Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Taiwan

Thursday, February 8 – Bangkok

We were up very early to have breakfast and meet our tour guide, Pring, in the hotel lobby at 7:00 am. We were off and out of the city before the traffic was very bad. It is a two-hour drive to Kanchanaburi where many of the sights for the WW2 Thai-Burma railroad was built by slave labor of the Allied POWs as well as forced labor of the native population. Along the way, Pring pointed out the fields of sugar cane - nearby, we also saw the sugar factories. Fields of tapioca and sweet corn were also pointed out as important cash crops. It was interesting to see the large portraits of the king and queen hanging from overpasses as we drove through different communities.

Our first stop once we reached Kanchanaburi was the JEATH War Museum - J (Japanese), E (England), A (America and Australia), T (Thailand), and H (Holland). Mike and I have always been very interested in WW2 sites. Both of our fathers were in the war - my father serving in the Pacific and Mike’s father serving in Europe. During our travels, we always make a point of visiting any historical sites connected with the war. We’ve been to Nagasaki, Hiroshima, Los Alamos, Oak Ridge, the Trinity site, Auschwitz, Potsdam, the Normandy beaches, Pearl Harbor, El Alamein, the Air Tracking station in Malta, Churchill’s War Rooms, various war sites in Berlin and Munich, Schindler’s Factory, Dachau — ok, I think you have the idea that we are pretty serious about our WW2 sites. It seemed obvious that if we were going to Thailand that we would go see the famous Thai-Burma railroad. The JEATH War Museum is run by the Buddhist temple. It consists of a reconstructed hut similar to the ones the POWs lived in, obviously quite primitive. The hut was filled with photographs taken during the time of the building of the railroad. There was also a large map that really helped to show exactly how the railroad linked Thailand to Burma (the Japanese needed this rail link in order to supply the troops they had in Burma, since supplying them by sea was difficult). The final railroad as 415 kilometers long. Construction started in September of 1942 and was completed in December of 1943. More than 16,000 POWs and 100,000 impressed laborers from India, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Burma, and Thailand died during its construction. The Buddhist message to visitors is that the maintenance of this museum is not to focus on the hatred among human beings, especially the Japanese and Allied countries, but to warn and teach us the lesson of how terrible as is (so very Buddhist). Also, the museum holds many artifacts that had belonged to the prisoners.

Our next stop was the Commonwealth Cemetery, holding the gravesites of military from Great Britain, Australia, and the Netherlands. The landscaping in the cemetery was beautiful. It reminded us of the beautiful landscaping we saw at the El Alamein Cemetery in Egypt, although there the landscaping utilized desert plants, while the landscaping here in Thailand utilized tropical plantings.

Our guide, Pring, did such a good job in organizing our trip and keeping us on schedule. Our next stop was the train station to catch a ride on the line originally built by the prisoners. Pring knew to have us join the train one stop before most tourists joined the train right at the River Kwai. That way, we had great window seats on the left-hand side of the train. This enabled us to have the best views of the river and of the wooden bridges further up to line. We rode for about an hour. After we passed the wooden bridges, we exited the train at that station in order to walk across the wooden bridges, viewing the original wood and rails (now given extra metal and concrete supports). We walked to the Krause cave situated right next to the train line - now a temple with Buddha, but previously used as a primitive hospital for workers.

February 8th, continued:

Pring had our driver pick us up and drive us to the last stop on the line where we enjoyed a delicious lunch at a local restaurant.

Then it was off to the Hell’s Pass Interpretative Center. This a a relatively new museum run by the Australian government. The museum has a very modern display and a 10-minute video describing the particular difficulties in cutting through the rock in this area. The workers had to work for 18 - 20 hours a day with simple tools. Visitors walk down about 150 steps to the railroad bed (now just a walking path with a few railroad ties remaining embedded in the soil. Walking through the rock railroad cutout was an emotional experience, just recognizing the suffering endured by those forced to work under inhumane conditions. There is a memorial as once leaves the rock cutout. We chose to turn around and return to the museum at that point, but the trail continues for those who wish to follow more of the original rail line.

At this point, we headed back toward Kanchanaburi, although we did stop in the National Park to visit one waterfall. Back in Kanchanaburi, Pring wanted to take us back to the Bridge across the River Kwai that we’d crossed earlier in the day on the train. Now we walked across the bridge as the sun began to set. It was quiet and beautiful and gave us a chance to reflect upon all we’d experienced during the day.

Then it was off on the 2 hour journey back Bangkok. Definitely, a great tour for anyone who likes WW2 history.

Back at the Hilton, we decided we still weren’t hungry after the huge lunch we’d had, so we headed up to the 31st floor outdoor bar for a drink. Great way to end the day, especially when we found out that Hilton Honors members got 25% off all food and beverage tabs. Wow - and the drinks weren’t that much to begin with.

Friday, February 9 – Bangkok

Today, we transitioned over to the Peninsula Hotel. But first, we headed up for breakfast, then walked over to the ICONSIAM to find the K Bank ATM to replenish our bhats, and called a Grab Car to take us the short hop down the street to our new hotel. We had been treated very well at the Millenium Hilton, but our first hours at the Peninsula were great. Our room is referred to as a deluxe king, but is laid out like most Jr. Suites. I again have a nice deep soaking tub - yay! I always miss that on the Viking ships. Again, we have a nice river view, just not as high up as at the Hilton

I had booked a Bangkok Street Food tour prior to leaving on the trip. It was to begin at 4:00 pm in Chinatown, so we got some basic instructions on using the Peninsula Hotel ferry to get across the river and bought tickets to ride the public ferry up to the Chinatown pier.

Then it was just a short walk to the Shanghai Mansion Hotel where we were to meet our tour. We got there with plenty of time to have a drink at the hotel terrace bar before our meeting time.

The tour was great. It was billed as having 15+ tastings - we had 19! It was a combination of street vendors, small shops and restaurants. It was really well—run. We had a traditional tour guide, Bew, who stayed with us the entire time, explaining the ingredients and history of each tasting. There was also an assistant guide who ran ahead to make sure our tables, or seating arrangements were set up so there was no waiting in lines. This was especially important since our tour was on the Friday night prior to the beginning of Chinese New Year. Chinatown was packed with people.

Bew did a great job in keeping our tour together (btw - there was only 8 of us on the tour - a nice manageable size). At least three of the places we stopped were Michelin recommended spots. All of the foods were wonderful. I’ll include just a few photos of the foods we tried since I failed to get shots of everything.

After we finished the food tour, we “grabbed” a Grab Car back to the hotel. I’m really glad that I added that app to my phone before leaving home. It works just like UBER and it is very economical. Even with the crowds, we were back to the hotel in just about 20 minutes. Then time to check email and have a nice cup of chamomile tea and a bath before bed. Another great day!

Saturday, February 10 – Bangkok

This morning was an early morning for us since we needed to be in the lobby for our first included tour by 8:30 am. Breakfast here at the Peninsula is at the riverfront terrace cafe. There is seating inside and out. We chose the outside dining. Our tour was a boat ride to Wat Arun, also known as the Temple of Dawn. It was established by King Taksin after the fall of the Ayuthaya Kingdom. Besides the temple, there was also a royal palace established at this location. The temple is quite beautiful and visitors are able to climb up to admire the ceramic decoration close-up.

After leaving Wat Arun, we sailed along one of the canals that the city of Bangkok is known for - it is often referred to as the Venice of the East. It was a rather large canal. I had been hoping to be able to travel on some of the smaller canals, but we did see several temples along the way and also the area where the royal barges are docked (also open as the royal barge museum).

When we started back to the hotel, the skies finally opened up and it poured. We lowered the curtains on the boat to prevent the rain from pounding in. The rain let up and started again several times before we reached the hotel.

