Thank you note

Beside all the drivers who generously gave me a lift, there is a long list of people I would like to say thanks to, who make this trip just a bit more special than planned 

Anja and Frank Muller (Germany) - Amazing reception even Frank is about to migrate to USA and Anja only just got into town that night.


Balázs + his family (Hungary) - Absolutely brilliant time on the hill picking mushrooms and traditional wine making.

Mehmet (Turkey) - Excellent Couch Surfer in Istanbul who let me stayed and kept me fit through his weekly football game.

Araz + Erfan (Iran) - Fantastic time at the party and during my first climbing trip in Southern Iran after meeting through Couch Surfing.

Inder (India) - http://hitchhikingindia.com/ - Thank you so much for all the great tips on hitching and live translation over the phone in India!

Inga (India) - Looked after me when I was sick the entire time I was in Mumbai.

Matthias Grallert (Nepal) - Convinced me to go to Pokhara instead of Kathmandu.

Steve Yong (Malaysia) - Great haircut and looked after my every needs in Kuala Lumpur.

Ha Noi + Nanning + Guangzhou + Hong Kong! (10-01-11 to 13-01-11)

After a much needed good night sleep, I was up early, carrying my prepared signs (3x towns in between and 1x sign says "I have no money" in Vietnamese) with the knowledge that the next 750kms from Hoi An to Hanoi is going to be tough and cold. It started slow as most cars out-bound were taxis filled with foreign tourists, but no more than 1.5 hour I was at the main motorway toward the capital.

With another stroke of luck, the first vehicle stopped for my aid was a sturdy gas tank truck, would take me all the way on this epic 24 hours journey. It could have been a 12hours trip if I was in a car, but the comfort of the two drivers' bed together with their hospitality (Refused to let me pay for my meals) got me through the day with ease.

When I got to Ha Noi it was around 5 degree Celsius, with my body being used to the warmer sunny climate of South East Asia, plus having sent all my warm clothing home in Malaysia, it was clear I could no longer hitch.

So the next two days I was on 2 overnight train rides, while checking out downtown in between boarding.

I was in Hong Kong one day earlier than planned on 13th January, I wasted no time to start hitching again as the weather condition was far more acceptable. I stood in front of the bus stop of the busiest cross harbour tunnel, it wasn't long until my English sign and thumb got the attention it needed.



There you go, the trip ends just as smoothly as it started, I gave my mother a call, she immediately called a sicky to have Chinese Dim Sums with me and some of her colleagues. Good times.

Da Lat + Kontum + Hoi An (05-01-11 to 09-01-11)

With just 9 more days until my proposed date of arrival in Hong Kong, the phrase "hitching and more hitching" was the order of these 4 days, as I still have over 3,000 kms to cover. From Mui Ne I could have carried on the main highway north along the coast, but I took a more scenic route through the mountain roads in the west. With no time to visit any of the local villages that house a range of minority tribes, from local honeymoon hot spot Da Lat through Buôn Ma Thuột to Kontum, took me 2 full days hitching for under 500kms of twitching quiet roads.

Bright shoes shop in Buon Ma Thuot

Rubber plantation outside Kontum, Vietnam

Hitching became tricky on a rainy day Kontum and Quang Ngai, a local grocery stores delivery truck took me half way, and I stood outside his hut store, having lost my location without Google Map, I watched the road for an hour with only 4 vehicles came by.



So when the jam packed (34 people on a 16-seater) minibus came by, I had no shame jumping on.

After arriving in Quang Ngai around 6pm, I was determined to carry on hitching to resort town of Hoi An 150kms away , after loading up few pages of Google Maps using free WIFI from a local hotel, I was at the edge of town waiting for a ride. A nice local business man took me to the edge of town until a truck toward Da Nang let me in, with the intention of dropping me at the junction toward Hoi An.

