First anniversary

As our boat makes easy progress on the brown waves of the Mekong river, I reflect on a sentence from Isabel Allende humorous memoir, My invented country.
"My mixed marriage with a gringo hasn't gone all that badly; we get along (even though most of the time neither of us has the least idea of what the other is talking about) because we are always ready to give each other the benefit of the doubt. The greatest drawback is that we don't share a sense of humor. Willie can't believe that I can be funny in Spanish, and as for me, I never know what the devil he's laughing about. The one thing that amuses us both at the same time are the off-the-cuff speeches of President George W. Bush."

Interesting that I read it now. The fact is, today marks the first anniversary of our wedding in the woods, and despite the fact that we do not have more than Pringles to celebrate with, we appreciate the importance of the milestone.

Like Isabel Allende and her husband, Laura and I are a mixed couple, dealing with occasional (read daily) incomprehension. But I prefer to think of how much we learn about our differences and each others culture. We can even talk politic without fighting, though not marrying a Republican helps greatly.
Adding to the culture gap, we make this union a true adventure, where tensions could easily raise. After all, we quit our jobs, moved from the US to France without employment, are spending months travelling in conditions that sometimes greatly test our patience, and all that staying within a few feet of each other.

To put our current trip in perspective, and in numbers, today we enter Vietnam, our 14th country since leaving the US 133 days ago, after covering a gazillion miles using countless vehicles (sadly enough only our wardrobe didn't change much).

And the result is...(drum roll)...we still enjoy deeply ourselves and love each other.

I'll keep you updated in early September when we'll return to the old Europe, to celebrate our first anniversary of the French wedding.



Alors que notre bateau progresse aisément sur les vagues marrons du Mékong, je réfléchis à une phrase de Isabelle Allende, lue dans ses mémoires humoristiques Mi páis inventado.
"My mixed marriage with a gringo hasn't gone all that badly; we get along (even though most of the time neither of us has the least idea of what the other is talking about) because we are always ready to give each other the benefit of the doubt. The greatest drawback is that we don't share a sense of humor. Willie can't believe that I can be funny in Spanish, and as for me, I never know what the devil he's laughing about. The one thing that amuses us both at the same time are the off-the-cuff speeches of President George W. Bush."

Intéressant que je lise cela maintenant. En effet aujourd'hui marque notre premier anniversaire de mariage dans les bois, et bien que nous n'ayons que des Pringles (chips américaines) pour célébrer, nous apprécions l'importance de cette date.

De même que Isabelle Allende et son époux, Laura et moi formons un couple mixte, devant faire face à d'occasionnels moments d'incompréhension (disons journaliers). Mais je préfère penser à combien nous apprenons de nos différences et de nos cultures respectives. Nous pouvons même parler politique sans se fâcher, mais cela aide que je n'ai pas épousé une républicaine.
En addition à l'écart culturel, nous faisons de cette union une véritable aventure, ou les tensions pourraient apparaître facilement. Après tout, nous avons quitté nos emplois, déménagé des US vers la France, nous voyageons maintenant depuis des mois dans des conditions mettant parfois notre patience à rude épreuve, et tout cela en restant toujours à proximité l'un de l'autre.

Pour mettre notre dernier voyage en perspective, ainsi qu'en nombres, aujourd'hui nous entrons au Vietnam, notre 14ieme pays depuis que nous avons quitte les US il y a 133 jours, et après avoir parcouru une foultitude de kilomètres, en utilisant on ne sait combien de véhicules (malheureusement seule notre garde robe n'a guère change).

Et le résultat est...(roulement de tambours)...que nous nous amusons toujours comme des petits fous et aimons toujours autant l'un l'autre.

Je vous tiendrai au courant début septembre quand nous serons retourné en Europe ou nous fêterons notre premier anniversaire du mariage civil.

A pig rescue

According to our guidebook, the boat ride from Siem Reap to Battambang is one of the most scenic in the entire country, so we decide to try it.

Even the drive to the so-called port proved interesting, giving us views of early morning activity in humble wooden houses built on stilts along the bumpy dirt road.
Our enthusiasm was barely dented when we realized that another 20 tourists would be stacked with us on the small embarkation.
Like on an airplane, one prefers to think that one got the best deal (we had received 5 different quoted prices), without anybody bringing up the subject with others as one could easily be proved wrong.


The kilometer or so that led us to the vast expanse of Lake Tonle Sap -the largest in Southeast Asia- was rich in opportunities for avid photographers.
Small boats carried school kids, merchants and everybody else between floating houses bathed in the early daylight.


Then as we crossed the lake, we heard a few shouts over the noisy engine, and the captain turned the boat around. He had spotted a swimming pig! Don't believe it is more frequent here than in your own country; Cambodian pigs do not lack mud pools and are usually satisfied with them, we are told.
The excitement increased during the rescue maneuver as everybody tried to view the crew hauling the poor beast out of the water. The pig was quite freaked out by the circumstances, squealing loudly and unable to gain footing on the slippery wooden deck. The crew had welcomed on board their most valuable passenger. Cambodians are carnivores, and appreciate all types of meat, even duck embryos.

