This is the Asian leg of my Summer 2019 Bucket List trip.
🇹🇭🇰🇭🇭🇰
31 July
2:20pm (Bangkok time) - 11 hours later, we’ve landed in Bangkok. Maybe it’s the exhaustion from traveling but I’m finding these long journeys sitting in one place surprisingly enjoyable and napping, listening to music, and watching a bit of tv is passing the time a lot quicker than I thought it would.
2:45pm - Get off the plane as quickly as possible (no bathroom breaks!) to avoid lines at immigration. As my friend said, it really is quite easy; you fill out a form on the plane, the staff in the foreign passport line check it and your passport and you’re through, simple.
3:20pm - After searching, on the cheap S1 bus (60 baht - $2/€1.78 vs a $16/€14.84 taxi). Check with the other backpack wielding passengers and no-one has bought a ticket yet or knows the departure time. With limited WIFI I was able to do a google search and it seemed like it went every 30m, we’ll see
3:39pm - After a huge family group gets on, we’re off.
4:45pm - The bus stops on Chakrabongse road in the central Phra Nakhon district of Bangkok. It’s adjacent to Khao San road, the “backpackers heaven” with lots of shops, hostels, and restaurants that turn into bars for the throbbing nightlife scene. I have a hostel booked for my stay on Chakrabongse but the job search meant I have booked a hotel on Khao San so I can do my interview. I check-in, drop off my hostel towel in my 8-person room and head to my hotel.
4:57pm - After once again an incorrect google maps location and being approached by many hawkers seeing my suitcase and hoping to capitalize on my tourist confusion, I eventually find my hotel for the night right on Khao San. I get a towel + sweet drink when checking in and my bag is carried up to my 2nd-floor room in my elevator-less part of the hotel. For $22/€20, this is a great one-night luxury.
5:18pm - At a nearby restaurant for an “early” dinner (my internal clock is so messed up that it just knows it needs some food)
6:15pm - Pass out for a nap as I have to be up later.
10:30pm - After a good sleep, venture back outside onto the now very busy Khao San road for a snack at the nearby 7-eleven. 7-eleven convenience stores, inexplicably, are all over Asia (I had seen them in Tokyo and would later in Cambodia + Hong Kong) and a good place to get relatively cheap snacks, drinks, etc. I get what looks like Oreos and a 1.5-liter bottle of Coca Cola. I don’t like fizzy drinks but had been told by my mom that drinking soda helps prevent any stomach bugs from eating food you’re not used to. This was news to me, but she had travelled around Asia for months when she was a few years older than me, so I figured I’d listen to her.
1 August
12am - I kick off the new month with a 45-minute Skype interview with San Francisco. It would feel a lot more glamorous if I wasn’t exhausted and doing a test to be employed.
12:52am - The interview finished and (luckily?) only now does the music from Khao San become really loud.
1:15am - I can feel the walls reverberating. I’m ready for bed and put in my heavy-duty wax earplugs (pro-tip: Ohropax - lifesaver!)
1:20am - Even these earplugs aren’t enough for Khao San road. I put on my noise-canceling headphones playing rain music over the earplugs and finally crash.
11:15am - I had considered going to my hostel free breakfast before it closed at 11 am but that did not happen. With a 12pm checkout, I quickly put on my bathing suit, go down to the lobby, and up the hotel elevator to the 6th-floor pool. It’s small but has a view of the city and it feels great.
12pm - After a speedy swim, I check out and head to my hostel. The woman at the front desk looks at my suitcase in confusion but I show her my hostel keys and climb the 3 floors to my room.
12:45pm - I quickly put my bags in the under-bunkbed locker and make sure to wear a sleeved t-shirt and the requisite thin long pants for temple hopping in Asia (though not the elephant pants most tourists wear). I venture out from the Khao San area to explore more of the Phra Nakhon “Old Town” district of Bangkok. I cross a very busy roundabout and pass a bunch of large, colourful government buildings.
1:10pm - I get to the tourist entrance of the Grand Palace. Thai nationals have their own, free entrance while tourists pay 500 baht ($16.33/€14.88) for access to the 0.24 square km/0.1 square mile complex (for reference the whole complex is 2.5x the area of the palace of Versailles, not including the gardens). I hadn’t faced this but had been told that nearby tuk tuk drivers might try to convince you that it’s closed and then take you to tourist traps but didn’t see anybody.
1:15pm - After a short queue (August is rainy season in this part of Asia and thus not high tourist season), I get my 4-part ticket with access to the complex, the temple of the emerald buddha, the arts of the kingdom museum, and the “khon” masked dance show.
1:17pm - I realize I spoke too soon about the crowds as I push through the throngs of people to get into the temple section of the complex. There are signs indicating separate lines but no physical barriers so it’s a swarm to get in.
1:20pm - Immediately on walking in, I see beautifully ornate buildings and shrines with lots of shiny colors. There’s a lot to see and after grabbing a map from the many stacks in different languages, I spot a small podium between the piles that said free tours in English 10/10:30am and 1:30/2pm. This seems like a great opportunity, so I put my name down and peruse the map of 35 attractions in the complex, with a description for each.
1:30pm - A tiny but commanding staff member grabs our attention and gives an introduction to the palace using the map for reference. It’s 60 acres/24.4 hectares and has 20,000 visitors every day. It was the official residence where the Kings of Siam/Thailand lived from 1782 until 1925.
1:45pm - Our tour guide took us around a less busy way to see the central Wat Phra Kaew or Royal Chapel of the Emerald Buddha. We take off our shoes to go up the platform and though not allowed to take pictures inside the temple, our tour guide shows up the best place to take a picture from outside of the tiny Buddha on a much higher platform. She explains that the 66cm/2.17 ft Buddha has a gold costume that is changed by the King every season (hot, cold, rainy). He goes up the tall platform to do this change and the newly crowned King had changed the Buddha to its one-shoulder rainy season costume 2 weeks prior. Each golden costume costs a staggering 60M baht/$1.96M/€1.79
2:05pm - Our tour guide points out the large “Yaksha” guardians that ward off evil spirits, in particular, the ones that point towards the Emerald Buddha to protect it. Finally, we all get pictures and then a brusque goodbye. A lot of information is in the brochure but I appreciated the free tour, having it available right on arrival and the insider tips. The guide warned against going through the gate to the palace as you are then not allowed to go back to the temple part.
