Tasmania to Tokyo – Siem Reap – Day 43 can be found here.
For those curious as to what’s happening while we are away from the Moon, today’s Chronicles can be found here.
Our lone day at Angkor Wat was incredible – our only real complaint is that we want more time here. But we knew that would be the case when we booked this mid-voyage journey.
Hurry up, hurry up, hurry up.
So chimes our alarm clock at 5:40 am this morning. We’ve hit our groove in terms of packing up the night before, so it doesn’t take long before our dirty laundry bags are stuffed inside our luggage and we’re heading downstairs for our 6 am breakfast.
The meal is much the same as it was yesterday – hot, quick, delicious. Yes, it’s a buffet. No, we don’t mind. We are on a deadline.
Back up to grab bags, and then down to check out. Our guide asks for our feedback – excellent across the board, except for the Sokha’s mattresses.
We re-board our busses promptly at 7 am and head for the Siem Riep airport. The drive is as scenic as promised, but we are too tired to remember to take photos.
No white-glove service during this part of the journey, unfortunately – we join the line for our Cambodia Airlines charter flight along with all the others. It weaves and it winds, and 20 minutes later we have dropped our bags and make our way through immigration and security.
Thankfully those lines are short – I suppose the check-in line acts as a funnel of sorts.
Siem Riep-Angkor International Airport is pretty, as airports go
No lounge access either, though we sit for only perhaps ten to fifteen minutes before boarding is called. We’re enjoying travelling with only checked bags – no need to sharpen our elbows in the fight for overhead bin space. Now to hope the checked bags actually make it to our destination…
We settle ourselves on the flight to discover that we are travelling on FlyOne, a Moldovan airline running this particular charter flight. They wouldn’t be our first choice – due largely to the lack of legroom – but 1.) it’s only for an hour and 2.) at least it’s not a turboprop.
FlyOne doesn’t even make a pretense of feeding you. They walk down the aisle once handing out water. Apart from that, you are on your own.
Touchdown, Ho Chi Minh City!
Despite our larger aircraft, we once more board a shuttle bus that will take us to the terminal.
There the white glove service resumes once more. Well, mostly white glove. A bit greyish, if I’m being honest.
The Good: We are immediately moved over to a private waiting area. There’s time to use bathrooms and connect with our Vietnam tour operator before moving on. No need to hang about in the massive queue to pass through immigration.
The Bad: Rather than submitting our visas in advance, we have pre-filled visas that are processed upon arrival. This was a quick enough process in Cambodia, but it really bogs down our arrival in Vietnam. It takes well over 30 minutes to clear the queue and get our luggage.
None of this is a deal breaker or a trip ruiner, but definitely a point in which Silversea should seek to improve. We expect it’s because they want the option to add more people closer to departure – despite stating in promotional material that the cutoff to book the midvoyage is no later than 90 days out.
Anyway. With our visas now in hand, we bid adieu to Iliana – the Silversea Rep who accompanied us to Angkor Wat – and leave on our own recognizance. At least we didn’t have to wait long for our bags.
And the final verdict? This was an excellent-if-expensive trip without any real negative surprises. Yes, it was hot and exhausting – but we tried to squeeze three days worth of travel into a single day in the height of Cambodia’s dry season. Yes, we had the occasional delay – it’s a group tour that spans three countries. And yes, it was expensive – but Silversea pulled out all the stops to keep us entertained from morning to night.
The only real points for improvement I have are: 1.) offer a longer version of this trip; 2.) make guests aware of the age limit for scaling the highest section of Angkor Wat (an issue I expect has come up exactly once); and 3.) pre-approval of visas for Vietnam. That’s all small fry considering how many moving parts made up this mid-voyage journey.
That feedback will all be delivered to Silversea later, because we have just stepped out from Tan Son Nhat International Airport and we cannot seem to find our guide.
I send another message to our Wanee Vietnam guide Tai via WhatsApp. He steps from a pillar – where, in retrospect, I should have immediately spotted him. He is covered with binoculars, cameras, backpacks and is wearing a bucket hat bearing the following patch:
I can tell immediately that we are going to get along.
Tai calls our driver, and our bags are soon loaded into the back of a large tourist van.
