Bordering on the Criminal - 14

Morning marked our departure from Phnom Penh, Cambodia and entry back into Vietnam.  Scenic provided one last visit into the city to explore the Royal Palaces.  Solid gold statues weighing over 90 kg  or 198 pounds, with a 25-carat diamond on her head dress and another on her chest.  The statue stood in a room with a floor of solid silver.  What may you ask is the justification for such wealth in a country that does not even have an irrigation system that allows farmers more than one harvest a year.  Over 85% of the precious metals and gems have been stolen from the palace while the king was in exile.  I suspect the point of the question was missed, or they feared the truth, if overheard, would have repercussions. Who knows?  

As we waved farewell to the city, I was left with the feeling that I was so glad I visited Cambodia, but no strong desire to return.  A country with enormous potential, but a government, like so many, only interested in the wealth and power they can acquire and retain for themselves.  It will be interesting to see over time if the relationship with Thailand leads to further conflict, as the sense is there is still enormous tension.  Factoid for you to emphasise this point, Siem Reap, (the home of Angkor Wat in the north) means Siam Beaten.  Siam, being the old name for Thailand, still has issues with the border line between the two countries.

When our ship arrived at the river crossing it was as if we had hit a wall of industrial operations across the width of the river for as far as the eye could see.  We were advised that the crossing was a formality, but as the hours ticked by, we realised something was amiss. I’ll come back to that later.  

Watching the industrial process was somewhat confusing until one of my fellow travellers explained what was happening.  The machinery was stripping the riverbed of sand, which is used in construction.  Problem is there are no controls on how much or over what area so it is destroying the ecosystem.  As a section of the riverbed is cleared, the extraction teams move on which is why they are now concentrated on the Cambodia border.  Any further into Cambodia requires permits and bribes, sorry licenses which is thankfully holding back the tide.  The bizarre sight is the ships that transport the extracted sand which they are known locally as Vietnamese submarines.  I think the next photo explains why.

Eventually, we were underway again, arriving at our anchorage for the night a few hours later than planned, which delayed the usual briefing on the following day's activities.  However, it was explained that the delay was due to border officials repeatedly re-examining the ship's papers and passenger passports and visas with the expectation of a bribe to speed things up.  A game of chicken developed until, eventually, the Cambodian officials ran out of excuses, and we were sent on our way.  It did provide a bit more time for me to show off my $8 Lalph Rauren shirt.

Our evening's entertainment was provided by another local orphanage that Scenic supports, and we were treated to an amazing display of Lion Dancing.  The dancers were amazing, providing a wonderful display and then organising themselves so we could all join in.  Thankful the cocktails meant we all thought we danced brilliantly.  All the dancing and cocktails meant we were all in for an internet night.

The next day was what is known as Scenic choice, where we have a range of trip options to choose from.  Julie and I selected the bird sanctuary, which turned out to be a one-hour boat trip to a very small town with a massive church.  Very unexpected.  The hour boat trip was very interesting as we passed small fishing boats that could easily have been doing the exact same thing a hundred years ago.

However, when we left the boat we boarded a local bus driven by a complete psychopath who used the horn more than the brakes and revelled in trying to force scooters off the road.  Numerous times we were thrown forward in our seats when he had misjudged yet another manoeuvre and had to brake violently.  This was not helped by his also making lots of mobile phone calls without the aid of a hands-free.  Longest hours drive I have ever had, and would like to say it was worth it, but no.  Tra Su Forest may have been a bird sanctuary before they built a bloody theme park around it, but not anymore.  First paddle boat ride around a circuit, with a mechanical voice telling us to smile for the camera perched on the river bank.  Then a massive speedboat ride on some narrow waterways.  The speedboat was so loud the only birds you saw was the ones flying away in fear.

Still, we did have a 90 minute coach ride back to the boat with Mad Max to look forward to, but made sure we sat further back in the coach.  Well we did survive despite a few more narrow misses, but of all the Scenic excursions, this was the only disappointment so can’t complain.  MUCH!   

Another evening with fantastic food, with the crew providing us with their traditional snacks and a display of their national costumes.  Yes our cruise director was from Germany.  While the evening was progressing, I had cause to visit our room and was greeted with an amazing sight.  One of the crew must have heard us talking about the cruise being an anniversary present to each other, so they decided to help us celebrate.  Looks like another internet night for us.

Our last day onboard was a combination of packing, visiting local craft businesses and tours of the galley and bridge, which now is mostly a warm blur.  The cruise has probably been the best we have ever experienced, amazing service, stunning attention to detail and faultless facilities.  If you are ever considering a holiday like this, take a look at the options Scenic offer as I am sure you won’t be disappointed.  A big thank you to Julie and Norman for recommending it to us.  

To finish a link to a theme tune that represents our ship quite well because of the quality of the internet onboard: https://youtu.be/Qksz72Xtpwc?si=i0UCbWRs8-eNFGQG