Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73075
OK, a general bit on this visit to Siem Reap. It’s deffo a place that was clobbered by Covid. Only 50% of visitors are back and in a city where 2 or 3 peeps in every family worked in the tourist industry that’s still causing pain. No dole here. Chinese, Japanese and Korean (S variety) made up a massive slice of the visitors and they just haven’t returned. Lots of luxury hotel blocks that are either completed and mothballed or building just stopped when the visitor tap got turned off. They are gambling big time that visitor numbers will return and exceed the past as they’ve just opened a massive Chinese built airport, and ours was the only aircraft in when we arrived.
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Needless to say they put us at the furthest gate from Immigration, cheapest for Air Asia and good for our exercise. But we were in row 1 in the a/c and through immigration (e-visa not visa on arrival) and customs (online declaration rather than paper form) like rats out of traps and we were in front of the airport before the pick-up drivers realised it was action time! We were walking up and down the line reading names as they appeared before our driver realised his ducklings had arrived!! That was our first name-on-board arrival and we got there, eventually.
28th May 2024 1:23 pm
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73075
And almost time to say bye-bye to Cambodia, prob our fave destination in SE Asia. A few random pics while we’re waiting on the shuttle bus to the airport.
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Proof that they invented the Alien franchise!!
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Well they did invent dinosaurs almost 1,000 years ago. From Ta Phrom temple, way too good to be my pic!
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Little snacklet made from coconut flesh. Very nice but name went in one ear and out the other.
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And just near the hotel looks like TfL is opening a coffee place. Nah, can’t be TfL, they’d just make a Horlicks of it rather than coffee.
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Only and hour until the bus turns up but at least the AC has been switched on in the lobby. Only 32c but pretty humid. Are we there yet?
31st May 2024 6:09 am
mark the spark
Member Since: 22 Jun 2011
Location: southampton
Posts: 2521
great place to see, the bridge with all the carved heads and the tomb raider temple were my faves cant believ they let us tourist climb all over everything tho!. seeing the locals on mopeds carrying clear plastic bags of petrol to sell was an eye opener.
locals very friendly when we went 6 years ago now would love to go backMY05 SE D3 Manual my first LR what a car
MY10 HSE D4 auto
MY14 XXV more buttons than the spaceshuttle
31st May 2024 6:55 am
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73075
And our ride is here!! Not a lot of peeps so going to be plenty of spreading room. And just getting out of Dodge in time as it looks like it’s tipping down around us. Rice farmers will be happy.
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Mind you, we’ve been bumped from nice emergency exit row 14 to row 22, what they trying to say!!
31st May 2024 10:01 am
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73075
mark the spark wrote:
locals very friendly when we went 6 years ago now would love to go back
Deffo worth the effort of going back. Not much has changed since we were there 5 years ago apart from a massive empty airport and toll road to it. We used the same tour co (Siem Reap Shuttle), the same restaurant (Try Me) and shopped at the same supermarket (Angkor Supermarket), it was as if we’d never been away! The only thing that needed any thought was the dual running of US$ and Cambodian Riels, that stretches the little grey cells every now and again.
31st May 2024 10:06 am
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73075
And it’s:
GOOOOOOOOOOD MORNING VIETNAAAAAM!!!
Few days in Hanoi, heading off for a wander in a mo hunting down Banh Mi and reacquainting ourselves with crazy Hanoi traffic.
And great view of Hoan Kiem Lake, boooooootiful day.
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Types while SWMBO is being interviewed by kids re football!!
1st Jun 2024 1:57 am
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73075
And Banh Mi for breakie. French style mini baguette that is made the way they used to make bread in France. How to upset a Parisian (from experience) tell them that the best baguettes come from Vietnam!! Painful but true.
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With Cafe Sua, Vietnamese drip coffee with condensed milk!! Instantly addictive and deeeeeeelish, took me weeks to break the addiction on last long visit here, I’m now restricted to 2 cups a week!! Hey-ho, at least the beer is cheaper and much less addictive.
Also the new D6 prototype undergoing Asian street cred testing! Disguised as a Mazda.
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1st Jun 2024 6:19 am
PROFSR G
Member Since: 06 Mar 2017
Location: Lost
Posts: 5036
We'll have to take your word for it Del regarding the coffee and baguettes, but there can be no doubt that's definitely LR built vehicle.