2:40pm - After wandering around the many colorful shrines and tombs, I take a break along the edges with the beautiful golden-lined murals of the Rammakien (Thai version of the Indian epic Ramayana). It’s quiet and there are water fountains that are greatly appreciated in the August heat (though not as bad as expected as it’s cloudy and not terribly hot).
2:50pm - I walk through the gate of no return to the palace section. The main attraction is the Chakra Maha Prasat Hall with beige walls, gold plated roofs, and large ocean blue doors. This was the royal residence for King Rama V in 1877 but is now for state banquets. You can’t go in but you can walk around it and its surrounding smaller shrines and buildings.
3:15pm - I leave the complex and walk down the road along the Chao Phraya River past the Navy buildings and Navy Wives Association Shop to a market/restaurant/tourist shop street to finally eat some food - my jet lag is running rampant.
4:20pm - I go to the nearby Wat Pho temple complex, the second of the top 3 temples in Bangkok. These buildings have white walls vs. the gem-covered walls of those in the Emerald Buddha complex but the roofs are gorgeous, there are many colorful tile chedi (or stupa, bell-like towers), fountains with lush trees, and courtyards lined with large buddha’s.
4:37pm - Go into the central “para ubosot” or ordination hall where there is a large gold-copper buddha. This temple is decidedly less strict and busy than the temple of the emerald buddha; close to the later 6:30 pm closing time there is plenty of space to sit, your legs only have to be covered just past your knees, there’s a very friendly man encouraging you to sit as close as you want, and you can take pictures. As I sit, I learn that you have to sit cross-legged or on your knees as your feet shouldn’t face the Buddha.
4:55pm - Wondering around, I realize I’ve missed the main attraction that Wat Pho is known for - the temple of the Reclining Buddha. It’s a huge golden statue that’s 46 meters/151 feet long and 15 meters/49 feet high and the building is just larger than the statue, making it feel even larger. There’s a constant plinking sound which is a bit disorienting.
5:05pm - Coming around the Buddha’s feet, there’s a long chain of 108 bronze bowls where for a fee you can get coins to drop in them for luck.
5:07pm - Outside of the reclining buddha there’s a tent for the Sirivadhanabhakdi foundation with piles of small water bottles. I spot “1 free water” in the fine print on the ticket and enjoy the much-needed free hydration as I leave Wat Pho.
5:30pm - I wander through the nearby Saranrom park where American/European 2000’s dance-pop is playing and many locals are running through the park. It’s nice and green with mini lakes and I then walk along Rop Krung canal back north. There are barely any tourists here and I enjoy the quiet.
6:15pm - I get to the really busy roundabout from this morning and brace myself to cross
6:30pm - There is no pedestrian light and the car light is green forever. The number of people starts to grow and there is a police officer who occasionally directs cars but seems unfazed by people waiting. I guess this is the norm. Eventually, the light turns green and we are allowed to cross.
7:35pm - After chilling in my hotel, I venture to the eastern and modern part of Bangkok. I have quickly learned that public transportation is in development in Bangkok. The airport bus is relatively new and there is the very clean and efficient Skytrain/BTS connecting the eastern district which is useful for tourists but to get around the old town or from one end to other, non-public transportation is the best and an affordable option. Upon the recommendation of my friends, I have downloaded the Grab app. Uber came to Thailand in 2014 but was very quickly declared illegal, they lasted pretty long but transitioned their services to the Singaporean Grab in 2018, which is used over South-East Asia. It’s technically illegal for drivers as they are unlicensed (as I was to vividly find out later - check the entry for 5 August) but it is very widely used and there are ads for it all over the city. It’s highly recommended as it’s easy to use, relatively cheap, and helps you avoid the frequent scams from taxi and tuk-tuk drivers. It does require an internet connection which is fine from a hostel/hotel but as I was about to find out, not as easy in public spots.
8pm - At Siam Paragon, one of Bangkok’s many gorgeous and huge shopping malls. This downtown steel and glass metropolis is wildly different from the low, colorful buildings that surrounded me not a half-hour ago. It’s also a peek into the income inequality as this is a huge mall with expensive shops and a doorman letting you into the building - and this wasn’t even one of the “luxury” malls. I’m meeting a friend who’s from and lives in Bangkok but I realize that we hadn’t agreed upon a specific location.
8:30pm - After wandering around the mall desperately looking for a functioning WIFI. Unlike most of Bangkok, there were the “free” phone carrier WIFI’s that are only available to people who pay for that carrier and about 20 “free” shop and restaurant WIFI’s but none of them let me connect. After frantic searching desperately clutching my phone, I finally come to a help desk where a staff member gives me a username/password. I find my friend and we head to Laem Charoen, a seafood restaurant upstairs.
9:10pm - We get a plethora of delicious-looking dishes that my friend had picked out. They also have a large, flat fried fish specialty but luckily for me, the fish to bone ratio was much better than in Hungary (check the entry for 25 July).
10:15pm - Stand with the crowds of people catching a taxi outside the mall. It takes a while so I have time to think about how there’s very obviously a lot of people waiting for this illegal service and wondering about the legality of it.
10:40pm - Driving back to the old town area along the canal and near the democracy monument is a beautiful drive as there are lots of lights in the trees lining the roads that I’m only used to seeing in winter. There are lots of people out and about and people sitting at bars/restaurants along Maha Chai road which looks really fun.
2 August
10:30am - Grab that free hostel breakfast. There’s not much besides cereal, eggs, and toast but bread and jam+ butter are just what you need in the morning.
