Laura Davis

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Vietnam: Farewell From Southeast Asia

January 19, 2016 By Laura Davis 42 Comments · · · · · · Read & Respond

I didn’t write and post as much as I thought I would from Cambodia. Our days were long. I was savoring my final days with the group and with my family.

But I wanted to at least share some photos from our final day’s outing: exploring village life in Cambodia. And I also wanted to wish you a fond farewell, at least until my next trip.

I also want to thank you for being such a great audience of readers. It’s been a pleasure to move through this journey as a writer – always looking for the next story, the next quirky detail, that great overheard bit of dialogue, all those strange juxtapositions of ancient traditions and contemporary modern culture. To share my travel experiences with you. Each day searching for just the right story. I loved exercising my creative muscle in this way. It’s very different than the kind of writing I do at home.

Heading out into my days knowing I was going into be writing for YOU, I saw the world differently. I traveled differently. I engaged more fully through my senses. I gave my curiosity full reign. I looked for the story. I asked questions. I took notes. I shaped the story in my head all day long until I could find an hour or two to sit down and put it on the page. As travel writer Dan White put it, when I’m traveling and I know I’m going to write, “I turn on my storytelling brain.”

And now I’m turning my storytelling brain off, at least for now.

But I wanted to let you know that I have truly loved the discipline of travel blogging and the gratification of the instant responses and feedback you have given me, especially on Facebook, where the responses are so immediate. It’s been a real pleasure having readers again.

Thanks for following my journey with such enthusiasm.

If you haven’t piped up online (or even if you have), I’d love you to take a minute or two to give me your feedback on this Virtual Vacation. I’d like to know how often you read, what you enjoyed, what the experience was like for you in your armchair back home. Please take a moment to write back. That’s one of the real rewards and joys of being a writer – hearing back from my readers.

And if you’d like to not just read about my adventures, but actual JOIN me in coming along – so you can have YOUR OWN travel and writing adventure, check out my future Write, Travel, Transform trips – and come in person!

Scenes from Village Life:

coconut-grinder

Coconut grinder at the market

gas-sold-liquor-bottles

Gas sold in old liquor bottles by the side of the road

banana-flowers

Banana flowers . . . boy did I eat a lot of banana flower salad!

kids-at-play

Kids at play

village-kids

 

wedding-canopy

Wedding canopy

fishing-boats

Fishing boats

fishing

fishing-2

fishing-3

fishing-4

floating-village-cambodia

Floating village, Tonle Sap Lake, Cambodia

floating-village-school

Floating village school, Tonle Sap Lake

floating-village-school-2

floating-village

Floating village, Tonle Sap Lake

floating-village-2

floating-village-3

floating-village-4

floating-village-5

airport-best-sign-ever

Airport sign best ever

Filed Under: Blog, Retreats, The Virtual Vacation, Vietnam Tagged With: teaching, Vietnam, writing retreat

« Previous Post: Vietnam: Child Soldiers, Land Mines, And The Khmer Rouge
Next Post: Reasons to Join Me in Bali #1: My Personal Campaign to Help You Say Yes to Magic »

Comments

  1. Abby says

    January 19, 2016 at 11:55 am

    I read each entry. It has been a lovely escape for me and a vicarious holiday too as I’m in the midst of my final year of midwifery school.

    I was introduced to your work in 1992 and have rediscovered you again in the last year or two. I dream of one day attending one of your retreats, but how life continues to unfold remains to be seen.

    Thanks!!

    Abby

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 1:55 pm

      Abby, good luck with midwifery school. What a great service you will be providing. I hope you make a retreat someday, too. Thanks for following along!

      Reply
  2. Debbie says

    January 19, 2016 at 12:29 pm

    I have enjoyed this wonderful, albeit vicarious, bird’s eye view of your trip to Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia.
    Your record of experiences in Cambodia were particularly compelling and profound.
    I simply had no idea how shattered this country continues to be……..how it is still riddled with land mines. Your insight regarding the intensity of the trauma and the recovery process is very much appreciated…..as is your delight in and appreciation for the beauty of the people and the natural landscape. Thank you, Laura.
    Deb

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 1:54 pm

      Deb, thanks. Those last posts from Cambodia were hard to write. Since then, I’ve been reading a lot about the pol pot regime and the aftermath. That people and their country have definitely gotten under my skin.

