Regional US Embassies and Consulates

US Embassy Astana, Kazakhstan

Ak Bulak 4,
Str. 23-22, Building #3, Astana 010010
Astana, Kazakhstan
Phone: +7 (3172) 70-21-00
Fax: +7 (3172) 34-08-90
email: info@usembassy.kz
The U.S. Embassy Branch Office in Almaty:

97 Zholdasbekov St., Samal-2
Almaty, Kazakhstan 480099
Phone: +7 (3272) 50-76-12
Fax: +7 (3272) 50-48-67


US Embassy Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
171 Prospect Mira
Bishkek, 720016, Kyrgyzstan
Tel.: 996-312-551 241
Fax: 996-312-551 264
E-mail: consularbishkek@state.gov

Hours:
Monday 8:30 am – 12:00 pm, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Wednesday 8:30 am – 12:00 pm, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Friday 8:30 am – 11:00 am

This schedule will be in effect from May 28 to September 1, 2007.

We are closed on Kyrgyz and American Holidays. Bishkek is 11 hours ahead of Washington.


US Embassy Dushanbe, Tajikistan

Consular Section address:
109A Ismoili Somoni Ave.
Zarafshon
Dushanbe, Tajikistan 734019
(Use the consular entrance)

E-mail: DushanbeConsular@state.gov
Telephone: (992-37) 229-23-00
Fax: (992-37) 229-23-09

American Citizen Service hours:
Monday through Friday 14:00 - 16:00
We are closed on American and Tajik holidays.
Business hours are Monday - Friday, from 08:00-17:00


US Embassy Tashkent, Uzbekistan

3 Moyqorghon Street, 5th Block
Yunusobod District
100093 Tashkent

Switchboard: (998) (71) 120 5450
Fax number: (998) (71) 120 6335.
The Consular Section’s telephone numbers:
Non-Immigrant Visas: (998) (71) 140 2215 / 140 2216.
Immigrant Visas: (998) (71) 140 2217
Consular Section Fax: (998-71) 120-5448

For after-hours emergencies, American citizens should call (998) (71) 120 5450.
The Embassy’s business hours: 0900 to 1800, Monday through Friday.
American Citizen Services: Monday-Thursday 10:00-12:00 and 14:00-16:00 and Friday 14:00-16:00


US Embassy Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

9 1984 Street (formerly Pushkin Street)
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan 744000
Tel: (99312) 35 00 45
Fax:(993-12) 39 26 14

Working Hours:
Monday-Friday, except holidays, 9:00-18:00
Lunch 13:00-14:00


US Embassy Baku, Azerbaijan

83 Azadlig Prospecti
AZ1007 Baku, Azerbaijan

Switchboard: (+994 12) 4980-335
Switchboard: (+994 12) 4980-336
Switchboard: (+994 12) 4980-337
Fax: (+994 12) 4656-671
Consular Section Fax: (+994 12) 4983755


US Embassy Tbilisi, Georgia

11 George Balanchine Street, Tbilisi, Georgia, 0131
Telephone: (995 32) 27-70-00
Fax: (995 32) 53-23-10

Open 9.00 A.M.- 6.00 P.M.

CONSULAR SECTION CONTACT INFORMATION:

11 George Balanchine Street, Tbilisi, Georgia, 0131
Telephone: (995 32) 27-70-00
Fax: (995 32) 53-23-10
E-mail: consulate-tbilisi@state.gov


US Embassy Yerevan, Armenia

1 American Avenue
Yerevan 0082, Republic of Armenia
Telephone: (+37410) 464-700
Fax:(+37410) 464-742
E-mail: usinfo@usa.am
Consular E-mail: consular@usa.am


US Embassy Ankara, Turkey

110 Atatürk Blvd.
Kavaklıdere, 06100 Ankara - TURKEY
Phone: (90-312) 455-5555
Fax: (90-312) 467-0019
e-mail: webmaster_ankara@state.gov

CONSULAR SECTION
110 Atatürk Blvd.
Kavaklıdere, 06100 Ankara - TURKEY

The American Citizen Services are provided between 8:30 am and 12:00 pm Monday toThursday, except on Turkish and American holidays. You may call (90) (312) 455 5555 or fax us on (90) (312) 466 5684.

The U.S. Consular Agent in Izmir can be reached at (90)(232) 464-8755.

US Consulate Istanbul, Turkey

U.S. CONSULATE GENERAL ISTANBUL
İstinye Mahallesi, Kaplıcalar Mevkii No.2
İstinye 34460 - Istanbul / Turkey
Phone: (90) 212-335 90 00
E-mail: amcongen1@tnn.net

U.S. CONSULATE GENERAL ISTANBUL
CONSULAR SECTION
İstinye Mahallesi, Kaplıcalar Mevkii No.2
İstinye 34460 - Istanbul / Turkey
Phone: (90) 212-335 90 00

Working Hours: 8:00 a.m. - 16:30 p.m.

