Day 71
Today is our only full day in Saigon so we get cracking quite early, we have a Mexican breakfast before setting off with our little paper map towards the War Remnants Museum...and get promptly lost. I'm going to blame the heat. Our obviously looks of "Where the hell are we?" attract the attentions of a buggy driver (we call them buggys but they are a carriage on the front being pushed by a bike at the back) We have both avoided these the whole time we have been away as they can be expensive and you can look a bit silly in them but in the heat of the morning and the fact we had no idea where we were, we took him up on the offer. Ben sits down first and I'm on his lap which is uncomfortable for both of us and it's clear as soon as we set off the guy doesn't think it's such a good idea either as it struggles to get up the slightest of hills. Cue his mate turning up and I transfer over, it's an alright ride but nowhere near the overpriced £3 each they charged us when we finally got to the museum. Note to selves, remember when you think your going to be tricked, you probably will be.
The museum is set over a few different areas and we start in the main building on the top floor. The first part is a brief, slightly biased, history on the lead up to the American war and the countries, I think, fair fight for independence. The next section is a photo collection which includes photographers from both sides and it's quite moving and harrowing go look at. Half way through here the museum closes for lunch so we pop down to a coffee shop to cool down and try and process it all. Nothing I've seen the whole time we've been in Vietnam makes me think the war was anyway justified and it's hard not to blame the wests bullying ideals, a sentiment that just seems to keep repeating itself.
Once back inside we take a look at the war crimes section and the effects of agent orange on the people and their generations afterwards. It all gets a little too much and we move past the rest of the museum quite quickly. Before we leave we take a look at a harrowing reconstruction of a prison that the Viet Con were held in, it comes complete with real bats. We grab a taxi back (so much cheaper than the buggy) and cool off, whilst taking everything in we've seen today. Dinner is Mexican again as I am craving an enchilada, then we shop and play some pool (28-21) I wish we had taken longer in this city as there seems so much more we could explore but alas we leave tomorrow for a whole new country, Cambodia.
Day 72
After we pack this morning, we head out to find some breakfast and stumble upon a very delicious bakery. I get my cheese fix and Ben his pastry and pizza. It's not long before we have to be at the tour office to get out bus across the boarder. This one isn't a sleeper but actually that's quite nice. We haven't got our visas yet for Cambodia as you can do it through the bus company, 10 minutes into the journey the conductor comes around and takes our passports and $35 ($30 for the visa, $5 for his services) the 2 couples in front of us and one behind decide that the $5 is too much and want to do it themselves at the boarder. We had looked into doing it this way but it looked a bit of a hassle and the $10 extra was worth not having the worry. The conductor tries to convince them against it but they stand firm and we watch curious to see if it can be done.
We arrived at the boarder about 2 hours later and we are told to get off the bus and wait with loads of other people for our names to be called out. The conductor then gives the big pile of passports to the Vietnam customs guy to stamp. The Do It Themselvers (DIT's) have to wait in a queue separately and get their own passport stamped. We wait for 5 minutes before mine and Ben's names are called first and we get back on the bus. The DIT's are already on there, looking all smug. Everyone else starts to slowly gets back on the bus, this is when another conductor comes up to the DIT's and tells them they need to get off now and make their own way to the boarder if they are going to have enough time to do their own. The irony here being the transport to the boarder is $5. They refuse, saying the bus will wait for them. The guy shakes his head and walks off but me and Ben both agree, the bus won't leave without them, it's a scare tactic.
The bus moves along through the boarder crossing for about 5 minutes before we reach the Cambodian side. The DITs get off first and rush to a window to start getting stamped. We are ushered through, have a few checks and then we are back on the bus. It takes less than 10 minutes to do everyone and suddenly we set off, leaving the 6 DIT's behind. We both look at each other a bit shocked as all their bags are still here, the conductor hasn't got on yet and we haven't got our passports back so we assume he's looking after them and will meet us at the food stop which is a few minutes from the boarder.
At the food stop, we just grab a few drinks and get quickly back on the bus as we don't trust him to do a head count. The conductor gets on and hands out our passports with our snazzy visa and the bus drives off. Without the DIT's but with their bags. We're both in shock but Ben points out, he did warn them.
A couple of hours later we arrive in Phnom Penh and we grab a tuk tuk to our room. It pulls up at a dingy bar and I think the driver has the wrong place when the staff point us to the back where the stairs to hostel are. The place gets dingier as we walk up the stairs, there's a guy getting tattooed in the reception and the place stinks of weed. A sullen English guy is on reception and is obviously the source of the smell. He checks us in and takes us to Room 8 "The best room" and opens the door to a cramped, unbearably hot room that stinks of weed, which we realise is because it has no closing windows and looks over the common area, urg. It's also dirty but on the plus side the mattress is nice and it's ensuite, every cloud and all that. We turn on the fan but it just blows hot air around so we leave the room in search of food.
The room has given me a thunder mood which I just can't shake off, so we head out in search of the night market and I instantly cheer up. Our tuk tuk driver is a young lad named John and for €15 dollars he offers to take us on a tour tomorrow and we take him up on the offer. At the market, we grab a few souvenirs and I eye up a Playsuit before we go in search of a pool table. We find a bar just around the corner and duck in only to realise it's a hostess bar. It does have pool though and we decide we can handle her sitting and watching us playing badly (32-23)
When her attentivness gets too much we grab our bus tickets to the beach in a few days time and grab a tuk tuk home, just in time as the heavens open as we do and it's amazing to see. The rooms ever hotter and smellier when we get back and has the added beat and noise of the bar downstairs. The noise shuts off at 1 but the heat remains and we both don't sleep much.
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