I found it interesting that the local tour operators who are handling this Viking extension have several optional tours to offer. Two were shopping excursions this afternoon, a dinner cruise tonight, and a tuk-tuk tour to the Flower Market and the Jim Thompson House tomorrow afternoon. Many of the other Viking passengers were a bit miffed that we did not know about the existence of those optional excursions until told about them today. Arranging for the additional funds seemed to be the sticking point for many. They will take US dollars, but many people hadn’t worked that into the calculations of how much to bring. They will take Thai bhat, but that entails taking out more ATM funds at a rather steep rate. Personally, we use ATM cards that return any added fees to us, so it doesn’t matter, but others did not. And the local tour company does not take credit cards. Does seem like Viking might include information about this in advance of the trip, since these same optional tours seem to be on offer to each Viking group that does the Bangkok extension. We are going to take the afternoon tour tomorrow, but we weren’t interested in the shopping trips or the dinner cruise tonight. Instead, we decided to take the afternoon off and enjoy the room. We did some reading, some email, and we both dozed a bit. The hotel has been leaving a different fresh tropical fruit on our coffee table each day (today was fresh dragon fruit), so we made some coffee and indulged.

Then about mid-afternoon, they showed up with a small plate of chocolates. I’m totally sold on the hospitality of the Peninsula Hotel!

About 6:00 pm, we decided to walk over to the ICONSIAM for dinner. We had seen a restaurant called Kam’s Roast - a branch of a Hong Kong Michelin starred restaurant that sounded good. I had roast duck and crispy pork. Mike had char siu pork and roast duck. The duck was great, but the crispy pork was the winner.

And, of course, as soon as we returned to the hotel, our turn-down service was complete (slippers by our bedside, along with fresh water bottles and fresh fruit). Even my robe had been re-tied from wearing it this afternoon. I could really get used to this service.

Sunday, February 11 – Bangkok

Our morning tour took us by bus to The Grand Palace. Built in 1782, the Grand Palace spreads over 218,000 square meters. Grand Palace is an apt name since the buildings are all lavish works of art. Some buildings are covered in yellow, green and blue porcelain tiles, some are covered in glass mosaic, some covered in gold mosaic tiles, some have large lacquered mother of pearl inlay doors and cabinets, and beautiful murals can be found everywhere. It is truly a feast for the eye!

One of the highlights was the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. The Emerald Buddha wears one of three different raiments which are changed based on the seasons. Right now, the Buddha is wearing the winter raiment. No photos could be taken in the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. But the following photos show the outside of the Temple of the Emerald Buddha and some of the artistic design in the construction of the temple facade.

After leaving the Grand Palace grounds, we used tuk-tuks to travel to the UNESCO site, Wat Pho, where we visited the Temple of the Reclining Buddha. The Reclining Buddha is 46 meters long and 15 meters high. It is modeled around a brick core, and finished in plaster and gold leaf. The soles of the Buddha’s feet are mother of pearl inlay. Behind the Reclining Buddha is a row of 108 bronze monks’ bowls. Visitors may purchase 108 coins and drop one in each bowl for good luck.

After exploring the grounds of Wat Pho, we headed back to the bus and returned to the hotel. We had time for a quick break before heading out for an afternoon tuk-tuk tour.

Later on Sunday, February 11 - Our tuk-tuk tour this afternoon was lots of fun. We had a parade of 12 tuk-tuks. Quite the sight. We headed to the Jim Thompson house, first. He was an American who worked for the OSS during WW2 and decided to stay in Bangkok after the war. He had been trained as an architect and designed this home by connecting Thai homes that he moved to Bangkok and pieces. The house was not only unusual in design, but it was filled with beautiful Asian artwork, much of it antique. He became interested in preserving the craft of silk-making that he saw in Bangkok, and he linked these local artisans to major markets throughout the US and Europe.

After our visit to the Jim Thompson house, we joined our tuk-tuk drivers again to go to the Flower Market. He walked all the main Flower Market Street and down several of the alleyways with a myriad of flower stalls. We were amazed to hear that market is open 24-7.

We made one last journey to the hotel before saying goodbye to our tuk-tuk driver.

It was 6:00 pm and Mike and I decided we wanted something light to eat so we headed back over to ICONSIAM since there are so many food establishments to choose from. I had read about a restaurant called Ginger Farm Kitchen, a farm to table establishment which prepared Thai foods in a more natural, organic way. The original restaurant has been Michelin recommended and ICONSIAM has one of the chain. It was a great choice. Mike decided to check out their crispy pork in order to compare it to last night’s success. I had a chicken and cashew dish. We both shared a spring roll appetizer with two delightful sauces.

Once we returned to the Peninsula, we couldn’t resist a nightcap at the hotel bar - a great way to end the evening.

Monday, February 12 – Bangkok to Ho Chi Minh City

It was an early morning in order to breakfast prior to our transfer to the airport for our flight to Ho Chi Minh City.

Lots of walking at the airport, depending on where your gate is located. There as quite a backup at the immigration desks leaving Bangkok. I’m not sure if that was due to the Chinese New Year travel crunch or just always busy. By the time we got to our gate, it was almost time to board. Our assigned seats were 33A and 33B - another reason I hate to have Viking determining our flights. There is no choice when completing these river cruise extensions though, so we had to use Viking air. Since we were on Vietnam Airlines, we were able to apply our Delta Skymiles number, which identified us as SkyTeam elite+ and Mike was able to ascertain that there were seats nearer to front of the plane in row 10 so we could embark and disembark faster (also got the board with Sky Priority), so you should check to see if the Viking flight is part of a sky alliance network and you might be able to get better seats.

Once we reached Ho Chi Minh City, we were met by our Viking host, Kong. He narrated our trip into the downtown area (only took about 30 minutes). The Saigon Sheraton is nice - not as nice as the Peninsula in Bangkok, but with sufficient room. I like having an iron and ironing board, too, since most of my clothes are quite rumpled from the long hours in my luggage.

After organizing our luggage, we headed out for a walk and an ATM stop. We passed a craft beer location and figured we’d enjoy some Vietnamese IPA.

When we got ready to pay the bill, the server offered a handful of red envelopes to choose a “gift” (we learned this red envelope gift is for good luck in the new year). Mike’s envelope card just wished him a happy new year. Mine entitled me to return for up to 4 beers during the next 2 weeks! May have to go back to at least sample one more!!

Kong suggested a couple of places for dinner. We took his advice to book ahead since many places are closed due to the Tet New Year celebrations. When we booked with the concierge, I decided to ask him for suggestions about what we might order. The young man at the concierge desk was fabulous! He took us over to the computer and called up the menu for the restaurant we were planning to visit and went through the menu with us, identifying many traditional Saigon dishes, or traditional Tel holiday dishes. He even wrote down some of his favorites on a “cheat sheet” to take with us. His suggestions were spot on. My favorite dish was a pomelo salad with prawns, but all the other dishes were super, too. I’d really recommend that you find someone to ask about the best dishes to order when choosing a Vietnamese restaurant since the English descriptions aren’t always very appetizing.

After our dinner, we walked by the Opera House and the main walkway leading down to the river. Since this is only the third day of the Tet holidays, everything is lit up, there are flowers and people everywhere, along with musical stage events. The place was packed. It is so much fun to be here during the holiday!

Tuesday, February 13 – Ho Chi Minh City

Breakfast at the hotel, then off for a morning tour. First, we went to the Reunification Palace, also known as Independence Hall. Since we had just recently finished watching the Ken Burns’ Vietnam War series on PBS, the views of this building and its interior 1960s architecture were compelling. I especially like the fact that for all of the state rooms identified, there were period pictures with the South Vietnamese leaders of the time pictured. The bunker rooms in the basement were especially evocative of the war years, filled with 1960s era communication relics. On the grounds were tanks similar to the ones that rammed the gates here on 30 April 1975. Mike and I vividly remember watching on tv the final hours of escape by Americans and some South Vietnamese from the city at that time.