12:05pm - I walk west to the Phra Arthit boat terminal stop 13 to take the ferry down the Chao Phraya river, seeing similar sights to the day before. I had done my research and found that there was a cheap local ferry that went to most stops and a tourist ferry that is expensive and goes to the tourist highlights. As a solo traveler on a budget proud of the now 8 new cities under my belt, I was determined to take the local ferry.
12:20pm - This is a lot harder than I thought. I get to the small pier and there’s only the tourist boat ticket booth with nowhere to buy other tickets. Luckily this tourist spot has free WIFI and after some more scrolling at online maps of the “orange” ferry routes and much scrolling of trip advisor reviews, I determine that the boat quickly docks every 20 minutes and I have to get on the boat and pay there. Just as I’m figuring this out, I see an orange flagged boat float away out of the corner of my eye. Well, I’m not giving up now.
12:30pm - The tourist boat arrives and swaths of mostly European families board. I ask the one non-tourist boat staff member where the orange boat is and he points me towards the tourist boat. 10 more minutes till the supposed next boat.
12:38pm - I’m ready waiting and I spot a small orange flagged boat coming from north of the river heading towards us and a group of mostly locals is forming at the below level dock. I forcefully tell the staff member I want to be on that boat and run down the gangplank.
12:40pm - I’m on the boat - I’ve made it! I find a seat towards the front and a ticket seller finds me and I pay the required fee - 15 baht ($0.5/€0.45). One ride with the tourist boat is 50 baht and a day pass is 180 baht. So, you can take the express boat 18 times to more places for the price of a tourist boat day pass!
1:05pm - I get off at stop 10 and walk to the nearby Wat Arun aka Temple of the Dawn. Apparently, the boat occasionally stops on the other side of the river and you have to take a (free) ferry across but I pass this stop multiple times throughout the (Fri)day and there was no issue.
1:10pm - I pay the 50-baht entrance fee and walk into the palace complex. Known for being beautiful at “dawn” or sunset, I’m there when it’s cloudy in the afternoon but it’s still beautiful. The complex is even smaller than Wat Pho with one main 3 level tower in the middle and smaller ones around it. However, this might be my favourite of the temples I’ve seen as I love the white tile with many small multicolored details and mirrored jagged corners.
1:25pm - After walking around, I climb up the base level and then the steep stairs to the second level of the central tower. Walking around, I admire the detail and rows upon rows of slightly different carved figures.
1:45pm - I sit around the edge looking at the many details in this temple. I have to wear sunglasses despite the grey sky - I think because of the sheer whiteness of the buildings.
2pm - Wat Arun is the main attraction of this stop but I wander along the water and find two more smaller but beautiful temples - plus they were free!
2:25pm - I make my way back to the pier. Here there is a specific station to buy local tickets and I confidently buy my tickets for the orange ferry.
2:30pm - Back on the ferry chugging along the river.
2:42pm - The boat gets to the N5 Rajchawongse stop and I get out and wander around the streets of Chinatown with lots of stalls selling different knick-knacks, toys, clothes, etc.
2:50pm - Get to the main street Yaowarat Rd where there are more shops and lots of places to eat.
3:40pm - Having sampled a fried dough stick and sesame seed balls (tang yuan) in ginger broth, I head back to the ferry stop.
4pm - This stop has a lot of gangways with no signs in English but someone is selling tickets. Eventually I find the right spot and make the ferry back up to Khao San road just in time.
5:30pm - having dropped off my stuff at the hostel and with some time to before a late dinner, I head to Khao San to a massage place I’d seen that offered a foot/Thai massage deal for 250 baht instead of 150 apiece.
6:30pm - I get a mango smoothie from the best-looking stall all the way down Khao San road (which was also one of the most affordable).
7:30pm - I’m back in the “downtown” with my friend at Isao, a very trendy Japanese restaurant. It’s very busy and we don’t have reservations so we put our names down.
8:15pm - Our names are called and we make it inside. Looking at the menu, they have a lot of great sushi including rolls like the Caterpillar, Crunchy, and Sushi Sandwich.
8:35pm - Our food arrives and it’s delicious.
9:30pm - We walk the 6 minutes to the nearby Em Quartier mall. I’m shocked that this mall has shops like Pierre Hermé and Jamba Juice that I’ve only seen in France or the US.
9:43pm - There is an indoor fountain
9:51pm - We take the many escalators up to the top floor and there are large spiraling staircases, hanging floral arrangements, a water garden, an outside green hangout space, and a rooftop bar. I’m in awe of this place.
3 August
10:50am - I take a Grab car to the Khlong Lad Mayom floating market on the western side of the Chao Phraya river. I’m asked to sit in the front so the police don’t catch us.
11:30am - We arrive at the market parking lot and it is rows of stalls under a thatched triangular roof. Most stalls are selling produce or snacks but not necessarily full meals.
11:40am - Walking down I find rows of wooden tables along the water. Three women are making food in a boat that’s moored along the side of the market.
11:45am - I eat my beef noodles and enjoy the novelty of eating food made in a boat. Afterwards, I buy some beef skewers and fried banana at nearby stalls.
12:15pm - towards the back of the market is someone selling boat tour tickets.
12:25pm - I’m on the water in a long colorful boat. From this vantage point, I can see the market is a lot bigger than the first part and goes on for a while. A very friendly family offers me some of all of the snacks they’ve bought at the market.
12:40pm - We’re cruising past long grass with the occasional house or shrine.
12:50pm - We stop at a local market which seems made for the tourists from the boat tours. There’s not much there, most things are in English and the Khlong Lad Mayom market is huge and relatively close by.
1:20pm - We’re back on the water going past lush vegetation and palm trees
1:35pm - We’re dropped at an orchid farm for another 20-minute stop. There’s a shop right when you get out but venturing further back, there are rows of colorful orchids under black netting and you walk on wooden planks between the rows above the water.
2:10pm – We’re back at the floating market. I walk through the throngs of people to the fruit section, meat, etc.
