It was a good day here in Phnom Penh yesterday. And I’ve got the pictures to prove it. Are you ready? Let’s go!

I started my day with a very pleasant river walk.

So, that was my morning. Later that afternoon, I hooked up with Denny, and we started our Friday festivities. He had made arrangements for us to be joined by two lady friends for dinner at 7:30, so we had a couple of hours to fill until then. I find that drinking beer is a grand way to pass the time. So, we started at the big building I had seen on the morning walk. It’s six floors of bars/restaurants, so I suggested we get as high as possible.

A Facebook friend had asked me to visit a bar called Sundance on Street 172 and say hello to his friend, the owner. I’d never been to that part of town, so we set out to find it. As I mentioned before, the street numbering system makes no sense here, but once we reached Street 154, we knew we were getting close. And then we found it. I was pretty surprised to see a street with several bars and foreigners milling about on this side of town.

I had another laugh while using the restroom at Sundance:

After greeting the owner and chatting some, we started making our way back towards more familiar territory. We passed a bar where Denny knew some folks, so we popped in there. There were lots of friendly bargirls, and I was enticed to give a couple of them something to drink. One of them took a liking to me, and we became Facebook friends right then and there.

It was time to pick up our dinner dates, so we grabbed a tuk-tuk and headed out. First stop was Sharkey’s, the bar where Denny’s girl works. Then it was on to Xanadu, a bar across the street from my hotel where I was going to meet my companion for the first time. With our gals on board, we headed for the restaurant.

After our meal, we decided we’d have some live music for dessert at Hard Rock Cafe.

Our drink and dessert tab came to around twenty bucks, and I once again attempted to use my “old” one hundred dollar bill. And once again, they at first declined to accept it. When I pretended not to have an alternative method to pay, the waitress left for a bit, then came back and told me they would accept the old bill but only value it at $90. Okay, deal.

The next stop was the rooftop of what I understand to be Phnom Penh’s tallest building (57 floors). Very fancy and nice.

Then it was time to call it a night. The tuk-tuk dropped Denny’s gal off at her place, and the remainder of our group went to Yaya’s bar because she said she had to work. I was pretty much toasted at this point but went in for a last beer. Denny told me Yaya really liked me, but honestly, that’s not the vibe I was getting from her. She hasn’t responded to a message I sent this morning, which probably confirms that she has no interest in seeing me again.

But her bar is right across the street, and I do tend to get thirsty, so we’ll see.

And by reef, I’m referring to language. It came down to the Philippines and Cambodia when I was contemplating where I might retire. I chose the PI primarily because English is more prevalent there. Now, after over four years in the country, I can say that having deep, meaningful conversations with a Filipina (at least the ones I tend to meet) is a rare event. Even so, this trip has been a reminder that not having the ability to communicate, even on a surface level, makes life much more challenging. There are English-speaking locals here, but nothing like back home.

I had a very nice full-body massage yesterday morning. I was offered some extra service at the end and accepted. When she finished the job with her talented hands, I encountered a severe breathing attack. The last time I had one that bad, I was at home and able to use my nebulizer, which provided almost immediate relief. That option wasn’t available, but I always carry an inhaler with me, and I breathlessly put it to use; it took some time before my lungs opened up again and accepted oxygen. The incident freaked out my masseuse and gave me a few “oh, shit, is this how it ends?” moments as well, but I lived to write about it here. This time.

After the massage, I retraced my steps to the small mall where the Hard Rock Cafe is located. There is a Smart phone shop there, and I spent two bucks for a week’s worth of phone service. On the way out, I popped into the Hard Rock gift shop to see about getting me a new ballcap (my Hard Rock–Seoul cap is on its last legs).

When dinner time rolled around, I went to the bar downstairs for a beer and waited for Denny to arrive. He was running a little late, and I was on my third brew when he arrived. Alone. My “blind date” hadn’t responded to his messages, and the girl he was supposed to bring was a no-show too. I was a little surprised when the “hairy armed waitress” from the previous night joined us in the tuk-tuk to go to the restaurant. Unbeknownst to me, Denny had invited her last night.

It took a while for the driver to find the Korean restaurant, which was in a part of town I’d never seen before. Always good to see new places.

She (sorry, her name escapes me) left early, needing to go to work. So, Denny and I did our best to eat all that food.

Denny insisted on paying for the entire meal, and the tab came to $95. He pulled out a crisp new one hundred dollar bill, and I said let me try and use one of my old ones. I gave it to our waitress, and she came back and said the cashier wouldn’t accept it. I said, well, that’s all I’ve got; what do we do now? We did a little back and forth; she checked with the cashier again and came back and asked if I had a credit card. Hmm. Well, I did bring my card, and so I used that and kept the new Franklin that Denny had given me. At least I saved the ATM fee.

