Day 236: Another Rainy Getaway Day — Goodbye Vietnam — Off to Cambodia
I got up and worked out in the tiny but nice gym, housed in its own building next to the pool here at the Villa Song. The AC wasn’t on — just two open doors on either side of the building so I sweat like it was a hot yoga class. When done I ditched my sneakers and t-shirt and jumped right in the massive pool — one of my favorite pools of the year.
We were flying to Siem Reap, Cambodia at 5:25 so we had time for a leisurely breakfast, school and some hangout time.
After school Margaret took the kids to the spa to get their nails done. They were in heaven. Margaret then stayed for a foot scrub, cashing in a generous 40th bday gift from Joannna.
While they were at the spa I was in a street fight with the Chase credit card travel rewards website attempting to book tickets for the final leg of our journey. Rocket science: Turns out a lot of people travel between Dec 28 and Jan 4. Flights are limited and prices are crazy.
At one point I had everything booked with all personal info for all four of us entered and then when I pushed “purchase” the site said the price went up… by a huge amount. Then the website errored out and I had to start from scratch. I finally booked our Tokyo – Honolulu – Kauai flight on Dec 28 and our final return flight from Kauai – LAX – Washington DC. We’ll land at DCA, the airport where this journey started, on Jan 5th around 4pm. Meanwhile, we have ⅓ of this adventure remaining. And I’m so excited for this next four months. Next stop: Siem Reap Cambodia.
It was pouring outside as we grabbed a final lunch at the Villa Song in Saigon.
We were at the airport super early and said goodbye to our guide / new friend Chuong.
Everything at the airport was uneventful — including our first shuttle bus ride since the barfing incident a few days ago.
The plane was a small-ish 2-prop plane flown by Cambodia Airlines. Not the ideal aircraft for a grey, dark, breezy and stormy day. There were two short periods of turbulence including two really huge bumps that scared the shit out of everyone. And it was an…. aggressive landing. We were very happy to be on the ground in Siem Reap.
A visa expediter was waiting for us when we arrived and he made quick work of the process. As we headed off with our luggage James pushed and then jumped on the back of a luggage cart which then flipped over on top of him. No injuries — or even tears. But I think it’s safe to say he won’t attempt that stunt again.
We met our guide Virak and got a ride to the Heritage Suites Hotel. We have a really good sized room with our own private pool and jacuzzi outside our door. The hotel feels empty and the French manager, Emanuel, said that Sept is “dead season” and averages 10% occupancy.
We unpacked and ordered room service — chicken curry, chicken fingers, and a tortilla appetizer — all really good. The kids were asleep by 9:30.
Headed to the Ta Prohm temple tomorrow.
MISC:
We haven’t been homesick all year…and we still aren’t…but lately we’ve found ourselves constantly talking about food from home. Discussed at lunch today:
Thanksgiving leftover sandwiches
Ice cream sandwiches
Girl scout cookies
Shake Shack burgers
Buffalo chicken sandwich from Schleppers
Italian subs
NYC deli breakfast egg wraps
Cheddar cheese and Ritz
