Before we get into describing how much we love Vietnam, I would like to share some things about Cambodia. Most of our posts about Cambodia were about the temples and the genocide, but besides those things we had a really lovely time exploring the cities. The people were so friendly and helpful to us, and had a good sense of humor. We got used to the children selling things and the loud tuk tuk drivers, and loved all of the great restaurants and cafes in Siem Reap and Phnom Penh. The French colonial architecture is an interesting contrast, and there are some really nice outdoor patios and rooftops to chill at. One of our favorite rooftop spots was in Phnom Penh called Nature and Sea...lovely fresh organic food and smoothies. (pictured above with my lovely husband. One of the photos before his Saigon haircut! Photo to come...) It's so luxurious to spend an afternoon sipping coffee and reading at a cafe! So Parisian! It's an interesting difference between the former French and English colonies that I've started to notice. I suppose the French have historically been more interested in pleasure. Anyway, besides gorging ourselves on ice cream and croissants and veg spring rolls, we have been interested in finding a place to volunteer while here, and found an interesting organization in Luang Prabang, Laos that focuses on improving literacy, which is an issue near and dear to my heart. We will keep you posted on that. We found a cool organization in Siem Reap called Artisans d'Angkor that teaches impoverished youth traditional Cambodian arts and crafts (silk dying and weaving, stone carving, woodworking, etc) and gives them food, shelter, and a paying job. We toured the studios and it was great. I would have loved to help out with something like that. More about Vietnam soon....
-jesikah
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