To view this information online, fill in the gray box at www.eot.travel/find_trip Tour = VM14 Date = 110914 Code = V 16 day Vietnam & Cambodia The Magnificent Mekong aboard the Viking Mekong November 9 - 24, 2014 Starting at $5098* *Does not include International Airfare Airfare available seperatelythrough EO Vietnam & Cambodia The Magnificent Mekong Day 1 & 2 USA to Hanoi Day 8 Kampong Cham Fly to Hanoi, former capital of French Indochina, then transfer to your This morning visit the twin holy mountains of Phnom Pros and Phnom hotel. Check in for a 2‐night stay, then relax or take a walk to stretch Srey with their many temples and pagodas, still used during traditional your legs and begin getting acquainted with the city. Khmer festivals. After visit an orphanage in Kampong Cham, whose stu‐ dents create beautiful paintings that are available to purchase. This af‐ Day 3 Hanoi ternoon the ship will set sail towards a silk weaving village. Take a walk After breakfast, take a tour of this unique, thousand‐year‐old Asian cap‐ through the village and admire the rich silk fabrics. (B, L, D) ital where old and new combine in a lush setting of parks and lakes. Visit Hanoi’s Temple of Literature, a beautiful mazelike compound Day 9 Udon Monastery & Phnom Penh founded in 1070 as Vietnam’s first university. Continue on to the 11th‐ This morning’s excursion takes you through a Cambodian village. Take century One Pillar Pagoda monument. Continue on to the Old Quarter. a short ride to Udon Monastery for a tour and to receive a blessing by Later, tour the notorious “Hanoi Hilton,” the facility where American the monks. Then continue to the next village, famous for its silver‐ POWs were held captive during the Vietnam War. Relax this afternoon smiths. Rejoin your ship and have lunch as we cruise into Phnom Penh. before dinner at a local restaurant. (B, D) Your afternoon is free to explore Phnom Penh’s historic riverfront area, with its restaurants, art galleries and silk shops, or perhaps visit the dis‐ Day 4 Hanoi & Siem Reap tinctive Central Market or the “Russian Market” where you can buy Enjoy some free time this morning before you take a short flight to Siem jewelry, curios, clothes and souvenirs. Late this afternoon there will be Reap in Cambodia. Check in to your hotel for a 3‐night stay; tonight’s a presentation aboard on recent Cambodian history by a local expert. dinner is accompanied by a traditional Apsara dance show. (B, D) Dinner is served on board. (B, L, D) Day 5 Angkor Wat & Siem Reap Day 10 Phnom Penh Siem Reap is the gateway to Angkor, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and After breakfast, disembark in Cambodia’s lovely waterfront capital and one of the most important archeological sites in the world. Begin your explore the city in style, in a cyclo. This mode of transportation provides day with a visit to one of Angkor’s largest Khmer temples, Angkor Wat, many Cambodians with a source of income and visitors with a speedy built for King Suryavarman II in the 12th century A.D. With its beautiful and enjoyable way to move around. See the magnificent Royal Palace stone carvings, it is one of the most spectacular sights in Southeast with its spectacular Silver Pagoda. Then take a tour of the National Mu‐ Asia. Spend some time exploring the fortified city of Angkor Thom, seum of Cambodia, which houses treasures of art and craftsmanship. which houses several of Angkor’s most popular sights such as the Ter‐ After lunch, join an excursion to the sobering memorial in the Tuol race of the Elephants and the Terrace of the Leper Kings. Next, visit the Sleng detention center, a former high school in which thousands of vic‐ mysterious Bayon Temple, with its giant, stone carved faces and enig‐ tims of the Khmer Rouge regime died, or you may choose to explore matic smiles. Dine at a local restaurant and relax this evening. (B, D) the city’s maze of small alleys, markets and busy streets on your own. Tonight’s dinner is accompanied by a folkloric performance. (B, L, D) Day 6 Angkor & Siem Reap Today, ride to the spectacular 10th‐century Hindu temple Banteay Srey Day 11 Mekong River Scenic Cruising (“Citadel of Women”) to see magnificent carvings of Shiva and Vishnu. Sail down the Mekong, one of the world’s great rivers, toward the Viet‐ Then, journey to Ta Prohm, one of the most popular of the temples of namese border. The Mekong is truly the Mother River of Southeast Angkor. Unlike many other buildings, it has been largely left intact as it Asia, sustaining civilizations