Our guide, Kong, related the history of his on family. His father was a South Vietnamese soldier, his uncle was a North Vietnamese soldier. After the end of the war, his father and uncle never spoke with one another again. His uncle, who had lived in a more northerly village had been recruited by the North Vietnamese, and after the war, he became a higher up Communist leader in his village. Kong’s father on the other hand, was sent to a re-education camp for 5 years and died not long after that. Because he was the son of a former South Vietnamese soldier, Kong was not able to go to college (somehow, those children could never pass the entrance exams). Luckily, he was able to finish high school, which enabled him to eventually take night school classes in tourism and English when opportunities became relaxed during the 1990s.

After we left the Reunification Palace, we traveled to the Saigon Post Office which was built by the French in the 1880s. The colonial design both inside and out is quite striking. From the outside of the post office, Kong pointed out the former CIA building from which the final helicopters rescued Americans and some South Vietnamese at the end of the war.

Across the street from the Saigon Post Office we could see Norte Dame Cathedral, built by the French. Well, we kind of saw it - it is currently shrouded by scaffolding as it is undergoing some reconstruction.

Our next stop was a lacquerware shop. Normally, I don’t like these “shopping” stops, but this was a bit of an educational stop where we learned about the steps in creating this Vietnamese art. I especially liked seeing the pieces made with duck egg shells. Of course, we still didn’t buy anything, but it was interesting to watch the craftsmanship.

We were given about an hour and a half break to have lunch on our own or just rest at the hotel. At 2:00, we headed out for our afternoon tour. Our first stop was the Chinatown temple. It was very crowded since many people go to the temple to make incense offerings to the goddess for good luck in this new year that was just beginning. It was very smoky with all the burning of incense and candles. I was especially intrigued by the spiral incense hanging from the ceiling that would burn for about a week. Again, I think that it has been very special for us to be here at this time of year to see so many of the Tet celebrations.

Our final afternoon bus stop as at the Central Market, an area filled with hundreds of small stalls. To me, it appeared that most of these were just small t-shirt stalls, inexpensive leather goods, some handicrafts - it was difficult to tell whether the items were “made in China” cheap stuff or what.

February 13th, continued:

It was stifling inside the building so Mike and I looked for the first opportunity to exit, just to walk outside in the fresh air. After we almost completed a circuit of the outer perimeter of the building, we noticed a tea/coffee shop and decided to go inside. One of the baristas, gave me a menu with English translations. After I asked her for her favorite, which I chose, Mike and I enjoyed a chilled Jasmine, lychee, and oolong tea drink - fantastic! So if you are like us and don’t like another shopping stop, go across the street from Door 3 of the Central Market for a refreshing drink. Can’t wait to sample another tea drink from a similar shop before leaving Vietnam!

Kong had suggested that we go to the Rex Hotel to see where the Western media hung out while reporting on the Vietnam War. From the top of the hotel, the bar provided a signature drink to remember the 5 o’clock news conferences where journalists soon came to question most of the information they were receiving about the progress of the war - these news conferences were soon nicknamed the “5 o’clock Follies.” After having our drink and enjoying the views of the Tet revelers below, we headed back to the hotel briefly stopping to watch more holiday festivities.

This evening, Viking provided a welcome dinner here in the hotel. There were lots of Asian and Western choices at a huge buffet. Tomorrow, we will be leaving the Sheraton here in Ho Chi Minh City, and completing a bit of touring before finally getting to the Viking Saigon and starting our Mekong River cruise.

Wednesday, February 14 – Ho Chi Minh City to My Tho

Breakfast at the Sheraton Saigon, then on the bus for a rather long transfer to the Viking Saigon. The traffic leaving HCMC was very light because it is still the Tet holiday. We traveled for 2 hours to the famous tunnel network around Cu Chi. This tunnel network facilitated the Vietcong control of the rural area. It is said that at the height of the war, the tunnel network stretched from Saigon to the Cambodian border. Around Cu Chi there are about 250 km of tunnels. We had the opportunity to walk (bent over) through several tunnels. Our guide rated the difficulty of the tunnel to give us an idea of whether we wanted to try walking through or not. I went through 2 of the tunnels. Of course, today, there is some light provided. It is well worth your time to try going through at least one of the tunnels.

As we walked through the paths, our guide pointed out depressions where US bombs had fallen (an attempt to collapse some of these tunnels). We also saw demonstrations of “booby traps” created by the Vietcong to kill unsuspecting GIs. Some of these were quite brutal. It is understandable that the guys in the military who were assigned to fight in this area had the constant worry about what was around each corner.

Excellent demonstration of how the Vietcong could not only quickly disappear, but also suddenly come up behind an unsuspecting GI. The “booby traps” that were demonstrated also made one realize the dangers inherent in fighting in this region.

After leaving the Cu Chi tunnels, we traveled about 30 minutes to our riverside restaurant lunch location. There we enjoyed Lotus Root Salad with Pork & Shrimp, Grilled Chicken with Sticky Rice, Deep-Fried Catfish with Tomato Sauce, Sautéed Water Spinach with Garlic, Steamed Rice in Lotus Leaf, and Ice Cream.

After lunch, it was still 2 1/4 hours to My Tho, where the Viking Saigon was moored. We quickly boarded and the captain set sail.

At 6:00 pm we had our safety meeting and some general information about the next day’s schedule. Dinner followed at 7:00. A local Vietnamese musical group provided entertainment after dinner using traditional musical instruments. Very enjoyable.

Almost everyone went to their rooms following the music, but Mike and I went up to the Sky Bar to have a nightcap and enjoy the moon over the Mekong!

Thursday, February 15 – On the Mekong, Cai Be to Sa Dec

A beautiful Mekong morning. I put on my robe and headed to the coffee bar right on our floor to grab a warm cup of coffee as I sat to enjoy the view.
Breakfast at the Sky Bar, then out to visit Caí Be. The main source of income for the local residents is derived from traditional handicrafts.

First, we saw a woman creating the rice paper used in making spring rolls. Next, we watched workers making coconut candies (and we sampled the finished product). It was very interesting to view the method of popping rice, then using the popped rice to make a type of “rice krispy treat.” Finally, we tried the distilled “rice wine.” Then followed that up with the more expensive “snake wine” which had been steeping in a jar containing King Cobra snakes! We then had a chance to buy some of the local products before heading back to the ship for lunch.

Later, on February 15 morning tour - As time was provided for buying local products, I walked along the road and was able to catch a few scenes of local life: Rice paper sesame seed crackers drying in the sun, the rice paper sesame seed crackers packaged for sale, and a small shrine outside a home with a pot of marigolds (also known as longevity plant here).

After our shopping time, we traveled by sampan to a fruit orchard where we walked through the orchard, then sampled the various fruits. These included: Jackfruit, Milk apple (individually wrapped to protect from birds), Mango, Pomelo, Rose apple and pineapple. Near the riverside tables where we ate and drank tea, there were some beautiful flowers. After sampling all the fruit, we headed back to the ship for lunch while the Viking Saigon sailed to Sa Dec, the location for our afternoon tour.

We again transferred to land by sampan. Along the way, we saw the importance of rice to this area. Not only did we see rice processing plants, but we learned how all of the parts of the rice are used by the people. Sailing through the canals also allowed us to see the daily life of the people. Once we disembarked, we saw several shops with so many different types of rice on display.

Sa Dec is most known as the childhood home of Marguerite Duras, one of France’s best-known authors. Sa Dec is the setting for her autobiographical novel, “The Lover.” If you are coming on this trip, I would recommend that you read this. It is a very fast read and makes visiting the home of the Chinese businessman that she had the affair with a lot more interesting. We visited the home and were served tea there.

After visiting Duras’ home, we took a walk through the city market streets. It was typical of most Asian outdoor markets with lots of fruits, vegetables, and fish.

As we headed back on the river, we had a lovely view of the Viking Saigon anchored in the Mekong.

