KL to PP
Trip Start
Aug 04, 2008
1
12
16
Trip End
Aug 21, 2008
Phnom Penh,
Cambodia
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Today, on our way to Cambodia! Even with a Lonely Planet in hand, I still wasn't sure what to expect from this new country. We were up later this morning, planning on trying out the Arabic restaurant just downstairs from the hotel.
By noon, we had enjoyed an absolutely fabulous brunch (fresh out of the oven flatbread!), piled our bags into a taxi, and were on out way to the airport. The flight to Phnom Penh would be a little over an hour.
One thing we've noticed with all these flights through Air Asia, was the absolute bare-bones nature of the Air Asia airport terminals. Nothing fancy, at all. One set of bathrooms, simple check-in booths, one airport even hand-wrote our boarding passes!
We landed in Phnom Penh around 4pm, and a $9 taxi ride later, we pulled up to what was probably the most picturesque hotel/resort we've ever seen. I wish I had taken more pictures. In fact, I wish we had just spent more time lounging within the resort walls, like most of the resort occupants seemed to be doing. Either way, it was something else... and I think we got one of the most desired rooms, right in the centre overlooking the outdoor pool!
After unloading our luggage, we made our way out to the river-side boardwalk, Sisowath Quay. The road experience here in Phnom Penh can be likened to Bangkok, but slower. Everyone walks, rides, bikes, and drives just like in Bangkok, but everything is done at speeds slower than 40km/h. No one seem to be rushing, which makes the chaotic road patterns seem much less hazardous! But, just like Bangkok, the concept of uncontrolled intersections pretty much applied to any and all traffic intersection. The country probably would've saved a lot of money on stop-signs.
We stopped in to some authentic Khmer food at a local open-air restaurant, and enjoyed two staple dishes, the Lok Lak and Amok. After just a taste of these, we wanted to make sure we find a Cambodian cooking class. 80cent beers made for a good night as we watched olympic soccer on the restaurant TV.
Back at the hotel, we hit the hay after wandering around the resort a little.
Good day... I'm liking Cambodia.