A puppy was placed on the rubber band shelf behind a seat on the packed minibus, Vietnam

 Rain begun to fall hard and we stopped for dinner before the 2 drivers swap shift, few kilometers drive after dinner, One Hitch Wonder had his darkest hours. We watched as a young moped rider slipped 20 meters in front us on the opposite lane, too late to steer away, our driver slammed on the break but unable to prevent the moped rider hitting us head on. Without any first aid experience, all I could mustered was "Fuck, fuck, fuck", feeling slightly guilty as this random event could be avoided had I not been hitching on this truck. The injured rider was quickly taken to hospital while being semi-conscious by a nearby motorcyclist, while our driver sitting on the back to form a sandwich to keep the rider in position.

Police shining his torch on a pool of blood after our truck hit a moped head on, rider survived, Vietnam

First police to arrive were from a routine check spot not far away (These checkpoints were where I witnessed countless of corrupted cops taking money from truck drivers), while the other truck driver that stayed behind was clearly distraught, he then followed the police to the station after evidences were collected. I had a good chat with one of the police from the checkpoint in English, as I was left on the motorway, I walked toward him, explained my need to be in Hoi An that night. He wasted no time to begin asking trucks that stopped if they would allow another passenger, handing over a warm sandwich and water while I wait on the side. Although it felt great after 10 minutes and I was on my way again, but I still have my reserve for the local cops.

Arrived at Hoi An around 1:40AM, nearly 18 hours of hitching I was ready for a good night sleep. It was then I found most hotels were full. Lucky I bumped into couple of Austrian girls, who were leaving for the airport in 2 hours, they took me to their hotel, agreed that if there wasn't a room, I could stay at theirs after they left, providing the sleepy caretaker had no issue. Luckily for me it was all fine, so at least I had a free night of accommodation after a long day.

Next day I decided to rest from hitching and looked around town

Workers putting sign up to remind their people who they are, Hoi An

Busy local boat, Hoi An

Battered stadium, Hoi An

Ho Chi Minh City - Mui Ne (03/01/11 - 04/01/11)

On the other side of the border I hitched a ride with a full tour bus, a size 0 plastic stool was passed to me as I head toward the tail end. I waited until a busy district before I asked to be let go as I didn't have a map, plus hunger was beginning to get the better of me. A Chinese hole-in-the-wall noodle place was just on the other side of the road, where I unleashed my Cantonese again since Thailand, saving my broken Mandarin for another day. As this much needed food was making its way through my system, I put on a compulsory helmet and was on my way toward backpackers center Pham Ngu Lao.

I was immediately approached by a guesthouse owner, I went along on a narrow street but found his windowless offering too stuffy. He then suggested me to stay at his neighbour's far superior hotel (Can't say he saw them as a competitor). There I met Mike Ha from Florida, who dropped his stable career to travel through Vietnam while trying to pick up her mother's mother tongue language. We had a good chat and agreed to check out some local food the next day

Mike Ha at the lobby

Grilled fish round the corner from my hotel

After mastering how to cross the motorbikes filled streets, I personally found Ho Chi Minh City a little too polluted after a good walk out of the center, but Reunification Palace was definitely worth a visit.

Saigon River looks clean from this angle and distance

Reunification Palace

Cinema @ Reunification Palac

Small reminder of where you are

The following morning I was to hitch toward a Russians concentrated beach resort Mui Ne to meet a friend Arnas from Lithuania. Luck was on my side as the first car stopped to my aid was heading to Phan Thiet, just 15kms short from Mui Ne. Things got even better with a local ambulance providing the last leg of the journey, and I hooked up with Arnas and his gang.  It was a great night with drinks and jokes shared among these young Lithuanians (Less and less apparently). They were so kind to invite me to ride moped with them to another beach town Nha Trang up north couple of days later, but I was happy to stick with my plan to hitch through the Western mountains.