Friday, February 16 – On the Mekong, from Tan Chau to Phenom Penh

Our morning shore excursion was to Tan Chau. This would be our last port stop in Vietnam. We took our sampan to “Evergreen Island,” Vinh Hoa. It was a peaceful ride along small canals. Unfortunately, I did not take many photos because Mike and I were consumed with sad news from home and once we got to the island, we were making phone calls. When we caught up with our tour guide, the group was visiting a local home. This was all quite interesting, but we were just having trouble concentrating.

After leaving the island, we went into Tan Chau and visited a Buddhist temple (actually a new form of the religion started in the 1920s). For those visiting the temples in Vietnam and Cambodia, be prepared to take your hat and shoes off, and cover your shoulders and knees.

Our next activity was riding on a local rickshaw. Then back to the sampan to visit a floating fish farm.

While there were no afternoon excursions, the ship did offer several activities. After crossing the Cambodian border around 2:00, we had the opportunity to visit the wheelhouse. The captain provided a lot of information about the navigation equipment on board as well as his experience. It was quite interesting to experience the captain’s view. He could handle all of the navigation on Vietnamese waters, but a Cambodian pilot came on board once we crossed the border to oversee the navigation of those waterways.

The next onboard activity was joining the Viking Saigon chef to watch him make fresh spring rolls.

From 4:00 - 5:00, there was an hour-long presentation in the Lounge on Vietnam History and Culture. Then the Viking Explorer Society cocktail party and port talk. Right before dinner, I was taking a photo of the sunset. One of the Viking staff was doing the same thing, but her photos were spectacular. She graciously airdropped some to me.

Saturday, February 17 – On the Mekong, Phnom Penh

Our first excursion was a Phnom Penh city tour by rickshaw. We were cycled to our first location the Royal Palace with its opulent buildings. The most important building is the Silver Pagoda. It is one of the few temples to remain intact during the Khmer Rouge regime. Inside (where no photos are allowed) sits the 17th century Emerald Buddha on a gilt pedestal. A bronze Buddha and a silver Buddha sits next to the Emerald Buddha. The floor of the Silver Pagoda is made of six tons of silver inlaid during Norodom Sihanouk’s pre-Khmer Rouge reign. Only a small portion of the floor is viewable/touchable by the public. The rest is covered with carpeting.

Our next stop was at the National Museum where art of the earlier Cambodian civilizations is housed. The garden of the National Museum was a very peaceful location to take a break from the museum’s interior.

Then it was back to the ship to cool off and have lunch.

February 17, afternoon excursion - The afternoon excursion was the most sobering one of the trip. These two memorials centered on the era of the Cambodian genocide of Pol Pot’s regime. What made the excursion more personal was the fact that our Cambodian guide had been greatly affected by this period. He was only 7 years old when Pol Pot came to power. His father had been a teacher and although he tried to hide his occupation, he was “found out” by one of his former students and was killed. Just like the Cultural Revolution in China, the Khmer Rouge under Pol Pot, wanted to eradicate the intelligentsia and return everyone to an agrarian society. Phnom Penh was emptied of its population. Many people died as they were forced into the countryside communes where families were separated. Our Cambodian guide said he woke up one morning and his mother was gone. As a 7-year-old, he was trained as a child soldier and handed an AK-47. It was years after the Pol Pot regime (after spending several years as a Buddhist monk) before he was able to begin to deal with his trauma. He still suffers from PTSD.

The first site we visited as the Tuol Sleng Detention Center Memorial. This was a former high school that has been turned into a prison and torture center for political enemies or Pol Pot’s government.

Individual torture rooms were left pretty much as they were found by the Vietnamese when they invaded to bring an end to Pol Pot’s regime. Many other rooms held displays of the photos taken of the political prisoners who were momentarily housed there prior to execution at one of the many “killing fields” throughout the country.

Our next stop was the Cheng Ek “killing fields” memorial which was the closest killing center to Phnom Penh. There, one can see the remains of some of the mass burial grounds. While this visit was very depressing, it was also very necessary for us to remember that genocide is not something that happened long ago (1975-1979). It happened fairly recently in Cambodia, and is still happening in other areas of the world today. To have guides who could give first hand testimony as to how their lives were affected by such dangerous political ideas is so important for us to keep in mind in today’s world.

Dinner on the ship tonight was billed as “A Taste of Cambodia,” featuring Khmer regional favorites, served family style. Following that, there was a traditional folkloric dance performance by Cambodian high school students. The passengers really appreciate Viking’s efforts to bring authentic experiences onto the ship.

Sunday, February 18 – On the Mekong, Phenom Penh

We started the day with a nice breakfast at the SkyBar. While it is outside and a bit humid, we just like the service there. Downstairs in the Restaurant, it is set up more buffet style. Same food options, just a different style of service.

Our morning excursion was to the Udon Monastery. Our Cambodian guide gave us a wonderful tour of the outside of many of the elaborately decorated buildings. We also got to see another reclining Buddha here.

Then we were taken in to receive a blessing from two of the monks. While a traditional blessing is often an hour long, our blessing only took about 5 minutes. This included ritual chanting by the monks and instead of a water blessing done by many Western churches, we were blessed by the monks throwing locust flower buds on our heads (to be honest, the flower buds had recently been scooped out of buckets of water so we did feel this as a moist blessing).

Our final stop at the monastery was at the 10:30 almsgiving ritual. The nuns were all lined up, waiting for the monks who were already in the temple interior to exit and then they all proceeded to the area for almsgiving. It was quite impressive to watch this ceremony. Most women who had gone to the monastery to become nuns had lost a husband, or were disabled in some way. They wore white robes, the monks in saffron robes.

After leaving the Udon Monastery, we went to Koh Chern village by tuk-tuks. Koh Chern is known for silversmith work. After watching the process for turning the ingots of silver into silver bowls, jewelry and small ornaments, passengers were given the opportunity to buy the silver items.

One note before leaving the subject of the silversmith village: I wasn’t interested in purchasing anything at the shop, but was intrigued by the home behind and over the shop. The bedroom was connected to the shop. Above were other living quarters, and right behind the area where the actual creation of product was taking place, were more living quarters. There were young children playing upstairs who were enjoying interacting with us. Definitely, home and work life were intertwined.

There were no organized tours in the afternoon, but our Viking program directors were available to arrange tuk-tuks or make other arrangements if we wanted to go out on our own. Some people went to the central market, or bars, or parks. Mike and I decided that we hadn’t had enough “down” time so we chose to stay on board and swim. Viking Saigon has a wonderful small infinity pool. One end has seats with jets. The water is cool, but not cold - just perfect. Even though the weather was hot and humid, we felt fabulously cool once we left the pool to have a drink at the Sky Bar. I loved this upper deck of the ship!

At 5:30, a French linguist and anthropologist who works in Phnom Penh presented an onboard lecture in the lounge on Modern Cambodian history. While we had learned quite a bit about the period of the Khmer Rouge from 1975-1979 while visiting the Tuol Sleng Detention Center and the Killing Fields outside of Phnom Penh, we learned a lot more about how the Khmer Rouge actually maintained strength in the country due to Cold War politics, and unfortunately, the US didn’t help matters. The lecture was so enlightening. One of the strengths of this cruise is that Viking has provided excellent tour support. Our program directors all have personal experiences with the Vietnam War and aftermath, our Cambodian guides all had personal experiences during the Pol Pot regime and aftermath, the French lecturer has deep background studies along with experiences of living in Cambodia since the 1990s. While I’m having a nice holiday on a beautiful ship with nice hotel lodgings, I’m also learning a lot.

Monday, February 19 – On the Mekong, Phenom Penh to Kampong Cham

This morning, the Viking Saigon departed from Phnom Penh for a short journey upriver to Oknha Tey. By 9:00 am, we were docked and ready for our morning excursion to the weaving village in Oknha Tey. This was a location where we had to walk up sand bags to reach the top of the riverbank. Then we walked next to a Buddhist cemetery filled with family stupas, holding the ashes of loved ones. There was quite a variety of styles, reflecting the amount of money that families had spent for their construction.