US Consulate Adana, Turkey

Consul, Eric Green
Amerikan Konsoloslugu / Consulate of the United States
Girne Bulvari No:212 Guzelevler Mah.
Yüregir, Adana - TURKEY

The telephone number from within Turkey is (0322) 346-62-62.
From outside Turkey, use the country and city codes: (90) (322) 346-62-62.
Fax: (90) (322) 346-79-16

Hours of Operation: 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday to Friday, except on Turkish and American holidays.

Duty Officer: You can reach a duty Consulate officer at (90) (322) 346 6262 during the non-working hours.

Cooking Class in Siem Reap

While topically, the focus of this blog is typically "read meat" stories, today we are going to focus on shellfish and talk about my cooking class in Siem Reap. The class cost $10, and for me, as a person whose cooking is better deprecated as "heating," it was well worth it and yielded wonderful results. Throughout my stay in Cambodia, I quite enjoyed Khmer cuisine, which reflecting Cambodia's geography, rests somewhere between Vietnamese and Thai, and if you'd like to try your hand at it, the Cambodian Ministry of Tourism offers a few traditional Khmer recipes here.

The class began at 10 AM at Le Tigre de Papier on "Bar Street," which is what everyone calls the short downtown strip that is exclusively lined with foreign-owned or styled restaurants and bars. Here is a basic outline of the recipes of the course, and I may add my own step-by-step lesson (which differs somewhat from the instruction below) in another post. The three dishes that chose were Green Mango Salad, Shrimp Amok, and Chek K'tiss for dessert. The recipes follow.

1. SHRIMP AMOK

Ingredients:
- 1 kg of fresh shrimp;
- 1 ripe coconut fruit;
- 5 trunks of citronella;
- 0.5 kg of smoke fish;
- 0.5 kg of garlic;
- Bits of saffron, Amomum Galanga, Amomum Zingiber;
- 6 leaves of citrus hystrix and some peels;
- 2 ripe bell pepper fruits;
- 1 duck egg; salt, sugar, fish, sauce, chicken bullion;
- Leaves of star fruit and banana trees for garnish

How to cook:

• Peel and de-vein the shrimp
  
• Slice and crush the citronella trunks and pound them together with saffron, Amomum Galanga, Amomum Zingiber, citrus hystrix leaves to make a mash mixture
• Slice the smoke spices into small bits
• Break the coconut fruit, squeeze the nut to get its milk by making the phase-one milk and phase-two milk
• Cut the ripe bell pepper into two
• Pour half of the phase-one coconut milk into a frying pan to cook until it turns a litter brown
• Then, put into the pan the spices and the mash mixture, and stir it up
• Add the phase-two milk and turn off the cooking gas after the solution becomes cooked and dry enough
• After that, add the fish, salt, fish sauce, sugar, egg, and fully mix up the ingredients
• Make package of banana leaves, lay star fruit leaves at the bottom of the package, then put enough of the cooked fish on the star fruit leaves, and then top it with a bit of citrus hystrix leaves and ripe bell pepper.
• Turn on the gas and cook the dish again
• Add 1 spoonful of the phase-one coconut milk into the fish, and leave it to cook for a short while. And the dish is done.

2. CHEK K'TISS DESSERT

Ingredients:
- 1 hand of Namva banana (kid of Cambodian sweet banana);
- 1 good ripe coconut fruit;0.5 kg of mung bean (Vigna Sesquipedalis);
- 1 rice spoonful of sago grains;
- 3.5 kg of sugar;
- Some salt

How to cook:

• Break the coconut fruit and make coconut milk: phase-one milk (150ml), phase-two milk (200ml) and phase-three milk (1 litter)
• Fry the mung bean grains until they become brown, break each grain into two parts, dry them and soak them in the water for a while
• Clean and soak the sago grains in the water for a while
• Peel the banana fruits, and cut them each into 4 (for small ones) and 6 (for big ones) parts
• Cook the phase-three coconut milk and put the banana parts into it and leave it to boil
• Put the mung bean parts and sago grains
• Add sugar and salt to milk it taste good when the banana is cooked and does not taste bitter
• Then, pour the phase-two milk into it and leave it to cook for a while. That's done. (Note: It takes around 15 minutes to cook this banana sweet starting from the point of cooking the coconut milk).

3. GREEN MANGO SALAD
Original recipe by Richard Serling

Ingredients:

- 1 tablespoon chile paste
- 1 tablespoon chunky peanut butter
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce
- 1 lime, juiced
- 1 tablespoon fish powder
- 1 green mango, peeled and julienned
- 1 green tomato wedges, sliced thin
-2 shallots, sliced thin
- 1 pickling cucumbers, sliced thin salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 green onion, chopped red bell peppers, stemmed and seeded fresh basil or mint, chopped

How to cook:

• Combine the chile paste, peanut butter, fish sauce, lime juice, and fish powder.
• Toss with the mango, tomato, shallots, and cucumber.
• Add salt and pepper to taste.
  
