OK, who's got trips planned??
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diverjed
Contributor
.........thazz right! Lies between Michigan and Canada, and it where we seperate the men from the boys. You can do a shore dive from most points (Port Huron, MI) , and from then on its you vs. the Current. It's rough but survivable if you accept what you're in for. Has some old wooden schooner wrecks and a shipping crane south west of the coast guard station (Very Powerful current here).
Expect a nitro headache upon your finish because of your exileration.
Expect a nitro headache upon your finish because of your exileration.
Hi Jim,
no it'll be the first time to Cambodia and Vietnam, but I'm already looking forward to it, more than a year ahead!
no it'll be the first time to Cambodia and Vietnam, but I'm already looking forward to it, more than a year ahead!
With luck I'll dive around Destin, Fl. with Genesis at Thanksgiving time,
With my son in the central Florida springs at Christmas time,
And then in Feb my son and I are off to COCOs Island on the Okeanos Aggressor for 10 days, 7 days of diving.
In May it will be Olympus and WRECKS for a week before the schools let out and the beach turns into a mad house,
but other than that, not much.
With my son in the central Florida springs at Christmas time,
And then in Feb my son and I are off to COCOs Island on the Okeanos Aggressor for 10 days, 7 days of diving.
In May it will be Olympus and WRECKS for a week before the schools let out and the beach turns into a mad house,
but other than that, not much.
Scuba Jim
Contributor
You will love Angkor.
I am not usually one to wax lyrical, but sunrise at Angkor Wat is a mystical & moving experience, even for a Vulgarian like me!!!! (See attached!)
Natasha - report is being done next week, as I have a dive show this weekend to sort out.
TTFN
Jim
I am not usually one to wax lyrical, but sunrise at Angkor Wat is a mystical & moving experience, even for a Vulgarian like me!!!! (See attached!)
Natasha - report is being done next week, as I have a dive show this weekend to sort out.
TTFN
Jim
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Here's my trip report from this spring:
"Under a hallucinatory heat index of 123 degrees, I indolently push myself forward between perfectly aligned rows of massive warriors extending as far as the eye can see. Frozen in a contest of serpentine tug-of-war, they struggle to contain the body & tail of Naga, the 7 headed dragon that flares to form a most imposing entryway. Their efforts produce sturdy balustrades along an encircling lake, embracing the magnificence that is Angkor Wat.
Three thick walls & a wide moat fight to restrain the massive primary temple from spilling out to the horizon. Like the warriors, its multiheaded snakes, pachyderms, gods, muses & celestial dancers gaze coolly over an endless, verdant jungle. My minuscule being & life pass 100s of feet below, a mere mote in the eyes of these implacable & enduring sentries.
The golden roots of spong trees gently invade as yet unreclaimed structures, like a grout of precious metal simultaneously rending & cementing uncountable blocks of sandstone. From treetops soaring far above emanates the hooting of howler monkeys & singing of macaws. Forming an ineffably enchanting chorus, the music of the jungle stirs a primitive soul deep within. Under the canopy whose riotous greens embarrass the Crayola megabox, grasshoppers the size of large mice & impossibly well-coordinated millipedes in rainbow hues go about their incessant foraging.
Seeking the scant shade of the Parade of Elephants, I am greeted by splendid bas-relief creatures taking a break from the labors of work & war, their trunks protruding in 3D as if to form columnar supports or rain spouts. Across other walls themes of everyday life spin out, commerce, love & recreation, suddenly becoming emboldened by a passing downpour.
Themes of everyday life play out in real time as well. Multiple joys & sadnesses entwine when I happen upon a quartet in a deep, isolated glade, the members variously blinded, facially disfigured or absent a limb due to mines. They extract sounds from simple instruments that initially strike my unaccustomed Western ear as atonal & dysphonic. Soon, however, the individual notes coalesce into a melody so blissfully riveting that it is only with the greatest difficulty that I am able to move on again.
Such is the splendor of Angkor Wat, the center of Khmer life for over 600 years until it was abandoned in the 15th century when its one million residents fell under siege. Comprised of over 70 temple complexes containing 100s of structures, it was built between the 8th & 14th centuries, and surely would have been one of the 7 Wonders of the World had it been found in ancient times rather than the early 1860s.