We were transported by tuk-tuk to the weaving village where we learned about the silkworms, the creation of the silk thread, and then viewed village women creating the fabric on the looms. Of course, we were given an opportunity to buy some of the woven products. While this village focuses on silk, they also had products created in other communities for sale in the shop. While I’m not much of a shopper, I did decide to buy one of the natural undyed silk scarves, which is a vibrant gold. After I made my purchase, I walked over to meet the young woman who wove my scarf. She was working on the same fabric on her loom.

After visiting the weaving village, it was back on board quickly so we could sail to Kampong Cham, our last docking area.

February 19, afternoon - Since we were going to be sailing all afternoon, Viking provided an afternoon teatime, something new for the cruise. It was served at the Sky Bar, and though I was way too stuffed from lunch to need anything, I did go up to get a couple of photos and ended up sitting down to have a cup of peppermint tea with a friend.

At 4:00 there was a final lecture about Life at the Mekong River. This lecture was presented by two of the Cambodian hosts and it centered on local life and wildlife on not only the Mekong River, but also the Tonle Sap Lake.

By late afternoon, we were docked in Kampong Cham, our final port.

Tuesday, February 20 – On the Mekong, Kampong Cham – Final day on the Viking Saigon

Our morning excursion was to the Twin Holy Mountains “Phnom Pros & Phnom Srey.” Actually, they are hills and often referred to as Man Hill and Woman Hill. First, we visited the Temple at Phnom Pros. There were lots of monkeys there to entertain us.

After visiting the Temple, we headed down to the Buddha Garden. There were many Buddha sculptures, but the standouts were the very large Buddha with four faces and another Reclining Buddha.

Very close to the Buddha Garden, there was a gold stupa that stood as a memorial to the victims of the Khmer Rouge since this area had been another one of the over 400 Killing Fields in Cambodia. This stupa held the skulls of many of the victims. Particularly sad for us was the fact that this was the area from which our Cambodian guide’s mother was taken so he comes here to remember her.

Our next stop was at the nearby AMICA village, Cheung Kok. AMICA is a French organization that encourages the development of Cambodian villages. Through community-based tourism visits and the profits from handicrafts, villagers are able to provide education to their children and sustain their rural way of life.
We were able to interact with the children, visit a traditional Khmer house, and see their school.

On our way back to the ship, we stopped to take a photo of the famous bamboo bridge. Each year the rainy season washes away the bridge to a nearby island, and each dry season, it is rebuilt. At one time there was only this bridge that connected to the island, but now there is also a concrete bridge a short distance away. Still this is a convenient crossing spot for many people.

After returning to the ship and having lunch, it was that sad time when suitcases were retrieved from underneath the bed and closets were emptied. Tomorrow, it’s time to disembark and head to Siem Reap. Angkor Wat awaits.

Wednesday, February 21 - Today was a transfer day – Kampong Cham to Siem Reap

Before describing our journey to Siem Reap, I just want to review the Viking Saigon. It is such a comfortable ship. We had a French Balcony room which was exceedingly spacious considering what I have been told previously about river ships. We had been told when we booked the cruise that the French Balcony was the exact square footage of the Balcony staterooms, making it a no brainer to get the French Balcony if room size is important to you. I actually got to view one of the Balcony staterooms and it did seem tighter to me - missing some of the closet area and less open floor space.

The 2nd deck coffee bar area - always stocked with sweet rolls in the morning or cookies in the afternoon and evening. I was so glad we had a room on the 2nd deck so I could just sneak down the hall each morning to grab a coffee to take back to the room!

Our transfer to Siem Reap by bus took about.5 hours, but it was broken up into segments. First, we made a stop to see a latex plantation. Our guide explained about the process for collecting the sap. We were all a bit concerned about the trash that was throughout the plantation. Our guide explained that people often stopped to picnic there and just left their trash, and that workers traveling by truck would often eat as they traveled and just pitch their trash from the truck. It certainly did mar the appearance of the plantation, however.

Our next stop was by a small lake that connects to the Tonle Sap Lake. There we could enjoy the snack that Viking Saigon had packed for us. There were shaded tables by the lake and a gentleman playing traditional music. Relaxing break!

After lunch we traveled about two more hours (with a gas station rest stop break part way) before reaching the Sofitel Hotel that would be our home for the next 3 nights.

We had time to either swim or have drinks at the Sofitel bar.

In the evening, we enjoyed a buffet dinner at the hotel, followed by a wonderful Apsara traditional dance performance.

After the dance performance, it was time to have a nightcap as we enjoyed the Sofitel landscaping.

Thursday, February 22 – Siem Reap

After the buffet breakfast at the hotel, we were taken by bus to Angkor Wat, the best-preserved temple since Buddhist monks have continually maintained it. It is also the national symbol of Cambodia and is proudly displayed on its national flag. It was built in the early 12th century by Suryavarman II. It was created to represent heaven on earth, symbolically Mt. Meru, the Mt. Olympus of Hinduism.

Stretching around the central temple complex is a 800 meter series if bas-reliefs. The central tower is 55 meters high. Angkor War is also known for its asparas, or heavenly nymphs (over 2000 of them). The nymphs are known for their many different hairstyles. There is artistic stonework everywhere. Of course, there were plenty of Buddhas also even though it was originally a Hindu construction.

The humidity at Angkor Wat had been very high so instead of going on the afternoon local market trip, Mike and I decided to just stay at the hotel and cool off at the beautiful pool area. There is a wonderful swim up bar, and you could also order lunch and drinks to be brought to your poolside lounger. We were not the only Viking passengers to do this!

In the evening, we had a wonderful dinner courtesy of Viking at the Sokha Restaurant in Siem Reap, where we enjoyed traditional Khmer food.

Friday, February 23 – Siem Reap

This morning after our buffet breakfast, we headed to Angkor Thom, the last great ancient capital of the Khmer empire. Angkor Thom stretches over 10 square kilometers and is enclosed by a square wall 8 meters tall and surrounded by a moat. There were four main gates leading into the city. The South gate has been restored and the bridge leading up to the gate is lined on one side by gods and on the other side by demons. This is the gate we entered in the morning. Because the gates were only as wide as an elephant, regular tour buses cannot fit through the gate, so we had to transfer to smaller shuttle buses to drive through.

Bayon Temple, built by Jayavarman VII in the 12th century, was in the center of this ancient capital. Its towers are decorated with 216 very large smiling faces and 1.2 kilometers of beautiful bas-reliefs surround the temple and tell the story of Khmer daily life.

Much restoration work is ongoing. Luckily, a 1296 Chinese tourist journal has aided in this restoration.

Our next stop was at the Elephant Terrace, a 350-meter-long giant viewing stand used for public ceremonies. The king also used this platform to entertain foreign dignitaries. Next to the Elephant Terrace was the Terrace of the Leper (Leopard) King. Dating from the late 12th century, this 7-meter-high platform was decorated with intricate carvings.

After lunch and a dip in the pool, it was time to visit the Viking-sponsored school. This is a school that supplements the regular public school. Students who qualify, go there for an hour and a half each afternoon to learn English and computer skills. While there was a bit of a hard sell to sponsor students and/or donate to the school, I had a delightful tour guide who made sure that I saw everything and even gave me a chance to interact with other younger students.

In the evening, Viking treated us to another very nice dinner in Siem Reap at Mahob Restaurant for a Khmer set menu. Our menu included a trio appetizer of chicken satay, beef skewer rolled in betel leaves, pork larb. We also enjoyed coconut and shrimp soup, pork ribs, wok-fried chicken, sauteed broccoli with mushrooms, and pumpkin custard for dessert.

Saturday, February 24 – Siem Reap to Hanoi

Checked out of the Sofitel Siem Reap. Then off to Ta Phrom Temple, of Tomb Raider fame. This Buddhist temple was built by Jayavarman VII and dedicated to his mother. This is the romantic temple that is crumbling and seemingly overtaken by the jungle, just a bit more like what Europeans might have seen when they rediscovered the temples in this area. There are tree roots pushing out stone blocks creating disarray.

