SE Asia ABD - 1/18-1/31 2025

[CaliforniaGirl09]

It really was! The Vietnam portion had some hiccups in the beginning logistics wise, and a few other snafus but Laos and Cambodia more than made up for any mishap. I'm glad I'm going back through all the pics again now months later. I need to do this more often after trips. We're always bustling onto the next thing... aside from some smaller trips closer to home we're supposed to be headed to Egypt and Jordan in November which has me stressed out as you can imagine! Its nice going back to a tranquil trip like this to remind myself to breathe and that its all worth it!

I'm sure you are! I look forward to hearing about that one. I, sadly, had to cancel our Viking cruise to Egypt in December. I will get there at some point! I hope they smooth out the hiccups in Vietnam and boy does this sound like a LONG day. Love the sunset hike though.

 

[AquaDame]

I'm sure you are! I look forward to hearing about that one. I, sadly, had to cancel our Viking cruise to Egypt in December. I will get there at some point! I hope they smooth out the hiccups in Vietnam and boy does this sound like a LONG day. Love the sunset hike though.

Oh thats a shame..! I hope you get there sooner rather than later if it is high on your bucket list. I checked our insurance policy and it seems very straightforward; cancellation kicks in if they go to a level 4. I was surprised Egypt is at 3 and Jordan still only 2 while missiles are going overhead and sirens go off due to possible falling debris. We'll see where we are at 30 days out.

It was a sunrise hike; I'm sure that's what you meant, but wanted to call that out in case someone reads this later and gets confused! We earned those views!

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

Oh thats a shame..! I hope you get there sooner rather than later if it is high on your bucket list. I checked our insurance policy and it seems very straightforward; cancellation kicks in if they go to a level 4. I was surprised Egypt is at 3 and Jordan still only 2 while missiles are going overhead and sirens go off due to possible falling debris. We'll see where we are at 30 days out.

It was a sunrise hike; I'm sure that's what you meant, but wanted to call that out in case someone reads this later and gets confused! We earned those views!

Oops... yes, what I meant! And I hope I do, too. Fingers crossed for you!

 

[AquaDame]

Day 11 - Angkor's Away!

My dawdling has finally paid off; Kyle has caught up with his editing so I have some nicer shots from his camera finally. Downside is the compression putting them up takes away so much...

Finally it was here - the day that so many were looking the most forward to! We were once again told to make sure our knees and shoulders were covered for our visit. At 7:45am we met up in the lobby to tuktuk over to the site and were at the complex by 8:15. We took pictures outside and crossed the Heavenly Gate. We were to meet back up with the tuktuks at 10am. Until then, we wandered, and listened...

Repairing the crossway of the bridge was started in '18 and finished in '23. This is the third time it has been repaired. We then went through the minister's gate to see a nicer statue and then wandered the grounds to the gallery with frescoes of dancers and the battle of Lanka (Ramayana).

 

[AquaDame]

Day 11 continued



Still a place of worship...



Still a never ending project...



Next we headed to the stairway to heaven and much more crowded conditions...



Disused stairway.



Our path to the top - we did have to stand in a hot queue for maybe 20 minutes. They would let a chunk of folk go and then wait until they all were inside before allowing more to climb. It was a constant stream up and down, and the queue was not orderly. You had to make sure people didn't constantly go in front of you as it was very wide. Not everyone went up, either due to the crowd or the physical strain of the climb. I'm sure heights came into it as well!



It was a nice view for those of us willing!

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

Amazing! Love the pics, too.