“Once you have travelled, the voyage never ends, but is played out over and over again in the quietest chambers. The mind can never break off from the journey.” Pat Conroy
Nothing is more liberating and humbling than taking yourself out of your comfort zone and diving into something that may or may not be a complete disaster. Such is the gift of travel. At least traveling the way some people do. I prefer not to make set plan and instead opt for a loose blueprint that may or may not include places to stay and transportation to get me there. This past month I was fortunate enough to find myself in Cambodia and Vietnam. To be fair, this trip was less of a blind mission because I have friends living in Vietnam that I stayed with for part of my visit. Other than that, I flew by the seat of my pants; for the most part, this worked out amazingly. As entertaining as it can be to hear what went wrong during a trip, I will mostly stick to the things that went very smoothly.
Although, I will say that the biggest lesson I learned in both countries is that you have to ask for the check at a restaurant or you will literally sit there all day. The servers won’t leave your side the entire time you are browsing the menu and eating but as soon as it seems like you are finished and ready to go, they are NOWHERE to be found. Seriously, it’s comical. In Asia it’s rude to bring the bill so you have to hunt down the check every time. I firmly believe this should be at the beginning of every guide book but I digress.
Days 1-3 and then days 12-14 took place in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Remnants around the country are a reminder that Cambodia was under control of the Khmer Rouge just 30 years ago, but Cambodians have such a good disposition. The economy isn’t great (they still prefer US dollars), and poverty is quite apparent, but everyone I came in contact with was so nice and helpful.
The rest of the trip was spent in Vietnam. First in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) and then in the spectacular coastal town of Hoi An. Ho Chi Minh was fascinating and exhausting. The idea of walking across the city was daunting simply because it involved crossing the street. Crosswalks do not exist and if they do they are not obeyed. Basically, you step off the curb and start walking, hoping that the motorbikes and cars will dodge you…and they do! It’s an amazing dance that takes place between the vehicles and pedestrians. At first I thought it was complete chaos, but if you watch closely every move thats made is very calculated. That being said, I still said a little prayer every time I stepped off the safety of the sidewalk (which isn’t always safe either as the motorbikes use it as an extra lane during rush hour.)
My favorite part of the trip was a day of climbing in Da Nang. Just outside the town of Hoi An are The Marble Mountains; the hot spot for the newly developed sport climbing scene. It is situated on beautiful granite and limestone cliffs, and if you venture into the mountain you will find caves with carved buddhas throughout. It really is a magical spot. Since the anchors are situated in a really unique spot, it isn’t open for public climbing so we found two guides through a local tour company to bring us into the area. The routes we climbed on were newly bolted and they ranged from 5.4s to 10a/b. The area where we climbed wasn’t particularly challenging, but we were there to have fun, scramble around, and enjoy the beautiful scenery. It was perfect.
All in all, this trip was everything I could have hoped for. As much as I adore traveling, I came home with a newfound appreciation for the digital walking man on stoplights and the option of some form of bread for breakfast.
Until we meet again, Asia!
– Stacy Steirnagle • Mesa Rim Front Desk
Mesa Rim Indoor Rock Climbing San Diego ^^ A Community Blog 