Battambang - Templed out
Trip Start
Jul 11, 2006
1
27
32
Trip End
Jun 28, 2007
Battambang,
Cambodia
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Battambang is a very small city so I wandered aimlessly around the streets, around the market, passing monks and streams of children pouring out of a school. I unusually headed for a restaurant from the Lonely Planet (generally they're too expensive, and street food rocks)
A munkeeee!
. The Smoking Pot, interesting name, but nothing in it, seriously, just the best food I've had in Cambodia (in hindsight). Cambodian curry is excellent and if you ever get the chance go for either the Amok, or Lok Lak, both delicious!The following day I negotiated a moto driver for the day to take me to visit the nearby temples and killing fields (cave). I guess you're probably not interested in what they're all about, and to be honest, I wasn't too enthused, but I did the 'rounds' anyway. I took in a few temples, some in ruins due to the Khmer Rouge regime, but some standing proud on a cliff top. The killing fields, well in this case it was a cave, was again, harrowing. As you enter there is a cage full of skulls and bones, but when you look closely you could clearly see how their skulls were split open. Basically, the Khmer Rouge threw the people off the top of the cave you can see in one of the pictures. It was about a 40/50 foot drop onto rock, little chance of survival... I met an old British lady there, well into her 70's, who was very distraught about the whole scene, and broke down into tears. As I don't know the full story it didn't provoke the same feelings.
It was a good day out; driving through obscure villages where everyone would wave and say hello to me, especially the kids
A temple toppled by the Khymer Rouge
. It felt like I was back in Mongolia again where the people I met were so friendly and would always bear a smile. Smoking Pot again that night for some more great food, boat in the morning to Siem Reap, the home of the world famous Angkor Wat, and if you don't know about it, google it...I managed to grab a few pastries from the bakery across the road before getting a moto down to the pier for the boat. I had imagined this large boat where I could chill out on the deck, read and relax, but it was nothing of the sort. I arrived with plenty of time to go yet the boat was already full, but I managed to wedge myself between a couple of bums. The people kept coming, and the boat kept filling up, so much so they just put any new arrivals on the roof. So we set off, cruising down the river and they start picking up even more people! The boat was already stuffed and sitting low in the water yet they were still ramming them on! It was meant to be a 5 hour journey but turned out to be a painful 7.5 hours, the only consolation being some cool scenery.
Next stop: Siem Reap, touts and temples, the adventure continues....
My new top 5 lists.....
Best cuisine:
1. China
2. Vietnam
3. Cambodia
4. Mongolia
5
Conventional method of getting to school
. RussiaFriendliest people:
1. Mongolia
2. Cambodia
3. Vietnam
4. China
5. Russia
Easiest country to travel in:
1. Vietnam
2. Cambodia
3. Russia
4. Mongolia
5. China
Favourite country so far:
1. Mongolia
2. Cambodia
3. China
=4. Vietnam
=4. Russia
More to come....
