and leaves just dangling off the sides of the railing. Once I realized this I became absolutely silent. Daniel knows that when I’m silent I’m either angry or so happily overwhelmed I do not know what to say. He knew it was the latter after a few more bridges and started to take pictures of me to document the moment I realized we were in Julia’s dream destination: a country that was a botanical garden. It was incredible.

The next day we actually went to the National Botanical Garden of Singapore. It is the most visited botanical garden in the world and was absolutely spectacular. There was an orchid farm, entire plots of flowers along winding roads, and greenery exploding next to benches and coming out of every twist and turn of trees. We sloooowly walked through the tropical rainforest and orchid enclosure and then took a break. It was at this point I realized that either we needed to leave or I needed to spend a week in the botanical garden alone to study and take a picture of each specimen. We chose the former…it was a good choice. A week would not have even been enough.

We did not know what to expect from Singapore and it was certainly full of surprises. Singapore felt like the pace of New York City with the flavor and texture of Hong Kong. We met-up with a friend of Daniel’s from summer camp who works at the highest grossing casino in the world—Marina Bay Sands. We went to the casino/hotel’s roof and we could see almost each of Singapore’s borders. We stumbled across an outdoor market of food vendors called Gluttons Bay where we ate Hainanese chicken and rice dishes to our heart’s content. Across from our hotel we found a local dim sum restaurant with bao (steamed rice buns) that even I could eat—they were delicious. Daniel was almost as happy to find this restaurant as I was in the orchid enclosure.

We only stayed in Singapore for a few days, but the humidity, lush botanicals and delicious street food were all highlights of the trip for both of us.

Philippines

The last stop on our honeymoon were the 7,107 islands of the Philippines. Each of the island regions had their own culture and feel. We started in Cebu in the Visayas. We spent a few nights lounging in a resort over Daniel’s 31st birthday. That was rough. From Cebu we flew to the island of Palawan on the western coast of the Philippines. We stayed in Puerto Princesa a few nights island hoping and seeing the sights before heading to Fort Barton on the northwest coast.

We decided to take a risk and hop on a bangka from Fort Barton to a campground called Toby and Thelma’s Island Adventure. We thought we had a reservation—the telephone connection was dismal—and so we decided to take the bangka out to the private island campground and check things out for ourselves. A bangka is an outrigger canoe, but bigger, with two pontoon Catamaran-looking bamboo-winged sides coming out of the boat. It is quite the motorized contraption and glides over the ocean like an insect striding just above the water. 

The campground was tucked under a canopy of leafy palms and thatched roof huts with tents underneath them that blended in with the rocks and sand from the beach. The boat stopped short of the shore by…a lot, eight-massive-waves-crashing-on-you-short. Daniel was able to take his pants off and hold his backpack above his head and walk into the campsite, but I just got wet. There were only about six hut/tent set-ups on the beach and everyone had their own piece of beach and ocean front view from their tent. It was outrageously beautiful. The tents were HUGE with a full bamboo bed inside. Three meals a day were provided and the food was delicious. We now realize that this was all basically glamping, but the lack of running water and electricity still made it feel like real camping.

The highlight from the camping expedition was a natural stream coming off a set of rocks near the campground that Toby and Thelma made into an outdoor shower. They added a piece of carved out bamboo and the water streamed through the bamboo to make the most incredible jungle shower. It was complete with trees on all sides, an ocean view, and monkeys eating breakfast.

Once back on Luzon in Manila we took a city tour with a real-life character: Carlos Celdran. He took us on a performance art walking tour of the Spanish forts and cathedrals. The tour and Carlos himself is worth an entire blog post, but suffice it to say that he was very entertaining. We actually learned quite a bit about Filipino history and language on the tour. Carlos explained that in Filipino language, words for universal concepts tend to be native, while words for most objects are Spanish. For example, the words for love, sadness, and happiness all pre-existed the arrival of the Spaniards, but the words for fork, church, and statue all derived from the Spanish roots. When the Americans came to the Philippines, the word for facial tissue (Kleenex), the verb to take a picture (to Kodak), etc. were all added to the Filipino vernacular. The linguist in me found this fabulously interesting. Surprisingly, I also understood much more Filipino than I expected since the root for many words were in Spanish.

Daniel also really enjoyed the Mega Malls in Manila—who knew Daniel liked malls? I think he really just wanted to visit the food courts since they were teeming with lechon (whole pork roasts) at every corner. I would not be surprised if the malls had multiple zip codes for different floors or areas of the mall…it was insane. Finding the same door to exit where you entered was a full time job.

The Philippines were incredible and we still have 7,102 islands to visit. We would love to go back…any takers?

An Update from Vietnam, Two Countries Later

We’re a bit overdue for an update, so here goes (also, internet is too slow for photo uploads at the moment; "[photo]" to be replaced when we get to Manila now with photos!) :

Ho Chi Minh City

We arrived in Ho Chi Minh City on 12/23 and Julia began learning about dodging motorcycles on the sidewalk. We quickly discovered Nha Hang Ngon, an amazing restaurant in a large French villa, where traditional street food vendors line the wall and every dish is exquisite. We proceeded to eat there three times in two days and later frequented its sister restaurant, Quan An Ngon, multiple times when we got to Hanoi.

A visit to the American War Museum was just as painfully moving as the last time I was there.

A day trip to the Mekong Delta to see a floating market and local crafts was forgettable.

