Radhanagar Beach, Andaman Islands

About 1 year ago, we were relaxing on one of the best beaches in the world: Radhanagar Beach on Havelock Island in the Andaman Islands, India.  It's a gorgeous beach; however, it takes a dedicated traveler to get there.

First, you must travel to India (you cannot travel to the Andaman Islands from any other country).  From mainland India, you fly to Port Blair - the main city of the Andaman Islands.  From Port Blair, you take a 2-hour ferry to Havelock Island.  Then, from the main village, you board a rickety, old bus for the 45-min drive to Beach #7 (aka: Radhanagar Beach).

Half-way between SE Asia and India, the Andaman Islands are blending of Indian and Southeast Asian culture, peoples, and geography.  Plus, some British architecture thrown-in.  Definitely worth the adventure getting there!

Luang Prabang

Luang Prabang is one of the most beautiful cities in Southeast Asia.  Filled with wats (temples), an interesting mix of Lao and European architecture, numerous coffee shops and fun street markets, you could spend several days exploring Luang Prabang and it's surrounding countryside.

A "must-see" includes the early-morning almsgiving, when the monks walk throughout the city, collecting rice from locals (and now, also tourists).  Hint: travel outside of the city core to view this daily almsgiving ceremony.  Due to the recent influx of visitors, the almsgiving that happens in the city center is mostly for the benefit of tourists.

You could spend several days visiting all the wats, but make sure you see Wat Xieng Thong (at the northern end of the peninsula) and climb to the top of Phou Si hill.

And, make sure to dedicate lots of time to relaxing in coffeeshops, walking (or biking) along the rivers, getting massages, eating delicious Lao food, and shopping at the Night Market.

Mui Ne

Mui Ne is a great beach town about 4-5 hours - by bus - from Ho Chi Minh City.  It's a great place to relax for a few days before continuing your adventures in Vietnam.  We visited Mui Ne in the low season (August), so there weren't many other tourists.  But, the surfing is supposed to be much better from November-March.

The Temples of Angkor

Everyone must go to the Temples of Angkor, outside of Siem Reap, Cambodia.

There are plenty of great guidebooks and useful websites about the Temples, already, so we won't write much about them here.  But, one thing we have learned - after having plenty of family and friends visit - is that, if possible, you should spread your visit to the Temples out over 2 days.  One day is just too exhausting for most people.  (Remember, it's always hot, too!)  The extra $20 (for a 2-day visit) is definitely worth it.

Bayon

Apsara Dancers

Bayon

Ta Prohm

Ta Prohm

Angkor Wat

Mulberries' Farm in Phonsavan, Laos

If you're traveling to Phonsavan to see the Plain of Jars, be sure to also set-aside at least a half-day at Mulberries' Silk Farm, just outside of town.

Mulberries is a fair trade organization that sells beautiful silk products, with stores in Vientiane and Luang Prabang.  But Phonsavan is where you can see it all happen.  From the mulberry plants, to the silk worms, to the spinning, dyeing and weaving, you can see (and participate in) the silk-making process from start to finish.

Mulberry Plant

Silk Worms eating Mulberry Leaves

Worms spinning their cacoons

Spinning

Spinning

Recently dyed silk hanging to dry

Woven silk scarf still on the loom

Best Beach at Sihanoukville

Sokha Beach

Sihanoukville, Cambodia has several beaches.  By doing a quick image search on google, you may be led to believe that all Sihanoukville beaches are breathtaking.  However, some are much better than others.

If you want to go to a pristine beach, with great views, and few people, head to the Sokha Beach Resort in Sihanoukville.  This might be one of Asia's best.  Yes, it's private, so you have to pay $10, but this is actually a fantastic deal.

• You get a lounge chair and umbrella with towel.
• You get a free drink from the bar.
• You can use the hotel's pool (with swim-up bar).
• You can use the hotel's clean bathrooms.
• The beach is always empty, so you don't have to worry about your belongings.
• The sand is perfect.  It even continues out into the water.  (No rocks to stub your toe on!)
• There's no litter.
• Speedboats and Jet-skis are not allowed to enter the cove.
• The view is amazing.

