I left Eli in Siem Reap the other day and took a share taxi ride with six Cambodian non-English speakers to the city of Battambong in south western Cambodia.
It's a city of about two million, around the same size as Siem Reap buy very provincial by comparison. They are not geared up to chase after tourist dollar there like they are up the road.
For example, they have less that 100 moto drivers compared to countless swarms in Siem Reap. Sleepy little place with a big river through the middle and some nice old french colonial buildings.
When I arrived and left the taxicab I decided that I was going to walk until I found the river and then rest before picking a hotel. Thing was I had a full pack and a second bag and the temperature was pushing 40c and loads of humidity so I pretty much nearly died before admitting defeat and getting a moto to the river.
I mst have been a little dazed or something as upon arriving there I sat in the sun for half an hour before picking a hotel that looked walking distance from where I was seated and striking out for what turned out to be a three mile hike. Nearly died all over again before getting a room a collapsing:D
That was me done for the day as I had been drinking with a Khmer man I met at the guesthouse until the early hours in Siem Reap. I pretty much just stayed in the shade drinking water until the sun went away and then went downtown and had Cambodia's answer to the burrito for dinner.
The following morning I set off on Moto for Phnom Sampeau, where I had a local kid spend a few hours telling me about the history of the area and the old legends of how the hill was formed. He also showed me a water tank that used be a detention cell for over 400 people under the Khmer Rouge and the Killing caves - where they greviously wounded people and then threw them into this huge cavern to die.
It was almost impossible to reconcile this peaceful place, with it's temples and idols and breathtaking scenery, with such brutal and sad events. I had somebody describe vividly how they used eviscerate pregnant women having ct their babies from them and then throw both mother and child into the cavern. Insanity.
After leaving there I went to Phnom Banon a few miles away. The roads were graded dirt, and the effect was like driving on a dirtbike in a sandstorm with all kinds of crazy obstacles for the driver to dodge around.
Banon is the temple on Phnom Banon, phnom meaning hill and there were some ridiculous number of ancient steps to be climbed to get up there. Thing it was almost 400 in the heat. Happily I had the attention of a trio of ten year olds who trotted up the steps at either side of, and behind me, fanning me with their home-made jobbies%)
It was nice old temple, with stunning views of the countryside around for miles and miles. While I was up there I got talking to six young Khmer's, maybe around 19 or so. I drew a map of the world in the dist with an old bullet to explain the relative position of Ireland to Cambodia and we talked about our lives and countries for awhile. Learned some Khmer from them and taught them a little Irish in exchange. Smiles all round.
On the way back to town I stopped at te railway line, paid a few dollars to the man standing there and he dropped two small axles on the track, thew a wooden panel over the axles, whacked an outboard motor on back and we blasted off down this warped and twisted old rail line at a fine speed. I was convinced we would de-rail and break things, or that a fucking real train would appear from the opposite direction and smash us to bits at any moment!
That was about it for Battambang. Everything there closes at 10 or 11 apart from the karaoke so I went to a nice little bar by the river and read my book and talked to the owner for the night as the place was empty and I had only seen two other tourists in the whole town - and they must have been in a different bar.
Then yesterday morning I woke for the 8.30 bu to Phnom Penh, read all the way and got there around 2pm. I thought they were glad to see me, but it turned out the hundred or so Khmer men glued to the front and side of the bus were all moto drivers eager for a fare. I had to really shove, smiling all the time to save face, to get clear of the bastards and I bolted for a burger before finding a lonely looking driver to take me to my $3 guesthouse by the lake that won't exist in six months time as it's being filled for development.
It's basic as they come, no hot water and air-con, and standing on stilts out over the water. I bought a bag of weed within about ten seconds of entering the place, had a smoke and then spent last evening walking, moto-ing, eating and drinking my way around the city to get to know it.
It's certainly full on compared to the towns I have been in over the last week and a little intimidating too with traffic equaling total chaos.
I slept fitfully and this morning was out of bed before 6am and went to see the Killing Fields and the S20 detention centre. Both chilled me. I couldn't take my camera out of my bag in a place like that. It's truly horrifying, what took place there. The skulls, bones, cells, mass graves, implements of torture, clothes. . . I couldn't understand the people clambering all around with SLR's to get the perfect holiday shot. Cold.
I went down the markets this evening and bouth a zippo that must have belonged to a dead American G.I, if you go by it's age and inscription. It has a nice quote on the back: Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is the golden age in between. Haggled it to $4.
Went and visited a girlie bar after that and had two drinks with three beautiful women croucned in front of me on the bar, and one at each side or and behind me also. Then I took one of them to my guesthouse and we did fuck like bunnies for about three hours. Sweet woman, Mekarsh, who wants me to move in with her for the rest of my time in Phnom Penh so she can improve her English:D:D
I won't , but I will see her again before I leave.
Internet caf is closing up.