Dalat

Dalat, a small city up in the mountains about 5-8 hours north of Ho Chi Minh City, is a popular domestic honeymoon destination and was my favorite stop the last time I was in Vietnam. This time, it more than lived up to expectations.

The cool mountain air was a welcome respite, but the real star was the night market. In addition to the produce, food, and clothing stalls in the town center, along the river was stall after stall of plants, including orchids, succulents, and bonsai trees. Julia nearly lost her shit.

While in Dalat, we sampled a few culinary delicacies. The first, che, is basically sweetened coconut milk soup with corn, black beans, tapioca, banana, or sweet potato.

The second was a little more, um, unusual: weasel coffee. It’s coffee made from beans that have been eaten and pooped out by a civet. Strange concept, delicious coffee. We tried some at a cute little cafe, with our cup expertly prepared by the owner, who also raises the civets and roasts the beans.

On our last full day in Dalat, Julia let me plan a little independent day trip, involving a boat ride across a lake, an elephant ride (Julia’s first!), a gondola ride, and a visit to a monastery with beautiful gardens.

Nha Trang

Our next stop was Little Russia...er, I mean, Nha Trang. This beach town was absolutely overrun with Russians, due to the fact that until 2002 it was the location of Russia’s largest international military base. We spent three days lounging under palapas, reading fiction, sipping cocktails, and marveling at the fashion choices of Russian tourists.

Hanoi

We really only had one full day in Hanoi, essentially using it as a jumping off point for Halong Bay and Sapa. While we were there, we managed to grab dinner with one of Julia’s former co-workers, Genessa, who currently works for the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Vietnam. It was great to see a familiar/friendly face after three weeks on the road.

Halong Bay

Not too much to say about Halong Bay, other than that it is absolutely gorgeous. We also enjoyed sharing the trip with three travelers from Mexico City, with whom Julia, of course, immediately found many friends in common.

Sapa

The only negative of our two days in Sapa was having to do the overnight train on either end. On the plus side, it really gave us two full days, during which we trekked over 20 miles through small villages and rice terraces with our private guide, Dong, from Handspan Travel (HIGHLY recommended). The views on the treks were stunning; we couldn’t stop taking photos. We couldn’t decide who was happier: us, the local children, or the ducks, pigs, dogs, chicken, and water buffalo, all of whom roamed freely among the terraces.

Ok, we’re off to catch a bus and will be without internet for a few days, so the Singapore and early Philippines updates will have to wait.

Sidewalks for Motorcycles

Sometimes when I walk on the sidewalks of Cambridge and a bike whisks past me, I grimace and think about pointing to the clearly demarcated No Bikes symbol with a line slashed through the circle etched on the pristine sidewalk beneath them. I usually think: “They could have hit me! What were they thinking? Bikes should be ridden on the road. Sidewalks are for pedestrians.” This seems straightforward, consistent, and simple. Enter: Ho Chi Minh City. Roads and sidewalks are for motorcycles, and thousands of them. For every one car on the road there were about 50 motorcycles surrounding it on every side. When the road became too congested with motorcycles and cars, motorcyclists simply hopped onto the sidewalk and sped away. I remarked in Cambodia about the high number of motorcycles on the road and Daniel laughed and told me to wait to make motorcycle judgments until we reached Vietnam. He was (unfortunately) correct. The motorcyclists in Cambodia were tame compared to Vietnam. At first I thought it was a passing time of day in a neighborhood or specific segment of the city, but, alas, the put-put-put of the motorcycles can be heard at all times of day and night. Surprisingly, over a matter of days, I went from utter fear of losing a toe or getting concussed on the sidewalk to enough confidence that I crossed a four-lane road by myself.

After accepting the motorcycles as a matter of life in the city, I began to admire them and see the differences among motorists instead of a sea of horns, lights and gasoline. Some women wore modesty skirts that Velcro-ed in the back over their short skirts or dresses while puttering off on their motorbikes. The masks some motorists wore covering their mouths and noses came in all shapes and designs. Some were floral, plaid, solid or Hello Kitty inspired. The masks wrapped around some bikers' entire necks (my dad would have loved the sun protection they offered) and others winged out stopping the wind from hitting the bikers’ ears. Many were sturdy and others disposable almost taking the form of operating room gear. I was entranced. I wanted a mask! I was not sure if I wanted a mask as a fashion statement of sorts or to actually protect my lungs. Daniel rolled his eyes at my plan to buy a mask, and I weighed the potential exposure risks and the minimal duration of exposure and decided I agreed with him.

However, once we reached the relaxed beach town of Nha Trang, I caved in and bought a...Despicable Me mask! I love it. I have only worn it a handful of times, and realistically, it is more of a fashion statement than health precaution. While I am pretty sure it makes me look even crazier walking the streets like a skittish toddler, I still love it.

I started to make a running list of what I saw occurring on sidewalks in Vietnam. Sidewalks are for: seating, traffic evasion, garbage disposal, store extenders, eating meals and snacks, drinking, gossiping, peeing, and cooking. I will continue to keep a list if I see more ‘activities’ on the multi-use sidewalks, but in the meantime they are just fascinating to observe.

---------------------

Matt and Larissa, this is a sidewalk haiku just for YOU!

Sidewalks are for, yes...
Parking, driving, and playgrounds
Puddle! Children! Bike!