2:45pm - I’m back at the parking lot with rows of taxis. It’s a miracle but there’s a free WIFI point - I arrange to meet my friend downtown (the wonders of modern technology), call my grab and head to downtown.
3:20pm - We meet at yet another mall Central Embassy as my friend wants to show me the Bangkok mall culture. It’s the “luxury” mall which is evident due to the small numbers of people and the luxury flagship shops. We stop at Koi Thé (international brand of the Taiwanese 50 LAN) and I get salted caramel milk tea with “golden bubbles” which is incredible .
3:30pm - We realize that both of us actually really want to see the new Lion King and we decide to go back to the Siam Paragon mall as they have a large cinema. This also gives me an opportunity to try the BTS Skytrain.
3:40pm - We enter the station and I’m asked to throw away my drink as there is no food/drink allowed on the train.
4:10pm - We get to the cinema and want to get 4:30 pm tickets but are quickly told by an attendant as we’re using the computer screens that it’s a kids showing with toys and a very rowdy audience. Upon his advice, we get tickets for the 5:15pm regular time slot and go to the huge food court in the basement to get another boba.
5:30pm - After the ads and before the movie, there’s a pause and a picture of the King of Thailand comes on the screen. My friend explains that you have to stand while a song plays honoring the King. I never thought I’d experience this kind of cultural event at a cinema.
7:30pm - Having thoroughly enjoyed the movie, the rest, and the childhood nostalgia, we head to the food court for dinner. There’s a whole semi-circle of Thai restaurants and lots more international food past that.
8:30pm - We both head back to my hostel as another high school friend with her university friend just came back to Bangkok after a 2-week trip around Thailand.
9pm - we meet the two and get ready to explore the real Khao San road nightlife.
10:30pm - We’re at a street-side table outside one of the many restaurants/bars having literal buckets (handles and all) of drinks.
11:30pm - There don’t seem to be any actual nightclubs but the bars are all playing loud pop western music and people are dancing on the street, it’s definitely the place for a good time.
4 August
3pm - Having had a very relaxed morning/afternoon post the night before, we head back to the decidedly less lively (it is a Sunday after all) Khao San road for lunch
4pm - I take my two non-Thai friends to the Thai massage place as we’re not looking for anything particularly strenuous.
6pm - We meet our friend from Bangkok at Chatuchak/jatujak Weekend Market, a huge market that sells flowers during the week and lots of clothes, food, etc. during the weekend.
7:30pm - It’s our last night in Bangkok and we have a delicious dinner at Kub Kao Kub Pla. We eat emoji buns, noodle dishes, and different fried foods.
9pm - Dinner was delicious but dessert at After You Dessert Cafe was the main event. We have a delicious kakigöri or Japanese shaved ice with strawberries on top and an incredible chocolate toast with challah/French toast like bread covered in chocolate, strawberries, and ice cream. A great way to end the visit to Bangkok!
5 August
7:30am - We have an early start to catch our flight at the smaller Don Mueang airport. We wait at the bus “stop” (there is no sign) a few minutes from the hostel but no bus arrives.
7:45am - It’s getting too late to wait so we call a grab.
7:50am - Right as we’re getting in, a police officer on a motorcycle drives to us and talks to the driver in Thai. After some back and forth the driver takes their license etc. and walks to the police station, which we then realize is right across the street.
8:00am - The driver comes out of the station with a fine in their hand and we’re on our way. I guess grab really is illegal
8:50am - We make it to the airport and rush in as we’re now running a bit late.
9:10am - After checking in our luggage, we go through the foreigners’ passport control and security. The officer asks for my departure card and remembering that I filled this in upon arrival, I dig through my folder of travel documents and find it, phew.
9:20am - Turns out my friends don’t have their departure cards and after being turned around for a while, we find out there’s a station in the back of the area where you can fill it in and it’s all fine.
10:45am - After a slight delay, we say bye to Thailand as our plane takes off.
11:40am - A short flight later, we land in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
12pm - Upon arrival in the very new and spacious airport, we head to the visa upon arrival station. I wait in the long line and I discover my travel mates had done it in advance, which I did not know was possible. Cambodia uses US dollars in addition to the riel (4000 riel for every USD) and it’s $30 for a visa. I get dollars at the ATM with my American card and for once am not worried about exchange rates.
12:50pm – Everything took a lot longer than expected and the airport has cleared with everyone on our one flight by the time we get our bags. We head to the exit where you tell the staff member at the taxi desk which hostel you’re going to and they find a taxi driver for you. Bangkok had some public transport but there is none to be found in Siem Reap.
1:20pm - We get to our hostel after our taxi driver has offered to drive us to a floating village that night as one of the many paid trips he organizes. We are unsure and offer to call him but he definitively says he’ll meeting us at the hostel at 4pm. We say yes for now and head inside. We have a spacious air-conditioned 4-person room for the three of us and flop on our beds for a rest after our early morning and hiccupy travels.
3pm - I, as I’m wont to do, do extensive research into the floating villages. I read about one close by that costs $20 to see on top of the $15 drive and is a big tourist trap with scams using children and a voyeuristic tour. The ones further away seem somewhat better but are 1 to 2 hour drives away and cost more than you expect. I let my friends know and we decide not to go. We consider going to the sunset at Angkor Wat but end up being too late before the ticket office closed at 5:30.
5:45pm - We head to a “steakhouse” right across from our hotel. It’s very enticing as it has huge comfy chairs and things like fries and pasta on the menu. I briefly feel bad for not being more active and adventurous but all three of us have been travelling in very foreign places for a while and we’re all pretty weary and looking for home comforts. Plus, we have a very early start tomorrow so I feel less guilty.
7:15pm - After a very satisfying and relaxing dinner, we walk down “pub street” with lots of neon signs, bars, and restaurants.
8pm - We hang out on our hostel rooftop for a bit and enjoy the sights/sounds of Siem Reap.
