What can you tell me about Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos?

[YTNUKLR]

I am going with a group called Medical Outreach to Vietnam , Thailand, Cambodia and Laos from July to August (3.5 weeks).

I am thrilled to be going...and I have been reading a lot. Can you guys relate any personal experiences?

Thanks!!
Scott

[m21sniper]

The day i move to communist country is the day that we invaded it and the US army is really, really short on warm bodies.

No way in hell i'd willingly move to a communist country. No. way. in. hell.

I have some relatives that served in Vietnam. I'm sure they could relay all kinds of personal experiences about the lovely regime from the North.

[alf]

Hot, Humid SE Asian countries. Thailand is not communist and Vietnam is porbably just commie by name but not so much in spirit.

[Rick Lee]

Get your Hep. A, booster, Tetanus, Measles, Mumps and Rubela shots. And bring along some Cipro.

[Komenda Fan]

Seriously?!? m21sniper - you have a completely distorted idea of those countries. Viet Nam is communist in name only (I'd argue its more pure capitalist than the US), and I'm pretty sure Laos has ditched even the pretense. Cambodia ditched communism eons ago.

I've spent a fair amount of time in each country, and I love them all. Laos is a quiet, relaxed place with great people and simple amenities. It feels like nothing much ever happens there, but in a nice way. Of the three, its the place I've spent the least amount of time in.

Cambodia has the friendliest people on earth, all of my experiences have been amazing. They suffered alot under the khmer rouge and Pol Pot, but that was quite a while ago now. The economic changes in much of Cambodia over the past 5 years have been shocking, I wouldn't have believed it was the same country if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. Angkor wat is fantastic, especially when you find some of the more remote temples. The beaches are nice too.

Viet Nam I love. The people are a little more reserved then Cambodians, but they warm up pretty quickly. Saigon is the thriving, high energy business city, Hanoi more of the bureaucratic slow moving one. Hoi An was the best place I've ever been too - although its getting built up so much that it isn't the little piece of heaven that it once was. Nha Trang has nice beaches. Hue has some interesting history.

You can buy dinner from street vendors (never had a problem) for 25 cents - 1 dollar, and its good food. Restaurants in the big cities can be anything from simple cheap eats to four star dining, in the countryside or smaller towns your options will be simpler.

On the downside - as a foreigner, you are assumed to be wealthy (and comparatively you probably are) so you will have lots of people trying to sell to you, you might start feeling like a walking wallet, amenities often won't be like back home, which never bothered me but does some, and while violent crime against foreigners is very rare, pick pockets are common. Best not to carry a lot of valuables, and you should be fine.

I also suggest that if something isn't going to your liking, don't lose your temper or act aggressively. This isn't going to help you in SE Asia -it's the worst way to go about your problem. You are far better of remaining pleasant but consistent then if you make a scene, which won't get you anywhere.

Anyway, you will have a blast. Just keep your mind open and go with the flow. Oh, and you might want to be single when you go. I'm just saying, that's all...

[nostatic]

We shot a documentary in Cambodia back in 2003. I didn't do the trip, but those that did were all deeply moved (the piece was about Operation Smile - they do cleft pallette and facial reconstruction surgery).

Have friends who live in Thailand and Vietnam. Beautiful places, the people are generally warm and welcoming, and the food...the food is as good as it gets anywhere in the world. The weather is the toughest part. If you don't like humidity you'll be in trouble. But it isn't worse than places like Houston. Vietnam is becoming very capitalist and westernized. Go before it totally changes. I've heard great things about the vibe and culture in Hanoi.

[Rick Lee]

Originally Posted by Komenda Fan

Viet Nam is communist in name only (I'd argue its more pure capitalist than the US), and I'm pretty sure Laos has ditched even the pretense. Cambodia ditched communism eons ago.

Ditto for China. Hopefully, on a future trip there, I'll be able to leave the wife with her family and from Kunming I'll hitchike or grab a train into Vietnam and have some adventure there. I am dying to see those countries. It's a special place in the world where PC doesn't exist, you can smoke anywhere, walk down the street with a beer in your hand, do what you want with the local ladies and not worry about being arrested unlike in our "free" country.

[m21sniper]

Originally Posted by Komenda Fan

Seriously?!? m21sniper - you have a completely distorted idea of those countries. Viet Nam is communist in name only (I'd argue its more pure capitalist than the US), and I'm pretty sure Laos has ditched even the pretense. Cambodia ditched communism eons ago.

Yeah, i'm sure i got it all wrong.

No thanks man, i got enough problems without doing something immensely stupid like moving to a country with millions of pieces of live ordnance all over the country side and pictures of a guy named Ho everywhere.

And ditto china my ass. Those protesters there just got LIFE in prison for relatively minor offenses. Yeah...no. way. in. hell.

BTW, Thailand has an active muslim insurgency. I am friends with a Thai Brigadier.

[nostatic]

Soldier of Fortune isn't exactly Frommer's Travel Guide...

[m21sniper]

You ever seen what an old M16A1 Bouncing betty APERS mine will do to a man?

