Along the Mekong: A Boat Journey through Southeast Asia: Mystical River, Ancient Cultures, Cruel History and Timeless Landscapes in Cambodia and Laos Kindle Edition

The Mekong is one of the great rivers of Asia, flowing from the Tibetan plateau through China, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia before reaching the sea with its massive delta in Vietnam. For centuries, it has been the lifeline of Southeast Asia, facilitating migration, commerce and more recently tourism.Marco chooses to travel off the beaten path in order to experience up close the reality of life in Cambodia and Laos as they emerge from decades of war and genocide. The best way to do this is to travel by boats, large and small, stopping at many of the towns and villages that punctuate the vibrant life of the river. From the magnificence of Angkor to the tribes of the jungle in northern Laos, Marco spent weeks improvising a trip by fast hydrofoils, rickety vans, narrow pirogues, and sometimes just sturdy boots.The author leads us to breathtaking UNESCO World Heritage Sites and pristine waterfalls, but also minefields that remind us of a cruel war and the killing fields that were the theater of the Khmer Rouge unspeakable genocide. Spine chilling museums remain as the witnesses of a history that Cambodians want to put behind them as they get on with their new life. The capital Phnom Penh is now a bustling commercial and cultural hub that has nothing to do with the drab dilapidated shanty town it was at the time of Pol Pot.Throughout, he mingles with the locals, eats their food, and sleeps in improbable quarters in remote villages that hardly ever see a foreign face. Over several weeks he takes pictures and lots of notes, always respectful of the local customs, except once, and he pays for his mistake!The kindle book contains maps and 25 color photos by the author. Read more