6 August
4am - The alarm goes off. We have scheduled a non-guided tour of the reason that most people come to Siem Reap - Angkor Wat and the Angkor complex. It’s known for its sunrise so we get ready for the early start.
4:30am - We meet our tuk tuk driver for the morning in the lobby and he drives us to the ticket office. All the other people on the road are tuk tuk drivers with tourists to see the massive temple complex.
4:45am - We get to the massive ticket office, get our pictures taken and pay the $37 for the Angkor Wat day pass. Now that it’s in my local currency I can concretely understand how much money this is. However, it’s $37 for 24 hours (starting at 5pm the night before) to see the largest religious monument in the world. Angkor was the capital city of the Khmer empire, a Hindu-Buddhist empire that was the predecessor to modern-day Cambodia. Today, the ruins of the city make up the UNESCO World Heritage site of Angkor, with the temple Angkor Wat being the main attraction. Angkor Wat itself is 1.62 km2 and 0.63 miles2 and is on the flag of Cambodia. It’s an important part of the country’s history and with tourism making up about 20% of its GDP,
5:15am - The tuk tuk driver drops us off at the Angkor Wat temple. It’s already getting busy and lighter by the minute so we rush to the water to the left of the bridge, making sure to get a spot with a good, straight view of the temple with few lily pads in the water.
5:40am - I wasn’t very impressed with the sunrise at first, I think mostly because I was a bit grumpy that early in the morning and while the sky was getting lighter, Angkor Wat was dark making the details not show up in my pictures.
6am - Now I was impressed. As it got lighter and less cloudy, light and colors were coming through the sky and Angkor Wat became more defined. The reflection started really coming though in the reflection in the water and the colors were gorgeous.
6:10am - it’s fully light now and we head across the bridge into the temple. We look back to where we came from and a rainbow came through the clouds!
6:20am - We pass through the first entrance wall and come to a huge open space with a long walkway leading to the center of the temple. We explore the temple, following signs with “way of visit” or “possibility of visit” to different hidden nooks or squares and up and down steep steps in the huge square complex. It probably would have been nice to have a tour guide for some background but we hear plenty of other tours and the size and grandeur of Angkor wat is enough to keep you occupied if you don’t have a tour guide.
7:10am - We come into the center tower where you can go up. There’s a very long line and we have to meet our driver soon so we skip it and head back to the parking lot.
7:20am - We’re back in the tuk tuk on the way to the next temple or part of the greater Angkor complex.
7:35am - We get to Angkor Thom which is much smaller than Angkor Wat but similar in size to the temples I’d seen previously. There were many stone slabs in and around the temple and it had a maze-like interior which we explored. This temple is particular as it has lots of huge faces on its many towers.
8:15am - We’re back in the tuk tuk
8:25am - We’re dropped off at a restaurant which is clearly the Angkor tour spot as there are only other tourists and tuk tuk drivers. There’s more traditional rice dishes on the menu (though clearly for tourists) but I need my breakfast foods for my first meal of the day and I have some pretty incredible pineapple pancakes.
9:15am - We’re off again and our tuk tuk driver enthusiastically tells us that we’re going the tomb raider temple. He’s very clearly disappointed with our blank stares and lack of enthusiasm. I know marginally more than my travel mates and explain that I think it’s where tomb raider aka the Lara croft movie was filmed, which was met with recognition but unfortunately, no uptick in enthusiasm. I suddenly remember seeing an “Angelina Jolie” restaurant at Angkor Wat, which now makes a lot more sense.
9:25am - We get to the “tomb raider” temple, aka the Ta Prohm temple. The facades are similar to the Bayon temple but it’s more secluded and has a lot of hidden courtyards. What really sets it apart is the large trees with roots growing in and over the temple. The roots are so high up and large that you can stand in them and they are all over the walls, making the temple feel like a part of the forest.
10:30am - We visit the last temple Banteay Kdei, which is small and pretty similar to the previous temples. The short walk straight through the complex is a nice bookend to our temple tour.
10:40am - We leave our last temple and head back to the hostel. We can’t believe it’s 10:40am and we’ve been already up for over 6 hours.
11:15am - We’re back at our hostel and we spend the next few hours hanging out and recouping on the lost sleep from our early morning. There’s not much else to do in Siem Reap town itself and we were all templed out.
4:45pm - We have a late lunch/early dinner back at the same place we had had dinner the night before.
5pm - We’re waiting for our food in the empty terrace when a tuk tuk driver stops on the side of the road, a normal occurrence as they wait for passengers. However, unusually, he turns to us and after some random talk starts serenading us with Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect.” He sings for a while and then as the restaurant staff start to come to see what was happening, he drives away. Probably one of the weirder travel experiences, if not life experiences.
6:30pm - We spend the evening hanging out and talking over our travel experiences.
7 August
10:30am - We’re having brunch at - big surprise - our favorite restaurant across from the hotel. No serenaders this time and we enjoy a hearty brunch before we get ready to leave Siem Reap.
11am - We take a grab (which is also in Cambodia) with our luggage to the Giant Ibis main terminal (which is different from the Siem Reap bus station) to take our Giant Ibis bus to Cambodia’s capital of Phnom Penh.
11:15am - We get on our spacious and air-conditioned bus with our pre-booked tickets. Tickets are available for purchase upon departure but there aren’t that many seats in the bus and while ours wasn’t full, they can be.
11:30am - We set out and drive south, looking out over the Cambodian landscape.
2:45pm - We stop at a rest stop for a quick break. It’s only half an hour but it was just enough time to have some lunch
5:45pm - The country landscape starts to get more urban as the buildings get taller and more frequent.
6:15pm - We enter Phnom Penh. It’s very different from Siem Reap as it’s clearly not a city dominated by hotels/restaurants for tourists.
6:30pm - We get to the bus station and take a grab to the hostel.
8pm - hankering for some pasta, we find an Italian restaurant called La Dolce Vita near the Royal Palace. I get my favourite - garlic bread - and we enjoy some wine and delicious pasta after our long day of traveling.