• Garnish with the green onion, peppers, and basil, and serve.

Note:If you can't find green mangos, adequate substitutes are: green papaya or white Chinese cabbage. The Cambodians use any number of dried or smoked fish products in this recipe: Thai fish powder, smoked whitefish, dried shrimp, etc. If you don't have access to any of these, try dark meat tuna.

And now, one for the 'ladyboys'

One of the stranger subcultures that is well-cultivated and accepted in Southeast Asia is the transvestite community, which if it is not large, it is most certainly open. The first evening that I noticed "ladyboys" on the prowl, I was keeping-it-real at a Khmer New Year party (April 14th) to which I and a number of other guests had been invited by a nice young lady at Earthwalker's to see what an "authentic" Khmer New Year's Party looks like, as opposed to the numerous events held for our benefit and dollars.

At this party, guests mostly shuffle in a revolving circle and occasionally throw talcum powder or water into the air, most of which ends up marking the heads, faces, and clothing of their compatriots.

At this party, where I passed about one awkward hour, I spotted some particularly tall Khmer women. Immediately, there was nothing remarkable about them other than their physical stature, but even from a distance it seemed there was something not-quite-right about them. They seemed to be playing quite rough (as a matter of fact, I did notice that little Khmer boys do play very rough!), and one of them was in some pain because some of the thrown talcum powder had found its way into her eye and she was washing it with bottle water and angry with the friend who'd caused her the injury. Noticing, that I was watching the scene, the young Khmer next to me turned and said, "ladyboys" -- transvestites. When they came closer, some of them were quite ambiguous, while others were very obviously men in drag. Well, it was obvious enough to me that they were to be avoided, but typically attracted to foreigners, one of them did furtively approach me and grab my hand long enough for me to pull it away as he dashed off laughing.

Later, I was struck by my host's curious attitude towards them. While admonishing me to be nice, sensitive and inclusive in my attitude and language towards the ladyboys, she noted that the subculture had come to Cambodia from Thailand and was gaining popularity. "It's a nice life for them, you know -- they can have fun, no chance of being pregnant, they don't have to work, and they get to look beautiful." This, I thought, is Asian positivism as it's finest. While we westerners probe deepest human psychology, genetics, environment, and personal histories for the source and meaning of homosexuality, in Cambodia, evidently it just a fun job that pays the bills and makes you feel beautiful. That is to say nothing of the "boyfriends" that support them, and here, I won't speculate other than to say that they must be terrified of fatherhood.

Phnom Penh Prejudice

When most people imagine Phnom Penh, they tend to associate it with the danger and lawlessness of the post-Khmer Rouge era as it is portrayed in Off The Rails In Phnom Penh by Amit Gilboa. Generally, it reads like a Tarantino script:

I wasn't worried about the [pistol] just yet; it's just another pissed-up Khmer impressing the two-dollar whores with what a powerful motherfucker he is.

Counterfeit copies of this book (negotiated to US$3) and many other titles are available from the armies of tourist-book-hawking children who approach you on every popular street corner or at your restaurant table.

Or worse, people associate Phnom Penh with the what they know of Cambodia from the Khmer Rouge era, which is undoubtedly one of the great tragedies of modern history (estimates range from 1.7 to 2.3 million dead, or approximately 30% of the population at the time). Certainly, it is deserving of its infamy as it was seared into the popular imagination in Roland Joffé's 1985 film The Killing Fields, which tells the story through the eyes of New York Times journalist Sydney Schanberg, or as animated so vividly in Spalding Gray's related monologue, Swimming to Cambodia.

However, based on my visits to Phnom Penh, both the association with the Khmer Rouge era and the chaos and criminality of its aftermath are anachronisms, and the city is not nearly as challenging as many people are prejudiced to believe. Even the Lonely Planet's guide (August 2005) is a little outdated and in my view, overstates the dangers present in 2007. The "Dangers and Annoyances" section ominously reads,

Phnom Penh is not as dangerous as many people imagine, but it is still important to take care. Armed robberies do sometimes occur, but statistically you would be very unlucky to be a victim. Guesthouses often make the situation out to be even more dangerous than it is to keep customers in their restaurants.

It pays to take care in crowded bars or nightclubs, particularly the Heart of Darkness. Many pampered children of the elite hang out in popular places, bringing their bodyguards along for good luck. This is fine until a drunk foreigner treads on their toe or they decide they want to hit on a Western girl. Then the problems start and if they have bodyguards with them, it will only end in tears, big tears!

