Corruption And Scams (Holiday in Cambodia)
Trip Start
Nov 01, 2006
1
72
118
Trip End
Aug 29, 2007
Poipet,
Cambodia
Monday, May 21, 2007
Anyway, the weather was sweltering as we approached the border crossing, the hottest we've had I think. The Thai exit was smooth, no surprises there. On entering the Cambodian side we were immediately taken to a counter by some tout-like guys who put me on my guard - since when do you need touts hanging around at a border crossing? We filled in our forms and took them to the counter, where we were asked to pay 1000 baht despite the large sign over the window clearly stating a price of USD20 (about 800 baht). We'd expected this and stuck to our guns for a while with our 40 dollars, however, this would have meant a wait of four hours for our visa, instead of three minutes for everyone else! We said fine and went to walk away, when he offered us immediate processing for 200 baht for us both. I would have liked to have stuck to our guns, but we were hungry for lunch and in no mood for four hours sitting in the heat, so we paid the damn 200 baht (about three quid for us both). My first ever experience with bribes or corruption from an official at a border crossing, and not a nice feeling. However we later found out we'd done alright, as most people paid the 1000 baht no question and some were even charged 1200 baht! Our dishevelled appearance obviously told the guy we weren't up to paying that much...
So the poverty of Cambodia is immediately apparent, with naked children begging and lying about in the dirt - not very nice at all. We went to the bus station at Poipet using the free shuttle bus (should have been suspicious with that one), where we met the "helpful" bus company staff. I was determined to be on the first bus out of there, and so put off buying any tickets to Siem Reap, telling each tout I would pay the first bus that left. Each one swiftly took the hump with me - I'd obviously lost a friend for life in each one. We had some lunch and the heavens opened, the whole place was completely flooded. I mean we had to wade about the place with our rucksacks, cars caused small tidal waves and the pathetic-looking buses that were there didn't inspire confidence in their ability to leave the terminal at all. The bus prices dropped rapidly from 400 baht to 150 baht as the touts got more and more insistent on taking our money, the latter price on condition that we not tell any fellow travellers the price. We shamefully accepted!
We ended up waiting until after 3pm when our bus finally appeared, only for it to be filled from another bus that just arrived from Bangkok. Bastards! In the end the bus was overfilled with backpackers and luggage, it was the very same scam bus that we'd been trying our damnedest to avoid. The bus takes as long as possible so that you arrive haggard and exhausted at their guesthouse at night, and just accept it as the easiest option...
It took eight hours to travel 170km (admittedly on shocking roads, like nothing I've seen outside of rural Ethiopia), and of course it took us first to an overpriced restaurant en-route and then straight to a guesthouse in Siem Reap where we were surrounded by about eight pushy employees pressuring us to stay there. The place was even down a dark alleyway out of town a bit, and it was now after 11pm, but on principle a bunch of us headed off into town. It was after 1am by the time we bedded down for the night after a bite and a much needed beer (and visits to two full guesthouses). What a day! It was one of those days of travel where you wonder why the hell you ever left home, but also one with the most memories and probably the one I'll trot out regularly in the pub, at work, to my grandkids, etc. (If you think this blog is boring, just wait till I see you in person...)
