July 11

Wat Hanchey / Angkor Ban School Visit

Prior to leaving South Florida, in looking over the various excursions, I had anticipated that today might provide one of the better photo opportunities. Our destination was the buddist temples of Wat Hanchey which we'd been told were perched atop a very high hilltop. The incline was so steep that we were warned, in writing, ahead of time that we would be provided a bus to take to the top if we opted to pass on climbing the provided path. Prior to breakfast we were able to witness another dazzling Southeast Asian sunrise prior to leaving our floating hotel. And so we departed the ship and walked for less than five minutes before we ducked off the road and headed through a very nondescript archway/gate. As we walked through we were able to see the steep incline of a concrete pathway winding up the hillside. We've been on steeper, but this was by no means "just walking up a hill." Very few opted for the bus and within fifteen minutes we'd reached the summit. We were greeted with a complete "village" of sorts of temples - some of which were hundreds of years old and some were more modern. Just to our left was what we THOUGHT was the promised panoramic view and so Kim and I had our photo taken by one of our fellow guests.

Then we were ushered into a temple where were to be given a special "water blessing" by the local monks. We had been given very specific instructions for a dress code today to be in the temple, and in the pressence of the monks. No shoes inside the temple, and everyone had to have their shoulders and knees covered. We were also warned about what is affectionately called the "Bow - Wow." The monks, and in general the locals of SE Asia are modest people. And so the women in our group were warned to please where appropriate attire so that when they bowed down the reaction was not a "WOW" from the person they were greeting.....thus the term, "Bow - Wow!" :) We were also told that if we sat in close proximity to the monks we were not by any means allowed to show the souls of our feet to the monks. All very interesting. The blessing prayer/chant lasted close to ten minutes as they flicked water out among us. We could stay for photos - which I thought interesting - with the monks and then we explored the area. It was then we were shown two very impressive things. First, on the opposite side of the complex to where we had ascended the hilltop was as set of stairs, three hundred and three to be exact! And this would be the way back to the ship, unless of course you chose to ride the bus. And then further towards the edge of the hilltop was THE view we'd been promised. While the initial view was amazing, this one was stunning, especially with the temples and the island in the middle of the Mekong River. Everyone took turns having their photo taken. I'd anticipated great pictures, and we were not disappointed. We then descended to the bottom - and I videoed the descent, counting down the steps for your enjoyment.......no, the video does NOT include all 303 step counts :)

In last night's briefing we'd been told that the morning excursion would be an amazing experience with plenty of great photo opportunities. But we'd been promised we'd really enjoy the afternoon's excursion as it was another "emersion" activit to be up close and personal with the locals. This afternoon we were being taken to a local school to meet and interact with a class of Cambodian children who are learning the English language. Before our ship docked in Angkor Ban, where the school was, Kim and I took a selfie out our panoramic staterrom window. I cannot emphasize enough who wonderful the sailing along the river is - truly one of the best "excursions" of the trip and it's a daily event! We got off the ship and walked through the village, which was very remote. It was very interesting to see these very simple lifestyles and the homes were so rudimentary, yet we'd see members of the family on their smart phones and were told that they all had satellite television and the Internet! Then we came to the open-air classroom where the kids all enthusiastically greeted us by waving and saying "HELLO!" We were asked to mix in and sit down next to a student or students and help them practice their language skills. Kim and I chose a table of five little ones and they were fascinated by Kim's iPhone and her Disney interactive game. We had some small talk and I was able to talk and write with my student. Then a few of our fellow guests stood up in front and talked briefly - they were chosen to represent different countries so the kids could hear the accents. And then the students enthusiastically waved their hands, hoping to be called upon so they could speak in front of the group. So adorable as they literally shouted out....."HELLO, HOW ARE YOU" - class responds, "I am fine, and you?" "OK, THANK YOU! MY NAME IS ......I AM A BOY/GIRL......I AM TEN YEARS OLD.....I LIVE WITH MY MOTHER AND FATHER.....WHEN I GROW UP I WANT TO BE A CRUISE DIRECTOR!" Or something similar. I was excited that "my girl" was one of the ones called upon to talk. After about 40 minutes we bid goodbye to the class and walked through the village and to the ship. But just before reaching the ship Kim had THE BEST EXPERIENCE of the day, if not of the week........

As we rounded the corner there was a very basic volleyball court and some young boys were playing. Kim said, "I'm going to join them......no, I'm not......no, I AM!" And so out she went to play with the boys. They laughed with (or at) her and "talked" with her as she played and was clearly the most skilled player on "the court." After about ten minutes she returned the ball to them and gave them all high-fives. She was just beaming as she returned to walk to the ship. After a shower we went out on the observation deck for happy hour where we were later joined by two of our favorite couples - Hilga and Ricardo (who are from Canada, though she was born in Guatemala and he in Italy), and Morris and Nicky who are from New Zealand. We sat together through the briefing and then had dinner together. We were the last table to leave the dining room, and did so only after we felt like we'd overstayed far too long. One incident while we were the only ones in the room that was very touching came when our on server, Yarly, was talking with our table and Ricardo asked "where is your family?" Her face immediately changed and a tear rolled down her cheek as she explained both her parents had died when she was eight in an accident. She then opened up to us about her life and her newly adoptive parents. She was very emotional and we were all touched. Once we left the dining room we all went to the Panorama Lounge to finish our conversation, over yet another glass of wine. And to our surprise there were several other couples still up! We were there until late in the evening trading stories, in one of the best social "events" of the cruise.

School Visit Video