Cambodia tour, cambodia highlight, cambodia discovery, cambodia splendor, cambodia travel

We had an opportunity to visit Cambodia with a friend, and immediately we thought of going to Siem Reap and then to Angko Park. For those who want to see cultural highlights of Cambodia, a trip focusing on sites near Siem Reap should be well prepared in order to get the most out of this stunning region of Cambodia. Here is a drafted schedule to work on for a great trip:

 
Day 1: Phnom Penh Arrival
Land in the airport, get picked up and transferred to the hotel for a rest. Depending on the time, you can have a city tour of the Capital. Enjoy key attractions of the city at a glimpse.  Overnight in Phnom Penh

Day 2: Phnom Penh – Siem Reap
After breakfast, head to Siem Reap by air or by road. In the afternoon, begin our exploration of Angkor Park with a visit to the Rolous group, Cambodia's ancient 9th century capital. Overnight in Siem Reap

Day 3: Angkor Park
Start by visiting Angkor Thom, “the World of Gods”. Explore South Gate, the famous Bayon and the Elephant terrace. In the afternoon, tour the rest of the complex before making your way to the hill top temple of Phnom Pakheng to view the sunset over this timeless land. Overnight in Siem Reap

Day 4: Angkor Park
Drive to Koulen Mountain where you will find the great reclining Buddha, beautiful waterfalls and many original Siva writings. Enjoy a picnic lunch before visiting Banteay Srei and Banteay Samre Temples. Overnight in Siem Reap

Day 5: Angkor Park
This morning will be spent at Angkor Wat, marveling at the work of countless artisans over many centuries. In the afternoon visit the amazing Ta Prohm which has been controversially left to the destructive power of the jungle by French archeologists to show how nature can destroy man's work. End the day with the temples of Banteay Kdei, surrounded by four concentric walls. Overnight in Siem Reap

Day 6: Siem Reap
Today offers a change of pace, with a visit to the silk farm of Pok, the Artisan D’ Angkor and the Land Mine Museum. The Land Mine Museum is an important reminder of a tragic chapter in the history of Cambodia. In the afternoon, visit the Wat Bo Pagoda and the Old Market. Shoppers and bargain hunters will love the old market where they can purchase a variety of works by Cambodian artists and artisans.

Day 7: Siem Reap Departure
After breakfast, take some last minute shopping to buy souvenirs for friends and families. Then get transferred to the airport for your flight home.

Vietnam Street Vendors: Friends or Fouls

The street vendors are everywhere in big cities in Vietnam. They start work before the sun rises, carrying and peddling, offering their goods for sale and get back home late at night. They sell everything from flowers, fruits to foods, books and anything. Probably the image of Vietnam cities is street vendors, and as a tourist you would jump into a conclusion that scam risk is there. This article will investigate further into this group of people who earn a hard livelihood in streets of Vietnam.

Typical working tools:

 

The most typical tools include two baskets on shoulders, bicycles, cyclos, or sometimes just displaying their goods on the streets. In Hanoi, life seems so convenient. No matter where you are, you can easily get anything you need from the street vendors. They can make money by carrying a “quang ganh” (two baskets slung from each end of a wooden or bamboo pole), riding a bicycle or staying at a street’s corner.

Gender balance:              
Most ‘Street vendors’ in Vietnam is female who make their living by selling goods in the street. A significant propotion is male. Most are seasonal migrant workers from rural provinces. It portrays their daily lives, the difficulties and hardships they suffer to make a living, and their dreams for a better future. Many tourists salute these amazing people for supporting their families as well as the community, and the contribution they make to the society and the economy of Vietnam. Some do not, as they are afraid of scam risk.

Employment Context
The employment context of street vendors varies greatly. Many of them work long hours from the same site on a daily basis. Other vendors rotate among two or more sites, taking advantage of different types of clientele and different patterns of urban movement.
Low waged government staff or students also vendor. Some of them work on a more part-time basis, in weekly rotating markets or as seasonal vendors of specialty items. While some rely on street vending as a regular primary or secondary occupation, others vend only when an opportunity presents itself to earn extra income.
A variety of employment statuses can be found among street vendors. Most vendors work as independent self-employed entrepreneurs, either with or without employees. There are also many vendors who work as contributing family members, and some work as employees of informal or even formal enterprises.

Size:
In the Vietnamese cities of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, street vendors account for over 11 per cent of total informal employment. In these cities informal traders as a whole comprise 26 and 35 per cent of total informal employment, respectively.