Should you become the victim of a robbery, do not panic and do not, under any circumstances, struggle. Calmly raise your hands and let your attacker take what they want. Do not reach for your pockets as the assailant may think you are reaching for a gun! They will probably be as nervous as you, and you will most likely get any documents back later via your guesthouse or embassy, as the robbers often want only cash and valuables. For the time being, even passports and credit cards seem to be returned. Do not carry a bag at night, as it is more likely to make you a target.

It is not sensible to ride a motorbike alone late at night; and if there is one area to avoid after dark, it is Tuol Kork, to the north of Boeng Kak, which is the old brothel quarter and the kind of place where drunk Khmers shoot each other over a karaoke microphone.

Sounds dangerous, no? Certainly, it is better to error on the side of caution, but still, I think this is a bit dated. Now, in fact, security guards frisk patrons for weapons at the door of the Heart of Darkness. Of course, this suggests that guns or knives were a problem at some point, but the greatest danger that I saw there was the throngs of young Khmer women swarming every male tourists, snapping at them like a hungry shoal of piranhas. This experience notwithstanding, really, at no point did I feel threatened or endangered, and like most other places in Southeast Asia, there is a growing tourism industry that ensures that we tourists are a protected and valuable species. Well-informed, well-serviced, and coddled within our own community of privileged transience, it seems that there is a clearly beaten path for tourists in Phnom Pehn, and it is only if you go looking for trouble that it will find you.

That is not to say that Phnom Penh's expats don't deserve their "hardship pay," and it is undoubtedly a hardship post -- it is dirty, disorderly, with poor infrastructure, corrupt officials, and hoards, of beggars, amputees, drug dealers, prostitutes, and I am told, you can still buy marijuana by the bale at the Russian Market. However, it's improved a great deal in recent years, and there is a wave of new construction projects underway in the city. This is particularly concentrated on the narrow headland that separates the Tonle Sap and Mekong Rivers and terminates where their waters meet. I was fortunate enough to visit a friend who has a home on that side of town, where rich businessmen and the government officials they pay-off are constructing large homes with very high walls and strong gates built upon some of the most expensive lots in Cambodia.

To be sure, Phnom Penh is still rough around the edges, but sitting at some of the colonial style cafés that line the riverfront, you can catch a glimmer of what a charmingly provincial capital it once was. Here, you can see some footage taken from Phnom Penh in 1965, about 10 years before the Khmer Rouge took power, and as Phenomenon notes, in light of these idyllic scenes, "if you’ve been to these places [today], you’ll probably want to cry."

More videos from this era are available from Phenomenon.

Central Asia Via Kyrgyzstan

Since returning from Cambodia, I have been exploring my options for traveling through Central Asia, specifically, the area that includes Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan. At the moment, my time is fairly limited for this kind of travel, and traveling through this region is somewhat harrowing, not only because I am traveling alone, but because it is fairly "uncharted" as far as the commercial tourism industry is concerned. And in fact, at the time of this writing, there are no individual Lonely Planet guides for these countries (only a 2004 edition for the entire region, although the 2007 edition is due in August), and presumably, no infrastructure to make tourist feel at ease. Of course, this is part of the attraction for me, but naturally it creates an additional complication from the standpoint of travel, planning, and precautions.

For me, the ideal journey would pass through China and into Central Asia the Kyrgyzstan border near Kashgar, visiting as many of the five Central Asian republics as deemed both safe and practicable, then taking a boat across the Caspian Sea into the Caucasus countries (Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan). From Georgia, enter Turkey, and upon crossing the Dardanelles in Istanbul, passing into Europe and points beyond. Sure, this may sound far-fetched, but it has been done, and the route is displayed in the map below.

Beijing to Istanbul overland, then India and Nepal

​​​​​

I know that it sounds like a serious commitment, and it is, because transport is poor throughout much of the region and travel would most certainly be difficult. There are, of course, boutique companies such as Dragoman Overland that specialize in this kind of travel, but that both adds a substantial expense and takes away from the challenge of it. Nonetheless, I wouldn't consider making the trip without a guide of some kind, simply to avoid the inevitable miscommunication and probable extortion and theft. And in fact, I did begin researching the trip by contacting a travel agency which offered the following terse if not disturbing response to my inquiry:

Safety is a big concern for all foreigners in Kyrgyzstan. We ourselves have stopped working because of corruption and crime. I advise you to read up and ask around extensively before finalizing your decision to visit Central Asia.

Obviously, this individual's experience is probably not representative, and it may well be that there are other reasons than "corruption and crime" that ended his operations. Thus, I am currently exploring other options, and because I am determined to do it with maximum independence and minimum cost, I am looking into homestay programs, wherein locals open their homes to travelers. This would appear to be an excellent solution to both the cost issue and any safety concerns, since knowing locals is the most sure way to stay out of trouble, make friends, and learn to do as the Kyrgyz, et al do.