After our exploration of Ta Phrom Temple, it was off to the new Siem Reap Airport for our flight to Hanoi.

Our flights were on time and we arrived in Hanoi early. What a change! We left 97-degree Siem Reap, and arrived 54-degree Hanoi. It was about a half hour bus ride to the Pan Pacific Hanoi Hotel in the rain. Looking forward to tomorrow in Hanoi.

Sunday,February 25 – Hanoi

We have a busy schedule for the Viking one day in Hanoi. After breakfast, we headed out on the bus to a location in the Old Quarter to board “electric carts.’’ It was a whirlwind 45-minute ride, introducing us to the narrow streets and wild traffic of old Hanoi. As you can tell, the weather really changed for us. Leaving Siem Reap at 98 degrees and arriving in Hanoi in the mid-50s was a shock. When the weather warmed a bit later in our Hanoi stay, the traffic really picked up, too.

We learned that crossing the street in Hanoi was quite the adventure. Some streets had stoplights, but those were suggestions only - scooters never seemed to stop for red lights. We were told to watch carefully, extending our arm, and definitely not running. I just always tried to cross with locals, putting them closest to the nearest traffic, if possible.

After our electric cart ride, it was back to the bus to the Hoa Lo Prison (Hanoi Hilton). With only one full day in Hanoi on the Viking schedule, the visits to the sites were cut short. We especially felt that this museum was not given enough time. While most of the museum housed in the actual prison was devoted to the French using it against the Viet Minh, there was an area devoted to the US pilots who were imprisoned here during the Vietnam War.

After leaving the Hanoi Hilton, we went to the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology. This museum gives an introduction to all the various ethnic groups that make up the country’s regions. While the inside of the museum has fascinating displays on each ethnic group, focusing on ho they lived, celebrated events, and made a living, the museum grounds outside was definitely not to be missed There you could actually go into reconstructed homes that demonstrated how they lived. The various architectural constructions revealed a lot about the practicalities of living in different regions of the country. The homes were filled with furniture and home goods that would have been in that particular type of structure.

We had packed a lot into the morning and now it was time for a lunch break. Our bus took us to a craft center where craftspeople who were disabled due to the use of Agent Orange during the Vietnam War worked. Many made beautiful embroideries that looked like paintings.

We admired their artistic abilities, then headed to the top floor where we could buy pho and egg coffee, two Hanoi taste treats. Mike and I agreed that the pho here was the absolute best we had on the whole trip. The women who served us explained that the broth for the beef pho had been simmered for 5 hours. Definitely, go out of your way to sample both this and the egg coffee. You’ll want to have the egg coffee as a dessert.

February 25, afternoon - After lunch, we headed to the Ho Chi Minh Complex where the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is located (also the residence where he lived and the grander French colonial building where he could have resided. I think this whole complex is very impressive. Of course, Ho Chi Minh, a very simple man, had asked not to have such a memorial, but the country thought otherwise. We spent about 2 hours at this location, walking from site to site. Extremely interesting!

We walked by the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, The National Assembly Building across from the HCM Mausoleum, The Presidential Palace where Vietnamese leaders entertain guests (the former home of the French colonial governor), Ho Chi Minh’s home on stilts (he was a very simple man), and The One Pillar Pagoda (originally built in 1049, destroyed by the French colonial army, rebuilt by Ho Chi Minh, based on original design and in original location).

February 25th, continued:

Then it was off to the Temple of Literature. This Confucius Temple is where students come to pray for success in their studies, or come to thank the gods for success they have achieved. We saw lots of students there the afternoon we visited. As a matter of fact, there were several different schools gathered to take photos and make their offerings and prayers.

We had packed a lot into this last full day in Hanoi, so e got back to the hotel with just enough time to shower, change, and get ready for our Viking Farewell Dinner at La Madison Vie Restaurant. Somehow, I didn’t take any photos at the restaurant. Very unusual for me. Let me just say, the food was absolutely excellent, the restaurant was lovely, and the chef made a visit to all the tables. We had the opportunity to choose from a couple of items for each of the four courses (and this included 2 glasses of wine). Viking did a fantastic job in choosing this restaurant. It was a great final dinner for our base group of travelers.

Monday, February 26 - Ha Long Bay extension begins

After breakfast at the Pan Pacific hotel, it was time to board our bus and head to Ha Long Bay. We only had to take an overnight bag and could store out main luggage at the Pan Pacific since we would be returning there after our Ha Long Bay hotel stay.

After a relatively short bus ride, our first stop was to board our Ha Long Bay boat to cruise through this scenic area. The boat was filled with tables where we would enjoy our lunch. We could also go out on the open-air aft area of the boat and the open-air topside filled with seating for those who wanted to have unobstructed views. To be honest, it was a bit chilly, and while I ventured out several times, I did spend most of my viewing time indoors. We did have nice windows from which to view at the dining tables though.

The mainly seafood lunch was included, but you had to pay extra for wine or beer. We bought a bottle of Vietnamese red wine which we found totally acceptable for 480 dong. Others at our table bought Chilean red wine for about twice that amount.

It was misty with occasional breaks in the clouds - one thing to consider, Jan, Feb, March will have relatively cooler temps in the steamy south Vietnam (still in the low 90s), but also cooler temps in the North (50s-60s). Go for the warmer summer months in the north and you’ll have to suffer the unbearable temps in the south.

Near the end of the boat ride, we went into a cave that actually turned out being one of the highlights of our boat trip. It was called Dong Thien Cung and was located 20 meters above sea level. The stalactites and stalagmites inside the cave were fascinating.

After visiting the cave, we headed back to board our boat to go back to the harbor to board our bus to take us to our hotel - the Vinpearl Hotel located on its own island. OK, the hotel was weirdly a Hotel California meets Fantasy Island. It looked spectacular inside and out, but was almost empty except for our Viking group. Spooky! Services were nice, but it still felt strange. We had to check in on the mainland, then take a boat to the island where the hotel was. Our room was very nice, our evening meal (on our own) was nice, but the emptiness was still kind of spooky. I think all of us felt better when we boarded the boat the next morning to head back to the “real” world.

Tuesday, February 27 - Final Day of the Ha Long Bay extension

This morning, we headed back to the mainland, boarded our bus for a short ride, then stopped at Mikimoto Pearls. After a brief introduction to the pearl farming in this area, tour members were escorted into the showroom to view the pearl jewelry, etc. and, hopefully, make some purchases. Mike and I headed immediately to the coffee bar. I had visited the home offices of Mikimoto in Tokyo some years back so we were quite content to have a second coffee after our nice buffet breakfast at the VinPearl.

After about 45 minutes for shopping (and coffee drinking), it was back to the bus to return to Hanoi and one last night on Viking at the Pan Pacific. Along the way, we had a good view of the port of Haiphong, one of the main targets for bombing during the Vietnam War.

Once we were back in the city, we had time to check into the hotel and get freshened up before it was time to go to the water puppet theater. This was not part of the Viking program, but our Mekong guide, Kong, had arranged for the tickets for us. Two other Viking couples also went to the 5:30 show. We had great tickets in the third row. We took a Grab car down to the Theater. We used Grab multiple times in Hanoi and the bill was usually about $2.50 (directly charged to my credit card that was on the Grab app). No need to worry about taxi meters.

We loved the water puppet show. One of the other Viking couples saw us coming into the theater and encouraged us to go out to pick up the audio guide in English. Wow, what a great idea! Before each new act, there is an explanation of the action in Vietnamese in the theater. The audio device provides the same intro for each act in English. It made the different folk story acts so much more understandable and enjoyable.

After the water puppet show, we walked to a nearby restaurant where we had reservations - Madame Hien. This is one of the restaurants that had been featured on an earlier Parts Unknown by Anthony Bourdain. It was a fun restaurant; the food was delicious and our server was excellent (as he described each dish in detail). It was a super way to end the evening. We each chose a different tasting menu (Mike chose the 4-course 36 Streets Menu and I chose the 5-course Signature Tasting Menu) so that we could share as many menu items as possible. It was quite the feast!
After dinner, we used the Grab app to call a Grab car and we were quickly back to the hotel.