The giveaway is in the lob sided fitting of the Discovery badge. Typical LR quality which couldn't possibly be replicated elsewhere. yµ (idµ - eAµ) ψ=mψ
1st Jun 2024 12:44 pm
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73075
Mazda wouldn’t dare put out a car with wonky badges.
Funny thing is SWMBO told me off for taking the pic as the driver was sitting behind the wheel. I had checked for said driver but of course I checked the wrong side of the car. I gave him a cheesy grin and thumbs up and he smiled back so don’t think any harm has been done to UK-Vietnam relations.
1st Jun 2024 12:50 pm
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73075
A good three days in Hanoi, mostly wandering around Hoan Kiem Lake at the weekend. It’s traffic free but with loads of school kids practicing their English and shoe cleaning peeps tutting and pointing at the state of my boots. And wandering up into the Old Town to seek out food and generally get back to the swing in Hanoi.
While I say traffic free, you have to watch out for loads of little ones in their radio controlled cars.
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Though it’s a bit sad when you pass the local police station with a pile of impounded small cars and motos. The former are illegal, rented out to kids and then sometimes the boys in green confiscate them. This is one of 2 piles in the area.
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Otherwise it’s pretty hooching with peeps, bands, various acts and vendors.
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This is a competition for patriotic songs and acts. Very patriotic with much fanfare for the various fights the good peeps of Vietnam have been involved in. In fact it was so stirring the high heart rate alarm on my watch went off. Positively patriotic!!
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There was a concert right in front of our hotel, a local legend, so we had a nice concert from our room. Very famous in Vietnam, judging from the crowd.
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Having a room overlooking Hoan Kiem Lake on the w/end was brilliant, easy to walk around, not too much hassle and right by the old city. Great stay.
Yesterday went to the national history museum and the national military museum just N of us. Also good being back on the Hanoi buses, really good network and about 20p per ride.
Just as an aside, looking through the History Museum there’s a tablet from 12th Century.
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Not expecting anything but ran it through GoogTrans and it worked!! WOW!
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And 34 bus to the Nat Military Museum. Lots of patriotic tales of daring do’s against, in rough chronological order, the Mongolians, the Chinese, the French aided by the Spanish, the Americans and the peskie Chinese again (fleeting reference to the invasion in late 70s). Unfortunately most of the external exhibits are gone except the vertical jigsaw puzzle of a/c parts. Now I know my onions re aircraft of this era in this theatre but not when they are in lots of pieces and all mixed up!
All the following are IMHO, I could be wrong, it has been known. Alegedly!
Big top bit fuselage from French C-47. Above my head in black is a section of B-52 wing, underside.
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Wing from an F-111. Pretty sure that was the only swing wing aircraft that was “flying around” here.
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Lots of engines, look like B-52 plants. Would have been a lot of them looking for a new home at the end of 1972 due to Linebacker II.
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A-4 Skyhawk front screen.
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Lots of other bits that I couldn’t identify.
Walk back to hotel headed across Train Street. Unfortunately no trains.
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Today was a bit of a lazy morning then to the new AF and Air Defence museum. Lots more tails of daring do’s against the peskie Yankees and their puppets in the South. Fantastic exhibits outside. Saddest one was this ex-USN F-4B that landed itself on a river after its crew decided to go for a swim when they had fuel transfer issues.
Lots of other birds in the park, all suitably marked up in VNAF colours, several c/o those peskie Yankees, just in better condition than the Phantom.
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First sighting of a Mi-26 Halo, and it is massive!!
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Truly mahoosive, and good for shade!
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And an A-1 Sandy.
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A few pics from inside. Lots of bits of a/c, bone domes, survival kits and general gear taken from US Airman that didn’t manage to leave the area after making a delivery. On the flip side, and playing for the home team, the wall of Order of Labor (ironic as it’s the American spelling). Sea of faces but this chap stood out for me from the sea of faces, an ace in the VNAF having shot down 8 US aircraft.
Soyuz capsule used by the first Vietnamese Cosmanaurt to get home.
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And good old Uncle Ho. We saw him in the preserved flesh 5 years ago.
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And the stuff on the other side of the park. Fair few MiG-21s with lots of kill stars on the nose, not sure any individual a/c had that level of success against the Americans. Maybe collective.
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As flown by N Korea in big numbers today, AN-2.
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Bit late for the Vietnam scrap but a Su-22 Fitter.