Unsurprisingly, both travelers and hosts must be interviewed before they can join services such as Servas, which appears to be one of the better programs and which intends to ensure that both travelers and hosts meet its standards of decency. In addition to Servas, there are other programs such as Home Exchange, Welcome Traveler, Adventure Travel, and the Go Abroad Traveler's Network, each of which offers additional options. Additionally, for women, there is a UK program called Women Welcome Women Worldwide, which provides a network of women who provide accommodation and hospitality to other women.

The Pyongyang Friendship Restaurant

One of the more unique attractions in Cambodia are the Pyongyang Friendship Restaurants, which is a total misnomer and appears to be some kind of Stalinist doublespeak as there is no actual friendship to be had. Out of curiosity, twice I had dinner at this location just down the street from the Earthwalkers' Guesthouse (a friendly, well-managed, Norwegian-owned establishment) in Siem Reap, and I did try my very best to be friendly with the waitresses, who are all native North Koreans and only one of whom spoke English. But alas, these beautiful young women, selected for their looks, loyalty, and unlikelihood of "running," were impervious to my overtures of friendship, American charms, and passport.

Interestingly (but not surprisingly), at this particular location (there are Pyongyang Friendship Restaurants in several cities in Cambodia, and I believe there are at least three in Siem Reap alone) the waitresses live at the restaurant, and there are two sets of curtains shading the buildings windows, white curtains which shade the dining room and red curtains in front of the living quarters. Thus, if you walk by at night after the restaurant is closed, you will see only the red curtains of the living quarters are alight. Generally, the women seem to be isolated and unhappy in their professional quasi-imprisonment, and I must admit feeling some degree of pity for them. While, they do seem anxious to talk and learn about their guests, they are forbidden from it, and in one instance, the waitress with whom I was chatting was unsubtly shooed-away by her colleague.

The waitresses serve both their standard role in delivering food and also provide entertainment when they are not busy, which seems to be quite often. Unfortunately, the night that I took this photo was not a performance night, and the women were not wearing the traditional Korean dresses that they wear for the formal performances, and actually, in this picture, they are simply singing Happy Birthday to a guest.

I will admit that the food was quite good, although expensive by Cambodian standards, and my dish -- a traditional North Korean dish recommended by the waitress -- cost US$8, or at least twice what I would normally expect to pay for dinner. The cost of the food notwithstanding, I don't see how this restaurant could possibly be making money, as it is usually mostly empty, but on the other hand, with the cost of North Korean labor and Cambodian rents, I suppose that it is not entirely impossible. Likewise, I am curious as to why the North Korean state would sanction the opening of these restaurants in Cambodia, what purpose do they serve, who owns them and makes (0r loses) money from them.

If you enjoy strange cultural environs or the masochistic futility of attempting any kind of actual friendship with the waitresses (not to mention good food), the Pyongyang Friendship Restaurant is a good experience and worth and evening or two, but try to go when they are holding a complete performance, which is very entertaining, if not bizarre.

Pedophilia: Tourist + Little Girl = Jail

Sadly, Cambodia has a terrible problem with pedophilia. Fortunately, the government and NGO's have begun to raise public awareness about pedophilia and there are signs all over Cambodia warning against this crime. There a number of different warnings, most notably the message to hoteliers is "Pedophiles: don't turn them away; turn them in," and then a hotline phone number is provided for reporting suspected pedophiles. Additionally, there are signs notifying would-be pedophiles that they can be prosecuted and jailed in their country of origin if they commit sex crimes in Cambodia. That is, if a pedophile is arrested, he does not simply face fines and deportation, but prosecution and possible imprisonment upon returning home.

This picture is of a sign that is posted in Siem Reap and it very clearly displays the formula "Tourist + Little Girl = Jail." I am not sure what the Khmer writing says (I assume that the phone number is for turning-in suspected pedophiles), but interestingly, the sign is also in Japanese, who are a significant source of tourism and foreign trade and investment. Additionally, although the photo is a bit blurry, in the bottom left corner, it reads "Paid for in part by the US Department of State," the Cambodian Ministry of Tourism in the center, and on the right it bears the logo of World Vision, a Christian organization.

Cambodian Police Badges

When they're not busy not-enforcing the law, Cambodian police undertake their own mendicant-journey by selling police badges to tourists. I purchased these three from a policeman at Ta Prom, principally because I felt sorry for him.

From what I've been told, the big-fish police are more interested in relocating police stations from desirable real estate to less valuable locations (land given to the police for free by the government) so that the police leadership can sell the the previous location and keep the majority of the proceeds for themselves. Additionally, it's fairly obvious that the authorities are at least complicit -- if not directing -- the large, pervasive, and well-organized drug business that operates quite openly, and certainly, someone is getting rich from it. I am not moralizing here -- I understand that not everyplace operates the same way -- but I will say that Cambodia is a uniquely world-upside-down place.

