In fricking August I'll be visiting Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. I'll be honest I am not looking forward to this for the simple fact that I have a very low tolerance for high temperatures despite living in the Mediterranean and my stomach is very sensitive, most likely I'll get food poisoning. The reason I am going there is because it's my girlfriend dream to go there, so I see it mostly as a sacrifice rather than pleasure but maybe I'll change my mind once I get there.
So what's your opinion regarding travelling in that area in summer? Is the heat really as brutal as I read? And what about endemic diseases like Dengue?
I don't know bros honestly I am not really looking forward to this but at the same time I heard many positive things.
August is summer but also rainy season, water levels will be high and many rivers nad waterfalls will be muddy/brown instead of clear (so some places are not worth visiting during rainy season so keep that in mind.). Rains can drop a lot of water all of a sudden and then the sun comes out and it's very humid but you're right August is a hot month. The locals dont' walk around during the day but they'll come out at night like vampires.
The forests and fields will be nice and green though, so I would suggest doing a Mekong cruise in Laos. THe water level will also be high and the river will look enormous.
>The locals dont' walk around during the day but they'll come out at night like vampires.
So i'm guessing that even them have issues with the heat. Is it true thou that around there everyone is an air conditioner addict? Pretty much everywhere you go they blast it. At least that's what I heard
What's the big deal about August? It's one of the cloudiest and rainiest months in the region, so it will feel cooler without the sun blazing down mercilessly. Long as you stay relaxed and don't work up a sweat, the humidity is tolerable. But if your circulation is poor, your body will have a real tough time shedding heat through radiation like it's supposed to, and you will feel overheated and sweat like a pig even when strolling around the neighborhood. Or when eating spicy food or hot soup. Asians love their steaming hot bowls of soup for some reason.
Upscale public places have A/C. Hotels always have A/C, unless you get an ultra-budget room. But no, the locals don't use A/C in Southeast Asia. Don't expect to return to an icebox room with the A/C blasting after a three-hour walk, however; most hotel rooms use the room card to turn on room power.
It's an exaggeration to say that Southeast Asians only come out at night. People and businesses have many different work schedules. One food court may be open 6 AM to 2 PM; another 11 AM to 9 PM; another 6 PM to 3 AM. People who work during the day enjoy their leisure time at night; people who work at night chill out during the day.
Chances are you will regularly experience indigestion and gut irritation from the oils, spices, etc. which might give you acid reflux, mild cramping, a general feeling of "ugh why the hell did I eat that", lots of gurgling, lack of energy, maybe some urgent shits, all that good stuff. Doesn't mean the food was contaminated, only that your gut is inflamed and upset by it. Gut infections often start off with these symptoms of irritation, but then progressively get worse as the bad bacteria multiply and begin wreaking havoc. Either your immune system will fight off the bugs, or it will fail and then you will have to nuke them with antibiotics. But give it a chance to do its thing first.
The north, especially in the hills isn't too bad. The south will be challenging for you - I recommend spending some time at a beach area to cool down.
For example, while I went in November and not August, Sapa in the north was about 6 degrees at its highest with nonstop fog limiting visibility to a few metres in front of me. I imagine in summer its pleasant - I still loved my time there despite the weather.
I've also heard Da Lat is a temperate city, a hill town, so you may want to look into that.
I won't lie, other than this it will be hot - wear light clothes with breathable material, drink lots of water, wear hats, walk in the shade of buildings/trees, consider day time naps during the peak and do more at night, wear sunscreen, etc etc
I loved Vietnam in particular, but both Cambodia and Laos are really nice too.
What about food. Is it good?
Oh and what about endemic diseases? I heard Dengue is very present during summer.
Food is incredible - although there is a fair range of places between shit and good and it a roll of the dice where it will land - price isn't necessarily any indication, little shitty diners can be great.
Dengue can be a risk in the wet season in the tropics, just lather up on DEET if you're spending time in a rural environment. Also consider talking to a doctor about potential vaccinations.
I was reccomended to take probiotic supplements at least one month before traveling there if I'm concerned with food poisoning.
Is Cambodia or Laos more expensive than the Philippines? Which is the most developed?
I haven't been to the Philippines so I can't offer a comparison, but both are very cheap countries.
Both are pretty much the kind of development you find in obscure provinces in Thailand/Vietnam, even in the capitals. I couldn't really say which is more developed, they're both pretty bottom of the barrel, a step up from Africa I suppose. They're generally quite safe though and the tourist infrastructure is in place so its not like you're wandering into some hostile environment. Very accommodating people.
In theory the Philippines should be the most developd because it has the largest cities. Cambodia is more developed than Laos because it has larger cities as well. The cities in Laos are more like towns, even the capital, so there's not much development there. Laos has only half the population of Cambodia.
Smaller population also means less poverty and no urban poverty. So there aren't any slums in Laos, but you'll see them in Cambodia and certainly in the Philippines.
Not sure what you mean by devloped. But for example I went rock climbing in Laos and was warned that there wasn't any medical care besides basic crude clinics. We were advised to keep our passports on our person so we could be carried over the border to Thailand for emergency care in the event of an accident.
You were probably in Thakkek/Khammuane so yeah it would be easier to go across the border then to go to Vientiane further away, which does have at least three or four major hospitals. Vientiane, Savannakhet, Pakxe, Luang Prabang all have hospitals. Even Phonsavan on the Plain of Jars has a large hospital.
Vietnam is the most developed of all three. Hell appears the most developed of all SEA countries.
>day
Just left Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam after 6 months, the heat and humidity is unbearable, 95 degrees now in phnom pehn and it was much much worse in the summer and fall . You walk outside and it's like entering sauna just this blast of superheated moist air and you start sweating immediately, you need to drink a gallon of water every day but you won't need to piss, I felt cool like 1 morning out of 6 months, now add on UV index of 11 the sun burning a hole in your skin, traffic, pollution, smells and noise like you wouldn't believe the food is cheap but you literally do not want to eat it piles of meat and poultry swarming with flies just laying on the filthy sidewalk, pots of soup that look like dirty dishwater people so poor You know they use gutter oil then you sit and eat your gutter oil rotted meat noodles in a giant grease pit sitting basically
on the ground on a tiny plastic kids sized seat smelling last years grease as flies land on you and sweat drips from your face you will want McDonald's or pizza for every meal. I could go on but you best be prepared to suffer. Locals were nice except for the constant scamming
The heat is on this time of year in Southeast Asia, that's for sure. Even down here in southern Malaysia, where the equatorial climate is usually mild, temps are forecast to reach 35 C / 95 F under full sun in the coming days. Dewpoint stays around 24 C / 75 F, which means a heat index of 42 C / 107 F.
Phnom Penh is one of the poorest Southeast Asian cities, so it's expected that the food on offer would be very low-class. Whatever gutter oil is...they buy cheap yellow cooking oil in bottles just like anyone else does. And the smell of the reeking wastewater coming up from the sewers is irrelevant to the food. If you have a sensitive patrician nose, you'll have a tough time ignoring the smell, but most people manage to overlook it.
Walking long distances under the blazing sun is foolishness, though it can be done to force your body to adapt to the heat. If you stay in the shade and avoid exertion, you shouldn't be sweating very much. The most sensible choice, of course, is to return to your room, shower and turn on the A/C after getting sweaty. After a while, one becomes very indolent in the tropics.
Less so the heat than it is the humidity. But yes, will be hot as balls.