We left Pnomh Penh for Vietnam December 27th and immediately noticed a difference in the scenery as we drove through the country to Saigon. It was much cleaner in that there was less trash along the road and storefronts, and things seemed a bit newer. It makes sense since it seems that Vietnam is more of a developing country and Cambodia is still a third-world country. Even from the window of the bus, it appeared there was more infrastructure in place in Vietnam.

This became more true as we got closer to Saigon and our hotel – modern buildings, new cars, wide boulevards and pristine parks popped up everywhere. We were ready to explore the city! Continue reading →

Once we arrived in Pnomh Penh from our homestay, we all ran for the showers in our hotel. This was by far the lowest quality hotel of our trip. It was small, dark and the shower was in the same space as the rest of the bathroom, meaning the floor was always wet and gross. Nonetheless, the shower had Sean and I feeling refreshed and we ventured out on our own to a lunch place Dyka recommended that was only a ten minute walk away. Famous last words… Continue reading →

On Christmas Eve, we departed Siem Reap for our homestay. We’d been told by Intrepid Travel that this would be a way for us to experience life in rural Cambodia, as we’d be staying with a family, eating dinner with them, etc. Sean and I were very excited about this – it was a big draw of this particular trip. We knew it would be no-frills, but other than that we didn’t really know what all to expect.

Continue reading →

When Sean and I first decided on a general destination for our honeymoon, we had looked at Thailand and Vietnam. Once I found the Intrepid Travel website, I was torn between an entire tour in Vietnam or a tour through Southern Thailand that ended in Singapore. Somewhere along the way, Cambodia and Angkor Wat entered into my research. The more I read about this place, the stronger I felt that I couldn’t be so close to this mysterious and amazing world history and heritage sight without seeing it.

The ancient temple city was a huge focus of our tour and Dyka was an amazing guide. Not only was he incredibly knowledgeable about the history of this mysterious place, but he also knew all the best little spots for great photos – and often got us there before the crowds came. We were loving all the shots with no people in them!

Continue reading →

We left Bangkok at 6.30am on Sunday, December 21 and headed for Cambodia. We were excited, but still tired from our long travel days and flurry of activity in Bangkok so we slept a good bit on the bus ride.

We crossed into Cambodia from Thailand at Poi Pet, which I later learned is famed for being a lengthy and annoying process. Dyka had us give all of our luggage to a local who piled the bags into a cart. We all watched a bit nervously, but  Dyka insisted the man was completely trustworthy. We didn’t have any options, so we had to trust that this was just the way things were done here.  Continue reading →