Due the murderous presence of the Khmer Rouge until quite recently, Angkor has only been consistently open to the public for about 5-6 years. Some of the more remote edifices have only been safe to visit for about 2-3 years. Even now, the visitor is oft cautioned not to wander too far as the clearing of land mines has yet to be completed. One decided advantage of the newness of tourism here is that, with the exception of the most precariously unstable structures, one is entirely free to explore, climb & touch anywhere they wish. Only about 5% of the entire complex is roped off. As an American, this was an astounding experience, and I had difficulty shaking the feeling that at any moment some uniformed presence was going to roundly chastise me for my temerity. For the sake of this utterly magnificent & invaluable wonder, such unfettered access probably should not, and certainly will not last much longer. I am grateful to have seen it when I did.
With nearly 80 square miles of scattered structures, archeological venues like Chitzen Itza, Tikal, Olympus, Monte Alban & Machu Picchu combined would fit into greater Angkor's backpockets. An idea of its size may be gleaned from the fact that it takes about 3 full days to get a decent, but by no means intimate, feel for the main complexes & most interesting distant sites. Plan on a week to see greater Angkor thoroughly.
Although I like some other ruins better either because of their location (e.g., Machu Picchu in Peru for its perch in the high Andes with the magnificently blue Urubamba River thundering far below) or mind-boggling state of preservation (e.g., Temple at Luxor in Egypt), Angkor is by far the most impressive I've seen to date. It's unquestionably the dinosaur of archeological wonders, and arguably the gem of all SE Asia.
If you're interested, I recommend going during the off-season despite the heat & humidity as the fewer people the more magical the ruins. In a number of temples, we were the only persons in sight. Off-season rates also will save you about 25%, sometimes more. Finally, see it sooner rather than later-it'll never be nicer.
The ruins of Angkor are located a bit north the Cambodian town of Siem Reap, less than an hour's flight east from Bangkok or north from Phom Penh.
Arriving at the new & developing but nevertheless basic & non-A/C airport, one passes through an officious immigration desk manned by functionaries of a most serious mien. After an intimidating moment or two (having a rather full & curious passport), however, I emerge with an impressive full page, stick on visa. Even nicer than the Burmese 3/4 page stamp.
Outside of the airport, many citizens engage in a near subsistence existence, living in woven houses without water, sewer or electricity. Like scenes from a National Geographic, water buffalo pull plowmen in leather harnesses across emerald rice paddies, shipwrights build substantial, curved wooden boats without benefit of power tools or modern fasteners, women harvest watery fields of indescribably beautiful white & pink lotus, boys cast fish nets, and naked children merrily play. Eyeing the visa, the thought crosses my mind that perhaps the size & splendor of a country's visa is somehow inversely related to its level of socioeconomic development
This idle musing is soon derailed as we step out into blast furnace heat, drenching humidity, and myriad drivers clamoring to recommend a hotel or some such. Having already booked a place, I simply select one of the less bumptious of the touts, and we are soon heavy into negotiations for our transportation requirements over the next 3 days. Quickly settling on a price of $18/day, for which I'll have exclusive use the driver from early morning until mid-evening, I'm good to go.
While Siem Reap bustles in its progression toward becoming a major world tourist destination, infrastructure lags a bit behind anticipation. With open sewers & only a few short sections of roughly paved street, one pretty much traverses dirt roads that exist in only two conditions: bone dry & generative of choking clouds of dust, or muddy with pools of water that need to be circumvented. These states of physical being alternate rapidly, and each is a paradoxically welcome change from the other. Incredibly reminiscent of Vietnam, motorbikes loaded to the gunwales with coconuts, fruits & vegetables, firewood, pigs and all manner of commercial goods negotiate this with aplomb & insouciance.
Until two very nice hotels were completed within the past couple of years (incredibly expensive by local economics), accommodations were largely quite rudimentary & best suited to those with a high level of comfort for up close & personal entomological experiences. For those who are, there remain many choices in the $5-$10 range that in addition to being an Orkin man's wet dream are dry, safe and include fan, hot water tap & daily maid service. And while you are waiting for your latest bug bomb to take effect, happy hour at the Zanzibar includes shots of liquor or Asian beers for $0.50 a pop. A toothsome full course dinner at one of the surprising number of more upscale & hygienic restaurants (non-hotel) will run you about $6 including gratuity. In the morning, a full (non-hotel) American breakfast runs less than $2. This includes juice, toast & jelly, eggs to order, breakfast meat of choice, potatoes, coffee/tea & last but not least a fruit plate typically containing some combination of such exotics as dragon fruit, star fruit, rambutan & mangosteen, and more recognizable mango, papaya, watermelon & pineapple. If you are not particular, you can make your money go a very, very long way.
