This landmine survivor is playing an instrument called a "takhe". Posted by Hello

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Cambodia - Day 1

If Cambodia is NOT on your list of places to visit, it should be. In fact, it oughta be near the top. The smiles alone made my trip worthwhile. For friendliness, I have never been to a place that surpasses Cambodia. From the moment I was picked up at the Siem Reap International Airport to the time I sadly boarded the plane for my flight home I saw nothing but enthusiastic courtesy and a very real curiosity and friendliness. You can see from the pictures I have posted that it's true. Since my college years, I have wanted to see Angkor Wat. It's been in the back of my mind for many years. It seems that whenever I had time to go or could afford to go, the political situation precluded it. For years the land mines left over from the Vietnam war made visiting most anywhere in Cambodia too dangerous. The stability or lack thereof with the Khmer Rouge made visiting a no-no. But in the past few years, the land mines have been cleaned up at least in all the major tourist areas and th...
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Back in the Land of Smiles

Hello all! Here I am, back in the hot and humid Land of Smiles. I've been here a week so far and had a slight flu relapse and an uncharacteristic bout with "Delhi Belly". Needless to say, I've been slowed down a wee bit. But enough about me! Probably the most significant thing that's happened here since I've been back is the election. After a rough past year for the incumbent Thai Rak Thai (Thai Love Thai) party including the violent Tak Bai incident that I discussed in the fall, they handily won the election. In fact, it was a landslide. The current Prime Minister, Taksin Shinawatra's programs and policies were completely endorsed by the Thai people. One enormous plus for TRT's easy win was the government's handling of the Tsunami tragedy. With a few exceptions (identification of the bodies for instance), the response by the government was swift and effective from all reports. Clearly the Thai people approved overwhelmingly. I asked a f...
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Laos

What a great trip! I got back from Laos yesterday. It is a stunningly beautiful country. I flew in to Luang Prabang on Friday afternoon. Getting my visa was a simple process just as it was in Cambodia. Thirty bucks, a picture and a short wait in line did the trick. As promised, I was picked up at the airport and whisked to my guest house on the River Khan side of the city. For those who, like me, have no idea about the geography of Laos, Luang Prabang is located at the confluence of two rivers, the Khan and the Mekong. It was named a UNESCO World Heritage site a few years back. The good part is that all the renovation and new building must be in character with the existing architecture. The bad part is that it gets more visitors than it used to. This time was even more crowded than usual due to the ASEAN conference being held in Vientiane, the capitol of Laos. The ASEAN Summit conferences are rotated among the member nations and this time it was Laos turn to host the 10th such confere...
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