Cambodia and Laos

Saturday November 13, 2010.

The planning of this trip started way back. November 21, 2003 I bought a book at the Hong Kong airport to kill time on flight KL 888 back Europe. It was "The Civilization of Angkor" by Charles Higham. It's about archeology, epigraphy and history.


Tomorrow I'll be there, but first we'll be going from Bangkok to Siem Reap.

Our trip will continue to Laos. First Vientiane and then Luang Prabang before we go to Thailand and end up on "The Beach".

"The first I heard of the beach was in Bangkok, on the Ko Sanh Road."



So this will be two different trips in one.

I'm not here buying elephants or catching flies for a circus in Moscow.

Sunday November 14, 2010

We had a trouble free flight to Siem Reap and a smooth immigration process with our e-visas. Our hotel is a former residence of a French ambassador - good, but not luxury.



Blogging on a noisy internet cafe in the local night market with a letter free keyboard is not easy.

Today has been a full day at Angkor.

What a surprise it must have been to the visiting American's who discovered that the temples are all real and not a film set for a Tomb Raider film!

Angkor Wat



Bayon temple in Angkor Thom with 54 towers all with four smiling faces



Images from the spectacular Ta Prohm temple entwined with enormous trees







Did I see Angelina looking at me from that door or............?



No I didn't.

Then we headed for the Siem Reap night market.




Monday November 15, 2010

Visiting Kbal Spean and Banteay Srei. Montezuma never was here, but one of his distant relatives took revenge today. A quick cure with modern chemicals did miracles together with steamed rice, vegetables and coke for lunch. On our way to Kbal Spean we got a full insight in what a Honda scooter can take of goods and passengers. There are of course Suzuki and all the others, but nothing is like a Honda. Its long flat saddle carries five people or a farmer bringing three pigs to the market or whatever you could think of. A short hike brings us to Kbal Spean where a king once had the source of the river blessed by carving pictures of Hindu Gods and symbols in the rocks. The hike is on a safe and mine free path, but sadly enough innocent people are still seriously hurt or killed by land mines each year.





From the source of the Siem Reap river we headed for the Banteay Srei temple with remarkable carvings in pink and yellowish sandstone.



Monkeys and Garudas at Banteay Srei.



In the evening we had a booking for a tourist trap - one of these "eat as much as you like and watch a trad dance show". We stayed to the end because we had to pay our bill.



The girls were nice, but they were wearing much more clothes than those at the palace.




Tuesday November 16, 2010

Visiting a floating village and three temples. Pictures and a story to follow.

Heading through the sumps towards open water and a floating village.



A floating village has a floating school.



Living conditions in a floating village are not just like home, but very different both for people and pigs.



Floating General Store and home for a storekeeper and his family. This guy has engineering skills.



The local restaurant with an outdoor terrace



School is over for today and the kids are rowing or paddling home



After lunch we headed for the Rolous temples east of Siem Reap The last temple we visited was Bakong. We climbed to the top and from below we heard music and discovered a wedding party.



A young Khmer girl suddenly appeared from behind a statue asking for a dollar. I said she could have one if I could take her picture. I gave her one dollar and took this picture



Who is she? What did she do on the top of the Bakong temple? Can her parents afford to let he go to school? Do they have the money needed to bribe the teachers?

What are her dreams?

Wednesday November 17, 2010

Paul Theroux's strange, unique, and hugely entertaining railway odyssey has become a modern classic of travel literature. Theroux takes us on Asia's fabled trains - the Orient Express, the Khyber Pass Local, the Frontier Mail, the Golden Arrow to Kuala Lumpur, the Mandalay Express, the Trans-Siberian Express - on a journey that takes us on a loop eastbound from London's Victoria Station to Tokyo Central, then back from Japan on the Trans-Siberian. Passing by Vientiane he writes something like -

The brothels are cheaper than hotels, marijuana is cheaper than cigarettes and opium easier to find than a cold glass of beer.

Today cold Beerlao is served on every corner.



Thursday November 18, 2010

Today we went from Vientiane to Luang Prabang. The morning was spent walking the streets of Vientiane. In the afternoon we arrived in Luang Prabang just before sunset. After a couple of hours rest we set of for the night market to get some food. Under sea food I found "khai paen" - not really knowing what is it and hoping for fried fish. Well, it's not fried fish..


...it's fried Mekong weed (not sea weed) with sesame, garlic and tomatoes served with sticky rice. Strange and different you could say. By the way - I ate it all!


Friday November 19, 2010

The highlight of today was the Morning Market with all kinds of food. The Lao people eat everything - they would probably even try a MacDonald's burger at least once. I saw several ladies making and selling "khai paen". I'm really thinking of bringing some home.



The market has food for all tastes included bamboo worms, small birds, crabs and rats.

Or maybe you would like to buy a duck?



Saturday November 20, 2010

Traveling on the Mekong on a longboat is relaxing and comfortable. Somewhere in the jungle we visited a secret factory.



On our way we passed by a prison where, according to our guide, those who smoke opium and other substances and other criminals are detained. I'm freezing - once I smoked everything!



Sunday November 21, 2010

For the next week we stayed at a beach on Koh Samui.

Let's drink to the death of a clown.