10:30pm - Walking back from the restaurant, we walk on the Samdach Pan avenue with lots of outdoor restaurants and bars with music playing and lots of light. This seems like a great place to hang out.
11pm - We go to our 10-person mixed hostel room to get ready for bed. Together we’d been in mostly smaller, female-only hostel rooms but this is a new experience. The lights are off and we try to be quiet while getting ready for bed. There are two men who are significantly older which is unusual for a hostel; one is above me and the other in the bunk next to me. The one next to me yells at us and other people in the room for making noise. Luckily other people in the hostel step in and say that we’re being quiet and it’s what you should expect from a hostel. Things are fine otherwise but it is a bit uncomfortable and makes us very aware that we are young women travelling alone in a foreign country.
11:55pm - No sleep yet for me as I’m about to have my nth interview. Luckily it’s a phone call (through google hangout) and so I can be in my pyjamas in the dark at the closed bar.
8 August
12:30am - Done with my interview, I creep back to the room and go to sleep.
5:40am - My alarm goes off (under my pillow so the man next to me doesn’t yell at me) and I creep out to the empty bar and find a spot on a couch by the pool with my laptop
6am - I start my skype interview; luckily it’s early in the morning so there’s no background noise. With all these interviews, I’m very happy I’m a morning person as I can answer hypothetical situational questions this early in the morning.
6:45am - I finish up with the interview and luckily the hotel staff only now start setting up the bar. The person I was interviewing with didn’t even realize I was calling from a Cambodian hostel at 6 in the morning. I go back to the room to get a few more hours of sleep.
9:30am - We have breakfast at the hostel bar and get ready for the day. We’re going to sites of the Cambodian genocide so we prepare ourselves for an intense day.
10:15am - A lobby staff member calls a tuk tuk for us and we drive to the first site of the day
11am - We arrive at the Choeung Ek Genocidal Center south of Phnom Penh. This is a museum at the site of the Killing Fields where many of the up to 3 million people (25-33% of the population) were murdered during the Khmer Rouge regime under Pol Pot. An audio guide is included with the entrance fee which walks you through the site explaining what happened here and showing the mass graves. The experience is very interesting and I feel that it’s very important that I’m here learning about this major event but it’s a very harrowing experience.
12:30pm - The audio-guided tour ends at a 17-story stupa (dome-shaped building used as a Buddhist shrine). This stupa contains 9000 skulls of people killed at the Killing Fields and placards show the sex and age of the people who the skulls belonged to in addition to noting the weapon that caused cracks to the skulls.
12:45pm - We walk to the nearby museum which contains different artifacts and shows pictures of the leaders of the regime and the people killed in the genocide, including 9 foreigners.
1:30pm - Our tuk tuk driver has driven us back to Phnom Penh and drops us off at the Tuol Sleng (Hill of the Poisonous Trees) Genocide Museum. This museum is located in a former secondary school which became Prison 21 during the Khmer Rouge regime and where an estimated 20,000 people were imprisoned.
The multi-story buildings contain the cell blocks, torture chambers, paintings by former inmate Vann Nath depicting scenes of torture, pictures of the torture chambers, and accounts of particular prisoners, including two who survived.
3pm - We head back to our hostel after an emotionally exhausting day.
3:30pm - We consider venturing out into Phnom Penh or relaxing in our hostel pool when it starts to rain really hard. Though it’s the rainy season in Asia, this is surprising as not only is this torrential rain, but I’ve barely had rain in both Thailand and Cambodia. The rain seems fitting with us our being worn out and we decide to hang out in the hostel bar and talk over the day. I’m happy when my travel-mates suggest a snap as my lack of sleep with interviewing starts to wear on me.
4:30pm - we spot the angry man talking to a staff member and it seems like he’s being told there have been complaints about him. His bed is made and his bag is gone so we wonder if he’s gone to a different room.
7:30pm - we’re back at the Italian place from the night before having a relaxing meal on our last night in Phnom Penh, in Cambodia, and travelling together.
10pm - we’re packing our bags when the angry man comes back into the room. He stands still in front of us for a minute and then walks between us to get ready for bed. We look at each other and silently decide to come back later.
11pm - after getting some dessert at the bar, we go back to the room and finally go to sleep.
9 August
8:15am - I’m up early as I have a solo flight to Hong Kong while my travel companions are heading to southern Cambodia.
8:45am - I grab a mango smoothie and some breakfast at the bar and my travel-mates come to wish me goodbye. I call a grab and head to the airport.
10:15am - I arrive at the pretty empty airport, check-in, go through my security showing my Cambodia visa, and board my plane.
3pm (2pm in Phnom Penh) - after a comfortable 2.5-hour flight, I land in Hong Kong. This is my last stop before heading back to the US and I’m excited to explore this city I’ve heard so much about. I’m also wondering what it will be like with the demonstrations against the proposed extradition bill - it’s currently a Friday going into the 10th weekend of protests and the tension is building. A friend who was supposed to be coming with me had cancelled her trip - she was not alone as tourism in Hong Kong (5% of its GDP) had dropped a lot in the last few weeks, especially as the bulk of tourists come from mainland China.
3:30pm - walking out of the plane and past baggage claim, I walk into the main hall and suddenly spot huge crowds of people dressed in black sitting on the floor. There are lots of cameras, banners, people shouting into megaphones and handing out flyers. This was the first day of the airport protests and so this was a big surprise.
3:45pm - I head to the city ground transport section and buy a ticket for the A21 bus. My sister had come to Hong Kong last year and had given me her Hong Kong dollars, making this very easy. She had also given me her Octopus travel card which I realized later I could have also used. I walk down the line of buses where everything’s very organized and I get into the spacious, air-conditioned “city flyer” bus. There’s plenty of space for me to put my luggage and it has free WIFI.
