Six Days in August of 2005
Three days in Ho Chi Minh,
a city in Vietnam
just enough to savor
the fresh young "buko"
the curry chicken swimming
in coconut milk,
the yummy beef,melting in the mouth.
just enough to get exposed to the thousand and one
pictures of the anguish of war,
the mutilated bodies of women and children,
the deformed bodies because of dioxin
in a Vietnam Museum of unforgettable memories.
just enough to experience the Cu Chi tunnel
that spoke of a people
who in their time of need
made their imagination and intelligence
work out booby traps, and a network
set deep under the earth
to live,to dine, to meet,to fight.
Now that I have seen it
my admiration for the Vietnamese people will linger on!
Three days in Siem Reap Angkor,
A town in Cambodia
just enough to feel spiritual,
the Buddha images,
temples and monuments,
most of them in ruins but still retaining
the Angkorian art and architecture.
just enough to be awed
by Javayarman VII, the monument builder,
who made Buddhism the state religion
and made his giant stone face grace the facade
of some monuments
Fifty nine of his giant faces, not a single one
similar to another is in Bayon,the capital city
of Angkor Thom
Dozens of temples, but the legendary ruins of Angkor Wat
and the giant faces of Bayon are enough so as not
to get temple fatigue.
just enough to go
hie off to the marketplace
to haggle and bargain
for Cambodian carvings
in wood and in cloth!
Six days in August, unforgettable!
Thanks to Gary & Melissa,
Ryan & Tricia and to Lidie
for giving me the opportunity!