Driving Forces
Like other occupational groups within the informal economy, the street vending sector seems to increase during economic downturns. While Vietnam economy is performing instably, and workers face the greatest increase in competition, the newly unemployed people turn to vending as a possible source of income to support their family.
Many of the working poor who enter Hanoi or Saigon streets vending do so because they cannot find jobs in the formal economy.
Other people take street vending because it offers a more flexible or even attractive employment option than wage or salaried work. Vendoring is a good way to avoid the costs of operating a formal storefront business. For many women, street vending is a more viable option even where wage work is available, because the flexibility of working hours allows them to fulfil their family need for dependent care.

Working Conditions:
Income and earnings risks are common to many street vendors. Harassment on the part of local authorities – including evictions, confiscation of merchandise, and demands for bribes – is a common source of income risk for street vendors. Vendors of seasonal goods do cope with fluctuations in supply and demand over time.
Many vendors must lift heavy loads of goods to and from their point of sale each day on their shoulders. The physical environments in which they work typically lack proper infrastructure, such as clean running water, toilets, and solid waste removal. They are also exposed to a high concentration of air pollutants and to inclement weather.These physical risks take a particular toll on young children who must accompany their mothers to vend in the streets.

Scam:
Tourists beware of street sellers who offer themselves to be photographed. They will pose with their baskets of wares balanced on headtops to be photographed or they will pass you their pole with basket of wares for you to carry and be photographed. After that, they will ask you to pay them a fee for taking their photo or using their equipments.
Lots of people are selling hats, books, fruits, flowers, postcards and t-shirt on the streets, following tourists from one place to another to sell their things. It's not always pleasant and tourists can't enjoy their walking tour because they constantly have to refuse politely from these aggressive sellers. Lots of sellers I've talked said that if they don't hassle people they don't sell anything and they go home empty handed.

Contribution to the economy
The most important point about street vendors is the large number of benefits they bring to the city and to the economy, which is often not recognized. They truly are the face of cities and they bring it to life; thus, many tourists are attracted by them to come to Saigon or Hanoi.
Street vendors contribute significantly to the local economy by providing reasonably-priced goods to the poor and middle class. This includes migrant workers, blue-collar workers and students who depend on them for daily necessities.

Helpful street vendors:
Street vendors are extremely hard-working and good people who have little income and little support. Each one of them has a story of their struggles that would touch your heart. Street vendors have really enriched expat experience living in Vietnam. They have always been open, friendly and easy to talk to, and have even taught Vietnamese to expats.
They are willing to share their life stories with those who ask and talk with foreigners without the least bit of shyness. Expats love walking down the street and seeing familiar faces and their bright smiles. It is so comforting because it makes them feel like they am part of a host community.

Journey to all World Heritages of Indochina

In an effort to draft suggested itinerary for those who want to see all three countries in a row, here is our first example: Indochina Heritage Journey. For detail and customised requirements, travelers can contact any agents to get help. 

Day 1: Hanoi
Your flight lands in Noi Bai international airport, 30 kms from Hanoi city centre. Our car will pick you up and transfer to a three star hotel in the Old Quarter. Depending on your arrival time, we will arrange tour activities that are most suitable. Once you have checked in, a short introductory meeting will take place to welcome you, and inform of useful itinerary, advice, preparations etc.

Day 2: Hanoi
We drive to Ho Chi Minh complex, spend a couple of hours to visit Ho Chi Minh mausoleum, stilt-house residence, the Presidential Palace and Ho Chi Minh museum.  We walk to the One Pillar Pagoda, the iconic Buddhist temple of Vietnam. We continue to the Temple of Literature originally built as a temple of Confucius. This is the site of the Vietnam first university dating back to 1070. The Temple highlights the importance of education. In the afternoon, we visit the Museum of ethnology, the most interesting museum in Vietnam, showing the diverse cultures of 54 ethnic groups in the country.

Day 3: Halong Bay
Halong Bay is known as a majestic and mysterious natural wonder. Imagine that around 3000 or more incredible islands rising from the emerald waters of the Gulf of Tonkin creating a breathtaking beauty. It is a pure art, a priceless collection of unfinished sculptures given by the nature. We take a four hour drive to Halong Bay before boarding on our cruise boat. We will cruise through remarkable limestone formations of Halong Bay. We have the opportunities to enjoy a swim, visits to stunningly beautiful grottos and do some kayaking. Overnight on the cruise boat will be a memorable experience for your group.

