From Phnom Penh
Trip Start
Apr 04, 2006
1
16
22
Trip End
May 29, 2006
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Monday, May 8, 2006
Just a quick note that we made it down to Phnom Penh this afternoon...as usual, not what I expected at all! French colonial everything. Gotta give it to the French - they sure know how to colonize a place and keep it classy looking! We just checked into our guesthouse which is situated on stilts on a lake with some really stunning views. I'm looking forward to sitting on the deck this evening to watch the sunset (surrounded by a million mosquitos, no doubt!)
Last couple of days in Siem Reap were awesome. We met up with a Scottish couple and decided to head out to a remote lake where there is a floating village in the middle of the lake (where most of the people have never set foot on land), but when we got to the dock they tried way too hard to rip us off ($15 per person as opposed to the advertised $5 per boat), so we headed back to Siem Reap in our tuktuk, only to have it break down not once, but twice along the way.
Now, normally this probably wouldn't be such a great thing, however it was the first (and probably one of the only) opportunities we had to get into a true Cambodian village. No one there spoke any English, so we wandered a bit and took some brilliant photos. Tons of kids playing in the stream, showing off their backflips and screaming "Hello! Hello" at least 10 dozen ties (probably the only English they know). It was really one of the cooler experiences I could have hoped for.
Haven't gotten to explore much of the city here yet, but planning on going to the Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda tomorrow afternoon, then to the Killing Fields museums the following day. No idea how long we're going to stay here, but at $3 each per night with MUCH cheaper food than Siem Reap...it may be worth exploring (and doing some great shopping!) for the week. Still have no idea what the date is!
I miss home and having a hot shower and flush toilet, but frankly would love to spend the next few months travelng SE Asia...the more I travel, the more people I meet who recommend other places to visit (Vietnam and Laos seem to be everyone's favorites...and while we're pretty close to Vietnam from here, I don't think that either Anders or I want to go through the whole visa process there/back to Cambodia/Thailand again. Rather enjoy our time a little longer in each place).
Anyhow - not much more to report at this time. Off to shower - I must stink to high heavens.