Does a person really need to go somewhere with millions upon millions of 40 year old unexploded mines, rockets and bombs littering it's countryside?

And let's talk about their criminal justice system if you somehow get into trouble.

Again...really....no. way. in. hell. The 3rd world is no place to live.

[alf]

Originally Posted by m21sniper

You ever seen what an old M16A1 Bouncing betty APERS mine will do to a man?

These are the ones that we left behind when we were saving them from themselves?

[nostatic]

Originally Posted by m21sniper

Again...really....no. way. in. hell. The 3rd world is no place to live.

then why do you stay in Philly?

[Dottore]

Originally Posted by YTNUKLR

I am going with a group called Medical Outreach to Vietnam , Thailand, Cambodia and Laos from July to August (3.5 weeks).

I am thrilled to be going...and I have been reading a lot. Can you guys relate any personal experiences?

Thanks!!
Scott

Just about my favourite part of the world. Vietnam in particular. All coast. Beautiful countryside. Great people.

Cambodia has a sad past and it still shows today.

Laos is a sleepy place where you can still get a good sense for what SEAsia was like 30 or 40n years ago. Laung Prabang (Laos) is a town to fall in love with.

And Thailand? Well it's just got it all.

[m21sniper]

Originally Posted by alf

These are the ones that we left behind when we were saving them from themselves?

Those are the ones.

Originally Posted by nostatic

then why do you stay in Philly?

You're probably right. Philadelphia is probably statistically speaking one of the most dangerous places on earth to live. I remember a few years ago black males in Philly were more likely to end up wounded by gunfire than US soldiers in Iraq. Fortunately, i'm not in that demographic, but yeah, this is a pretty crazy place to live.

My Fiancee(sp?) and i are actually planning on a move to florida in the fall. We're trying to decide between Orlando or Jacksonville (or maybe even somewhere else in state).

Originally Posted by Dottore

And Thailand? Well it's just got it all.

Including an active insurgency. For a while the gov't was buying school teachers guns to protect the schools. Not sure if they're doing that still.

[Rick Lee]

Originally Posted by m21sniper

The 3rd world is no place to live.

The vast majority of the world lives there and plenty of them get by just fine. I'm getting the feeling you have not done a lot of world travel. What you call third world is paradise to many. I could very easily live in some of those places. They're especially fun and cheap for Americans.

[YTNUKLR]

Ok, I am not moving there, I am just going to dispense some medicine and hopefully get in a few days of touristy stuff.. I have this dream that I can rent a motor bike and just go run the countryside for a while..possible?

oh, and I got all my shots last year when I went to Péru and Bolivia

this is great, keep it coming guys..i can't wait til these silly finals are done and July is here.. hot/humid is ok with me, I am tired of the 4:00pm sea gust that comes in and freezes your balls off in the Bay Area as soon as the sun goes down !

[edit ] i now remember why m21sniper is on my ignore list when i sign in

[m21sniper]

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

The vast majority of the world lives there and plenty of them get by just fine.

Plenty of them DON'T.

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

I'm getting the feeling you have not done a lot of world travel.

I've never left the US unless i had a rifle in my hands on a US Gov't sponsored field trip.

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

What you call third world is paradise to many.

And sheer, living hell for others.

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

I could very easily live in some of those places. They're especially fun and cheap for Americans.

Until you blow your leg off on a landmine, get arrested and disappear forever by the local communist gov't, or get abducted by muslim insurgents.

I often see and hear about Americans getting themselves in a jam overseas and say to myself, "What the hell makes these people go there."

Well, i guess now i know....they're especially fun and cheap for americans.

Until you get killed at least.

[Rick Lee]

Originally Posted by m21sniper

Until you blow your leg off on a landmine, get arrested and disappear forever by the local communist gov't, or get abducted by muslim insurgents.

You're just as maimed or dead if you get hit my a drunk driver here or even have a drunk chauffeur in a Paris tunnel. Gotta get out and live a little.

[Rick Lee]

Originally Posted by YTNUKLR

I have this dream that I can rent a motor bike and just go run the countryside for a while..possible?

Here is one of the most inspiring motorcycle trips and photo threads you'll ever see.

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=222736&highlight=china

[m21sniper]

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

You're just as maimed or dead if you get hit my a drunk driver here or even have a drunk chauffeur in a Paris tunnel. Gotta get out and live a little.

Stop using my own arguments against me. It pisses me off.

My cousin married a guy from Beirut named Ahmad. When he was a kid, he and his brothers were playing soccer in their back yard. Ahmad's little brother stepped on an antipersonnel mine, blew his legs off, and killed 4 of his cousins. All in one instant. (could you imagine being the parents...? That has to be just inconceivable pain.)

There are no land mines in Philadelphia. Stray bullets, yes. Land mines no.

No rockets either. Another friend of mine is a Merkava tanker in Israel. I think he's 20 years old now. Posted on my forums from the time he was 15. He fought in the most recent war vs Hamas. He had two cousins killed in rocket attacks.

Flash. Boom. Dead.

Seriously, i stay out of the 3rd world unless i have air cover. Just a little policy of mine.