The Frog Shack in Sihanoukville, Cambodia

I was actually in Sihanoukville (aka Kampong Som) at the very end of the tourist season, so there weren't a lot of revelers to fill the entire strip of beach bars. Generally, it's a pretty droll scene -- like a bad party with not enough guests. So in order to promote themselves, the folks down at Chaimoy's Frog Shack were passing out this flier, which I found to be both jejune and hilarious. I told the Australian bartender who created it that it must be high art by Sihanoukville standards.


One evening at the Frog Shack was enough for me, since it was ungodly hot and the 54 year-old Australian who was out-of-his-gourd on heroin was a little disenchanting. He was visiting with his 22 year-0ld son, who was just nearby chatting with a local girl on the beach. I met him at the bar where he was dancing, laughing, and sweating profusely, wearing only shorts. Initially, he seemed like an affable, laughable old chap whose extensive tattooing and sun-beaten skin suggested that he'd hung around Southeast Asia too long -- a senior statesman of this hedonistic place. He gave me a bit of his life history and told me about his business and its website (which in good taste, I won't publish here). I then commented that he seemed to have more energy than I've had at any point in my life, to which he segued into a story about some Canadians that he'd met and something about heroin, which was enough of an explanation for me.

Also, at the Frog Shack, I enjoyed a game of pool with a young local lady who, whenever I was about to sink a shot, would stand in front of the hole, turn her posterior towards it, and lift her leg as if to suggest "this ball is going into my hole!" I know it's crass and disgusting, but she was just doing her best to make a buck like every other under-employed, unskilled, uneducated girl in Cambodia. Of course, her siren song didn't work, but nonetheless, it was an entertaining round of pool, ending in a draw (1:1 games).

Fortunately, for Sihanoukville (and all its under-employed, unskilled, uneducated girls), casino gambling is legal there (unlike in neighboring Thailand), so there may be some future for this place. In fact, when touring the island, I discovered this sign posted in front of a large, choice plot of land with a view of the harbor, which would suggest that international investors may have plans for this sleepy little beach town.

Cheated in Hanoi; Back in China

Well, it's over, and I am back in China. I never thought I'd be glad to be back, but after all of the aggressive, extortionate Vietnamese predation, I have come to regard this as civilization. And more or less, it is. Even though I have never been to Nanning (where I am staying now), I don't have to argue with taxi drivers over every penny or haggle at the hotel. The system works fairly well here, and very well in relative terms.

In Hanoi, I was actually scammed from the start, when I stayed in a counterfeit guest house called the "F Hotel," and an "F" is how I would grade it. I was taken to the counterfeit guest house by a taxi driver, who evidently still believes that the fake is genuine. However, it's actually not even a true counterfeit anymore, since it no longer overtly steals the name of another guest house, the Manh Dung Guest House, which received an excellent write-up from the Lonely Planet. Still, the "F" benefits from the theft (as demonstrated by my taxi driver's error), and its incompetent staff deliberately uses the LP's language in both their speech and literature. They also tried to charge me $55 for a Hanoi-Nanning bus ticket, which I later purchased for $22.


Later, when trying to find my way back to the "F", I couldn't locate it for more than an hour, which seemed impossible, because Hanoi's old quarter isn't that big. Initially, I attributed it to an outdated map in the LP, but then I discovered that I had passed the legitimately listed guest house about 5 times in search of the place I was staying. Upon entering the legitimate Manh Dung Guest House, I discovered a sign that read something like "don't stay with the idiots at the F Guest House. They will just steal your money like they stole our name."

I only had two days in the city, which is an interesting and colorful place, but the attitude of the Vietnamese towards tourists is the worst of any place that I have yet visited. In my two days, it seemed that nearly everyone was out to lie, cheat and steal from me. For example, when I took a ride in a taxi from the airport, the driver claimed that the meter didn't work, until I told him to stop and turn around. Suddenly, the meter started working. Or the restaurant where some kid comes, asks you to take off your shoes, and brings you slippers, pointing to the staff to indicated that shoes are not allowed. He did take my shoes outside, but something didn't smell right about it, and I followed him, only to discover him preparing to shine my hiking boots, and surely it would have cost me to get them back. I have countless examples of this kind of behavior, but I won't bore you with them just yet.

Of course, it's not fair to generalize too much, but there are far too many people who try to take advantage of you, squeeze you for money at every turn, and manipulate you in any way that benefits them. Of course, I have been in this part of the world long enough to deal with it, but the constant onslaught of beggars and crooks is tiresome. In the end, if you don't speak Vietnamese, you just have to be rude and totally dismissive of people, all of your western notions of innate human dignity, mutual respect and manners notwithstanding.

On the whole it was a nice, but brief visit to Hanoi, which I will detail when I return to Shanghai. It was only two days, and as a traveler, one can expect a certain learning-curve in everyplace, the ascent of which requires the loss of a little money. However, travel-weary and at the end of this road, unfortunately, the thievery of Hanoi is salient.