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Then back on the #24 bus to old town. Almost tempted to get off early though!
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And to dinner. Not sure the seats are really meant for me, at least it didn’t collapse!
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And dinner. Really nice, like a deconstructed Banh Mi/hot pot. Proper name is Banh Mi Chao. And £2 each! Bread was superb, Parisian bakers get your act into gear, best French bread is here!! And the beers are ice cold (good in 35c and high humidity) and about 80p a bottle.
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On the move again tomorrow, enjoyed these few days in Hanoi but off to the coast tomorrow. But we’ll be back.
3rd Jun 2024 11:33 am
Down&Dirty
Member Since: 17 Aug 2012
Location: Somewhere out back
Posts: 1293
Excellent pics as always
Hungry nowMY24 Defender 90 X-Dynamic HSE
MY18 Disco 5 HSE Santorini Black Now Gone.
3rd Jun 2024 4:24 pm
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73075
Evening all from Ha Long Bay!!
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Data is pretty mah so will bung up pics once back on dry land.
Oh, and enjoying happy hours!! Hic.
4th Jun 2024 11:10 am
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73075
Evening all, and greetings once again from Hanoi. Presently in a rather nice hotel on Hanoi’s Westlake.
A few pics from Tuesday, first day of our cruise. Booooootiful day after 3hr drive from Hanoi. A good few pics.
The good ship we were on. I’m sure it has a name but we never clocked it.
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Lots of boooooootiful islands, hypnotic just watching them glide past.
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The mandatory floating village by row boat. We could have done kayak a but the prospect of going for an impromptu dip put us off that.
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Lots of cute guard puppies!!
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Our bamboo boat and lady rower on the right.
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Then the trip to our anchorage for the night, with happy hours and sunset.
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When anchored up.
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Oh, and this was our first ever cruise, was sweet to know where our table was via the Union Flag, even if it was upside down.
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And what a difference an evening makes! We were woken at ~4am with constant thunder and lightning for the next several hours. Local TV news reported over 10k lightning strikes, resulting in 15 water buffalo deaths. No water buffs on our boat but no way was I heading outside as the rain was absolutely torrential! Was most amusing when two passengers on the boat went out for a fag, a few moments later lightning hit very close. One of the two issued what can only be described as a girlie screen and bolted back in. See, smoking is bad for your health, esp in a lightning storm!
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We were supposed to join a “day boat” but decided to stay on the main boat in case it wasn’t allows to leave Ha Long after it went back, leaving us stuck!
We did head back to the same anchorage and what a difference 12 hours make. Nice sunset.
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As above, now back in Hanoi. In IC Westlake that we booked reasonably cheaply many, many, many moons ago, but have been upgraded to 2 bedroom “residence”, 129m2. Rattling around like 2 pees in a pod! And it has a washer/dryer! Happy days, esp for those around us! It’s been hot and sweaty.
6th Jun 2024 1:29 pm
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73075
And the last few pics from Hanoi. It’s been a bit of a flop-fest, with a bit of visiting places in Hanoi.
B-52 Victory museum. A partly reconstructed B-52 with bits from D and G models, some upside down to make the general shape.
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Plus a few SA-2 Guidelines and MiG21 with Aphids (I think).
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A few exhibits inside incl gear from US flight crew from B-52s, F-111As and this helmet from A USN RA-5A Vigilante. I could pin this to a few shoot downs but not the individual aircraft/crew.
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Lots of lightning a bit south of Hanoi a couple of nights ago. Nothing on the scale of Ha Long Bay last week but nice to watch from one of our 3 balconies!!
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Today was a walk around Westlake, about a 14km hike. We managed 9km before getting a bus back to the hotel. As proof of the pud, the dragons at the top of the lake.
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And an other wannabe LR, though why anyone would want to pretend that their car was a LR is beyond me!
Ducking for cover!
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And ying and yang, a proper LR. The only D3/4 we’ve seen for quite a while.
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It’s bye bye to Hanoi and the North, flight down to Hué tomorrow. Before anyone else gets it in there, no Hué I hear you say! It’s an old one but a good one.
Catch y’all from south of the DMZ, where the swig Bia Saigon, not Bia Hanoi.
10th Jun 2024 12:13 pm
Gareth Site Moderator
Member Since: 07 Dec 2004
Location: Bramhall
Posts: 26772
Love a good lightning storm! You’re in the right place for them!
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WOW!
Hungry now