We caught a tuk-tuk back to our side of town and went in search of a bar named Sharkey’s. Denny has a friend there, and she wanted me to meet her aunt. Hmm. Well, it was a bar, and there would be cold beer, so why not? Sharkey’s was on Street 110 but way outside the area where other bars are located. We found it after a goodly walk and headed up the stairs.

We hit a couple more bars after Sharkey’s, but I was pretty far gone by that point. Still, I’m impressed with my ability to stay up past midnight on this trip–and it is actually an hour later back home. It will be interesting to see if my body retreats to its non-vacation schedule when I return to the Philippines.

Still, I’m a little out of rhythm, and my timing feels off. But I’m still breathing, so there’s that.

More adventures to come in tomorrow’s post. Stay tuned!

Here’s the rundown on the first full day of my visit to the lovely city of Phnom Penh.

I did a morning walk about to reconnoiter the neighborhoods surrounding my hotel. So, I’m at the end of Street 136 on the riverside. One block up, the next street is numbered 130. The street after that is 118, and the final road I explored is Street 110. If there is rhyme or reason to this system of numbering, I can’t fathom what it is.

I wouldn’t call the streets themed, but each of them tends to have the same type of businesses clustered, although not exclusively. For example, Street 136 is where most of the bars that cater to foreigners are located. Primarily girly bars, but I’ve not been inside any of them (yet), so I don’t know if they have dancers or not. I plan to hit a few of them this weekend, and I’ll report what I find out. There are also some bars on the other streets, but more spread out. I prefer bars where you don’t get accosted by thirsty girls, and I’ve found a couple of those already. I’ve enjoyed observing some of the creative names on many of the bars. I already posted a photo of the Step Wife bar; here are some others:

Again, I haven’t actually been inside any of these venues yet, but I’ll at least sample a few soon. I took the photos on the morning stroll, so most were not open.

I returned to my room to blog and nap. It’s a nice enough room for my purposes and seems reasonably priced at $45.

I met up with my buddy Denny in the afternoon, and we did some more exploring. Our first stop was his favorite massage parlor. He got a leg massage, and I received an overdue and much-needed foot scrub and pedicure. The girls were very friendly and cute. I’ll be back soon for more!

Next, we walked to a big park that featured some structures and shrines that I assume were in honor of Buddha.

After exiting the park, we did some more walking on the city streets.

I’m learning that being a pedestrian here is almost a talent. You need to have faith that the drivers will avoid you and keep moving. If you stop or make a sudden move, it throws all the vehicles maneuvering around you off and increases your danger. It was a similar experience walking the streets of Saigon.

Our next stop was the Hard Rock Cafe.

After enjoying the happy hour promo (buy two, get one free), we made our way back across town. Traffic was much heavier at this time of day, but all the drivers successfully avoided hitting our sorry asses. The next stop was Denny’s regular hangout, a bar/restaurant on Steet 130 called Larry’s.

Denny is very popular with the ladies in this venue, that’s for sure. I got introduced to the American owner, coincidentally also named Larry. I ordered some chicken quesadillas for dinner, and they were outstanding. It was one of the girls’ birthdays, and Denny bought a nice cake for her and a round of drinks for all the girls. I bought the second round or at least thought I did. When it came time to pay the tab, we were advised that Larry had comped everything. I’ll get the occasional free drink, but I’ve never seen that kind of generosity in a bar before. I felt a little bad because I’d been feeding my new favorite quite a few drinks thinking It was out of my pocket. Oh, well. Thanks again, Larry!

We left Larry’s and headed back to Street 136. We decided to have one move before Denny left for home. I don’t remember the place’s name off-hand, but it is a regular type bar.

That’s pretty much how the night ended. Denny went home across the river, and I went to my cozy hotel room.

Meeting up with Denny again this evening. He’s taking me to his favorite Korean restaurant. Oh, and he has also set me up with a blind date who will be joining us for dinner. I’m not sure what to expect, but just in case, I went to the pharmacy for some Cialis.

Look for a full report on the outcome tomorrow.

Mission accomplished! Boots (well, Sketchers) on the ground. Out of the Philippines and into Cambodia!

So, I’m not a big fan of Manila in general, and I dislike the airport in particular. The worst part about NAIA is the traffic you have to negotiate to get there. Well, that used to be the worst part. Since the last time I traveled to the airport, a “skyway” has been constructed that leads to the airport and avoids the maddening traffic on the surface streets below. That’s a HUGE improvement. The trip from Barretto all the way to terminal two took about three hours–I’ve spent that long in Manila traffic jams in the past.

I had done online check-in, so it was just the bag drop line for my luggage. Then on to immigration, where I turned in my exit clearance paperwork and got a new stamp in my passport. Through security and into the international departures pavilion of terminal 2–the worst I’ve ever experienced in any of my travels. For one thing, it is tiny and very crowded. And for some reason, other than at your departure gate, there is nowhere to sit. Even the food places that have tables don’t provide chairs. I’m not sure what’s up with that–maybe a remaining piece of stupidity from the scamdemic.