Biking to Bai Sao

I spent about 8 hours on a motorbike today, exploring the island using the crude Phu Quoc Island Tourist Yellow Map (no scale is given, so you just have to get a sense for the distances by driving) and a moderately reliable compass. It's actually very easy to navigate the island, because there are so few roads -- paved ones at least. The unpaved roads are a mixture of the island's dry orange soil, gravel and stones, but generally it's quite navigable.

Although I'm new to motorcycling and find extraordinarily easy, I am mindful of the scars that mark many of my fellow-travelers as well as the fact that young male motorcylists are some of the most reliable organ donors of any demographic. The only thing that I found significantly challenging was riding on soft soil or sand, where its easy to lose control. Early in the day, I actually decided to drive down to the water to get a better view of the Long Beach, and I found myself pushing the bike along with my legs while holding the the accelerator at full throttle, crawling along duck-like. The other hazard is having to frequently drive one-handed as the local children almost invariably call "hello!" as I pass, and I obligingly wave in return.

I arrived at Bai Sao and was pleased to find that it is as beautiful, clear, and calm as I was told. However, the weather was not perfect, so the water didn't shine quite so opalescent as it might, and as with most of these places, there is a littering problem, both with beach-goers and from rubbish washing ashore, sauce bottles, menstrual pads and the like. Also, there is a section of the beach where there was evidently once a pier, because the whole area is dotted with stumps of posts that once upheld some such structure and the rotting stumps pose an obvious hazard. In contrast to the coarse tan sand and steep slope of Long Beach on Phu Quoc's northeastern coast, Bai Sao's sand is fine and white and the slope is so gentle that you can walk out a good distance before the water reaches waist-level.

There also large boulders at the edge of the jungle that lines the northern end of the cove, and I put my hiking boot to use climbing over them until the beach's solitary restaurant was just a blip across the great expanse of white sand. It was fun and a good bit of exercise. It was possible to fall from the rocks and I did (once), but there was about 3 feet of water below, so it was really quite safe. Still, traveling alone does really limit what you can do safety-wise -- going without a 'buddy' is one thing, but disappearing without anyone noticing is quite another.

Also, at the local boat docks, I witnessed some authentic Vietnamese fishing village drama, where I believe, in an argument (most certainly over fish), a woman threw a large volume of fish innards on a man's head. He didn't fight back, but stood dazed with scales glistening in his hair and blood dripping down his forehead. It appeared that his wife was taking up his case and arguing heatedly with the other woman. I didn't stick around for the resolution.

Also, dear reader (me), I promise to post some pictures ASAP, because I know that rambling on about obscure names and places and disconnected events without pictures is boring to this blog's sole reader (me).

From Phu Quoc Island

I am on Phu Quoc Island now. It is quiet, quiet, quiet here. You can literally walk for miles on the beach without seeing a soul, and I am staying in a very ordinary hotel for about $6 a night.

I was actually just informed by a British web developer (Doug), that this is to be the jewel of Vietnamese tourism, and although you wouldn't know it, he claims that $6.2 billion was sunk into this place last year alone. His brother, an airplane pilot, is married to a Vietnamese woman and so was able to buy property on Bai Sao, which is the most beautiful beach on the island. Seven years ago, they paid $10,000 for it and they just recently turned down a $1 million offer, because they intend to open a guesthouse which they have christened "Gecko Jack's."

Generally, according to Doug, investors intend to turn this into a Thailand-like resort for European tourists with luxury resorts and casino gambling. There is great scuba diving, snorkeling, large reefs, and many uninhabited islands surrounding Phu Quoc. Unfortunately, I am told that it has been over-fished for many years, and the catch is small at best, although squid fishing is still a viable (if not boring) alternative. Most signficantly, there are plans for an international airport and no-visa immigration.

As it stands, the island's people are very poor and packs of local women roam the beaches at night offering massages, which run VND 40,000 per hour, or about $2.50. Like every other place that I've visited in Southeast Asia, the motorcycle drivers are sticky, and once they know where you stay they will be waiting at your door every morning. The goal is to gain employment through the duration of your stay, and if their English is good, perhaps get to know you personally a bit and manipulate more money out of you. I am of course being cynical, because these are poor, poor people, and on Phu Quoc, moto rides cost between $0.30 and $0.60. I am sorry for the poverty, but as a tourist, you cannot allow them to hijack your visit.

The beach is nearly pitch-black at night, but you can vaguely see the ghost crabs streaking by as you pass. Also, I am not sure what it was, but there seems to be some sort of luminescent organisms, eggs, or industrial waste that washes up on the shore at night. They emit a pale blue light and appear like a firefly resting on the sand. I picked-up a handful of the orange-tan, coralline sand where one of these lights lay, but it was too dark to discern the source.

I am off to rent a motorbike to explore on my own a bit now.

