En route to Kampot
Trip Start
Jan 30, 2005
1
19
42
Trip End
Oct 08, 2005
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Kampot, Cambodia
Monday, March 21, 2005
Here we experienced a slice of rural Cambodia - we were the only tourists and it takes some getting used to being stared at by absolutely everyone. It was almost impossible getting served at the food stalls (Mark stared in disbelief at the thin chicken gruel and rice we were given) and there is a complete lack of all the usual tourist trimmings found in the cities - it was great! Actually the temple we visited was alright but the speed boat ride we took to reach it more than made up for it - we really got to see life in the country side and the scenery was fabulous. After 2 nights in Takeo, sharing a room with an extended family of gecko's (you wouldn't believe how noisy they can be)we set off for Kampot.
Kampot, another provincial capital, is a bigger town and a convenient, relaxing, stopping point on the way to Sihanoukville. Our main reason to stop here though was to visit Bokor National Park - one of the country's largest protected areas - and the abandoned French hill station of Bokor. The small windy road up to Bokor is in TERRIBLE condition......really, the worst road I have ever come across, even by Cambodian standards! But it is brilliant fun - we sat in the back of a pick-up truck on a few garden chair cushions and watched the scenery as we wound our way through thick jungle, some of it trying to reclaim the road. The cool climate at the top (1080m) was a welcome change and the views over the jungle to the coastline are supposed to be tremendous. I say 'supposed to be' because the day we visited we could hardly see past the end of our outstretched arms due to the fog....typical!! Still, the place has a real ghost-town feel and the fog really contributed to the eerie atmosphere. There is an abandoned catholic church, post office, casino and the old 'Bokor Palace' hotel, which was fantastic. You can wander through all the corridors, from the kitchens below up to the rooms and suites above - with a bit of imagination (in our case ignoring the fog and ghostly wind!) you can really get a feel for what it must have been like in it's hey day (1925 ish). The bullet holes and the mortar damage (on the post office) are testament to the later fate of the once splendid hotel, during the bitter fighting seen up here.
On our last night in Kampot we had dinner with a local man, Mr Tree. He approached us while we were walking along the river (where he sits under a tree most afternoons, hence the nickname!) and started talking to us, initially to practice his English. He had a book of glowing reports from other travellers who had stayed at his house a few km out of Kampot or just had dinner with him and his family. We decided to give it a go and had a heavenly meal of fresh calimari for only a few dollars - he was good company and it was very interesting to talk to a local who wasn't directly involved with the tourist industry. Well worth looking out for him under his tree if find yourself in Kampot any time!
Steph xx P.S photos will be posted later!