I was a little surprised about the lack of masking–I’d estimate that 1/3 of the people in the terminal were unmasked, 1/3 were improperly masked, and the other 1/3 were being good little sheeple. I took mine off, and no one said anything to me.

I was there a couple of hours early, and it was frustrating not to have a comfortable place to sit. I was willing to pay a premium to use the Philippine Air VIP lounge, but my money was no good unless I spent it on a business-class ticket. Oh well, I bought some cans of beer and drank them at my gate while waiting to board.

And that was another frustration–when I arrived at my gate, the Phnom Penh flight was not listed. When I inquired, I was told it would be listed nearer the departure time. I pointed out that the flight to Guam, which was later than mine, was on the screen. Just a shrug for a response. Hmm. Later I heard the announcement that the Guam flight was being moved to a different gate and when I checked again, my flight was at last shown on the departure screen. I just didn’t want to miss my flight because I’d been directed to the wrong gate.

The flight was scheduled to leave at 9:55. We began boarding at 9:15. Well, by boarding, I mean we got on a bus that took us to our plane parked on the tarmac. I guess all the passengers made that first bus because the doors closed at 9:30, and we began our take-off roll. I’ve been on delayed flights many times, but never one that left earlier than the posted time for closing the gate (15 minutes before departure).

The plane was only about 1/3 full, and I had a whole row of seats to myself. That assisted me in taking a nice little nap en route. We arrived in Phnom Penh thirty minutes ahead of schedule. My e-visa worked, and I was through immigration quickly with no questions asked. Grabbed my bag and headed out the door to meet my friend, Denny, a long-time resident here. Because of the early arrival, he wasn’t there yet, so I walked around, rejecting the entreaties of numerous taxi drivers. I did find a shop that sold sim cards for five bucks (yes, I actually had a five-dollar bill in my travel wallet from all those years ago), so I should be good to go phone-wise. Saw my friend looking for me, and we exchanged greetings and caught a tuk-tuk (like a trike, only bigger) to my hotel.

We went to the place next door, and I had a beer while Denny (who’s not a beer drinker) enjoyed a smoothie. I was immediately smitten by my waitress; these Cambo gals are sexy as hell! Perhaps I’ll see her again during my visit. Anyway, it was getting late, and the joint was closing, so we said goodnight, and Denny headed home.

I took a brief walk up the street from my hotel, and it is wall-to-wall bars. Nothing like Barretto at all (maybe a little like Walking Street in Angeles).

It was 3:00 a.m. by the time I made it to bed. Slept in until 8:00, then showered and went downstairs for the complimentary buffet breakfast that comes with the room.

My phone charger stopped working for some reason, so I decided to take a walk around to see if there were any phone shops. I couldn’t resist starting out on the riverside:

My mission to find a new phone charger was a success. Only $4.00, and I had a twenty-dollar bill. No one seems to want my “old” style Franklins. I guess it will be the ATM for me on this trip.

So, that’s the beginning. I think it’s a good start overall so far.

Be it ever so humble, I’m back home to reality. I’ll take it as a good sign that I’m happy to be here.

My last night in Vietnam was spent at an Aussie bar named Blue Gecko, playing darts with my old friends Alex and John, along with my new dart league teammates who made me feel welcome. I was pleased to play well enough to win all the games in which I participated, and that contributed to an upset of one of the top ranked teams in the league. A team consisting of Filipinos, which I thought was a little ironic.

Speaking of John, he was involved in a motor scooter accident after our dinner gathering on Saturday night. I felt especially bad because during dinner I had asked him about how dangerous it looks to ride in this city and whether he had ever experienced a crash. He hadn’t. Until I jinxed him I guess. Check out attorneys for an auto accidents, here!

Got home from the bar late (for me) and had a 5:30 a.m. alarm, ahead of my 6:30 ride to the airport for my flight’s 9:30 departure. All were accomplished on time, no thanks to the Vietnamese immigration departure queue. Longest damn line I ever did see, but I made it through with 30 minutes to spare. But while driving after drinking, we need to remember that a majority of the accidents happen due to the negligence of the driver or due to drunk driving. You can click here if you are wondering What Does a DUI Cost in Orlando and Central Florida? We need to understand that such accidents that are caused due by negligence or carelessness can destroy many people’s lives and cannot be compensated with money.

The fact that I was flying on the anniversary of 9/11 didn’t escape my thoughts. I couldn’t help but notice the Muslim gentleman sitting on the aisle across from me (as evidenced by his beard and taqiyah), but I figured the odds were good that he was a peaceful follower of the faith. Still, when the flight attendant serving lunch reached our row and announced they were out of chicken and only had a pork dish remaining, I surreptitiously watched for his reaction. It was just a shrug and he went without. Mine was up to the standards you’d expect from a third world airline. We landed safely, avoiding damaging any buildings along the way.