Wednesday, February 28 - Hanoi on our own

We said goodbye to the few remaining Viking tour members who were having breakfast in the 1st floor breakfast room of the Pan Pacific. They would be leaving at various times today, but we had arranged two more days on our own in Hanoi before flying to Taipei, Taiwan for 5 days. As Rick Steves often says, sometimes you just need a vacation from your vacation. Viking had really kept us busy for the previous 2 1/2 weeks and we needed a break. We had no real plans for today except to sleep late, eat when we felt like it, and take a walk. We were also celebrating the 10-year anniversary of survival from a life-threatening event for my husband. Ten years to the day prior, Mike suffered an aortic dissection aneurysm while on a business trip. He was in the right place at the right time because he was able to be transferred to the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL where surgeons saved his life. They considered it pretty much a miracle. So I decided that we would stay at the Pan Pacific, but we changed rooms to enjoy a suite (with Executive Lounge benefits). The room was lovely with a great view from both rooms. The day was misty and cool, but the view from the sitting room of the suite looked right down on the causeway between the hotel and the Old Quarters of Hanoi.

Since we had a late breakfast, we didn’t want lunch. Instead, we had tea in the Executive Lounge (quite the spread) and even ended up there for a light dinner at their cocktail hour.

Our only touring for the day, was a brisk walk along the causeway from the hotel toward the Old Quarters. Here we viewed the Memorial to John McCain.. It is right in front of the area in the lake where his plane went down during the Vietnam War. Today, the Vietnamese are very appreciative of all that John McCain did with other Senators to open trade with Vietnam during the 1990s, a time when the Vietnamese people were really suffering once support from the old Soviet Union was gone.

We also visited the Tran Quoc Pagoda, a pagoda built in the 6th century. There was a temple, as well as a sacred tree that had grown from a seedling from the original Bodhi tree that had been presented to Vietnam by the President of India in 1959.

After dinner, we returned to our room to be surprised that the hotel had left a celebratory cake and card for us. This was just one example of the wonderful service that we had while staying at the Pan Pacific.

Thursday, February 29 - Hanoi on our own

Another leisurely morning, with our first real activity being a Food Tour at 11:30 arranged through Viator. We had a great guide who took us to several really delicious spots. It was so much fun to dine on the sidewalks at the low tables, sitting on plastic stools, just like the locals.

We got to sample dried beef salad, dry pho, bahn mi, bun cha, Hanoi coconut coffee, and Hanoi egg coffee. We stopped by a fresh draft beer shop for a Hanoi IPA and we learned how to roll our own fresh spring rolls at another restaurant. It was very interesting to see Grab Scooter drivers running into restaurants and shops to pick up take-out orders. I highly recommend taking a food tour while you are in Hanoi. Our tour group was limited to 6 so it was lots of fun getting to know some other people.

After the food tour, we walked over to the iconic Lake of the Restored Sword where Den Ngoc Son temple is located. It is on an island in the lake connected by a red bridge. There is a legend regarding the founding of Vietnam that involves a sacred turtle in the lake and a sword that the leader who fought an invading group received that allowed him to win the battle. The sword was eventually returned to the lake. Besides the beautiful island location and temple, there is a small building on the grounds that houses the preserved remains (after they died naturally) of two of the rare turtles found in the lake.

After our visit to the temple, we walked through the Old Quarter, looking for propaganda posters for our sons - and we were successful. As we were wandering, we came to Railroad Street - a location many tourists like to visit when the train comes through (although this is discouraged by the government since it is dangerous).

We walked by the Vietnam Military History Museum (closing soon) located near the Watch Tower of the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long (an 11th century UNESCO site), but realized we were too late to visit since it, too, was closing in about 15 minutes. At that point, we called a Grab car and headed back to the hotel. Both of those locations are definite “must sees” on our next trip to Hanoi.

Once back at the hotel it was time to pack, have cocktails and dinner.

Friday, March 1 - Travel Day from Hanoi to Taipei

Today was the day to leave the Pan Pacific Hotel in Hanoi and travel to the airport. After breakfast in the Executive lounge, we called for a Grab Car and headed to the airport which was about 30 minutes away - our cost was about $13. We were flying business class on China Air (Taiwanese national airlines) so our check in was very quick and the service onboard was excellent. We had a great lunch which we could choose in advance and very comfortable seats. After arriving in Taipei, we collected our bags and took the MRT a few stations and then transferred to the High-Speed Rail for one stop. We could have taken the MRT the whole way if we had a downtown hotel, but we had chosen a Hilton in New Taipei City. It still only took about 30 minutes and dropped us off just a block from our hotel. The Hilton had upgraded us to a small suite (from a regular king) so we were pleased. The rest of the evening, we relaxed at the Executive Lounge.

Saturday, March 2 - Taipei

Today, I had arranged for a Taipei City tour through Viator. Our young guide had lived in the US during his college years, so understanding him was not a problem. He quickly assessed some of our interests, noting that we were interested in going to the National Museum and adjusted our schedule accordingly. It was a off and on again rainy day, so it was probably a good thing that we were interested in the National Museum.

Our guide drove us through the downtown area of Taipei, providing lots of information about the city and the country. Our first stop was at the Grand Hotel Taipei. There had been a hotel in this location from the early 20th century, but in 1952, Madame Chiang Kai-shek wanted a grander hotel to stand in this location so that was the beginning of this new “grand” design. There are many historical photos inside illustrating the important people and events that have occurred here.

Our next stop was at Lin A Tai Historical House and Museum. In 1754, Lin Chin-Ming came to Taiwan from mainland China. It is now one of the oldest houses and grounds existing in Taipei. In 1978, it was in an area that was to be redeveloped and due to its historical value, a plan was created to move it to its present location. By 2000, it was opened to the public. The present site and architecture are in accordance to the principles of Feng Shui and Taoism. It is filled with historically appropriate artifacts. We enjoyed wandering the property and hearing its history and about the elements of Feng Shui as we toured with our guide. There were many different latticework designs, creating symbols with auspicious implications. Another interesting design used was a cloud wall, built to create a floating cloud effect that harmonizes with the hill behind.

During the late morning and early afternoon, our tour continued at the National Palace Museum. This museum holds a huge collection of art and artifacts, most of these treasures were taken from the Forbidden City by Chiang Kai-shek as he left mainland China. We spent about 3 hours here, but honestly, could have spent several days! Some of my favorite items: Neolithic cong (a type of ritual object often placed with the dead) 3400-2250 BCE, Meat-shaped carved stone that looks like pork, made of jasper, Ceremonial bronze bell 1046-771 BCE, Ming vase with “Hundred Deer” motif, Chinese landscape painting (just one portion of a long painted scroll) 1441 CE, art piece made of ivory balls of nested concentric layers with human figures in open work relief - Late 19th century, Tang ceramic figurine (lady “polo player”) 618-907 CE,
The real disappointment with our museum visit was not being able to see the Jadeite Cabbage that is on every “must see” list for the museum. Oh well, another reason to come back.

March 2, continued:

After leaving the museum, it was off to see the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial. There were cherry blossom trees blooming outside the memorial, but the drizzle was still with us. At first glance, the Memorial faintly reminds one of the Lincoln Memorial in DC, with the large seated statue of Chiang with quotes from some of his famous speeches all around. Our guide said that Madame Chiang took control of the memorial design and really wanted to bolster Chiang Kai-shek’s image which had been tarnished by groups unhappy with his authoritarian side. There was a special area of the museum (all in Mandarin) that talked about the authoritarian abuses of Chiang Kai-shek. This is not really set up for the foreign tourists and was insisted on by the democratic leaning governments of the last decade who wanted to present a more balanced view of Chiang. Our guide gave us his translation of the photos and artifacts in this exhibit, which really added to our understanding of Chiang Kai-shek and politics in Taiwan.

