It is not the destination, rather the journey

Today's mission: perfume pagoda.  After challenges with previous day's experiences of simply hiring a taxi driver for the day, we instead decided it would be prudent to actually book a tour for our next adventure.  Thus picking a random tour company late last night we book a tour to take us upon our journey or shall we call it an adventure?

We begin our exciting adventure at precisely 7:30 when our van picks us up at our front door.  We then spend the next hour picking up the other 12 site seerers from their respective hotels.  At which time we learn our plans for the day.  2 hour drive, then a boat ride followed by a light hike.  Uh-huh.

The two hour drive is quite pleasant moving rapidly out of the city into the countryside.  It is harvest season for rice, thus the fields are alive with locals tending to their crops.  Apparently it is quite difficult to open the husks to release the rice and thus they purposfully lay out harvests on the road for vehicles to drive over and well literally do the 'heavy lifting'.  Then they lay the grains out also on the roads to dry where dogs and occasional cows will wander through in their inquisitive  ways.  Then it is bagged up and sent to your table, yum! 

We arrive to the small port city where we are greeted by dozens of tiny metal boats, small flat canoes to be honest.  They are approximately 3ft wide and maybe 20ft long.  Four people get in (2 by 2) and sit on a small stool approximately 4 inches off the ground.  We then push off and our motor is a nice old woman who rows rowboat style except facing forward.  We sail like this for over an hour a scant few inches from the water.  Picture yourself squarring for an hour straight.  Of course it is the rainy season and indeed it does rain quite hard in the boat, for those that did not bring panchos or umbrellas kids appear as if by magic in smaller boats offering to sell anything to stay dry.  Yet for the length of the boat ride we are moving along some of the most exquisite and pristine scenery.  Lush fields boarded on both side by tall green mountains covered in bamboo and other indigenous greens.  Breathtaking, even when the very wet butt does fall asleep. 

We arrive about an hour later set for our nice leisurely climb.  We are set for a 2600 step climb to the actual pagoda, maybe not so leaisurely.  We could take a cable car but where is the adventure in that?  So hike we do.  Over an hour and half through the same pristine jungle climbing very roughly cut steps sometimes nothing more than piles of stones.  Of course it is raining causing the stones to be more than a bit slippery.  Seeing no other tourists along the road and requiring the boat did certainly remind one of an indiana jones movie. 

Finallty at long last and with everyone absolutely out of breath we reach the much talked about pagoda.  Many of our fellow travelers attempted the hike in sandals and one woman exclaimed on the hike that her thong was killing her.  That caused some eyebrows to be raised until she clarified that she was referring to sandals.  Oops, would have been fun to offer assistance to other possible meaning.  Regardless we made it to this infamous pagoda in pouring rain and just before we are set to enter they hold us back.  Apparently they are shooting a movie and we have to wait until scene ends.  Finally after huddling under umbrellas we descend into what turns out to be a huge cave that has some spectacular rock formations and a tiny little holy shrine complete with neon lights (no joke).  The movie we had to wait for was actually just a single singer who was mouthing the words while hugging a cold damp wall and attempting to be sexy.  Clearly this was a remarkable journey and not necessarily destination. 

By unanimous decision the water soaked group chose to return via cable car instead of hikeing.  Just 8 minutes later we emerge slightly steamed at the base of the mountain.  A lunch in a school cafeteria style rounded out the site.