4:15pm - The airport is on Lantau Island (also the location of the Big Buddha, check 12 August). Hong Kong and its environs is a series of interconnected islands and I’m excitedly taking lots of pictures of the landscape and tall buildings in the distance.
4:30pm - I arrive at Tsim Sha Tsui station in the Tsim Sha Tsui area of Kowloon, the area of central Hong Kong which is north of Victoria harbor. I’m spending two nights in the bustling, older and more traditional part of Hong Kong and then three nights on the more expensive Hong Kong Island across the harbor, with its business district and the huge skyline of skyscrapers, huge metal/glass shopping malls, and evidence of the large expat population. This area of Kowloon, however, has many tall buildings and is very busy. After some searching, I eventually find my hostel, a few rooms on the 5th floor of a tall apartment building. This feels very Hong Kong as the non-airconditioned lobby mirrors the sweltering heat from outside (a big change from my experience in Thailand/Cambodia) and the air-conditioned hostel room is a 6-person room that’s a 1/4th of the 10-person room in Phnom Penh with triple bunk beds.
6pm - after getting settled and figuring out my itinerary (I have to get used to travelling alone and making my own schedule), I head back out and head north up the Nathan road which runs up the middle of Kowloon. I walk close to the shop side as then I can feel the strong air-conditioning coming from each shop. In my research, I had found that the bubble tea place that my friend had shown me in Bangkok was (only) in Kowloon so I head there and get my favorite salted caramel milk tea. I sit in the nearby King George V Memorial park (one of the many legacies of British colonialism) to drink my boba in the cool shade.
6:30pm - I get to Temple Street with its eponymous night market, a main attraction in Kowloon. Hong Kong and Kowloon in particular has many markets but the night market is a rarity. Officially until midnight but many are open till later, the street is lined with many stalls selling souvenirs, knockoff designer handbags, electronics which include the recent addition of knockoff airpods. Haggling is a must here and after I end up buying 2 colorful earthenware bowls at a definitely too high price, I peruse the other stalls and decide to postpone the hardcore shopping to when I’m more prepared.
7:30pm - I’m having dinner at Temple Spice Crab, known for their seafood. It’s very low-key with long metal tables and stools with a very extensive menu. Overwhelmed, I go up with fried duck - not quite seafood but still somewhat aquatic. I end up with very bony pieces of duck with nothing else but it’s still delicious
9:15pm - Hong Kong has free WIFI in most places that are actually accessible (a stark contrast from Bangkok) so I look for a dessert place. Of those on my list, surprisingly few things were open at this time on a Friday night. I end up at mammy pancake for a black sesame bubble pancake. It’s a small, unassuming stall with no sign in English which is tucked into a side street off Nathan Road but it proudly displays its Michelin guide awards.
9:30pm - I head to the Avenue of Stars along the harbor to see the Hong Kong skyline. On the way I pass a Morton’s Steakhouse (a Chicago classic), a Pizza Express (a family favorite from living in London), and a MoMA (Museum of Modern Art in New York) Design Store.
9:45pm - After going through an underground subway station to cross the busy street (and luckily escape the heat with air conditioning), I end the night at the Avenue of Stars. I gawk at the very long and impressive Hong Kong skyline and take plenty of pictures and time-lapse videos of the many skyscrapers with colorful light displays. The Avenue of Stars is Hong Kong’s version of the Hollywood Walk of Fame where different celebrities’ handprints line the railing.
10 August
6am - I get up early again for yet another interview. It’s a phone interview which is lucky as there are no private spaces I can call in the hostel, especially this early in the morning. I take my laptop to the toilet stall the furthest from the rooms, close the door and hope for the best. Luckily the WIFI service here is very good.
7am - Done with the interview which luckily for my tried brain wasn’t very intense, I head back to the room to get some sleep. The makeshift curtain which hangs lower than my bed on the top of the 3rd story bunk means there’s a lot of light in the room. This usually would make it very hard for me to sleep but my travel schedule has helped me gain the ability to sleep when I need to.
11am - I go to the Tsim Sha Tsui metro station across from my hostel to try the MTR metro (Mass Transit Railway) for the first time. I load up my Octopus card and go to the red line platform to go north on Kowloon to the Mong Kok area. A big fan of well-connected and organized metro systems, the MTR is very easy to use as it has many lines, it’s very clean, everything is in English, and each platform has a detailed map above the entrances that show the direction and stops. Inside the metro, a line map with lights at each stop makes it very easy to see where the train is going.
11:30am - get to Mong Kok
11:35am - Kam Wah cafe - milk tea + famous pineapple buns
(menu explains Cha Chaan Teng – Hong Kong restaurant with affordable (often fusion) food, retro décor and lots of people packed together)
12:45pm - walk up, mee & gee thrifting
1:10pm - flower market
1:30pm - Tim ho wan, cheapest Michelin star rated restaurant, seated at a group table
2:20pm - head in the metro on the green line to temple
2:35pm - exit, lots of signs
2:40pm - temple, beautiful, very different style from Thai temples, zodiac signs
3pm - good wish garden, bridges
3:15pm - taking metro east to Choi hung, going on an Instagram photo tour
3:35pm - find the 2-story parking garage staircase, walk up to basketball court on roof with view of a rainbow building, 30 people taking pictures and no-one playing basketball
3:55pm - on the bus south to a huge apartment complex
4:10pm - climbing 4 flights, get to rows of blue walls with circular holes
4:20pm - Bus, yellow lines to show where to line up for which bus
4:50pm - Hong Kong Museum of History, especially curious with demonstrations
5:10pm - Video of how the landscape was formed, skip through extensive displays of natural history to get to the social history, understand the development of Hong Kong
5:30pm - Huge structures of temples, houses, streets, government buildings
6:15pm - Walk back to the hostel, look at some shops
7:15pm - The restaurant had run out of most stuff, left
7:30pm - Dinner
8:30pm - On Nathan road to go back to temple street but people running in gas masks, ems staff said it’s unsafe, police
9pm - Hotel bar with live jazz by the harbor, drink by myself
10:15pm - Head back to the hotel, stuff is clear
11:30pm - In the hostel room by the station, hear people running
11:45pm - Huge group of police running to go on Nathan road
11 August
11am - Leaving the hostel today to head to Hong Kong Island. Check out time is 11am so I leave my bag at the front desk and head out for breakfast
11:15am - Waiting in line near Temple Street at Australian dairy company. It’s hot outside but in true Hong Kong style the line moves reasonably quickly
11:25am - As I’m getting closer, a server comes out asking for party numbers. As a single diner, I’m seated right away.