En route to Phu Quoc Island

I am in Rach Gia City, a town of virtually no significance other than that it is the capital of Kien Giang Province, but mostly it is the gateway to Phu Quoc Island, to where I will be ferrying this afternoon. I am in an internet cafe with about 15 young Vietnamese internet addicts (it is about 10 am on Saturday morning), one of whom is playing an online multiplayer game and loudly screaming something intermittently.

I arrived here last night around 10 pm after a very-long seven hours on a "local bus" (US$8), and too tired to carry my heavy pack on a shopping tour, I jumped into the first hotel that beckoned. I rode the local bus, because the more comfortable tourist buses evidently do not service this route yet.

The ride from Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) was bumpy and with long segments of dirt roads and construction, the bus was cramped with 11 passengers, a driver and another bus employee. While the bus was air conditioned, there were no rules about smoking, which added to the misery.

I was the only western person aboard, and initially, I had the entire back seat to myself. However, about three hours into the journey we stopped and picked-up some very rural looking, mustachioed man who shared the back seat with me. He seemed contrite enough for invading my space, but as he grew tired, he took off his shoes. And his legs folded, his bare feet kept migrating across the seat and resting on my thigh or hand, which provoked me to aggressively brush his feet away, thus declaring my territory.

At the dinner stop, the man found me sitting at a table by myself, where I had ordered chicken and rice. He then ordered a beer (333 brand) for himself and then another, which he gave to me. Of course, I was then obligated to have a beer with this man, who perhaps believed that he was in some way compensating me for imposing upon my space in the bus. In fact, he was simply imposing on my space again, as I finished two beers with him and he paid for my dinner. I know that my adversity to his gestures may sound cynical, but I'd much rather eat alone and pay the $1.25 bill than once again find myself ensnared in the web of honorific generosity and obligation that defines so much of Asian culture. That is not to say that the man's gesture was totally unappreciated, but that 20 minutes of peace and quiet would have been preferable to an awkward and largely meaningless exchange. If only intentions always matched outcomes...

That said, I will soon be en route to peace and quiet on Phu Quoc Island, which is a lightly touristed island off of the southern coast of Vietnam. Actually, if you look at the map, it is more directly off the coast of Cambodia, and in fact, it is claimed by both countries, although it is effectively part of Vietnam. Of course, all of southern Vietnam was once part of Cambodia during the height of the Khmer Empire, and the location that is recognized as the area where the original kingdom of Vietnam was founded is actually a relatively small area around Hanoi, the middle section of Vietnam having been ruled by the Cham ethnic group. (Okay, anyone who knows more about Vietnamese history feel free to correct me or elaborate upon this.) However, because of the ongoing dispute between Cambodia and Vietnam, the Vietnamese maintain a substantial base on the island.

Otherwise, it is supposed to be a paradise island, with mountains, beaches, waterfalls, fishing, scuba diving, trekking, and all of the other other things that I wanted to pack into my trip before I return to the sulphurous miasma of Shanghai. Basically, after Saigon, I decided that, given my time constraints, I could either go north via Dalat to Nha Trang, and enjoy the famously clear waters and white beaches, surrounding clubs, nightlife and revelry -- something like a good version of Sihanoukeville -- or I could go southward to Phu Quoc, which is a bit more remote and challenging. Having been somewhat bored by the carpeted feeling of the route I have taken to date, I chose Phu Quoc.

At the Saigon Port

A friend and I rented motorcycles and drove more or less randomly through the waves of oncoming motorists in downtown Saigon, until we reached a dead end at the port on the banks of the Mekong, where ships were loading and offloading cargo. The guards wouldn't let us go in without papers, in spite of our attempts to bribe them, but they did allow me to enter far enough to take this picture, which gives you a sense of the ship's scale.

From Saigon

I spent a bit longer than expected in Saigon due to the unexpected, but I really enjoyed it. It's definitely a city on the grow, and it seems that it could be very livable. Generally, it's very cheap, the people are friendly (although possibly equaling a certain segment of Chinese in their perfidiousness), the city still retains much of its colonial charm (French culture, cuisine, cafes), the variety and quality of fruits is beyond any place I have been and they grow perennially, and Ben Thanh Market is the overall best market I have seen in Asia, both in terms of size and quality. The locally-produced clothing, handbags, and crafts are also excellent...and cheap.

The architecture of the city-dweller's homes seems to suit their ultra-relaxed lifestyle. The houses that I saw in Saigon were mostly multi-storied buildings with a living room on the first floor, where the family will lounge on the floor or in hammocks, and bedrooms upstairs. The ceilings tend to be high and the windows large to allow a fairly continuous breeze through the house. Although none of my accommodations in Saigon had A/C, I found it to be very comfortable.

In the narrow, winding neighborhood alleys of the older quarters, the lack of privacy is remarkable because the living room is exposed through large windows or opened doors, so it is inevitable that you see much of their private lives, as they play, gossip, discipline, watch television, groom, eat, joke, argue, etc.