Japan

After a couple of days in Bangkok, Chad and I split up...Chad was off to Nepal & I was heading to Japan to visit some friends.

Akiko & I met when she came to the States to study as an exchange student...we were roommates in the dorms. We've been able to keep in touch & I even went to Japan for her wedding. I am in love with her family & was soooo excited to see them all again!

We were able to do & see a ton of stuff (but I have to admit after about 9 months I don't remember the exact order of our trip)...

We went to a really neat Japanese park.

And Akiko & I were able to enjoy a nice mug of green tea.We went to the fisherman's market in Tokyo...I was really surprised to see that wasabi looks like this before it becomes that paste that you add to your sushi to give it a bite...After that, we went to eat a breakfast of sushi...delicious!We made a trip up to Mt. Fuji. We made a stop at Chinatown and Akiko & Taka had this made for me...We went to a model of an old Japanese village. This is where they film some of the old-style Japanese movies. I found this candy when we stopped in a convenience store...not sure if I would try it.We even made it to an old Japanese castle.

One night, we made sushi rolls for dinner...

We also went to see a traditional Japanese play. Luckily they had audio tapes for the tourists to listen to because it was in ancient Japanese & Akiko said that she had trouble understanding it (not that I would have been able to understand it if it was in modern Japanese). We went to an art exhibit, the pier, and temples.

They all came to see me off at the airport.

I had so much fun with Akiko, Taka, and her family. Her younger brother made me laugh harder than I had in a long time (you know that laugh that makes your gut hurt & your eyes water). I love her family & can't wait to visit them again (or even better for them to come visit me)!!!

Cambodia

After Vietnam, we headed over to Cambodia. Our first stop was Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. In 1975, the Khmer Rouge took over Phnom Penh. They evacuated the entire city & slaughtered millions of people. (According to my understanding), Pol Pot (the leader of the Khmer Rouge) was terrified of the Vietnamese and feared that anyone with an education could possibly be undercover Vietnamese soldiers...so they were all executed. Doctors, nurses, teachers, journalists, lawyers...anyone with an education...or even thought to have an education. It soon spread to anyone who once lived in the big cities. The exact numbers of those killed is still unknown...but is thought to be about 1.5 million people, about 1/5 of Cambodia's population.

We took this time to visit the Killing Fields just outside of the city. This is where a large number of Cambodians where killed & buried. It was a somber day...

This is a pagoda that was built in remembrance of those who died. Inside are bones and clothing that were found in the nearby fields.

I don't know if you can read the sign, but the soldiers grabbed babies by their leg & swung them against this tree to kill them.

The fields where they found mass graves.

After that, we went to an old school that had been converted to a prison camp during Pol Pot's regime.

It was devastating to think that a place where children once laughed & played & learned had been turned into such an evil thing. When the Vietnamese liberated Cambodia and entered this prison, they found bodies that had been tortured & left on the tables to rot. Phnom Penh was not a "fun" experience, but a very educational one.

After that, we headed to Siem Reap...where Angkor Wat is located. As I've already posted pics from a previous trip, I'll only post a few fun ones here...

Chad & I found this neat little place in the night market where they had "fish massages" so we decided to give it a try...

You put your feet in a little pool, and a bunch of little fish come & eat the dead skin off of your feet. It tickled like no other!!! We couldn't stop laughing!

I thought it was more of a pedicure than a massage...my feet were sooo soft after!

After Siem Reap, we headed back to Bangkok where we split up. I flew to Japan to visit some friends & Chad flew to Nepal to explore Mt. Everest.