Day 4: Halong Bay-Hanoi
In the morning, enjoy some guided Tai Chi exercise on the sundeck. We continue sightseeing and cruising around Halong Bay, before turning to the harbor and driving back to Hanoi. Take your own time to discover Hanoi by night in the Old Quarter. Take a quick bite and board the night Reunification Express train to Hue. Enjoy Vietnam by night along the railway including city and rural life. Remember to buy some extra fruits and drinks to the train.

Day 5: Hue
Get off the train in the early morning to start discovering the former capital city of Hue, a World Heritage site, well-known for its imperial city, relics, and emperor tombs. We start with the imperial city where the last 13 Vietnamese emperors lived and reined the country: Ngo Mon gate, the Forbidden Purple Palace, The Mieu Temple. We pass by rice field and beautiful green hills to reach the tomb of Khai Dinh emperor. A magnificent place that buried the king is seen as a symbol of glory luxury lifestyle. Take a walk along the Perfume River to reveal a special character of Hue people, something contrasting to Saigon and Hanoi in social conversations and traditions.

Day 6: Hoi An  
After breakfast, we take a three hour drive to another World Heritage site, Hoi An ancient city. Along the way our car passes by stunning coastal scenery and Lang Co beach, a new tourist destination of the central region. We continue driving through Da Nang city, a booming real estate market and a trading port. We reach the ancient and historic town of Hoi An which was for three centuries one of the most important ports in Central Vietnam, visited by sailing ships from all over the world seeking trade in silk, ceramics, spice etc. In the afternoon we visit Japanese covered bridge, Tan Ky Old hose, Phuc Kien Pagoda, Cham Museum and Chinese Assembly Hall. Then get back for a great swim in Cua Dai beach. The beach is clean, shallow and often calm. Enjoy seafood and local delicacies by the beach or in a restaurant. In the evening we explore this ancient city on foot or on rickshaw.

Day 7: Hoi An-Da Nang
Enjoy its unique architecture, lifestyle, markets, ancient houses which have been preserved for years. Extra activities for further consideration include Scuba diving/snorkeling in Cham Island; bike tour to the adjacent Marble Mountain, half day trip to the ancient ruins at My Son (kingdom of Champa), or just relax on one of the best beaches on earth, the My Khe (China Beach). In the afternoon we transfer to Da Nang for a short flight to Ho Chi Minh City.

Day 8: Cu Chi Tunnels-Cao Dai Temple
We visit Cao Dai temple, a monastic religion that was formally established in Vietnam in 1926. The temple is the head quarter of Caodaism. It is a combination of different religions and beliefs such as Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Vietnamese spiritualism, Christianity, and Islam. We then head to Cu Chi tunnels. Situated 60 km from Ho Chi Minh City, Cu Chi is now described as a heroic district for its important role in Vietnam War. Cu Chi is famous for its tunnel system of over 220 km and is a popular tourism destination for both domestic and international travelers. The network of the tunnels includes numerous trap doors, command centers, living areas, weapons factories, hospital area, and kitchens.

Day 9: Saigon
We start our city tour by visiting the War Remnants Museum to discover one chapter of the city, then head to Reunification Palace close by. Take a walk around Ben Thanh Market, Notre Dame Cathedral and the central Post Office. The afternoon is free for independent sightseeing, enjoying some coffee and ice cream, or shopping along the streets of central business districts. Take a good rest before a flight to Siem Reap.

Day 10: Siem Reap
Today we will visit Cambodia’s key tourist attraction the Angkor Archaeological Park, just 6 kms away to the North of Siem Reap. Stretching over some 400 square kilometers, including forested area, the Park contains the magnificent remains of several capitals of the Khmer Empire of the 9th to the 15th centuries. The most famous are the Temple of Angkor Wat and the Bayon Temple at Angkor Thom with its countless sculptural decorations. Our tour covers the famous Bayon Temple, Phimeanakas Temple within the Royal Palace enclosure, Baphuon Temple, the Terrace of the Elephants and the Terrace of the Leper King. Overnight in Siem Reap.

Day 12: Siem Reap-Phnom Penh
In the morning, we continue to explore other temples and sites at the Park including temples of Thommanon, Takeo, one of Angkor's great mountains temple, Ta Prohm who become part of the jungle, Banteay Kdei with attractive carvings, Srah Srang, Prasat Kravan unique brick sculptures. Take a good rest before your flight to Phnom Penh.

