7 Top Sites to See in Cambodia & Vietnam

"Pre-dawn at Angkor Wat, Cambodia"
www.paulawallisphotography.com 

There are at least 7 must see sites on a trip to Cambodia and Vietnam. In order to appreciate the cultures and understand the communities, it is better to travel in small groups with local guides.  We will share information about the places we recommend on our new blog, Bucket List Travels.  We will also visit other areas throughout the world.  First of all though here is a little history about our blog and how it came to be!


A longtime friend, Jon, and I have recently begun working together as travel coordinators.  We already know we travel together well.  We are doing this because of our love of travel and also because of our enjoyment of meeting people from all parts of the world.

The opportunity came up to become travel coordinators when a good friend that I have known for at least 50 years decided to retire.  Judy Smith has been doing small group tours all over the world for many years.  She also visited her 72nd country on her 72nd birthday.  Talk about a "Bucket List!"

Judy reminisces about her travels with the love and excitement that only like-minded travelers can really appreciate.  She was very adamant about involving local people to arrange and guide the tours in each of the countries she took people into.  We plan to keep Judy involved by occasionally getting her in to give an informational evening or packing seminar for our groups.  We will follow Judy's lead and keep the tours to small groups of travelers plus ourselves and a local guide.

As travel coordinators we will make sure the tours run smoothly and that our travelers get to experience the things they have on their own bucket lists.  Jon loves visiting museums and temples and art galleries.  He also enjoys sharing the historical facts about the places we will visit.  I prefer to experience the beaches and the day and night markets as well as trying out the local eateries.

Quick Overview of Susan's Travel Experiences
I began traveling when I was 18, straight out of high school.  After a solo trip half-way across Canada, I settled into the "married with children" phase.  25 years later I was traveling again.  I tested the water temperatures all over North America, from Alaska to the Caribbean.  Then I spent time in China, the Greek Islands and Europe.  In 2007 I got the opportunity to live in Mexico for a year before heading to places like Hong Kong, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

I'm also involved in the ESL (English as a Second Language) industry, where I have had the opportunity to meet people from many countries throughout the world.  Understanding different cultures is very important to me.
 
Over the years, both my children have developed a love for travel too.  You can check out my son Dennis's travel website at www.globetales.com.  My daughter Paula features her travel pictures on her website at www.paulawallisphotography.com.  The photo at the beginning of this blog is a picture Paula took in December 2013.

What was my most amazing "ah, huh" moment in my travels that made me want to see everything else in this beautiful world? I experienced a shuttle launch from Kennedy Space Centre in 1998.  Needless to say it was "out of this world!"

Quick Overview of Jon's Travel Experiences
Growing up in rural Saskatchewan, my first travel experience was when I was 10 years old and travelled with my grandparents to British Columbia for the summer. There was no turning back after that. At 17, I travelled on my own by train to Ontario and the world became even larger! At 24, I spent 3 months travelling around Europe "on a  shoestring" exploring England, Holland, Belgium and Spain. Since then, the four winds have taken me to East Africa, Southeast Asia, Italy, Greece, Mexico, the Caribbean, much of the US and across Canada.

For  a couple of years I worked as a tour guide/escort based in Vancouver and got to explore much of the southwest U.S. as well as New England, the Atlantic Provinces and The Rockies. Needless to say, I love exploring, learning and sharing travel experiences.

And what was my "ah ha" moment that continues to make want to experience more? I trekked into the jungle in Zaire (now the Congo) to sit with a family of gorillas....watching the silverback keeping one eye on his group and the other eye on us and "allowing" us to be there. Truly a humbling and awesome experience.... and one more "ah ha moment"....listening to the noon church bells from the top of the Duomo tower in Florence, Italy......thrilling!!

We will share stories on our blog about many of the places we have visited on our own travels.  We will also talk about the places we are planning to visit in the near future.  Three of Judy's favorite tours that we want to continue doing are Cambodia/ Vietnam, Turkey, and Ecuador/ Galapagos.

Our first journey is a 21 day Cambodia/ Vietnam trip starting on March 23, 2015 in Siem Reap, Cambodia.  People will have a choice of traveling from the Okanagan Valley or Vancouver with us or meeting us in Cambodia.

We are working closely with Marlin Travel in Vernon, BC, Canada.  It is important that the group we have traveling together want to experience like-minded travel.  Because our groups are small, they will fill up quickly. We offer an adventure away from the huge tourist hotels but still manage to give you some of the old world luxury.

So.... what are the top 7 top sites to see in Cambodia and Vietnam?

1. Sunrise at Angkor Wat (World Heritage Site)
2. Saigon (Ho Chi Min City)
3. Mekong Delta
4. Hoi An World Heritage Site (dates back to the 4 century)
5. China Beach
6. Hanoi (Asia's Paris)
7. Sunset at Halong Bay (World Heritage Site)

You can see them all with us along with some other spectacular places!  Hopefully you will join us for the trip.  Or maybe you want to share some of your own experiences traveling to these countries on our blog. You can contact us at bucketlisttravels@yahoo.ca.  Also, watch for our website which will be up and running soon.

www.bucketlisttravels.ca

YOUR ADVENTURE BEGINS WITH US!!!