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Archive for 'Traveling down the Mekong River' Category

Mekong River Commission Wants New Dam Construction Put On Hold

The Mekong River Commission (MRC) says there should be no new dams on the river until more studies are done on their likely effects. Vietnamese newspaper Thanh Nien reported this week that the MRC has decided there is too little known about the risks to the environment and the 60 million people who depend upon the Mekong for food, [...]

Mekong Diaries: Day 66

Today we have a single simple goal: get a boat and go the literal, physical end of the river.

Mekong Diaries: Day 64

Today we are confronted by the difference between plans and practice. On paper getting to the end of a river sounds as simple as following a thin blue line, while in life getting to the end of anything is never that straightforward.

Mekong Diaries: Day 63

With the sun yet to rise we are already downstairs for a quick breakfast of eggs and strained coffee sweetened with condensed milk, then into a brand new taxi to a nearby floating market.

Mekong Diaries: Day 62

With the sights of Can Tho failing to provide a new window on life on the Mekong, we decide that our best efforts can be turn towards gaining as much expert testimony as we can.

Mekong Diaries: Day 61

Last night we briefly met our government guide, and this morning he is up before us, waiting downstairs in the dining room of our small hotel.

Mekong Diaries Day 60

Day 60 Today we caught a bus from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh, where we arranged for the next stage of our journey downstream to Viet Nam by boat. A ferry service runs twice each way every day, carrying tourists through a stretch of river with an amazing history. Cambodia’s rulers moved its capital from [...]

Mekong Diaries Day 59

Day 59 As if we must punish ourselves for having too much fun in a previous incarnation, we book in for a 4am rise and visit a pre-dawn fish market on the shores of the Great Lake. It is surprisingly cold in the blank darkness as we park on the side of a long man-made [...]

Mekong Diaries: Day 58

When we arrive Siem Reap is hot, even in the early morning. After checking into our hotel we dive straight into a very tight schedule

Mekong Diaries: Day 57

We spring out of the very comfortable folds of our beds at 4 am and polish our sleepy faces in readiness for Gordon and Verne.