Eat. Swim. Eat. Sleep. Swim. Eat. Sleep. Repeat.

It's quite possible that my blog posts will now slow considerably. What is there to tell you? The title says it all. We have entered the final phase of our big trip, what Martin has been looking forward to these last few months; the beach. And we still have a month left, exactly. Should be a pretty good month.

Like Mama, like son. Two fish in the water.

We are on Koh Lanta, an island in southern Thailand just south of Krabi. The sun is shining, the water's warm and our evening sun ensures a spectacular sunset each and every night. It's quite nice to do so little for a while. We barbecued fresh seafood with some Dutch and German families that we met. We rented a motorbike for a few days and checked out various beaches, but mostly we are laying low. We are meeting friends in Krabi on February 3 for a week, but until then we have no plans.

Budget accommodations means we put Simon to work.

Fresh squid!

Our current home.

Watching the sunset.

Family photo!

Sunset with outline of Koh Phi Phi.

The only disappointment so far has been the food. Most people are here for the beach, so the food is quite inferior to food we had in Bangkok and Chiang Mai. Most menus seem to have as much western food as Thai food. It's Thai food, so it's still good, but it's not great. But we have some time to keep exploring and find those hidden gems.

 

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Penang: ATMs gone wrong, our personal tour guide, and more good food!

It is quite fitting that when I opened this page to publish it, it had magically disappeared. (Magically=2 year old). I had used some of our 15 hour journey from Penang to Koh Lanta to chronicle the ups and downs of our few days in Penang, Malaysia. Mouthwatering details of our culinary adventures; tales of how we met a kind local citizen who spent 2 days showing us around not just Georgetown, but the entire island of Penang; and just our general mood that simply was the emotional roller coaster of Penang wiped away with a few unfortunate taps of an innocent toddler.

Now I have neither the time or energy to go back into such details. I will, however, share the following photos and maybe even write down a tip or two about our great street food finds.

Outstanding samosas in Little India. I went back for mor and more and more...

A stunning rendition of Twinkle, Twinkle.

Mike, our tour guide!

Ice cream on a hot day.

 

Ice cream on a hot day.

Just ask the locals what they're eating.

Street food vendors on KG Malabar.

Purchased some local art.

Breakfast with Mike. It was so good I couldn't quite catch it on camera.

Nutmeg juice! It tasted a lot like....nutmeg.

Street food notes:

• Delicious samosas: corner of Lebuh Queen and Lebuh Pasar. Until about 6pm
• Chinese breakfast market: across from Chowrasta market on Lebuh Chowrasta, in an empty lot. Try the kuih kat, trust me.
• Night street vendors: KG Malabar. Noodles, porridge, satay. Lots of local Penang eats enjoyed with the locals.
• Delicious local vendor restaurant: Corner of Jalan Sri Bahari and Jalan Penang. Mike took us for breakfast one morning and the fried noodles were amazing, along with a dish of deep fried yams, pork, prawns, and tofu with sweet and spicy dipping sauces.

Sorry. That's all I got. Mourning the loss of my previous prose....

 

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Singapore: More than food

There is more to do in Singapore than just gorge on yummy food at hawker markets, and we did do a few of those things too. We checked out the new botanical gardens, somehow snagging free tickets from some random guy who just offered them to us.

The cloud forest.

We also checked out the brand new Aquarium on Sentosa Island. Correction. We actually went to two aquariums on Sentosa Island after some massive confusion and total frustration. One is old and crappy, but does have the redeeming quality of a seal and dolphin show (which Simon loved). In the end Simon and I did make it to the brand new one, which boasts the world's largest aquarium with the largest viewing glass. It was beautiful and Simon loved running from window to window to check out the fish. He was also very helpful in pointing out fish to all other visitors, in case they somehow couldn't spot any of the thousands of fish swimming about. (Sentosa Island, by the way, is a resort island that is kind of like my hell on earth, but popular with families that are more fun than Martin and I.)

Enjoying the seals at Aquarium #1.

 

The new one!

We also learned some fascinating facts about Singapore, the island nation that boasts the highest income per capita and has virtually no crime.