      Reply
  3. Elaine Cory says

    January 19, 2016 at 12:33 pm

    Loved reading your posts and tried to keep up with you on a daily basis. Would love to join you on a trip but unable to right now. Maybe in the future, but, for now, a pleasure to live vicariously through your blog posts.

    Thank you, Laura.

    Elaine

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 1:53 pm

      Thanks Elaine for taking the time to respond. I’m glad you enjoyed the trip. Now I have to face the re-entry!

      Reply
  4. Carole Gruber says

    January 19, 2016 at 12:53 pm

    Laura,

    I have been fascinated with your virtual trips, especially this one to Viet Nam, Laos & Cambodia. I read them as soon as they arrive, and I feel privileged to be able to travel to these amazing places. With the incredible photos you take, and your expressive writing, I truly feel as if I’m there. I’m so glad that I met you at the one retreat in Santa Cruz, so I can follow along. My traveling days are limited due to some health issues so this has been a blessing Thank you. Carole

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 1:52 pm

      Carole, thanks so much for taking the time to write back. I’m so glad you enjoyed your virtual vacation.

      Reply
  5. Dorothy Seeger says

    January 19, 2016 at 1:59 pm

    Laura, thank you so much for these wonderful posts and photographs. You make us feel that we are on the trip right along with you. Cambodia was pretty much a downer, but the inspiring thing was Aki Ra’s efforts to right the wrongs, and especially the wrongs that he did himself. Shocking was that we were providing bombs and land mines.
    Looking forward to your next writing trip! Love, Dorothy

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 2:05 pm

      Thanks, Dorothy….Yes, Cambodia was hard. It made me care deeply about the people and their future.

      Reply
  6. Mo Cleary says

    January 19, 2016 at 2:17 pm

    I am always an avid reader of your virtual vacation blog posts. Usually I read them as soon as the email comes that another installment is up.

    I love getting a sense of all the places through your and your students’ eyes and getting a small sense of the place through the encounters you have with those who treasure their homelands.

    This trip was very interesting and had me thinking, what did I learn about the Vietnam war? Did I ever hear anything about the impact that conflict–did the US’ actions have upon the land and the people.

    The question about moving traditional peoples out of communities they had lived in for generations to “give” them a better life had me reflecting on how I felt about a government stepping in and mandating this. Where/How to balance a government acting in the best interests of its people vs free choice…

    As always great to be along for this virtual trip!

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 2:44 pm

      Thanks Mo for your feedback. Glad to have you along.

      Reply
  7. Jen says

    January 19, 2016 at 2:23 pm

    enjoyed every story.I think what I liked best is how you and your group were so respectful in your travels-you conveyed it by your participation,keen and genuine interest.

    Thanks so much for bringing “me” along for the ride!

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 2:44 pm

      Thanks, Jen.

      Reply
  8. Stacy says

    January 19, 2016 at 2:38 pm

    As soon as I saw that another post was available, I sat and relished your experiences. Having traveled to Southeast Asia a few times, I could almost smell the teeming markets, hear the cacophonous sound of languages, see the riot of color set against the jungle green. More than anything, I thought about the people you were meeting, the smiles, the bows and their loving spirits.

    I never thought I would have traveled to Asia, but there is so much to learn there, and I have seen it in your writings. The ability to just slow down, to take life as it comes. The appreciation you gain for all the things we take for granted, like drinking water, solid walls, and tidy power lines. The spiritual cultural, the visits to Hindu and Buddha temples where you stop, contemplate, and assess your inner soul. I have relived these thoughts over and over through your sharing.

    Thank you for taking the time to describe the details, the quirks, the revelations and challenges of truly traveling.

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 2:44 pm

      thank you Stacy. I know you know these places. And how much you love them.

