100 Days In Asia

Hopefully I got the heading right because I don’t know off hand if the spacing is correct and our calendar is back in the room so I am not sure which day we are on right now.  I am sure that Audra will edit this post if it is wrong because that kind of stuff really gets to her.  Unfortunately, she is not looking over my shoulder as I type because she is sick in bed.  I don’t think it is anything serious, just a cold/cough but was enough to wipe her out and have to spend the day in bed.  She did get to watch some movies, catch up on some reading and even see part of an episode of bold and the beautiful (it is funny here, they advertise a show as “new” even though it came out at home 1 year ago).  I guess it is new to them. Each day brings a new story so there is plenty of catching up to do but I will start with just one because I need to eat soon. 

When we arrived in Hoi An, Vietnam, the tailors started coming from every direction asking us to “come into my shop”.  Some requests were more forceful than others.  Initially it was a nice change from the motorcycle drivers and tuk tuks who had harassed us in the other cities but it got old after a while.  We had gotten some suggestions of some shops to go to from some people we met in Halong Bay but we checked out some other places as well, including one that was basically in a warehouse with hundreds of other clothes makers.  Audra is going to post some of the pictures soon but basically you go into these shops and they have all types of fabrics and patterns and you tell them what you want made.  They show you various catalogs which you can choose from or do like some (Audra) and look at all of your favorite stores on line and print out the outfits you like.  It is a truly amazing operation.  You can go in there wearing a pair of pants that you like and they can make an exact copy of those, or at least pretty close, within a matter of a few hours.  Usually if you order in the morning it is ready that afternoon and you can try it on for fitting adjustments.  The prices are ridiculous so some people go out of control…I am not naming any names but let me just say that I think Audra bought more clothes while we were in that city then she has in the previous 2 years combined.  I bought a few things myself, including a winter coat and a suit.  I was pleased with most of what I got so we’ll see if the stitching comes out after I wear it a couple of times.   Once we get back I will post some of the items (we sent them to Bangkok so that we can pick them up on the way home) and you can judge for yourself the result.  If they are nice I might start ordering more from this tailor and I will be glad to share the contact info.  Even with shipping it is much cheaper than something off the rack at home and it is custom.  It was fun although I got tired of it after a while.  After we left the primary tailor that we used, I think I saw her looking at a time share catalog. They were very nice and accommodating.  There was a shirt that Audra got which I was not crazy about initially and once she tried it on she agreed.  It was a short sleeve blue shirt with a collar.  I told her and the tailor that I thought it would look better as a long sleeve, maybe with a French cuff.  No problem.  Within a couple of hours the sleeves were changed out and the new version is much nicer.  That is service for you. 

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Originally uploaded by audra26.

FYI, 10,000 kip=$1.

More pictures coming in the next couple of days (according to A). Personally I am not sure what the internet situation will be like in Cambodia and if I have to choose between staring at a screen or seeing some of the most impressive temples in the world, I will choose the latter. A is making comments as I write this so we are off to bed before another long and hopefully pleasant bus ride tomorrow.

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Originally uploaded by audra26.

Chicken, egg and mystery meat (guesses include frog, rat or squirrel) that was being sold during one of our glorious bus rides. We weren’t feeling daring so we stuck to chips.

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Originally uploaded by audra26.

where we took the tour of the plantation. As you can tell he was thrilled about taking a picture with us. Too bad he wasn’t smiling or you could have seen all 3 of his teeth. His picture is on the package but we didn’t buy any.

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Originally uploaded by audra26.

I had been wanting to do some fishing so this girl was nice enough to loan me her homemade pole. It was equipped with floater (styrofoam), weight (metal that they found) and bait, which she put on for me and I believe was still alive. Unfortunately they weren’t biting, maybe due to the children playing in the stream nearby. They don’t seem to believe in bathsuits here–either underwear or their birthday suit.

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Originally uploaded by audra26.

Each one is unique but they start to blend together. If you look carefully or squint, you can see the rainbow that we captured on the left part of the waterfall.

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Originally uploaded by audra26.

We stopped to observe them making the baskets in their village. Well, at least 2 of them were making them while the rest sat around and watched. Again, I wanted to buy one (well constructed for under $2) but there was no chance that it would have fit in my bag. We are considering importing them in bulk.

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Originally uploaded by audra26.

that this kid made out of bamboo.

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Originally uploaded by audra26.

in the blazing heat. Not a job for me. I wanted to buy a machete that they were making but figured that customs would not approve.