The long-standing exception to basic accommodations has been the 75 year old Grand Hotel d'Angkor, now a Raffles International property charging an outlandish $240/night & up. Built by the French colonists and continually refurbished as shifting wars & ownership allowed, it is in such stark contrast to Siem Reap that I felt moved to laugh when we went over for drinks & a tour one evening. Buffered from the squalid streets by its own well-manicured formal gardens, entry is though tall, wide doors tended by an immaculately attired doorman in Indian garb. Inside, you are greeted by marble floors & soaring walls, teak & mahogany paneling & vigorous A/C. In the spacious & very comfortable cocktail lounge, which overlooks a vast horizon pool set among flowering camellias, one is treated to the dulcet tones of an American pianist doing Bert Baccarat & Mel Torme standards as the staff almost imperceptibly serve ludicrously priced Jimmy Buffett boat drinks. After popping in to see the billiard room in the downstairs Elephant Bar, we exit past the prefect parting scene--a working, open-cabin elevator constructed of wicker & brass, shiny as the day it rolled off the Paris assembly floor 70 years ago. Walking back into the dusty street & petroleum-scented air, three of us cram onto a single motorbike and noisily return to our far more modest digs as visions of Somerset Maugham dance in my head.
See it now."
I'm envious, Chiara.
DocVikingo
"Under a hallucinatory heat index of 123 degrees, I indolently push myself forward between perfectly aligned rows of massive warriors extending as far as the eye can see. Frozen in a contest of serpentine tug-of-war, they struggle to contain the body & tail of Naga, the 7 headed dragon that flares to form a most imposing entryway. Their efforts produce sturdy balustrades along an encircling lake, embracing the magnificence that is Angkor Wat.
Three thick walls & a wide moat fight to restrain the massive primary temple from spilling out to the horizon. Like the warriors, its multiheaded snakes, pachyderms, gods, muses & celestial dancers gaze coolly over an endless, verdant jungle. My minuscule being & life pass 100s of feet below, a mere mote in the eyes of these implacable & enduring sentries.
The golden roots of spong trees gently invade as yet unreclaimed structures, like a grout of precious metal simultaneously rending & cementing uncountable blocks of sandstone. From treetops soaring far above emanates the hooting of howler monkeys & singing of macaws. Forming an ineffably enchanting chorus, the music of the jungle stirs a primitive soul deep within. Under the canopy whose riotous greens embarrass the Crayola megabox, grasshoppers the size of large mice & impossibly well-coordinated millipedes in rainbow hues go about their incessant foraging.
Seeking the scant shade of the Parade of Elephants, I am greeted by splendid bas-relief creatures taking a break from the labors of work & war, their trunks protruding in 3D as if to form columnar supports or rain spouts. Across other walls themes of everyday life spin out, commerce, love & recreation, suddenly becoming emboldened by a passing downpour.
Themes of everyday life play out in real time as well. Multiple joys & sadnesses entwine when I happen upon a quartet in a deep, isolated glade, the members variously blinded, facially disfigured or absent a limb due to mines. They extract sounds from simple instruments that initially strike my unaccustomed Western ear as atonal & dysphonic. Soon, however, the individual notes coalesce into a melody so blissfully riveting that it is only with the greatest difficulty that I am able to move on again.
Such is the splendor of Angkor Wat, the center of Khmer life for over 600 years until it was abandoned in the 15th century when its one million residents fell under siege. Comprised of over 70 temple complexes containing 100s of structures, it was built between the 8th & 14th centuries, and surely would have been one of the 7 Wonders of the World had it been found in ancient times rather than the early 1860s.