through the centuries. Pass by some of the was when discovered. Return to Siem Reap this afternoon and learn Mekong rice fields—the Khmer empire was founded on a rice surplus how local crafts are alive and well in the modern‐day city. Visit a voca‐ and rice is still the main staple of Vietnamese cuisine. (B, L, D) tional center that trains 650 young apprentices every year in the tradi‐ tional crafts of stone sculpture, wood carving and painting; then take a Day 12 Châu Ðôc & Cu Lao Gien guided tour through Artisans d’Angkor, a network of studios for the Begin your morning with a tour of the busy riverside port of Châu Ðôc newly trained craftspeople. Mingle with the locals at some of Siem riding a trishaw. Afterwards, board a small boat to visit a Cham tribal Reap’s open air markets or relax before dinner. (B, D) village. Descended from an ancient Malay‐Polynesian empire that ar‐ rived in Southeast Asia during the 1st and 2nd centuries B.C.. Observe Day 7 Kampong Thom & Kampong Cham village life and visit a catfish farm. In the afternoon, visit Cu Lao Gien After breakfast, visit a local village supported by Viking River Cruises Island where you see the monastery of St. Paul of Chartres. Once a and spend time with children at one of the village schools. Check out thriving mission with an orphanage, a leprosy hospital, a school and of your Siem Reap hotel and begin your coach tour through the Cam‐ hospice, today, it serves as a retreat for some 180 retired nuns. This bodian countryside which brings you to your ship in Kampong Cham, evening, enjoy a screening of the film l’Amant (the Lover) which will via the provincial capital of Kampong Thom. This area is has a rich prepare you for tomorrow’s visit to Sa Dec. (B, L, D) archeological heritage, to which the 200 temples—some of which pre‐ date the Khmer empire—attest. This afternoon, board your ship and meet the ship’s officers over a welcome cocktail. (B, L, D) B = Breakfast L = Lunch D = Dinner Day 13 Sa Dec & Cái Bè This morning, board a sampan boat to explore the backwaters and canals of the Delta. Stop in Sa Dec and you will see the house of Mr. Huynh Thuy Le, the protagonist in Marguerite Duras’s autobiographical novel, l’Amant. Duras, who grew up in what was then French In‐ dochina, is one of France’s best‐selling authors. After lunch, visit the colorful floating market of Cái Bè; see local workers producing rice noodles, coconut candy and a host of other handmade products. This evening, attend an onboard screening of the 2002 film The Quiet Amer‐ ican, based on Graham Greene’s novel set in 1952 Saigon. (B, L, D) Day 14 My Tho & Ho Chi Minh City Bid farewell to your ship this morning as your cruise through Cambodia and Vietnam comes to an end. Disembark in My Tho, a busy river port not far from the capital of Southern Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City, for‐ merly known as Saigon. Upon arrival, take a tour of Reunification Palace—the site of South Vietnam’s defeat. See the Central Post Office and Notre Dame Cathedral. After your tour, check in to your hotel for a 2‐night stay, then spend the rest of the day at leisure, getting ac‐ quainted with this lively city at your own pace—see some of the his‐ Aboard the Viking Mekong toric French colonial architecture and soak up some of the city’s youthful energy. Tonight’s dinner is in a local restaurant. (B, D) Category Stateroom Descriptions sq ft Price Day 15 Ho Chi Minh City C Outside Stateroom 226 $5098 After breakfast, begin another tour of this bustling metropolis with a B Outside Stateroom 226 $5298 visit to its historic center. Take a stroll along Dong Khoi Street, the main shopping boulevard in the old colonial heart. See the grand city hall, A Outside Stateroom 226 $5398 the old opera house with its soaring arched entryway, the Chinatown area and a Lacquer Factory. Complete your morning tour at Ben Thành Market. The rest of your afternoon is free for exploring the city’s neigh‐ borhoods or doing a bit of last‐minute shopping at the local markets before this evening’s festive final dinner at a local restaurant. (B, D) Prices Do Not Include International Airfare which can be purchased separately thorugh EO Call 1-800-247-0017 NOTICE: Your original passport & visa application must be mailed to the EO office at least 120 days prior to departure. Visas will be administered by an outside service, the appoximate cost is $260. Please check your passport for blank Visa pages before sending. TRAVEL REGISTRATION FORM THE FINE PRINT... THE FINE PRINT..