Nice civilized meal with the Lithuanians gang, Mui Ne, Vietnam

Drinking from a bucket, Mui Ne, Vietnam

Phnom Penh + Ho Chi Minh City (01/01/11 - 02/01/11)

Hitching out of Siem Reap on New Year Day was surprisingly easy, as there is only one road to Phnom Penh, a short motorbike ride to the edge of town, I introduced the rider the meaning of hitching before a local tour guide picked me up for the first 30 kms. He gave me a run down of Cambodia's happier recent events such as good harvest, Trans Asia Railway development and temples to be opened to tourists around Angkor Wat, I sure got my money worth for the ride.


The remaining journey was possible thanks to a Romanian expat couple who are living in China, gave me a smooth ride to Phnom Penh along with their son and his GF. After bidding farewell outside their hotel, I found myself a room just near the main square, where I had burger and chips before checking out the local raving it out in public.


Syncronized dancing in Phnom Penh, Cambodia from Man Hon Luk on Vimeo.

Next day I was on my way to Ho Chi Minh City as I found PP rather dry, another motorbike ride to the edge of town, and before I got off the bike, my sign and thumb already attracted this wierd woman with eccentric laugh traveling with 2 guys while another car of friends behind in close pursuit, when they offered pay the moto rider, I thought they were safe. Within minutes of traveling, this lady became touchy and the laughs were intensifying by the minute, soon after the male passenger on my side also showed his passion with a few strokes on my back, I jumped out of the car during a toilet break at a gas station and they were on their way.

I was lucky to have a local truckie taking me all the way to border, we shared a few laughs and even some grasshoppers, which are tastier than first thought.

My truckie friend on the right being friendly

At the border there were 2 queues to Vietnam, one you leave the passport on the desk and wait your turn, while another so called corrupt passport control express line, you include 10,000 dongs (50 US cents) and you are straight through. Most of the Viets on my dry line were probably the losers at Cambodian casinos just minutes before.

Siem Reap Part 2 (28/12/10 - 01/01/11)

Beside the temples, I also visited Cambodia Landmine Museum, a modest display of the grim effects of nearly 6 millions mines, booby traps and bombs still left scatter in Cambodia. It was created by former child solider Aki Ra, who did not know his parents, real name or birthday, so he just picked a name and date and stayed with them. He is now one of the top mine clearing master in Cambodia and his foundation also look after kids who have been affected by the mines, it was difficult for me not to feel lucky having had no experiences of war and the sheer pain they inflect on humanity.

When I got back into Siem Reap it was time for a good massage after 3 days of running around, I picked Seeing Hand Massage, where all the masseuses are blind (There is no welfare in Cambodia for them), the hour service was firm to say the least, I felt a few kgs lighter after, just in time for New Year Eve celebration.

Janet and Kitty from Bangkok got in just before midnight and we had an awesome time at the street party dancing to some horrid tunes (ATB's 9Am Til I come etc) with non-existence Djing skill. A party is a party, right?

Cambodia Landmine Museum

Aki Ra clearing a mine

A figure on a front lawn not too far from landmine museum

These are petrol by the liter, not extra virgin olive oil

Siem Reap Part 1 (28/12/10 - 01/01/11)

Siem Reap is small town of merely 30,000 locals, most are there to serve tourists from all over the world who are bringing in the US dollars (Might as well be the official currency as its widely quoted and accepted) to visit the mighty Angkor temples complex. After several decades of instability in Cambodia (Part 1 & Part 2), I was more than please to chip in to maintain the heavy economy of Cambodia's tourists Mecca ($40 US for a 3 days pass, $12 for a room at a decent hotel and $8 for day trip with a local moped driver).

With little studies of the history among the temples, only knowing they were built over a span of 6 centuries between 800 to 1400 A.D. a succession of kings from the Khmer Empire in various styles and materials, I turned my focus toward the intricacy of the designs and the sheer scale of their achievements. I found 3 days was just about enough to absorb it all without a tour guide on my side, with the second day I cycled through some of the sites over a 40 kms ride. Here are some shots

Angkor Wat in sunset mode

Bryon

There were over 50 ants crawl onto my body during this picture

Moody local girl at one of the temple

Banteay Srey