Due the murderous presence of the Khmer Rouge until quite recently, Angkor has only been consistently open to the public for about 5-6 years. Some of the more remote edifices have only been safe to visit for about 2-3 years. Even now, the visitor is oft cautioned not to wander too far as the clearing of land mines has yet to be completed. One decided advantage of the newness of tourism here is that, with the exception of the most precariously unstable structures, one is entirely free to explore, climb & touch anywhere they wish. Only about 5% of the entire complex is roped off. As an American, this was an astounding experience, and I had difficulty shaking the feeling that at any moment some uniformed presence was going to roundly chastise me for my temerity. For the sake of this utterly magnificent & invaluable wonder, such unfettered access probably should not, and certainly will not last much longer. I am grateful to have seen it when I did.
With nearly 80 square miles of scattered structures, archeological venues like Chitzen Itza, Tikal, Olympus, Monte Alban & Machu Picchu combined would fit into greater Angkor's backpockets. An idea of its size may be gleaned from the fact that it takes about 3 full days to get a decent, but by no means intimate, feel for the main complexes & most interesting distant sites. Plan on a week to see greater Angkor thoroughly.
Although I like some other ruins better either because of their location (e.g., Machu Picchu in Peru for its perch in the high Andes with the magnificently blue Urubamba River thundering far below) or mind-boggling state of preservation (e.g., Temple at Luxor in Egypt), Angkor is by far the most impressive I've seen to date. It's unquestionably the dinosaur of archeological wonders, and arguably the gem of all SE Asia.
If you're interested, I recommend going during the off-season despite the heat & humidity as the fewer people the more magical the ruins. In a number of temples, we were the only persons in sight. Off-season rates also will save you about 25%, sometimes more. Finally, see it sooner rather than later-it'll never be nicer.
The ruins of Angkor are located a bit north the Cambodian town of Siem Reap, less than an hour's flight east from Bangkok or north from Phom Penh.
Arriving at the new & developing but nevertheless basic & non-A/C airport, one passes through an officious immigration desk manned by functionaries of a most serious mien. After an intimidating moment or two (having a rather full & curious passport), however, I emerge with an impressive full page, stick on visa. Even nicer than the Burmese 3/4 page stamp.
Outside of the airport, many citizens engage in a near subsistence existence, living in woven houses without water, sewer or electricity. Like scenes from a National Geographic, water buffalo pull plowmen in leather harnesses across emerald rice paddies, shipwrights build substantial, curved wooden boats without benefit of power tools or modern fasteners, women harvest watery fields of indescribably beautiful white & pink lotus, boys cast fish nets, and naked children merrily play. Eyeing the visa, the thought crosses my mind that perhaps the size & splendor of a country's visa is somehow inversely related to its level of socioeconomic development
This idle musing is soon derailed as we step out into blast furnace heat, drenching humidity, and myriad drivers clamoring to recommend a hotel or some such. Having already booked a place, I simply select one of the less bumptious of the touts, and we are soon heavy into negotiations for our transportation requirements over the next 3 days. Quickly settling on a price of $18/day, for which I'll have exclusive use the driver from early morning until mid-evening, I'm good to go.
While Siem Reap bustles in its progression toward becoming a major world tourist destination, infrastructure lags a bit behind anticipation. With open sewers & only a few short sections of roughly paved street, one pretty much traverses dirt roads that exist in only two conditions: bone dry & generative of choking clouds of dust, or muddy with pools of water that need to be circumvented. These states of physical being alternate rapidly, and each is a paradoxically welcome change from the other. Incredibly reminiscent of Vietnam, motorbikes loaded to the gunwales with coconuts, fruits & vegetables, firewood, pigs and all manner of commercial goods negotiate this with aplomb & insouciance.
Until two very nice hotels were completed within the past couple of years (incredibly expensive by local economics), accommodations were largely quite rudimentary & best suited to those with a high level of comfort for up close & personal entomological experiences. For those who are, there remain many choices in the $5-$10 range that in addition to being an Orkin man's wet dream are dry, safe and include fan, hot water tap & daily maid service. And while you are waiting for your latest bug bomb to take effect, happy hour at the Zanzibar includes shots of liquor or Asian beers for $0.50 a pop. A toothsome full course dinner at one of the surprising number of more upscale & hygienic restaurants (non-hotel) will run you about $6 including gratuity. In the morning, a full (non-hotel) American breakfast runs less than $2. This includes juice, toast & jelly, eggs to order, breakfast meat of choice, potatoes, coffee/tea & last but not least a fruit plate typically containing some combination of such exotics as dragon fruit, star fruit, rambutan & mangosteen, and more recognizable mango, papaya, watermelon & pineapple. If you are not particular, you can make your money go a very, very long way.