      Reply
  9. Hazel says

    January 19, 2016 at 2:43 pm

    Laura,
    I am thanking you from the bottom of my own travel shoes. I have read every blog posting and enjoyed them immensely! These Asian trips remind me of my own travels and struggles as a teacher of English language in South Korea. We were generally accepted but underneath, especially with the older people was a current of resentment of Americans. A resentment that we left their country divided. As I read your stories especially of Cambodian War Museum I thought back to a similar museum we visited in Seoul, next to the palace. I am so thankful that I have never had to be involved in a war. It seems so useless and is so destructive.

    Now, falling off my soap box . . .
    Thank you so much for the virtual journey. I like every part of what you have posted and my traveler/writer’s heart always wants more.

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 2:45 pm

      Thanks Hazel. I’m glad it brought up memories of your own experiences Thanks for following along.

      Reply
  10. suzanne wedow says

    January 19, 2016 at 2:56 pm

    I would echo all of the comments above…I loved reading all of your posts–they brought me right there. I would love to take YOU on whatever trip I take!. Last year it was a month in India. There was so much to see, feel, smell and experience I could barely stop looking long enough to write and when i did stop i was sleeping! You have such a true vocation for writing and are so generous to share with all of us the highs and lows, ups and downs, ecstasies and tragedies you have witnessed on your journeys. Thanks so very much, Laura. You are an inspiration to writers and would-be writers (like me) everywhere.
    Suzanne from Santa Barbara

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 2:59 pm

      thanks Suzanne. It is a huge commitment to write about a journey, but I find it very rewarding. And probably if you actually wrote down what you were thinking, you would too! I won’t write about the re-entry. Much too prosaic and difficult!

      Reply
  11. Lani says

    January 19, 2016 at 7:00 pm

    Enjoy your sensitive perspectives. So glad the kids were able to be with you on this trip. Great photos too.

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 11:10 pm

      Thanks Lani. It was a real treat having the kids along. A rare treat. And I think they were happy to have each other…someone young to adventure with. Thanks for reading along.

      Reply
  12. Carol says

    January 19, 2016 at 7:16 pm

    I’ve really enjoyed your travels through your writing. Having never traveled to that part of the world, I found it so interesting to get a bird’s eye view of the countries, the people and history. So much to absorb – especially the war’s aftermath and poverty – thank you for writing and sharing.

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 11:10 pm

      Carol, you’re so welcome. Thanks for coming along on the journey.

      Reply
  13. Susan Seaburg says

    January 19, 2016 at 7:18 pm

    Laura,

    I read every post and enjoyed them immensely–especially when you got lost. Love those kind of adventures.

    This trip brought back so many memories for me of Southeast Asia. We went to about 80% of the same places. While it was a very colorful and interesting trip, it was probably the most emotionally difficult place we visited. Having been a college student during the Vietnam War, I was shocked at the devastation we did to these countries and their peoples. And the effects continue with the mines and long-term damage from chemicals. It is truly heart-breaking.

    Having said that, your posts and photos reminded me of the beautiful colors, interesting smells, and delightful people. Thank you for that and have a good trip home.

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 11:11 pm

      Thanks Susan. When was your trip? On this trip it was Cambodia that was still the most devastated. Vietnam is definitely working hard to be in the first world and to let go of the past.

      Reply
  14. Adrienne Drake says

    January 19, 2016 at 9:22 pm

    Dear Laura,
    I read most of your posts and was most moved by the Cambodian pieces. I loved that you bore witness to these people and their ravaged society. I do believe it takes seven generations to heal. Your words and pictures were so moving. I can not even begin to imagine living under such constant fear the way they had to do! I learned much about SE Asia on my virtual vacation, so a big Thank You to you!
    Adrienne

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 11:12 pm

      You’re welcome, Adrienne. I appreciate having thoughtful readers like you along.

      Reply
  15. Ann Gila says

    January 19, 2016 at 9:42 pm

    Laura,

    I looked forward to reading your blog every day; I was never bored or disinterested. Your descriptions were vivid, the photographs excellent, and together they gave me, as much as one could through writing, what it was like to travel this journey. It wasn’t just the descriptions, however, but your commentary on your experiences that made it alive and captivating. Your days in Cambodia brought back poignant memories of the stories a late dear friend shared with me after she returned from working in a Cambodian refugee camp after the war. I will never forget her and the loving work she did, especially with the women and children. We are so lucky, and it’s so easy to forget this. Thank you.

