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Battambang
Entry 38 of 105 | show all | print this entry |
Our main reason for coming here is the scenic water route that you can take down the river to Sieam Reap and Angkor Wat but the town has a charm all of its own. Battambang is the provinical capital of the northwest, an old colonial riverside town and all in all a delightful stop in our tour of Cambodia. Lacking beaches or any major tourist attractions has kept Battambang of the tourist map and it's only in the last 4 or 5 years that Lonely Planet levied their support and the locals have borne witness to the strange sight of tall sweaty people wandering the streets with massive bags strapped to their backs.
After wondering what to do in the afternoon we decided to ride the Bamboo Train. But on the way there we drove along a dusty little track through the countrysisde past villages, there you could see how poor the country really is, and how friendly the pleople, are waving a shouting hello as you drive past. The driver took us to his friends fruit farm on the way where we were told how the grow and farm pineapples, bananas and many different herbs! They generously gave us food and drink which was delicious, rice wine soaked with fruit. Jamie took an instant liking to this and I had to remind him not to guzzle the lot.
It was getting late by the time we arrived at the Bamboo train. The story behind the bamboo train is another testament to Khmer ingenuity and resourcefulness. Instead of letting the old railway track perish after succesive wars have left litte money for state funded transport the locals came up with a better idea. Loot a couple of axles from an old army tank, strap on a few planks of wood, modify an old scooter engine and presto! you have a train. The line sees a lot of use now; quick to recognize a good idea all the locals in the area have built their own 'trains' and apparently at 4 in the morning the line is packed with people carting fruit, chickens and even cows to take to market. Its also starting to see some use as a tourist attraction. The only problem with the bamboo train is that its a one way track and if you see someone coming the other way somebody has to dismantle their train to let the others pass. Sounds like a prime excuse for fights to me but we are assured this never happens everyone follows the unwritten rules of the track; if you have a moto on board(like we do) and the others don't, you win. If you both have motos then it goes down to the number of passengers and if the passengers are equal scores a settled with a good ol fashioned game of scissor paper rock. It wasn't exactly plain sailing as the one of the guys had to get out and oush half way along but managed to get the engine working again and with the sun setting over the misty haze of endless rice paddies it's the perfect end to the afternoon.
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