« The Easter Bunny of South East Asia | Main | Bangkok to Krabi »
February 03, 2006
Exit Cambodia...now that I really like the place
After my relaxing Thursday I spent the evening down by the beach and enjoyed sunset at Chaimoy's Frog Shack. I was hopping to meet up with Levi but he never showed up, so I just had dinner, took some pictures and called it an early night.
Friday morning started out at the beach very early, went for a swim, had a quick breakfast at Le Rouse, said good bye to the staff, checked out of my hotel, hopped on a $1 motorbike ride to the bus station and grabbed a 11:30am decrebide TSG bus for US$4 to Phnom Penh. I had a window seat in the second to last row and two Cambodia teenagers were trying to squeeze both of them into the one seat beside me. At first I thought they’d wait until the bus got moving and then spread out to other seat or the floor, but after being crammed up against the two of them when we were moving I forcefully but politely said “one of you will have to sit on the floor”. I don’t think it was the language they understood, but my tone of voice and pointing certainly did the trick.
Some four hours later we arrived in the capital and a motorbike driver took me back to the Dara Reang Sey Hotel for US$1. My moto-driver agreed to take me to the airport the next morning for US$3. It seems that once I become comfortable with a city I start taking the riskier transport options, bargaining a bit harder, etc. Soon I checked into a lower end US$7 room on the top floor with only a fan and tiny TV. My favorite room number again, 404.
Next I headed down to a restraurant on the Tonle Sap River. There I had a fantastic grilled cheese sandwich, a few lattes, a few beers, and bought the latest copies of the Economist and International Herald Tribune from the disabled teenage vendor who remembered me from the week earlier. There was a eight year old girl selling trinkets, but I don’t buy into that child labor thing and stayed away. It being somewhat of a low season she was just hopping around from table to table chatting and playing. I gave her my last week’s Economist which she subsequently sold for US$2 and even offered to split the profit with me. Her name Ling and I certainly hope her life improves.
The Cambodian owner/hostess of the bar was a bit of a cold fish, but strikingly beautiful. She let me take a picture of her but other than that wanted me to buy her or some of her waitresses drinks. Apparently the restraint is half hostess bar, although you could not tell that from the generic tourist cliental. (“Hostess” as in buy me a drink and I’ll talk to you…no motorbike driver “boom, boom” stuff here.)
At about 11pm I hit the sack, woke up just in time to meet my waiting motor bike driver downstairs and was off to the airport. We arrived in plenty of time for my to catch my Bangkok Airways PG921 flight on a well maintained Airbus A-320. They even had a little lobby lounge where I filled up on free cakes, coffee and internet. Fantastic. An eventless hour and fifteen minutes later I was back in Bangkok.
Posted by stu at February 3, 2006 05:35 AM
Comments
Chaimoy's Frog Shack is in Sihanoukville not PP. You were atteh other Frog Shack.
[Stu:] Ooops...thanks for the correction. Got confused.
Posted by: Paul at February 24, 2006 11:48 PM