GORDAN AND CHRISTINE HALLIDAY, UK, THE CLASSIC MEKONG, JAN 2016
We have just returned from a wonderful holiday in Vietnam and Cambodia.
Having thoroughly enjoyed the Bagan to Mandalay cruise in 2015 we decided that we must go on another Pandaw cruise so the Classic Mekong Cruise was our choice.
From embarking to disembarking seven days later we had a magical time. The bedrooms are very comfortable with lovely hot showers. When we experienced trouble with the water on our last day it was quickly restored within 10 minutes.
The whole crew were both friendly and efficient and work closely as a team. On disembarking during the cruise even the Captain was out ensuring the passengers were assisted on any uneven ground. We were told that they feel like a family and this certainly showed in the service they offered. Once again the food was excellent with a great variety at breakfast and a constantly changing menu for lunch and dinner.
On this cruise, we were joined by three "New" regional managers, Ben, Andre and Leo. They immediately had to deal with a problem when one passenger appeared to have had a stroke. The decision was taken that the boat had to return to Phnom Penh for the passenger to receive medical care, and eventually being admitted to hospital. Everyone on the cruise thought the event was well handled and there was not one complaint that our schedule had to be re-organised. In fact, a 2 hour Tuc Tuc tour of Phnom Penh was quickly organised and this proved to be one of the highlights of the cruise. Maybe this could be considered for permanent inclusion on future cruises. My one criticism was our trip to a fish farm was not very enlightening. It consisted of a one-metre square opening where you could feed the fish and a large souvenir shop. We learned nothing of the farming process and the distribution of the full-grown fish.
I have to heap praise on our guide in Cambodia; Somthang. His detailed knowledge of the history and customs in Cambodia made all our visits extremely interesting. He lost 36 members of his family during the Pol Pot regime, spent much of his childhood in a work camp and he later served as a soldier during the communist war. Our trip to the Killing Fields was very poignant with his commentary. During all our trips his knowledge of local life and crafts was enlightening. He arranged for two Banyan trees to be planted at Wat Preah Angkoak. He even took photos of the passengers watering the new trees and emailed each individual photo having obtained our email addresses. In addition to all his knowledge he also had a great sense of humour which we all appreciated.
Please pass on our grateful thanks to all the crew for making our cruise truly memorable. It has now left us with a problem. Which Pandaw cruise shall we go on next?
Kind regards
Gordon and Christine Halliday