My regular driver, Donny, was ill but he sent someone to pick me up as scheduled. We got stuck in Manila’s notorious traffic (crawling along bumper-to-bumper for over two hours). I guess the distance we traveled in that time to be maybe ten kilometers. I know I can walk faster than we were moving. Anyway, once we reached the expressway things went better, but it was still over 5 hours of driving all told. I hate Manila and try to avoid flying out of there, but there were no direct flights to Saigon from my preferred airport in Angeles City. Oh well, it’s done.

My dogs were ecstatic to see me, and it’s always good to feel that kind of pure love. The first thing my domestic helper said to me was “you’ve gained some weight”. Nice to see you too! She’s right though, I threw my semi-good eating habits out the window, reasoning that I was on vacation so why not? I also got in fewer steps than normal, and it shows. I’ve not gotten on the scale yet, but I’ve set a new reduction goal–down to 190 pounds.

In that regard, I’m re-instituting a strict(er) low carb diet regimen (didn’t even buy ice cream at the grocery store today!) and will get back into my 20,000+ steps per day habit. I’m planning on doing that intermittent fasting thing too–a hearty low-carb breakfast and not much else until a light evening meal. I will of course continue drinking beers, but at least I’m back on those low calorie San Miguel Zero’s.

And there you have it, one day back and already my blog is boring again. Normal ain’t so bad!

I fly out in the morning, so here’s a photo essay of my final hours in Saigon.

Still a few nighttime hours to fill. Plan is to see Alex and the boys play darts then say my goodbyes. Probably head over to In Sai Gong for a final cold beer as well. Then it’s off to the airport at 0630 for my 0930 flight to Manila.

I’m glad I finally made it to Saigon. And even more glad it wasn’t as a soldier.

UPDATE: Well, turns out I was also “wrapping it up” back in November, 2015. I also had no idea that Jee Yeun would be wrapping up the marriage just a month later. Still hurts.

Winding it down on my penultimate day in Vietnam. I’m still enjoying walking about and exploring my little part of the city during the day, and of course, the bars at night.

Speaking of walking, I intended to Hash yesterday with the local Saigon kennel. Walked over to the meeting place and arrived early. Then it started pouring down rain. Well, I had been on the fence about participating to begin with. I wasn’t comfortable being bused out of town and getting lost or something, then missing the ride back. Yeah, I’m a wimp. The rain gave me a good excuse to bail and I took it.

Here’s some random pictures from my journey I haven’t posted yet:

Life is good.

I’m going to say right up front that I’m no “foodie”. In fact, I’m not all that adventurous when it comes to exploring local cuisine in general and street food in particular. So, why am I doing a post about the food I’ve eaten thus far during my Vietnam adventure?

Let’s eat!

Last night, my pal Alex invited me out to his favorite restaurant for some leg of lamb.

The best meal I’ve had so far though was the lunch served during the Mekong river tour I took on Friday. It was also probably the most traditional Vietnamese fare I’ve had on this trip.

Now one Vietnamese diet staple is the bahn mi sandwich. I think I saw them featured on an old Anthony Bourdain episode and I’ve wanted to try one since I arrived. Oddly enough, when I asked hotel staff for a good bahn mi restaurant, I was told the best ones were from the street vendors. Go figure. Anyway, after my morning walk yesterday, I brought one home:

Here’s how Wikipedia describes the bahn mi:

A typical Vietnamese sandwich is a fusion of meats and vegetables from native Vietnamese cuisine such as chả lụa (pork sausage), coriander leaf (cilantro), cucumber, pickled carrots, and pickled daikon combined with condiments from French cuisine such as pâté, along with chili and mayonnaise.^[6] However, a wide variety of popular fillings are used, from xíu mại to ice cream. In Vietnam, sandwiches are typically eaten for breakfast or as a snack; they are considered too dry for lunch or dinner.^[7]

Here’s how mine looked:

Dining out has kind of been hit or miss. Usually drink until hungry, then either eat at the bar or pop into a nearby restaurant. Sometimes I’m not even sure what’s on offer. Stopped into this place the other night with some mates, and it was almost like being back in Korea, but without kimchi.

And about the only other Vietnamese delicacy I’ve had thus far is a soup called Pho.

Phở or pho^[) is a Vietnamese soup consisting of broth, rice noodles (bánh phở), herbs, and meat – usually beef (phở bò), sometimes chicken (phở gà).^[4][5] Pho is a popular street food in Vietnam^[6] and served in restaurants around the world.

And there you have it, a post about food. I’ve been a bit more adventurous in trying the local brews.