Happy Guest House Phnom Penh

Well I got to Phnom Penh safely...and actually on the bus that I signed up for!!! Wow, would you believe that. Checked into the Happy Guest House in Phnom Penh...figured I had a great time in Siem Reap, I would enjoy it here as well. This was all on Sundat afternoon. Oh yes, how an I forget to mention...this time, it was easier. Yes yes...hundreds of moto drivers swarmed the bus..."look here...good clean rooms" "no, no...this one...this one good for you." "this one better, free pickup" "NO Th...

Been here for nearly two weeks, finishing off my thesis. I finally submitted it. I'm happy with my mark and looking forward to using my MA as a stepping stone into an intresting career once I return to Canada. Phnom Penh has been a very chill place to rest for awhile, recovering from the adventures with Scott. Its not too big and cheap to stay in. My room is $2US per night at #11 Happy Guest House, which has a great chill out area built right onto Boeung Kak Lake. Food is the biggest expense ...

Phnom Penh - the lighter side Besides being the home to S21 and the Killing Fields, Phnom Penh does have a lighter side. After writing down my thoughts, I now want them out of my head for the time being. I need a distraction. James, Lynn, Jens, Nat, Fi and I have reunited at Happy Guest House #11 on the lake. We jam ourselves into Mr. B's tuk-tuk and begin our day at 10AM. First stop, the shooting range sponsored by the local army. For the bargain basement price of $30 you too can unload 30 r...

Today we take the bus back to Phnom Penn. The ride is relatively scenic but it was really long and we were really bored at some point (and I was sick of my Chinese conversations). We normally avoid the Tuk-Tuk guys that hang out closed to the bus stations, but finally accepted the offer of one in particular. It was really nice with us. We previously met people that suggest us a guest house, so we asked our guy to bring us there. You HAVE to stay on the river side. River side is a really chill...

A lot of people told me horror stories about Cambodia dealing with scams, unfriendly people, and being pestered constantly. I am pleased to say that I have had the complete opposite of this experience except for a little pestering every now and then, which after Vietnam is nothing. I have found Cambodians to be the most friendly people I have met thus far. My first day in Phnom Penh I met two brothers whom I talked to for about half an hour on all sorts of topics. They owned a shop in the cen...

Let's take a crack at describing my time in Phnom Penh. First, there is the pronunciation of the city's name. I was once corrected when I pronounced the "p" sound in Phnom; told that it's just "Nahm Penn". But as I've travelled more, everyone I meet says "Puh-Nahm Penn". I decided to ask a local because they are incredibly friendly and love it when I try to speak Khmer. The final verdict: both and neither. You should sort of say the "p" but not really. Just start with your lips together and t...

I forgot to mention that I got my hair dyed in Siem Reap, that was an experience! Without a shared word in any language I let this guy loose on my hair. I had to send him to get some new dye as the colour he tried to put on it, while surely red once was now brown after having sat in an open bottle for at least a year! I argued when he tried to rinse it out immediately but gave way after 15 minutes thinking he must know what he's doing. For those of you who don't know much about dying hair, it...

When we arrived in Phnom Penh we got absolutely hounded by tuk tuk drivers wanting to take us to different hostels. We told them we had a driver already but they all literally followed us across the road to the phone and stood with us until our driver, Lan, turned up to get us. They just cannot take no for an answer! It does get really frustrating but we are trying to keep in mind that this is their job and they really need the money. Lan had been recommended to us by a couple we met in Malay...

11 April Not much has been happening at the moment. Today I had a massage by a blind man. He was very good but he was hard going. Also bought ticket for the boat trip to Phnom Penh $25 a bit pricy but the roads are **** and it's the best way. 12 April Up at 5:30am to get boat.1 hour mini bus ride to the boat on Cambodian roads which are the worst I have travelled on. Got the boat at 7am. The boat was built for Cambodians (little people). It took 7 hard hours to get there but it was not that b...

We have spent the last 3 days joyfully touring the Angkor ruins. We purchased a 3 day park pass which cost $40 each and hired a car with Jon and Carol for about $30/day. Many of the ruins are spread out and the heat and humidity makes it worth it to hire a car. The ruins were built between the 9th and 13th centuries. Angkor Wat is the world's largest religious structure and the tallest dome is larger than Notre Dame. This empire in its day stretched from Burma to Vietnam and had a population ...