Our first plan of action was to go upstairs to see the Changing of the Guard. It is quite the impressive display of rifle twirling skills and precision marching. Unfortunately, my camera ran out of power so didn’t really get the photos to show that off. After the changing of the guard, we visited the museum on the ground floor of the memorial.

By the time we finished at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial, it was time to head back to the hotel to warm up, dry off, and have dinner.

Sunday, March 3 - Taipei

Yesterday had been a busy tour day, so today we planned to take it easy. We had spent so much time at the National Palace Museum yesterday that we didn’t have time to go to Longshan Temple so after breakfast, we headed out to rectify that. Longshan Temple was originally built by Chinese immigrants from the mainland in the 18th century, but it has been destroyed by fires and earthquakes several times. It was last rebuilt after WWII when part of the main temple was struck by American bombers when the Allies thought the Japanese were hiding armaments there.

It was fun to visit the temple while it was still all decked out for Lunar New Year.

After Longshan Temple, we hopped back on the MRT to go to Din Tai Fung. It is a famous soup dumpling restaurant that has had a Michelin star for some time. We visited the Din Tai Fung in Singapore in 2018 and the one in LA in 2022, but the original is here in Taipei. Of course, there was a wait (over an hour), so we got our number which we could keep track of online and went in search of a brewery. As is the case these days almost anywhere in the world, there was one just a couple of blocks away.

We enjoyed our time there until it appeared that our number would soon be called. We hurried back to Din Tai Fung and, needless to say, we thoroughly enjoyed our 2 orders of soup dumplings.

After we finished our meal, it was easy to walk back to the MRT station and ride back to the hotel. Since our lunch had been mid-afternoon, we decided to have a light dinner at the Executive Lounge.

Monday, March 4 - Traveling outside of Taipei

Today, we had another full day tour, but this time outside Taipei. We knew we didn’t have much time for Taiwan, but felt that if we visited a few places outside the city, we’d feel like we’d gotten to know Taiwan a bit better. Immediately after we left the city, we were in rural surroundings - twisting roads and tree covered mountains. Luck was with us because the weather on this day was beautiful. Sunshine and blue skies.

Our first stop was in Pingxi, where the annual Lantern Festival is held during the Lunar New Year. We were at the tail end of this period, but Pingxi has sky lantern release all year long. We were given a red lantern and provided with black ink and brushes in order to write our wishes on all four sides. Our handwriting wasn’t very legible, but sending our lantern skyward was so much fun. We took a quick walk around Pingxi and over to a bridge to admire the river below us and the many lanterns on their skyward journey.

Then it was off to our next stop at Shifen Waterfall. Again, we had a lovely walk across several picturesque bridges until we reached the first viewpoint. What a lovely spot. If you walk a bit further, you have the best viewing spot of all. Near the waterfall, there are shops that sell snacks and other foods. I bought some of their peanut candies that were so good!

After Shifen Waterfall, we were off to Jiufen. It is another mountain village even higher in the mountains. It had been an old gold mining village, but now the old narrow alleyways between the buildings are filled with street foods, tea shops, and restaurants. We had a delightful lunch here - soup dumplings and pork rice.

There are several hotels in Jiufen, too. One was used as the setting of a popular movie called “Spirited Away. I wish we’d had time to have tea in that hotel with its open balconies. When we got home from our trip, we watched the new Taipei episode of “Somebody Feed Phil” and the hotel was there!

After having lunch and wandering through more of the shops, we headed to our last major site, Yehliu GeoPark. I didn’t know about this park until I started doing research for the Taiwan portion of our trip. It is on a 1700-meter promontory jutting out from the northern coast of Taiwan. Due to erosion and weathering for millions of years, fabulous geological formations have been created. There are mushroom rocks, candle rocks, ginger rocks, potholes, tofu rocks and sea caves. And, of course, people throughout the years have seen different shapes in the rocks and have given them names. It was such a fun place to tour.

We saw: Cute Princess Rock (aka Girl with Ponytail Rock), Mushroom rocks, Queen’s Head Rock, Ice Cream Rock, Maling Bird Rock - I think it looks like an antelope, and Gorilla Rock. Actually, those are the formations I took photos of – we saw many more!

It had been a great day, but it was time to head back to Taipei City. I’d highly recommend a visit to all these locations!

Tuesday, March 5 - Taipei

Our last full day in Taipei. We decided to head out to see Taipei 101. It was easy to take the MRT. The upscale stores in the lower levels of the building were fun to explore, too. We decided to pay a bit extra to go to the highest floor, basically because we visited the highest floor you could visit at the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. Needless to say, the Burj Khalifa was a lot more impressive, but I’m still glad we visited Taipei 101.

Then we headed off to have lunch. Our guide from the day before had suggested a Michelin recommended restaurant for beef noodles. We headed to the MRT for the short ride there. The restaurant was packed, but we were seated at a small table near the back of the room. The beef noodles were delicious.

By the time we finished lunch, it was late afternoon and we needed to head back to the hotel to pack since our flight out was the following morning. We decided to just have cocktails and a light dinner in the Executive Lounge.

Wednesday, March 6 - Leaving Taipei

The location of the hotel once again proved its convenience for reaching the airport. The connection was relatively quick and the check-in was simple. We had plenty of time to use the China Air lounge. By the way, they had the best lounge of the whole trip. The food was definitely a cut above. I tried to limit myself because I knew we’d have food on the plane, too, but I couldn’t help but try some of the dishes. The Korean Air lounge in Inchon was ok, but nothing special. We did have nice service on the Korean Air flight to Inchon and the Delta One flight to Seattle. Just as on the way out, we stayed one night in Seattle to rest, then headed on to the East Coast the next morning.

Overall, this had been a great trip. Our first river cruise had been quite successful, but I just hope we haven’t spoiled ourselves with that great room on the Viking Saigon. It was so spacious for a bottom classification room - 303 sq ft. We have an AA suite on our next river cruise in Europe and even though we paid quite a bit more for it, it is only 275 sq. ft. It will be interesting to experience the difference.

Thanks for the nice report. I will be in Bangkok at the end of May. What tour company did you use for the street food tour?

I really enjoyed your report. What a fabulous trip!

Dave - I booked the Bangkok food tour through Viator. It was listed as “Bangkok Backstreet Food Tour 15+ Tastings Included “. It also indicated that it was run by “A Chef’s Tour”. They have a website, too. We really liked having the small group. We met our tour guide outside the Shanghai Mansions hotel bar.

Hope this helps.

Thank you so much for this report. Bookmarking this page for future reference, this is a trip and itinerary that I would love to do.

What a great report, thanks for sharing! Brought back fond memories of my trip to Bangkok, Siem Reap, and Vietnam. Especially the food...so much good food. I also remember the bibimbap on Korean Air being quite tasty!

Thanks for the great report an detail! I too have bookmarked since I am contemplating Vietnam in 2025.

Thanks, everyone for the kind comments. If anyone wants any more info I’d be happy to provide as much as I can. We’d love to go back since we missed so much in Central Vietnam.

Thanks for your report, nice to read about places other than Europe. Sounds wonderful, would love to eat the food there. How bad was the heat and humidity?

Loved reading your report! You covered so much territory. Just returned from Vietnam yesterday, sitting here at work with major jet lag and trying to stay awake! We went to Da Nang and Hoi An. Our first Asia trip. It was for my nephew's wedding (bride is Vietnamese). What an experience of sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and temperature! We had three days in Da Nang (Hyatt) and four days in Hoi An, where the wedding took place (Palm Garden Resort). Great city/Son Tra Peninsula tour in Da Nang, and wonderful cooking class/organic farm/market tour in Hoi An. We are thinking about Thailand for a future second SE Asia trip. We had a really good experience with Grab when the driver came to the hotel with the phone we left in the car! We also really liked what we saw of South Korea during our layover. Took a great 5 hour tour there from the airport--at least it was much cooler.