The rest of the trip was more monotous, and confirmed our theory that the expected duration of a trip in Cambodia (5 hours in this instance) means little. After nine hours, we were quite glad to eventually reach Battambang. Our new friend the pig best enjoyed those numerous hours by sleeping deeply. It probably had a long swim.

Beauty and Beasts

As we spent full days exploring with delight the world renowned site of Angkor Wat in Cambodia, the hideous news came of the series of bombs that struck Mumbai (ex Bombay).
India is not new to terrorists strikes, as they have occurred in many instances and mostly in the northern part of the country.
Yet this one was exceptionally bloody, and far from the troubled Kashmir.


So here we were, Laura and I, enjoying an architectural and artistic wonder of huge proportion, the result of a very refined civilization that allied science, advanced craftsmanship and religious art to erect magnificent structures capable of lasting centuries. It is actually worth noting that very strong Southern Indian influences played a role in the building of these temples, which present a striking melange of Hinduism and Buddhism and represent some of the highest of human achievements.


Then checking our emails at night we shocked to hear of the terrible attack that India suffered. As if we needed a reminder of how stupid and barbarian humans can be. Such a huge contrast with Angkor Wat and all it represents.

I can only express my sympathy to Ajay, Finney, Amrit and all other friends and ex-colleagues whose country was hit so hard.

Phad Thai nirvana

(En Français plus bas)

Thailand is sweet and easy on its tourists. That is if you ignore the few con men who lie to take you shopping, the tuk-tuk drivers who insist on taking you for a ride (literally or not) and the taxi drivers who never have change and don't want to use their meters with "farangs" (=foreigners, from "farangset" for Francais).
But let's ignore that minority of trouble makers. Indeed this buddhist kingdom is well accustomed to accomodating tourists, and Thai people are friendly and quick to smile at you.
Temples and tourist attractions are numerous, buddhas of all size are unavoidable, and monks add a bright orange touch to lively and photogenic street scenes.

Plus the food is great! At anytime and anyplace you will find a street vendor or restaurant ready to satisfy your palate and belly, especially if you enjoy spicy food.
During two weeks Laura, my parents and myself visited Bangkok then went wandering with a rented mini-van and driver, from the famous bridge over the river Kwai, to the Northern region bordering Myanmar (ex Burma).

Now, the two of us sadly left the little piece of paradise named Koh Tao, an island where we added scuba diving and Thai massages to the list of cheap wonders that this country offers.

Here are a few pictures from the first two weeks.

PS: Phad Thai is the national dish. If you didn't know, I really recommend that you run to the nearest Thai restaurant.



La Thaïlande est douce et facile pour ses touristes. Si bien sur vous ignorez les arnaqueurs qui vous mentent pour vous amener dans des magasins a commission, les chauffeurs de tuk-tuk qui insistent pour vous emmener n'importe où, et les taxis qui n'ont jamais de monnaie a rendre et refusent d'utiliser leurs compteurs avec les "fa rangs" (=étrangers, vient de "farangset" pour Français).

Mais laissons de coté ces ennuyeux. De fait, ce Royaume bouddhiste est très habitué au tourisme, et les Thaïs sont amicaux et toujours prêt a sourire.

Les temples et attractions touristiques sont nombreux, les Bouddhas de toutes tailles sont inévitables et les moines ajoutent de vives taches oranges aux scènes de rues très photogéniques.

En plus la nourriture est excellente ! A toute heure et en tout lieu vous trouverez un vendeur de rue ou restaurant prêt a satisfaire votre palais et votre estomac, particulièrement si vous appréciez la nourriture épicée.
Durant deux semaines, Laura, mes parents et moi même avons d'abord visité Bangkok, puis, avec un chauffeur et son mini-van, nous sommes allés vers le célèbre pont de la rivière Kwai, et sommes allés vers le nord en direction de la frontière Birmane.

Maintenant nous avons malheureusement quitté notre petit coin de paradis qu'est l'île de Koh Tao. Nous y avons ajouté la plongée et les massages a la liste des magnifiques plaisirs pas chers qu'offrent ce pays.

Vous trouverez ici quelques photos des premières deux semaines.

PS: le Phad Thai est le plat national. Si vous ne connaissez pas déjà, je vous le recommande.

Asian itinerary

(En Français plus bas)

Things changed a bit since this map was made but it does still reflect our main stops. After two weeks spent between Bangkok and the Northern region of Chiang Mai (with my parents accompanying us), we escaped to the island of Koh Tao for some diving.
In a week or so we'll be transitioning to Cambodia and its famed ruins of Angkor Wat, then having a look at the capital Phnom Penh.
A couple days ago we obtained our -expensives- visas to Vietnam. We'll enter overland, and visit from South (Ho Chi Minh) to North (Hanoi).
Not sure how we'll get there yet, but we will apply for Chinese visas in Hong Kong, trying to keep our stay short since prices there are similar to travelling in Western Europe.
Then China, with many possibilities but large distances that will dictate what we can actually visit: Xi'an and the terracota army, the 3 Gorges area...


En Français quand j'aurai le temps