We had booked a hotel on-line that would be central to sites that we wished to visit in the capital. We had not used on-line bookings much before, as for decades we always arrived in a destination, we went to the area we wished to stay and hunted for the right hotel based on cost and checking the room. So we were a bit dubious about what we were going to get, as pictures can be a bit deceiving at times. As it turned out we lucked out, as we were right in the centre of the action and just off the Mekong River. Luckily our hotel was set back from the road and was quiet, as we don’t mind ‘cheap and cheerful’ as long as it is clean, comfortable and quiet, and that is precisely what we got.
The restaurant and bar scene around our area was fantastic and every night we tried something different – Cambodian cuisine similar to Thai food, Cambodian cuisine similar to Vietnamese food, Khmer food (traditional Cambodian food) and of course western food. This was usually followed by a visit to a local bar, talking to other tourists, ex-pats and locals, while consuming a two sensational and very cheap Margaritas’.
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| The Royal Palace, Phnom Penh. |
Through the day we spent hours walking everywhere, and was great exercise for us. Being on a boat, unless you are swimming or snorkelling daily, there is a distinct lack of aerobic exercise, as running around the deck does not really cut it. It was indeed a hard slog for us though, because it was full sunshine every day, very humid, and with the temperature ranging in the mid to late 30 degrees. Luckily we were well accustomed to this type of weather, having lived in the tropics since 2013. We visited the stunning Royal Palace, the Russian market and Psar Thmei (the immense art deco market).
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| The Royal Palace. |
The Royal Palace is a must see as the buildings are many, very ornate, and spread around a reasonably large site. Hence many visitors come to visit – locals, monks, Cambodians and foreigners. There are two visits sessions per day with a break in between for lunch. We easily completed the site in about 4 hours during the afternoon setting. The Russian market is very interesting in its own right and you can find anything from food, groceries, hardware, metal work, basic kitchen and household appliances. Warning, it is a bit of a rabbit warren and you can easily lose your bearings and end up going down the same set of stalls many times over. Psar Thmei is vast looking at it from the outside and houses a lot of very upmarket stalls, particularly a lot of gold jewellery stalls. Very tempting but we resisted somehow.
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| The Royal Gardens. |
Some sites we did not visit – namely the killing fields of Choeung Ek and the S-21. Having lived during the time of PolPot’s 4 year reign of terror we were reasonably well versed in the gruesome history. It is estimated that the Pol Pot regime tortured and killed between 1 to 3 million Cambodians in that short time and mostly the elite and educated. After visiting Auschwitz some decades earlier I have never been able to erase from memory the horror that I experienced visiting there and really did not want to add this terror to the list. We did not live during the Second World War and felt it was important for us to visit Auschwitz to see things for ourselves. Similarly, if you did not live during Pol Pot’s reign, I think it is mandatory that you learn first-hand what went on there. After talking to locals of all ages it is easy to see the devastation that this history has had on Cambodians. They are moving on and get on with everyday living, but the trauma experienced is still very much evident and hidden just below the surface of their smiling faces. I think the younger generation will be able to propel the country forward into what we hope will be a more prosperous and happy future.
By day 5 we took the Giant Ibis bus to Siam Reap which is the town where the stunning wat region is located, known collectively as Angkor Wat. We purposely got a hotel a few kilometres out of the bustling party scene town and one with a pool, usually walking into town for dinner every night.
You can visit the extensive Angkor Wat site by hiring a bike in town or just inside the gates to cycle around, which would be fun if you are very fit and used to cycling. However, It is the vast distance to be covered in tropical heat that is the draining part of this option. For the less fit, all hotels organise package tours of the Angkor Wat site via a tuk tuk (taxi) driver. There are two main packages commonly on offer, which allow you to view a selection of Wats, all in a day. You could of course visit every wat on offer but you would need to negotiate this with the hotel to extend beyond the general package option and you would need at least a week, as there is a lot to see. However, even taking one of the day tours is enough to immerse yourself in the region. The tuk tuk driver takes you firstly to the wat ticket office located just outside the town, whereby you can purchase a daily, 4 day or weekly pass.
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| Each bust is unique. |
Then it is off to the main gates of the site where you can elect to walk across a bridge to enter into the grounds. On both sides of the bridge are carved stone busts of everyday people, each is totally unique and not one is repeated. Your driver then takes you to the various individual wats and you have plenty of time to see each wat, while your driver waits outside. It is an extremely long hot and humid day and luckily we were there in the best season when the daily temperature only reaches 35 degrees and not the early 40’s in the hot season. We were prepared though and wore breathable long sleeved shirts, pants, a hat, and comfortable joggers. We carried plenty of block out, insect repellent and the most necessary, plenty of water. Other tourists toured the site in shorts and T-shirts, most were burnt to a frazzle by the end of the day and some even suffered heat stroke.
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| Impressive Angkor Thom. |
We stopped for lunch at one of the small outdoor restaurants and replenished water supplies before heading off for further wat inspection.
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| Walkway to Phimeanakas. |
Later in the day we finally visited our last and best wat - Angkor Wat. It was a great idea to visit the most impressive wat last. We managed to queue to reach the highest platform to see the vista before 5pm, when the viewing from this level ceased.
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| Vista from the third tier. |
After visiting the inside and outside of the wat it was a most memorable experience to view Angkor Wat from across the lakes, as the sun set. All up we had managed to see about 8 wats in various stages of repair and disrepair before the crescendo of Angkor.
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| View of Angkor Wat. |
After a long hot exhausting day we cooled off in the pool for an hour before heading out to dinner. It was truly a fabulous but exhausting day. We had intended to do more tours in the following days but on reflection felt we were sated and did not need to experience more.
After 4 days we returned to Phnom Penh for a further two nights before heading back to the ville by bus. We were told there is a rail journey that now connects the two cities and goes through some lush territory en-route. We did check this out and found the return journey we needed was mostly overnight and totally defeating the purpose of the scenic rail journey, so we opted for a quick Giant Ibis bus ride instead.
On return to 'little Harlem' and our boat in the marina we were so pleased to note that no damage had occurred while we were away, even though the region experienced some SW season storms the boat was tied well and we were safe. The electricity supply did not fare so well though and we were told that the area had suffered regular power outages most days. We did lose a few items in the freezer and luckily it was not a lot as we had not provisioned since Pattaya, Thailand. Having re-assured ourselves that all was good and the boat was in good hands we felt safe to head off on our next journey – Vietnam.
Procedures: We would recommend the procedure we undertook for entering Cambodia. It is costly but essential if you want longer than a1 month tourist visa. If 1 month suits then you can easily arrange a taxi driver to take you to the various offices and check in to the country by yourself without the associated costs.
Fuel and Water: The marina does have water but no fuel. The water is rain water collected in a tank. We did replenish with it as we have a very good filtration system on-board and suffered no problems after drinking it. If you do not have a great filtration system it would be wiser to drink bottled water, available everywhere. Fuel can be brought from the local service station nearby via jerry cans and a taxi. We had filled our tank before leaving Pattaya, Thailand and given the small Cambodian coastline did not need to replenish. Provisioning: There is a fabulous dry and wet market in town, offering a huge range of vegetables and meats. Within walking distance there is also a reasonably well stocked supermarket that caters to local and international tastes. Cambodia uses American dollars and there are many ATM’s on offer.
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