Over and out,
Jude
P.S. If I don't have crabs in the morning I never will!
It's a city of about two million, around the same size as Siem Reap buy very provincial by comparison. They are not geared up to chase after tourist dollar there like they are up the road.
For example, they have less that 100 moto drivers compared to countless swarms in Siem Reap. Sleepy little place with a big river through the middle and some nice old french colonial buildings.
When I arrived and left the taxicab I decided that I was going to walk until I found the river and then rest before picking a hotel. Thing was I had a full pack and a second bag and the temperature was pushing 40c and loads of humidity so I pretty much nearly died before admitting defeat and getting a moto to the river.
I mst have been a little dazed or something as upon arriving there I sat in the sun for half an hour before picking a hotel that looked walking distance from where I was seated and striking out for what turned out to be a three mile hike. Nearly died all over again before getting a room a collapsing:D
That was me done for the day as I had been drinking with a Khmer man I met at the guesthouse until the early hours in Siem Reap. I pretty much just stayed in the shade drinking water until the sun went away and then went downtown and had Cambodia's answer to the burrito for dinner.
The following morning I set off on Moto for Phnom Sampeau, where I had a local kid spend a few hours telling me about the history of the area and the old legends of how the hill was formed. He also showed me a water tank that used be a detention cell for over 400 people under the Khmer Rouge and the Killing caves - where they greviously wounded people and then threw them into this huge cavern to die.
It was almost impossible to reconcile this peaceful place, with it's temples and idols and breathtaking scenery, with such brutal and sad events. I had somebody describe vividly how they used eviscerate pregnant women having ct their babies from them and then throw both mother and child into the cavern. Insanity.
After leaving there I went to Phnom Banon a few miles away. The roads were graded dirt, and the effect was like driving on a dirtbike in a sandstorm with all kinds of crazy obstacles for the driver to dodge around.
Banon is the temple on Phnom Banon, phnom meaning hill and there were some ridiculous number of ancient steps to be climbed to get up there. Thing it was almost 400 in the heat. Happily I had the attention of a trio of ten year olds who trotted up the steps at either side of, and behind me, fanning me with their home-made jobbies%)
It was nice old temple, with stunning views of the countryside around for miles and miles. While I was up there I got talking to six young Khmer's, maybe around 19 or so. I drew a map of the world in the dist with an old bullet to explain the relative position of Ireland to Cambodia and we talked about our lives and countries for awhile. Learned some Khmer from them and taught them a little Irish in exchange. Smiles all round.
On the way back to town I stopped at te railway line, paid a few dollars to the man standing there and he dropped two small axles on the track, thew a wooden panel over the axles, whacked an outboard motor on back and we blasted off down this warped and twisted old rail line at a fine speed. I was convinced we would de-rail and break things, or that a fucking real train would appear from the opposite direction and smash us to bits at any moment!
That was about it for Battambang. Everything there closes at 10 or 11 apart from the karaoke so I went to a nice little bar by the river and read my book and talked to the owner for the night as the place was empty and I had only seen two other tourists in the whole town - and they must have been in a different bar.
Then yesterday morning I woke for the 8.30 bu to Phnom Penh, read all the way and got there around 2pm. I thought they were glad to see me, but it turned out the hundred or so Khmer men glued to the front and side of the bus were all moto drivers eager for a fare. I had to really shove, smiling all the time to save face, to get clear of the bastards and I bolted for a burger before finding a lonely looking driver to take me to my $3 guesthouse by the lake that won't exist in six months time as it's being filled for development.
It's basic as they come, no hot water and air-con, and standing on stilts out over the water. I bought a bag of weed within about ten seconds of entering the place, had a smoke and then spent last evening walking, moto-ing, eating and drinking my way around the city to get to know it.
It's certainly full on compared to the towns I have been in over the last week and a little intimidating too with traffic equaling total chaos.
I slept fitfully and this morning was out of bed before 6am and went to see the Killing Fields and the S20 detention centre. Both chilled me. I couldn't take my camera out of my bag in a place like that. It's truly horrifying, what took place there. The skulls, bones, cells, mass graves, implements of torture, clothes. . . I couldn't understand the people clambering all around with SLR's to get the perfect holiday shot. Cold.
I went down the markets this evening and bouth a zippo that must have belonged to a dead American G.I, if you go by it's age and inscription. It has a nice quote on the back: Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is the golden age in between. Haggled it to $4.
Went and visited a girlie bar after that and had two drinks with three beautiful women croucned in front of me on the bar, and one at each side or and behind me also. Then I took one of them to my guesthouse and we did fuck like bunnies for about three hours. Sweet woman, Mekarsh, who wants me to move in with her for the rest of my time in Phnom Penh so she can improve her English:D:D
I won't , but I will see her again before I leave.
Internet caf is closing up.
Over and out,
Jude
P.S. If I don't have crabs in the morning I never will!