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When I had the opportunity to use frequent flyer miles for an overseas trip, I decided to use them to go over a different sea than usual for a trip to Asia in November 2002. Here is a report on that trip to Hong Kong, Macau, Vietnam, and Cambodia.
TRIP TO ASIA, NOVEMBER 2002
Amc2004-09-13 14:42:34
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it took me a while to see that my bag was already there. I went out to the exchange booth; I had read that prices were routinely listed in U.S. dollars, but it was handy to get Cambodian riel for things under a dollar. I changed $20 and got 76,000 riel all in 1000-riel notes; my wallet no longer folded when I got that in, but I managed to get it into my pocket.
In the Internet era, I’ve usually had my lodging booked before my arrival; now I had something of a nostalgic return to the need to locate something upon arrival. I had printed out the hotel list from the online version of a free guide to the area (although I never saw the booklet). I looked over the options on the plane; many new hotels and guesthouses were being built as the country becomes a tourist destination, but many of them are out of town. I wanted something centrally located so I could strike off on my own; from the list I made a first choice of the Mekong Angkor Palace and a second choice of the Red Piano. At the airport, people representing hotels stood outside the fence, holding up signs. I spotted one for the Red Piano, asked the guy the rate, he said $15 and I agreed to it. A man behind him said he’d bring his car over to take me. So I got in and found that he didn’t represent the Red Piano; he said that hotel was noisy and, if it was full, we could try the Mekong Angkor. I said that I would actually prefer the Mekong, so we went there. The Angkor temples are scattered around the area and one needs a means of getting to them. I had vaguely thought of hooking up with a tour, but didn’t know how easily that could be done. The driver proposed taking me around for the duration of my stay at $20/day, and I agreed to that.
The Mekong Angkor Palace hotel was new, set back from Sivatha Blvd. Their rate was $25/night. (There were also guest houses marked at $4-$8.) There were some Angkor-themed decorations, but I felt that the place had the soulless
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See photographs from:
Vietnam Gallery
,
Macau Gallery
,
Hong Kong Gallery
,
Cambodia Gallery