Occidental Beach

Compare this to the craziness of Sihanoukville's other beaches.  Not to say you shouldn't visit Occidental or Serendipity Beaches; you need to experience them.  But, make sure to plan one day on your vacation at Sokha Beach Resort.

Food of Singapore

Singapore has lots of great sights and activities (which we will discuss in another post).  However, the number one must-do in Singapore is eating.  Here's some of the delicious food all visitors must try:

Hainanese Chicken Rice

BBQ Pork

Craft Beer

J. Co Donuts

Murtabak

Laksa

Carrot Cake (left), Popiah (right)

Rojak (left), Char kway teow (right)

BBQ Pork Belly

Chilli Crab

Street Food in Phnom Penh

There’s a lot written about street food in Bangkok, and it’s very much deserved; street food in Thailand is delicious!  However, this leads people to discredit street food in the neighboring countries.  And so, we dedicate this blog post to the less-frequently discovered – yet tasty – street food of Phnom Penh.

We decided the best way to discover the food of Phnom Penh streets was to dedicate a day, driving around the city, tasting food.  While most visitors will hit up the Russian Market for their street food kicks, we’ve never been that impressed.  Instead, we traveled along some of the main arteries of Phnom Penh and found the following:

• On Norodom Blvd we had “Bok Lahung.”  This papaya salad with ground peanuts, dried shrimp, and some lime juice is the best!  Our favorite.
• In Hun Sen Park we ate “Satch Baitong” (Green Meat).  Contrary to the name (and look), it’s actually quite tasty, especially when dipped in spicy sauce!
• Behind the National Museum we had bright red Grilled Chicken Wings with lime and pepper sauce.  Very delicious, but – unfortunately – very little meat on the bones.
• Near St 278 (the Golden Mile) we tasted a Khmer beef sausage.  Kind of terrible, so it was left on the road for the dogs.  Maybe we just chose the wrong one…
• Near the Chinese Embassy we regularly eat “Low Chaa” for breakfast, lunch, and/or dinner!  Short, flour noodles are fried with oyster sauce, morning glory (Cambodian greens), and a little bit of meat, topped by a fried duck egg.
• Behind the Phnom Penh Sports Club, near the Dike Road, is “Pork and Rice.”  A Cambodian dish we wish was served for more than just breakfast, this dish consists of double-grilled pork, pickled vegetables, scrambled eggs, and chili sauce over rice.  Really, it’s the Cambodian version of huevos rancheros.
• Also near the Chinese Embassy are “Fried Bananas.”  Fried in a batter made of sugar, coconut milk and rice flour, these snacks are served with sugar – excellent!
• We did find one delicious snack at the Russian Market: Pineapple Shake.  Ask for it without sugar and sweetened condensed milk, if you want a healthier version.

There’s even more delicious street food to be had all over Phnom Penh.  However, we’ll leave you to explore on your own!

New Direction

Well friends, we've decided to change the overall direction of our blog.  Rather than just rambling on about our travels and daily lives, we want to provide a more useful resource: a travel guide.

Yes, there are lots, and lots!, of travel guides out there, but we hope we'll be able to offer something a little different.  Most of the travel guides - especially for Asia - that we've run across, tend to give information about all travel destinations and tourist sites.  All this information tends to be a bit overwhelming for the casual traveler on a short-term trip with limited funds.  Our goal will be to sort through all that and give you a list of the must-sees...and the must eats!

We're viewing ourselves as a cross between all our favorite travelers: Rick Steves (Europe Through the Back Door), Anthony Bourdain (No Reservations) and Ian Wright (Globe Trekker).

Hope you find this information helpful, should you ever plan to visit us!  If not, at least you'll be keeping up with what we're seeing and doing.

Look for a new post, coming soon (we promise!).

Happy Traveling!
Daron and Kirstin

Street Food in Bangkok

We just spent 3 days in Bangkok, with most of the time spent eating food!  Here's some of the delicious snacks we ate along our journey:

Pad Thai

Dessert Tacos

Banana Roti

Dessert Tacos, Again

More Pad Thai

Our New Blog Home

Welcome to our new blog address!

For previous posts of our travels in Eastern Europe (2008) and SE Asia (2010) visit our old blog at: www.mytb.org/Dockwalter