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 11:13 pm

      I know I came home to such plenty and so many luxuries I take as my due: hot running water, grocery stores full of food I can afford, an automobile, choices, freedom to travel, etc. etc. etc. I like that moment of coming home when my privilege is right in my face….and then I forget.

      Reply
  16. Anne Wilson says

    January 19, 2016 at 11:15 pm

    I read every blog with enthusiasm. How brave you are to venture off to the unknown with a group following close behind. Every blog carried a special message and I felt as if I was there. Thank you for sharing your journey and the community of the Vietnam and Cambodian people. It is so enlightening to see how others spend their time on this planet. I am so sorry for the pain still suffered from that terrible war we participated in not so long ago. War is a terrible thing and the effects that last generations are heart wrenching. I appreciate your all of your endevours.

    Anne

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 19, 2016 at 11:18 pm

      Thanks Anne for reading…and I’ll look forward to seeing in class tomorrow morning. Pray I can keep my eyes open!

      Reply
  17. Sharon Eakes says

    January 20, 2016 at 7:48 am

    Dearest Laura, I relished every post. What I got was an experience – from your wonderfully descriptive and thoughtful language, enlivened by the pictures. The people are always the most amazing part of travel to me, and you brought them to life. Cambodia broke my heart. And made me reflective. And it shocks me how quickly I go past those kinds of reflections back to my own cushy life. I can’t wait to be on the trip with you to Bali!

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 20, 2016 at 8:28 am

      I can’t wait either, Sharon. Thanks for your kind words. It’s true. I’m right now in such a state of disequilibrium being with my first world comforts after being in Cambodia. But as I hear about ISIS and all the war raging around the world, it sounds like far more than “news” to me right now. I’m very aware of PEOPLE.

      Reply
  18. Paula Hill says

    January 21, 2016 at 10:44 am

    Vicarious travels with you are entertaining, insightful and educational…the pictures are a treasure. We can never capture the feel of the weather on our faces, the warmth of the waters on our skin, the sensuality of a foreign language in its native country, the scents of the food permeating the streets, but all else is there. I particularly enjoyed you writing of getting lost. Thank you, Laura!

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 21, 2016 at 1:30 pm

      Thanks, Paula. So sweet you were reading along. See you soon over the fence!

      Reply
  19. Shirley G. says

    January 22, 2016 at 9:51 pm

    Dear Laura,
    I did NOT read every post the minute it popped up on my email. They were just too juicy, and the photos dramatic and full of details. I wanted to study them ‘up close’, so waited until I was able to be fully present with the posts & pics, and then gobbled ’em up, a few at each sitting. “)

    You brought me back to some childhood times spent in Baja [circa 1950] and connected your empathetic and respectful approach to travel [and unending wonder about new tastes and smells] with that of my parents, who traveled that way, too.

    Your piece about Cambodia, and the pervasive local discomfort to address the wartime years with visitors [or even among themselves] is ‘right on’. That is precisely my experience traveling in Germany [as an American Jew] in 1970. That was some 30 years after the Nazi era, but when we questioned middle aged locals about remaining piles of rubble in plain view….we were ‘stonewalled’. Even though my husband was a native German speaker, we got blank stares in return for our [embarrassing to them] curiosity.

    It takes a very long time for any traumatized nation to ‘process’ the scale of brutality, vast loss of life and property, and the cost of personal privations endured for years. Each survivor must assess his own behavior and sense of powerlessness in the face of Evil.

    Wherever war has wreaked its havoc, psychologists confirm this truth. It will take years more for Cambodia to come to terms with itself.
    ===================
    I look forward to ‘accompanying you’ on future trips!

    Shirley G.

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 22, 2016 at 11:13 pm

      Thanks Shirley for your generous and meaningful response and your empathetic readings of my posts. You’re the kind of readers that every writer dreams of. Thanks for your kind words.

