March, 2025

When we retired in September, 2017, visiting Angkor, the large temple complex in Cambodia, was high on the list of things we wanted to do. Unfortunately, that trip had to be postponed because the country was going through a period of civil unrest.

We thought about going to Southeast Asia occasionally over the years, but it wasn't until the fall of 2024 when we actually decided to make it happen. We focused on seeing Cambodia and Vietnam and, since everything there seemed very different than what we are used to, we decided that taking a tour would be the best option for us. The company we selected, Intrepid Travel, offers small group tours ranging from action packed adventures with very basic accommodations to more luxurious choices.

The next challenge was figuring out how we would get to Phnom Penh where our first tour would begin. We wanted to arrive several days before the tour began so we would have some time to adjust to the time change. After spending a ridiculous amount of time searching for flights on airline web pages, we were forced to conclude that there really is no good way to get from Hawai'i to Southeast Asia. We finally settled on a flight to Bangkok via Tokyo. We reasoned that since Thailand is a major tourist destination, it would be fairly easy for us to navigate, and from there, Phnom Penh is only a short flight away.

In the end, everything worked out surprisingly well. The members of our tour groups were highly entertaining, and I soon came to the realization that if I hadn't been experiencing this trip with them and our outstanding tour guides, I would have been completely overwhelmed.

The Cambodian tour group is pictured below...