The long-standing exception to basic accommodations has been the 75 year old Grand Hotel d'Angkor, now a Raffles International property charging an outlandish $240/night & up. Built by the French colonists and continually refurbished as shifting wars & ownership allowed, it is in such stark contrast to Siem Reap that I felt moved to laugh when we went over for drinks & a tour one evening. Buffered from the squalid streets by its own well-manicured formal gardens, entry is though tall, wide doors tended by an immaculately attired doorman in Indian garb. Inside, you are greeted by marble floors & soaring walls, teak & mahogany paneling & vigorous A/C. In the spacious & very comfortable cocktail lounge, which overlooks a vast horizon pool set among flowering camellias, one is treated to the dulcet tones of an American pianist doing Bert Baccarat & Mel Torme standards as the staff almost imperceptibly serve ludicrously priced Jimmy Buffett boat drinks. After popping in to see the billiard room in the downstairs Elephant Bar, we exit past the prefect parting scene--a working, open-cabin elevator constructed of wicker & brass, shiny as the day it rolled off the Paris assembly floor 70 years ago. Walking back into the dusty street & petroleum-scented air, three of us cram onto a single motorbike and noisily return to our far more modest digs as visions of Somerset Maugham dance in my head.
See it now."
I'm envious, Chiara.
DocVikingo
Hmmm....
Just back from 12 days in Maui (26 dives)
Back to Maui in December, again in February and March. Maui again in June, Fiji in June and Maui again in September.
Liz
Just back from 12 days in Maui (26 dives)
Back to Maui in December, again in February and March. Maui again in June, Fiji in June and Maui again in September.
Liz
Scuba Jim
Contributor
Ah, the memories!
I spent 5 days in Angkor in 1994, I think it was. I took 79 rolls of film, which I believe is some kinda record!
I loved Angkor Wat, but to me the Bayon was the best. The guy who designed that building should be given an Oscar! According to the only contemporary literature of the time, written by an Ambassdor from the Chinese (his name escapes me) the Bayon was covered in gold leaf. It must have been some sight!
I also loved Tha Phrom because of the way they have left it with all the trees growing through it.
I did not get to Banteay Serei because it was still dodgy in those days. You could hear gun fire in the distance on a few occasions. Some people took the risk and survived; I felt that at 6ft 4 and 225 pounds I would not have blended in as a local in case of trouble!
I would love to go back one day, but I fear the place will not be in the same state as it was then.
I feel priveledged to have been there.
I spent 5 days in Angkor in 1994, I think it was. I took 79 rolls of film, which I believe is some kinda record!
I loved Angkor Wat, but to me the Bayon was the best. The guy who designed that building should be given an Oscar! According to the only contemporary literature of the time, written by an Ambassdor from the Chinese (his name escapes me) the Bayon was covered in gold leaf. It must have been some sight!
I also loved Tha Phrom because of the way they have left it with all the trees growing through it.
I did not get to Banteay Serei because it was still dodgy in those days. You could hear gun fire in the distance on a few occasions. Some people took the risk and survived; I felt that at 6ft 4 and 225 pounds I would not have blended in as a local in case of trouble!
I would love to go back one day, but I fear the place will not be in the same state as it was then.
I feel priveledged to have been there.
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I believe that his name was Zhou Daguan.
I did get out to Banteay Serei, but did not feel it was a high point of the trip.
Really, what a magical place.
Best regards.
DocVikingo
I did get out to Banteay Serei, but did not feel it was a high point of the trip.
Really, what a magical place.
Best regards.
DocVikingo
Scuba Jim
Contributor
Perhaps I didn't miss much then!
BTW Angkor Thom was the city. Angkor Wat is the biggest of the temples, actually built outside the walls of Angkor Thom.
Regards
Jim
BTW Angkor Thom was the city. Angkor Wat is the biggest of the temples, actually built outside the walls of Angkor Thom.
Regards
Jim
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