      Reply
  20. Rebecca Woodland says

    January 25, 2016 at 12:20 pm

    Laura, I so enjoyed every one of your Virtual Vacation posts. Having recently traveled in Vietnam and Cambodia, your words and photos deeply resonated with me. Your thoughtful and thought-provoking comments reflect how carefully you observe and connect with the people and places you visit. Unlike many “travel blogs”, yours compel the reader to reconsider any previous notions about the culture, history, lifestyle, values, etc. of the places visited, and even more to reconsider and re-evaluate one’s own culture, history, lifestyle, and values. Thank you. Now I want to go to Laos… Aloha, Rebecca

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 25, 2016 at 3:37 pm

      Thanks Rebecca for your very kind and generous words. I hope you make it Laos. I’m definitely hoping to go back next year.

      Reply
  21. Donna McArthur says

    January 30, 2016 at 5:06 pm

    Thanks for taking me along on another magical journey Laura.

    Reply
    • Laura Davis says

      January 30, 2016 at 5:53 pm

      You are so welcome Donna! It’s good to be home, but I miss Southeast Asia!

      Reply

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Like this Virtual Vacation?

You can also read about Laura’s travels to:

Peru 2017

In which Laura and Karyn and 18 writers explore Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley of Peru.

Serbia 2017

In which Laura leads a workshop at the Incest Trauma Center.

Greece 2016

In which Laura explores the wonders of Crete and Santorini with a wide-eyed group of Write, Travel, Transform adventurers.

Vietnam 2015/16

In which Laura, who grew up during the Vietnam War, goes to Southeast Asia and finds out what Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia are really like today.

Commonweal 2015

A journey toward healing loss and grief in a magnificent Northern California setting.

Scotland 2015

In which Laura returns to Scotland with a new group for another jaunt through the wonders of the Scottish Highlands.

Scotland 2013

In which Laura attends the Edinburgh theatre festival and leads 14 writers to a magical retreat in the highlands of Northern Scotland.

Bali 2013

In which Laura visits Australia, and spends three weeks diving, exploring, and teaching in three regions of Bali.

Florida 2014

A journey into old age in America in which Laura brings her 86-year-old mother to Florida so she can see her last surviving sister one final time.

Mexico 2014

In which Laura attends the San Miguel Writer’s Conference and explores the artistic towns around Patzcuaro.

About Laura Davis

In the course of my career as a communicator, I have also worked as a columnist, talk show host, radio reporter, radio producer, blogger, editor, and speaker. Words have always been at the core of my work and my self-expression. Read More . . .

Photo taken by Jason Ritchey

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Retreating with Laura: Julie Sheehan

Julie Sheehan

For many years I put off my dream of writing and traveling. I told myself the kids were too little, my husband could never survive without me, that I couldn't possibly be so selfish. I couldn't imagine realistically stepping out of all of my responsibilities and roles. Then I started attending Laura’s summer retreat at Commonweal in northern California and that became an annual gift to myself for the next three years.

When the opportunity to travel with Laura internationally came up, my Land of Later mentality said I could never pull it off. But when my friend got cancer at age 39, I decided to stop taking life and it's endless opportunities to grow, live, nurture and explore myself for granted.

My children were 6 and 9 when I began allowing myself the luxurious pleasure of taking 10 days to two weeks each year to travel abroad with Laura, to spend time with like minded, soul searching people who share a passion for living and writing, to have all my meals prepared for me, to have the space and freedom to stretch out of my cage and check in with who I am, what I want, and how best to get there.

Laura is a skilled and nurturing teacher who encourages her students to take risks, to grow as human beings, and to be vulnerable. She has provided me with a forum where I can gain all my CEUs and learn techniques on how to become a more engaging writer, all while completing yearly emotional rehab.

I return home from each of Laura’s trip a little wiser, a little more open, and a lot more compassionate. I greet my family, friends and daily life with sparkly, clean energy and a renewed patience, brought about by way of re-writing old stories that I needed to let go of. I come home ready to move forward in my life.

A retreat with Laura Davis is one of the best gifts I ever received and gave myself. It took many years to realize that I was worth the time and financial investment, but now there is no looking back.

Julie Sheehan, Livermore California

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