11:30am - What’s Australian? Get the custard + iced milk tea, sat at table with a mother/son + a boy
11:45am - Already done, I head back to the hostel, grab my bag, and take the MTR to Hong Kong Island.
12:30pm - Google maps has told me to get out at Central station and take the tram. hard to find
12:50pm - Check into the hotel room in Sheung Wan, staying at a 3 star but affordable hotel with a spacious air-conditioned room to myself for 3 nights, the best end of trip gift I could have given myself
2:20pm - Takes me a while to figure out what I’m doing but I finally head out
2:39pm - Cat street = an antique market, the area is very hilly
2:50pm - Trying to find Central–Mid-Levels escalator which is the longest outdoor covered escalator system in the world
3pm - Construction, find it
3:04pm - Trying to find jian dui (black sesame seed rice balls), Tai Chiong bakery was on my list + google said they had them but no luck
3:15pm - At TeaWood, Taiwanese dessert place, I go crazy and order fried oysters and an Oreo honey toast
3:30pm - Fried oysters, omg. Watching friends on Netflix on my phone and chilling
4pm - Oreo honey toast - wow, so delicious and decadent
4:45pm - Head out
4:54pm - Walking through Lan Kwai Fong which is the party district, see a sign that says “keep calm and drink responsibly”
5pm - Walking up a hill and past lush vegetation to get to the Victoria peak tram
5:10pm - The line isn’t super long but I bypass it with my octopus card
5:20pm - Tram up, beautiful views already, very steep
5:26pm - Get out, seems like you have to pay, use their free WIFI to find the exit
5:30pm - Peak Galleria shopping mall roof has a good view
5:45pm - Walk back to Peak Tower and take a left onto Lugard road, goes around the mountain, feels like you’re in a forest
6pm - Reach lookout view, perfect view right as clouds roll in
6:30pm - Having sat for a while enjoying the view, I walk back the way I came
7pm - Take small, bumpy 1 bus to central
7:20pm - Walk to the pier
7:30pm - Take the star ferry across the harbor back to Kowloon, beautiful view
8pm - Walk up Nathan road, I thought I could go back to temple street but demonstrators are back and police have blocked things off. Head back to hotel
9pm - Grab my favorite Oreo ice cream that I learned about in Bangkok from 7-eleven.
12 August
11:05am - Find Ma Sa, was told to go for breakfast to get spam/eggs on rice. Given lunch menu, ask for the dish and a picture is on the wall
11:12am - Omg, so simple yet so amazing, spam is unexpectedly delicious
11:30am - Get on MTR to get to Lantau island
12:15pm - Get to the sunny Tung Chung station, walk to the cable car entrance
12:30pm - Buy a one-way ticket and join a group in a cable car, going up over hills into the clouds
12:54pm - Arrive at top at Ngong Ping village, supposed to be authentic but lots of touristy restaurants/shops
1:15pm - Climb the 250 steps up to the Big Buddha, oof
1:25pm - Smaller than it looks, bit disappointing because the fog obstructs the view
1:35pm - Po Lin Monastery and Grand Hall of Ten Thousand Buddhas
1:55pm - See water buffalo wandering around
2pm - Waiting for the bus
2:15pm - Take the bus down the peak to Mui Wo ferry pier
2:50pm - Hop on the ferry just in time, next one is in 40 minutes
3:30pm - Get to central, MTR back to the hotel
6pm - At dim sum at Yum Cha with a girl I used to tutor and her mum
6:20pm - Get very cute buns with googly eyes
7:30pm - Take a picture with the cute bun pillows
8:15pm - Back on Kowloon, apartment overlooking the harbor, great view
8:30pm - Their building has a pool, swimming with an amazing view
13 August
6:30am - Another phone interview, have to stop and start because of bad internet
8am - Breakfast in the hotel, back to sleep
1pm - Last day so taking it easy, take MTR to Mong Kok
2pm - Having a chirashi bowl at Big Bang Don, expensive but delicious
2:45pm - Getting last-minute souvenirs at the nearby lady’s market
3:15pm - Last Boba at KOI thé
4pm - Get to Pacific Place mall, walk around
4:45pm - See a movie at AMC, very relaxing
7:30pm - Walk to Arirang Korean BBQ
8pm - Hard to order for self but delicious
9pm - Take the tram back to the hotel
9:30pm - Get an email to get to the airport extra early because of demonstrations, advised to check-in bags early at Hong Kong station and take airport shuttle but cheap bus is right next to my hotel. I got many messages from concerned friends/family members about flight cancellations but my flight seemed fine.
14 August
10:25am - Waiting for the bus, sad to be leaving Hong Kong
10:35am - Get on a11, similar to bus from the airport
11:05am - Get to airport extra early, see one reporter but otherwise very calm
11:30am - Having checked in, I walk to the airport gate. Wait there for a while and see news reports of extreme upset at the airport the night before and a subsequent protest ban at the airport. My flight is an afternoon flight so there don’t seem to be any protestors. See some flight cancellations but only domestic/nearby countries.
2pm - Flight leaves for San Francisco.
12pm (3am the following day in Hong Kong) - After 13 hours I finally land in San Francisco. I skip the visitors' line (yey US residency), quickly get my bags and get in a cab to my new apartment.
Sad my travels are over but excited to start my new life and be in one place.
P.S.
4 September
I went to Boston and New York for a quick visit before I started my new job, completing my around the world trip.
Comments