Southeast Asia Cruise
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In Nha Trang, Vietnam we got around on our own by taxi. This was easy and cheep since the sites are so close to town where the free shuttle from the boat drops you off. We first went over to the Po Nagar Cham Towers built between the 7th and 12th century. Each tower was built for a different deity; most were destroyed as only four towers are still standing. We left as the first tour groups off the boat were showing up. We also saw the Buddha�s at Long Son Pagoda. Back in town, we walked around but there wasn�t much to see. We did drop by the beach but a recent typhoon had made a real mess of it. Finally we walked around the Cho Dam Market but nothing seemed worth a buy.
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Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Nha Trang, Vietnam
View as we approached Nha Trang, Vietnam
The beach at Nha Trang
Walking around Nha Trang
Cho Dam Market
Po Nagar Cham Towers
A city view of Nha Trang from the Po Nager Cham Towers
U.S. Helicopter at one of the museums in Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City
Reunification Palace
View from port in Vung Tau for Ho Chi Minh City
Buddha at Long Son Pagoda
Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City
Bangkok, Thailand
Keneman, Malaysia
Grand Palace
Grand Palace
We did this shore excursion on our own. The cruise had a free shuttle to town. We first walked to Reunification Palace, the home and workplace of the President of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War and the site of the official handover of power during the Fall of Saigon in 1975. It was then known as Independence Palace, and an NVA tank crashed through its gates, ending the Vietnam War. Next we found a few museums. One of the more interesting ones was the War Remnants Museum containing exhibits relating to the American phase of the Vietnam War. Operated by the Vietnamese government, the museum was opened in September 1975 as the "The House for Displaying War Crimes of American Imperialism. Later it was known as the Museum of American War Crimes, then as the War Crimes Museum until as recently as 1993. Its current name follows liberalization in Vietnam and the normalization of relations with the United States, but the museum does not attempt to be politically balanced. Finally, we just walked around the center of this bustling city looking at colonial architecture.
We took a tour to see the major sites. First up was the worlds largest solid gold Buddha. It is worth around 14 million US dollars and is around 900 years old. The Buddha was covered at some point in plaster to hide its value. A few hundred years later in 1957, the image was being moved to a temple in Bangkok. Some of the plaster came off and wow, thats solid gold underneath! Next we went to Bangkoks main attraction, the Grand Palace. The construction on the palace began in 1782. It served as the official residences of the Kings of Thailand for 150 years. This was one of those remarkable places you can not imagine until you visit. With the unique architecture and intricate detail in the craftsmanship everywhere, you will be glad your camera is digital. One of the buildings is Wat Phra Kaew (Temple of the Emerald Buddha) where everyone packs in to get a gander at the greatly revered Emerald Buddha dating back to the 14th century.
We also took a short boat excursion down the river to a hotel for lunch. Along the way, we went past several temples. That was about it for Bangkok, I am sure there is much more to see but our bus ended the day visiting a jade factory so we got some extra sleep waiting on the bus.
Not much to say about this place. I think they had cheep fuel so the ship stopped there. There was a waterfront with some local festivities going on but that was about it.
Golden Buddha
A temple viewed from the boat
Boat ride down the river on one of these
Kids having fun at the activities in Kemaman
Walking the waterfront in Kemaman, Malaysia