We haven’t had lunch yet, but Tai has a plan for that.
The van drives us a few blocks away and drops us off at the nearby Cơm Niêu Thiên Lý, which earned the following review: “Come to Thien Ly… you will easily enjoy rice dishes that contain the flavor of a fierce childhood. Diners who stop here, surely will become the patrons.”
I cannot argue with that.
We order pork and fried springrolls:
As well as lemongrass chicken:
There’s chicken with fish sauce, too. (Not pictured.)
My wife and I have travelled to Vietnam before, so we’re already in love with the food here. There is some hesitation amongst the kids, but they have no issues finding enough food.
Back to the van, and off to Cát Tiên – when the first issue crops up.
Our itinerary calls for us to have a late afternoon jeep drive in the park, but that didn’t account for both the visa delays and the extra lunch stop. Once evening comes, the park closes down private game drives – and it looks like we will be just a bit too late to make that work.
We talk through a few potential options, and Tai proposes a plan – we will do a group game drive tonight and push our private game drive to tomorrow morning. Crisis averted.
We pass a fish farm as we go:
Many of the workers live in houses overtop the farm. That should make for a convenient commute.
Then – after roughly 4 hours on the road – we reach the outskirts of Cát Tiên:
But the journey isn’t done yet. While a bridge is underway, it is nowhere near completion – so alternative transportation is needed to get to the park itself:
Here we go!
A golf cart finishes taking our bags to our rooms – which, to be honest, aren’t great:
And by “aren’t great” I mean, “pretty terrible”
The rooms themselves aren’t too bad, but the bathroom…
On the bright side, at least there’s air conditioning and hot and cold running ants:
Repeat after me: “It’s just for one night, it’s just for one night…”
Seriously, though, at least there’s a playground:
We briefly wander around the grounds, looking for wildlife.
We spot a few different birds, but the light isn’t great for photos. It’s good practice for what’s to come, however.
We then join the night safari. Seats are assigned by the staff, so no need to jostle for position. We are late to book, but still end up in the middle of the vehicle – one of the better seats, according to Tai.
There are a lot of people on the vehicle – perhaps 20 to 30 – but we still have no trouble seeing animals. We stay on the road, so they’re able to make decent speed.
Here’s a glimpse of what the experience is like:
We soon spot some samba deer:
Including some with their fawns:
Tai gets some fabulous photos too, both of the deer:
Photo Credit: Tai, Guide for Wanee Vietnam
And of some of the bucks:
Photo Credit: Tai, Guide for Wanee Vietnam
Unfortunately I’ve brought the wrong lens for the job – my 50 mm f1.8 is great in low-light conditions, but the animals are too far away for me to get close shots. Ah, well – back to the camera shop!
In the mean time, we’re very glad Tai is with us – not only becuase of his fantastic photography skills, but also because he actually knows which animals are which. The safari guides initially think that a nightjar is an owl, and initially think they have spotted a second mongoose when in reality…
Photo Credit: Tai, Guide for Wanee Vietnam
It’s a small Indian civet!
We really lucked out this time – there are plenty of night drives where they only spot deer.
He stops briefly to pose:
And then dashes off on the hunt:
Photo Credit: Tai, Guide for Wanee Vietnam
We continue back along the road, and spot an Asian brown flycatcher:
And the infamous nightjar:
Photo Credit: Tai, Guide for Wanee Vietnam
As well as a wild boar moving away at a lightning pace:
Photo Credit: Tai, Guide for Wanee Vietnam
And then our night drive comes to an end.
We follow it up with a very brief night walk in which we spot a praying mantis:
And an absolutely massive gecko:
I had no ideas that geckos could grow more than a foot in length!
Then it’s time for dinner at the Yellow Bamboo Restaurant:
Not just the best restaurant – the only restaurant!
I jest, I jest. The food here is actually fabulous. We order another round of the lemongrass chicken (not pictured), as well as some coriander chicken:
And more fried spring rolls:
And the most Asian of dishes, french fries:
Plus some rice and shrimp too (also not pictured), washed down with some Saigon beer.
It’s been another very long day, and breakfast tomorrow starts at 5:30 am – so it’s time to see if we can wrest sufficient space from the ants to fall asleep.