• Spitting and chewing gum are both illegal in Singapore.
• The tax on buying a car is nearly 100% and you cannot buy a car older than 10 years.
• You need a separate license to purchase a car. This license costs S$100,000.
• Taxis drivers rent their cars and are responsible for any damage while driving. Therefore when it's raining, it can be very tough to find a taxi.
• They really do use corporal punishment. Jail sentences can be doled out with a certain number of canings. However, you can only receive 5 at a time and cannot get any more for 6 months due to health risks! We behaved.

After 2 months traveling in some pretty cheap countries, we definitely felt the sticker shock of Singapore. Meals at hawker markets were reasonably priced, but somehow things added up quickly. Cab rides and entrance fees, alcohol and desserts were far above what we were used to paying. Western prices in this SEA city for sure.

The verdict? The perfect place to drop by and visit an old friend. It is so helpful to have a "local" with you to help navigate hawker centers and order the right foods. The options are overwhelming, and the possibility of going so wrong is right next to a great find. Some of the other highlights of Singapore, especially for a family, are pricy and simply not the Oppenwig style.

 

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Angkor Wat

We had long been looking forward to the temples of Angkor Wat and we were finally there! I had been a little worried about the crazy amount of tourist that has exploded in Siem Reap in recent years as Angkor Wat has become a major international tourist destination. And if this had been my first sight I would have been worried.

Pub Street

But luckily that's just the center, which while quite devoted to tourism still has some good eats. I imagine it gets a bit rowdy later in the evenings, but by then we were snug in our beds just outside of town. Definitely a good splurge for us. With a lovely pool it offered a cool retreat in the afternoons after a long morning at the temples.

We decided to spend 3 days at the temples, and keep Angkor Wat for the end. We hired a tuk tuk for the day (best way to explore temples) and headed off.

We loved the Cambodian tuk tuks!

The temples are a collection of ruins from the dominant Khmer empire that collapsed long ago. Some have been meticulously restored, while others are overgrown with trees as the jungle tries to reclaim its land. I am always wary of having too high expectations for places like this, but it did not disappoint. We trampled around temples, impressed by ornate carvings, mass size, and deep moats. One of our highlights was playing hide and seek at Ta Prohm, the now famous temple where Angelina Jolie filmed Tomb Raiders.

Overall, we loved Cambodia. Of course, Siem Reap and Phnom Penh see their fair share of tourists and Cambodians have responded brilliantly. The Khmer cuisine is also very good, with amok and lok lak among our favorites . People were friendly and service was excellent. I would love to go back and explore more of the country, which is more rural and I am sure has a very different feel. But we got a very good feeling from our experience in Cambodia, despite our stroller being stolen from one of the temples! If you ever get the chance, it is well worth the effort to visit Angkor Wat. It has been one of the biggest highlights so far.

I know this post doesn't do it justice, but just enjoy the pics and trust that we had a great time. Trying to catch up before we add our 7th country to our list tomorrow!

 

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Street Eats in Singapore

Food, food, food. You always hear people talking about the food culture in Singapore, and it does not disappoint. The best way to explore the food culture of Singapore is to visit one of the many Hawker centers scattered throughout the city, just as the locals do. Hawker centers are food courts where former street food vendors sell their enticing treats. The variety is enormous, with Chinese, Malay, Indonesian, and Indian food stalls abound. Look for the long line, Singaporeans take their food very seriously, so it's your safest bet.

Hawker centers developed when the Singaporean government decided it was the best way to regulate street vendors and ensure proper hygiene. There are no longer street vendors, it all takes place at these hawker centers, where prices remain cheap and the food is safe to eat.

View from Mia's flat.

We were extremely fortunate to hosted by Mia, a Swedish friend of Martin's that he hadn't seen since high school graduation! For us weary travelers, it was such a treat to be at someone's home, especially one that came with such knowledgable and friendly tour guide. Mia and Fredrik, her boyfriend, love the Singaporean food culture and spend lots of time exploring various hawker centers and trying new food.

Satay at La Pasat.

Simon liked it too!

One highlight was the satay at Lau Pa Sat. Freshly grilled chicken, beef and prawns dipped in a spicy peanut sauce that Martin and I were slurping up at the end. We tried chicken rice, one of the most quintessential Singaporean dishes at the Maxwell Street hawker center. In Chinatown we indulged in delicious pan fried and Szechuan dumplings, and sampled other local flavors at the nearby Tiong Bahru hawker center.

Koay teow...yum!

 

Delicious dumplings!