My makeup is dry and cracked on my chin
I'm drowning my sorrows in whisky and gin
The lion tamer's whip doesn't crack anymore
The lions they won't fight and the tigers won't roar



So let's all drink to the death of a clown

The old fortune teller lies dead on the floor
Nobody needs fortunes told anymore
The trainer of insects is crouched on his knees
And frantically looking for runaway fleas

Let's all drink to the death of a clown

Thanks to all that has been following this blog.
Now it's all over.

My time at the Circus is history.

It has been sad to see the results of incompetent leadership at the Circus.

A wise man said that the mature fruits finally falls to the ground.

Let's hope that mature (or rotten) fruit will fall to the ground!

All the best to all of you!

There's a place

There is a place,
Where you will go,
When you feel low,
When you feel blue.

I think of you,
And things you do,
And when you go,
The way you go,
To Teriberka.

Look forward to test the newest environmentally friendly Teriberka style SUV!



While you are there, we recommend a visit to the Fisherman's Club. This is where you will find the authentic Teriberka folks.



This young fisherman's daughter had to dress up in a fishing net for Saturday's local disco. As you know it's cold up there and fishing nets are not the most warming outfit. This area really needs new jobs and new development.



The villagers are waiting for the gasmen to arrive. This will bring money and fun. Night clubs and discos are popping up all over the place and the ladies leave work early to properly prepare for parties. The gasmen are coming!

Blue Men in Foggy Towers

The Moscow Winter Poetry Festival recent took place at the Writers Palace:



There is a place in Moscow town
Where creatures move around
You cross the river further down
And creatures will be found

But don’t get scared when they appear
‘cause all are looking blue
Just make a cross and then you swear
But this you have to do

The place is called “The Foggy Tårn”
It suits the place so well
You enter there and are forlorn
Don’t try I sure can tell

The blue men hide in “Foggy Tårn”
Disturb them not, I pray
They walk around, no thought is born
But watch your back, I say

There is a place in Moscow town
Where blue men still exist
Their influence will let you down
And you must but resist

You wonder how I know so well
The way of bluish men
I know so well their causing hell
‘cause I was one of them

Get rid of the boss!

Clowns, line dancers and acrobats! It's time to get rid of the Circus Director! Be creative and have fun while doing it.



So, where do you think your boss will end up - heaven or hell? Well, it's not for us to judge, but we may have an opinion.



The show must go on and clowns, line dancers and acrobats all need some nightly entertainment. Saturday night or more precisely Sunday morning at 2 am G Bull dressed up in one of his favorite outfits and headed for Rai - one of his nearby clubs.



Cues were long and face control strict, but that was not a problem for Bull. Fortunately one of his friends had forgotten her mascara in Bull's apartment.



Visitors from around following the blog just now.



Here in the Circus we have a few dwarfs. One day a stupid idiot knocked one of our friendly dwarfs in the head. He hoped to get 40 gold coins having read on the web about dwarfs becoming gold coins when knocked in the head. You should not believe everything you read on the web!

Where do we end?

Where do we go when we die? Some would like to think Bergen is the place and rightfully you could question if that's for the good ones or the bad ones. Some hope going into orbit and some may well go into orbit.

Tiocfaidh ár lá

We believe in changes for the better.

Tiocfaidh ár lá, as a friend of mine will say.

Circus in BIG trouble!

Blind and deaf have discovered that the Circus New Development is in BIG trouble. Will we remain a powerful Circus or will we end up as a Tivoli?

Once again the big guys may meet or not to make some big decisions.



Once again the black cars may roll up and again all others will be requested to park their cheap cars at a good distance from the New Development main building.

Below a peaceful and quiet surface on a cold winter day in Moscow the heat is on and it's boiling.



Circus or Amusement Park - that's the main question. It's reason to believe that the transformation from a lively Circus to a Virtual Amusement Park will be smooth as cream. From reliable sources we know that Circus representatives recently visited Euro Disney for inspiration.

The virtual "roller coaster" will be tremendous. You'll never ever experience a roller coaster with such high highs and equally low lows.



In this roller coaster it's your mind and taught that does the travelling - up and down. Experienced Circus workers know this. Even the less experienced have had their trips.
You can ride in the morning - even before getting out of your bed, during days and evenings and after going to sleep at night.
And best of all it's free of charge, but unfortunately very tiring for those riding all days and all nights.



Kids of all ages love carousels with horses turning round and around in circles. Not too fast, but in a slow and friendly pace. This is a well known situation for Circus workers.
Moving around in circles - nicking and nodding - is very much like being a carousel horse.



Some of our Circus friends look into street artist opportunities with its advantages and downsides. The main advantage is that you can make a living in all the nice places - Rome, Barcelona, Madrid, Paris, Buenos Aires, Berlin, New York, Wien and Sydney and the downside is that you have to be damned good to survive.



Fortunately there are other opportunities.



From Foggy Towers we hear that the Circus Agency is opening up a new Circus in Elbaq. For this new venture or adventure all kind of Circus workers will be needed. Circus workers in the old Circus New Development will be offered work in this new Circus New Development. This new Circus will be even more challenging than the old Circus. Cultural training is a prerequisite and at the same time not a guarantee for success.