Phnom Penh and Siem Reap

Tuk Tuk Driver

Before I headed to Siem Reap Alicia and I spent a day in Phnom Penh wandering about. I immediately liked the city, and most definitely preferred it over the insanely busy HCMC. It felt good to be "back" to the laid back lifestyle which I had experienced in Laos and Thailand.

The journey there from HCMC was relatively painless too, the Mekong Express Limousine service do an excellent job and make the trip smooth and effortless, even sorting out visas on the way.

Royal Palace

We visited the Royal Palace and the Silver Pagoda where the floor was made with 1000 silver tiles. The beloved King who had led Cambodia to independence from France had recently passed away so the city was in mourning with many people coming to show their respect at the palace where there was an altar dedicated to him.

We had the most amazing dinner on our last night at a French bistro down the road from our four star luxury hotel (in true backpacking style). I am going to have some serious adjustment issues after our cocktails-by-the-pool-beach-resort and this over the top fancy pants hotel life I have grown used to over the past ten days. Anyway, with our supreme T-bone steaks and copious amounts of Merlot it felt like we were back in London at our old local Sands End pub having our giggle-filled girl talks for hours just like we used to in the days we were flatmates! I can't wait to do it again soon. Might have to swing by Melbourne on my way home.

On my way to Siem Reap

I said goodbye to Alicia the next morning, shed a few tears of farewell, and jumped on a bus to Siem Reap. That's another 300 km to cover in over six hours, so that should give an indication of the condition the roads are in when you're averaging below 50km an hour... I sat next to a lovely 80 year old German gentleman Walter who didn't speak a word of English but we made it work with a combination of my broken German and his notepad we used for drawings! He was a professor and had first come to Cambodia in 1980 as part of a scholarship scheme, bringing young people to Germany for a three year education programme to learn the skills needed for a better future in their homeland. He told me lots of interesting anecdotes about Southeast Asia, like the fact that if you look at the houses on stilts, you can tell which ones belong to the rich and which to the poor just by the shape of the stilts. The poor people have houses sitting on stilts that are round like a pole, whereas the rich people's stilts are square. The difference in shape means snakes cannot slither up the stilts if it has corners but can easily manage their way up a round stilt. He very kindly invited me for dinner the next day which I agreed to do after a day spent exploring The Wats. Did I just agree to go on a date with a man 50 years my senior?

Sneaky Professor Walter

As it turned out the next evening no, it wasn't a date - at least not with Professor Walter. Professor Walter did however have something up his sleeve. Just as we were about to sit down for dinner the son of his old Cambodian friends conveniently showed up to join us for our evening meal. Also very conveniently, just as we finished dinner the professor felt very tired and wanted to retire but insisted it shouldn't stop us youngsters from continuing our evening - perhaps this charming young man could take me for a drive around town to give me a personal tour; wink wink! Sneaky old professor Walter...

I think health and safety would have had something to say about the hostel I stayed at in Siem Reap. My room was on the third floor but the last set of stairs, made of iron, were questionable in terms of stability and durability. They were extremely narrow, wobbled when used, and the railing was the height of my knees...nice one. It was a pleasant place though, had a clean fresh swimming pool too which was a real treat for body and soul after hours of getting covered in dust and sweat from playing archeologist at Angkor. I stayed in an eight people dorm and met a bunch of lovely people including two other Finnish girls to my surprise!

Amok

A typical Khmer dish which I tried is Amok, freshwater fish (although you can have it with chicken, prawn, or beef too) covered in herbs such as lemongrass, kaffir lime, garlic, and others I don't know, coconut milk, and egg. It is then wrapped in banana leaves and steamed until it's very thoroughly cooked. Yum!

Cheeky old German professors, charming young Cambodian men, delicious food, $0.50 beer, naps by the pool and the amazing Angkor. Good times!

Pitstop on the way to Siem Reap