The hawker centers are all well run and pretty clean, but nothing posh or fancy. But you could leave a hawker center, then walk around the corner to a chic coffee shop for coffee and dessert. Now that's my kind of night!

Simon and his new buddy, Mia.

In our four days in Singapore we stuffed ourselves silly. You could spend weeks exploring the food culture and hawker centers there, but it's definitely a great city to pass through for a few days and enjoy the good grub.

 

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Cambodia: A Walk Through Their Tragic Past

After 3.5 weeks in Vietnam we were ready for a new country, a new landscape, and a new experience. Cambodia was definitely all of the above. Upon arriving in Phnom Penh we were immediately impressed with the level of English spoken and the friendliness of everyone, especially the tuk tuk drivers. They smiled amiably as we negotiated prices, and gave a friendly laugh at the low prices we were going for. It was just so pleasant.

We were in Cambodia for only 9 full days and spending time in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, so we had to make the most of our time. Cambodia is most famous for the ancient temples of Angkor Wat in Siem Reap, but Phnom Penh was a worthy destination as well. The city was dirtier and grungier than other cities we had been to. We were staying in a hotel a bit outside the center which had the advantage of tuk tuk rides thought the streets of the city that we would have otherwise missed had we stayed closer to the tourist heart. And there was a lot to observe. Like a ridiculous number of Lexus SUVs. Posh, high end shopping streets. A stark contrast between the rich and poor.

Cambodia's recent history is marred by the mass genocide that took place in from 1975-1979 under the hands of the Khmer Rouge. During this time an estimated 2 million Cambodians were killed by execution and starvation. The rest of the world was seemingly unaware of this reign of terror and the UN even recognized the Khmer Rouge as the official government of Cambodia giving them seats at the UN in New York, which they maintained for over a decade after the killings stopped.

Just outside of Phnom Penh the Choeung Ek killing fields has been created as a memorial to the millions who died during the Khmer Rouge. The memorial is set up very well. Headsets come with admission ($5) and visitors are guided by the numbered signs through what was once a horrific execution camp. This creates a very peaceful setting as there is very little talking and people experience everything at their own pace. The tour is thorough, with background on the Khmer Rouge, the camp, and stories from survivors of the Khmer Rouge. It is a sad testament to the ability of humans to hate.

More than 120 mass graves were discovered at the killing field, and 80 were exhumed. Fragments of bones continue to surface with new rains, so it's not uncommon to see them while walking around the grounds.

While it is not an uplifting experience, it is well worth the visit.

Traveling with kids? Before going to the killing fields with children consider the age appropriateness of bringing them. For small children, it is not a playground and not appropriate for children to be running around on a sacred site that still holds the remains of those killed under the Khmer Rouge. We brought an iPod touch for Simon so that he would remain quiet and happy while were there and that worked fine. For older children, parents simply have to consider how much they want their children to hear and see about the genocide that took place there.

Further reading: There are many books out there about the Khmer Rouge written by survivors, scholars, and journalists about what happened during and after the Khmer Rouge. I read and can highly recommend the following two memoirs and plan on reading more when we get back.

First They Killed My Father, Loung Ung

Lucky Child, Loung Ung

 

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Progress report: Reboot

About half way through the trip seemed like to perfect time to just relax and reboot. Thanks to Simon's amazing uncle Magnus we were able to this in style in Nha Trang, Vietnam. Five-star hotels are really not in our budget, but Magnus generously shared some miles with us and we were taking in all the luxury at the Sheraton in Nha Trang. It felt especially good after we got stuck taking a night bus from Hoi An (trains were booked!) and we needed somewhere to rest our weary bones. Sand and sun were the perfect remedy.

Night bus!

At the beach.

At the pool.

Simon enjoying the thread count.

New Year's Eve dinner

After 4 days we are back on the road. We took a night train to Saigon (that's where we rang in the new year, cozy in our bunks) and then spent the day with the Lybbert family, our friends that we met in Chiang Mai. We spent the afternoon at an indoor play park for the kids, and then wandered through a crowded park in the evening. We only spent 24 hours in Saigon, but were glad that we made the stop to hang out with friends and experience the city, if only briefly.

Night train to Saigon.

Toys! Lots of 'em!

New friends.

And now we are Phnom Penh, Cambodia, heading to Siem Reap tomorrow to explore the temples of ancient Angkor Wat. Our reboot served us well!

 

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