Out of the tourist zone (more or less)

Trip Start Nov 01, 2006
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Trip End Aug 29, 2007


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Flag of Cambodia  ,
Thursday, May 31, 2007

Finally we are away from Siem Reap and Phnom Penh and into the countryside to a lovely quiet little place on a river called Kampot. It's very nice to be away from places where everyone you meet is trying to sell you something. From the roof of our hostel we can look down on the village life where people buzz about on their mopeds and their 4x4s, play some sort of hackey sack game on the grass areas, and generally get on with their own thing without paying us too much attention.
We spent one day on a day trip to Bokor National Park. An interesting day - the park is pretty decrepid, with the only income being the $5 charge on the gate. With this the staff are supposed to look after the park, track the wildlife, stop the poachers and loggers, and generally perform miracles. Their gratitude for tourist dollars doesn't however stop them from trying to shortchange you when the opportunity arises. The roads are a mess and we spent most of the day clinging onto the back of the 4x4 and trying not to get our spines cracked (we have the bruises to show for it). We got to see the remains of the King's holiday pad and some old French-built villas from the 1920s, and an abandoned casino which looked amazing, the perfect scene for a cheap haunted house film. We were above the cloudline too, so plenty of atmospheric mists about and great views all the way to the sea over the surrounding areas. We hiked to a waterfall which was nice but the whole thing was a bit haphazard really. Our "english speaking" guide had a few phrases learnt off and knew how to ask for tips for his education, but couldn't understand the question "when was this built?"
Anyway, the following day was excellent, with Jenny and I on a rented scooter buzzing about the local area, visiting the seaside, eating seafood at little stalls, meeting friendly locals, going to see caves with shrines in them and playing with local kids at the river rapids. Great fun, very nice to be properly independent for the day and also to have the kids grinning and waving at us as we drove past. And some of the adults too! Then it was once again time to get on a bus... to the coast!
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