Day 13: Phnom Penh
We plan for a visit to key attractions in the capital which sits by the Mekong and the Tonle Sap Lake. Most of the impressions will be the French colonial influence amidst the strong Khmer cultural values. We will visit Wat Phnom Temple, the Silver Pagoda, one of the richest shrines in the world. The floor is made of 5.000 silver tiles. In the afternoon day, we head to the Royal Palace, a magnificent example of Khmer architecture, which was built in 1866. We will see the Throne Hall and the Napoleon III Pavilion.

Day 14: Phnom Penh- Vientiane
In the morning, we visit the National Museum, a Khmer Rouge pavilion, which is dedicated to Khmer art and sculpture. The majority are from the Angkor period (9th to 15th century), and some from the 4th century. A dark period in the country’s history is depicted at the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. Then in the afternoon we take a flight to Vientiane. Overnight in Vientiane.

Day 15: Vientiane
Laos is well known for a slow pace of life, and the PDR is often referred to as Please Don’t Rush. Today we have the chance to explore the capital city of this beautiful country. We first visit Wat Sisaket Temple, the oldest one that survived from the Siamese war of 1828. It has more than 8000 Buddha statues inside. We then go to another Temple of Wat Ho Prakeo, the former home-temple of the Emerald Buddha statue or Pra Keo. This temple contains a collection of Buddha statues, antiques and all artifacts found in around Vientiane. We then get to That Luang Stupa, Symbol  of Lao nation the single most important monument in Laos, which was built to cover the original small stupa containing a piece of the chest bone of Buddha. After lunch we continue our journey to Patouxay (Arch de Triumph), built recently in commemoration of those who died during the wars in the past and it is today as the land-mark of Vientiane. Other sites include Buddha Park, Friendship Bridge and a weaving village of Ban Nong Bouathong. Overnight in Vientiane.

Day 16: Vientiane - Luang Prabang
Enjoy your breakfast and watch sunrise over the Mekong River. We then head to the airport for a short flight to Luang Prabang, the UNESCO World Heritage which is set amongst forested mountains and dotted with golden temples that are home to saffron robed monks. Luang Prabang is an outstanding example of the fusion of traditional architecture and Lao urban structures with those built by the European colonial authorities in the 19th and 20th centuries. Its unique, remarkably well-preserved townscape illustrates a key stage in the blending of these two distinct cultural traditions. After lunch we have a half day tour of the town. 

Day 17: Luang Prabang
Today we enjoy a boat cruise on the Mekong River to the holy caves of Pak Ou. The Pak Ou Caves reside where the Ou River and the Mekong merge, under a limestone cliff. These caves were originally used for the worship of the river spirit until Buddhism spread into Laos from India. The trip begins zigzagging down the river, leaving winding trails in the milky brown water. Once inside, one realizes the spiritual nature of these caves. Thus over 60 decades, more than 4,000 Buddha images – mostly the standing Buddha of the Luang Prabang style - were placed within the caves by believers. In the afternoon we visit the beautiful Kuang Si Waterfalls. You will be well and truly relaxed after spending time in Luang Prabang.

Day 18: Departure
Spend the morning at leisure before you are transferred to the airport for your onward flight.

Silver Pagoda in Phnom Penh

The Silver Pagoda, also known as the Preah Vihear Preah Keo Morokat, which means the Emerald Pagoda, is located right inside the ground of the Royal Palace, near the Mighty Mekong Bank. However, the Pagoda nowadays has named the Silver Pagoda. The pagoda is a must visit place during any Cambodian tour.

  

Originally constructed in 1892 by the King Norodom, the Pagoda initially had a look of a wooden structure, but in 1962 the pagoda was rebuilt for its present grand look by the King Norodom Sihanouk. With the effort of making the pagoda a true symbol of the splendid Khmer art, more than 5300 pieces of 1.125 kilo silver tiles were used to cover the floor of the Pagoda.





Inside the pagoda, hundreds of royal gifts received by the Royal family over the years are now on display. Among the significant treasures of the pagoda are a solid gold Buddha craved with 9,584 diamonds of 90 kilos weight, and a small baccarat crystal Buddha dating from the 17^th century. The pagoda compound includes Wat Preah Keo Morokat, Ramayana Frescoes, Dhammasala, Keong Preah Bath, Library, Phnom Mondop, Statue of HM King Norodom, Stupa of HM King Ang Doung, etc.