8 – 24 October 2023

Hello Cambodia! We bid our farewells to Vietnam after 4 weeks and crossed the border by bus into Cambodia. The bus company (Giant Ibis) did all the hard work so the whole exit and entry with our visa was a very streamlined process. The bus trip itself was also very uneventful and we arrived in the capital Phnom Penh in only 6 hours.

There is not a lot of difference between Vietnam and Cambodia in the look of the countryside. The main difference is in the money and language. The local currency is Riel, however, they advertise all prices in $US. You then need to convert from USD to Riel to pay them. The only place not to accept Riels is the casino, where you must play with USD. The language is Khmer, but English is fast becoming their second language, particularly in the cities. The look of the text is in symbols so is not easy to work out what is what. Prices are more expensive than Vietnam, but still relatively cheap. On average you can get a glass of beer for $0.75 USD (3000 Riel or $1.20AUD). 

We took some time in Phnom Penh to get our bearings and our head around the new country. Tuk tuks are the way to get around everywhere and they are cheap and reliable. We decided to start to learn about the history of the country by visiting the S21 genocide museum and Choeng Ek killing fields located in the Phnom Penh city boundaries. Pol Pot, the leader of the Khmer Rouge ruled the country in the 1970’s. In a space of less than 4 years (1975 – 1979), 25% of the country was killed by the regime. The killing was baseless, with no reason or rhyme to the executions. If you wore glasses, had soft hands, spoke another language, were educated, a politician or were from another country, you were, in the eyes of the regime, the enemy. Even being a family member of the above meant you were guilty by association. These enemies were taken to one of more than 300 detention camps, interrogated and tortured until the prisoner confessed to whatever the interrogator wanted. They were then sent away (under the pretence of a new home) to the killing fields for execution. The killing fields were located all over the country. Men, women, children, babies and even their own soldiers were killed in open holes and buried. One particularly brutal killing method was using a tree to kill babies. The entire process of genocide was particularly heinous by this group. In 1979 the Vietnamese soldiers and Cambodian army overran the regime and liberated the country. Of all the prisoners held at S21 (estimated between 14,000 and 17,000) only 12 were left alive at the liberation. Only 3 people were ever convicted and sent to prison for crimes against humanity by an international court in the mid 2000’s. The monument erected at Cheong Ek in memorial to the victims was very confronting. A huge glass cabinet with thousands of skulls and bones of the bodies exhumed from the ground are catalogued and displayed. As you wonder the grounds listening to the audio guide, you can see pieces of clothing and bone slowly coming to the surface, a constant reminder of the devastation that happened here.

We walked to a few different markets around town and bought a couple of souvenirs. We walked along the riverside and explored many restaurants. There is a melting pot of food options, with Indian, Thai and Khmer being the most popular. We decided to enjoy a spa treatment at a reputable establishment which was a nice way to finish our time in Phnom Penh. 

We took a mini bus heading north east to the town of Kampong Cham for 2 nights. Although the 3rd largest city in Cambodia, it is quite a small seaside town perched on the side of the mighty Mekong River. Pchum Ben, the 15 day religious festival was on while we were in town. It is a time when people pay their respects to the dead. Many people have come to the town from the cities to be with family. The unfortunate thing for us was this means that most shops and restaurants were closed. Even the swimming pool of our hotel was closed for the time we were in there.

We then took another minibus further into the north east rural countryside to the tiny town of Kratie. Kratie is famous for the Mekong freshwater Irrawaddy dolphins. We stayed at the Soyra guesthouse which was run by an Aussie called Pete. His staff were lovely and the rooms were basic but comfortable. They even had a lovely restaurant which over looked the Meekong and served the best fruit smoothies. We hired a scooter to have a look around the town. It is very rural, remote and a great way to see the authentic Cambodia. We met another Aussie who runs a cafe. She along with her partner are also opening a second cafe in another part of Cambodia, serving vegan food. We can say their fresh spring rolls were to die for. After our 2 nights we booked seats on a local minibus heading to the far northeastern corner of the country to the village of Ban Lung. The trip was very interesting and entertaining. The minibus was a 12 seater but because of all of the luggage, only 9 seats were available. The tetris that occurs in the local busses is a site to behold. We had 17 people (5 were children), luggage, parcels/packages, a child’s bike and  birds inside the van. On the outside we had 2 foam eskies filled with frozen foods and 2 chickens tied on. At one point in the 4 hour trip, the eskies were delivered which meant the chickens had to come inside. Let’s just say they were not happy. 

We arrived in Banlung and walked to our homestay host Mr Happy. We settled into the room which was basic. It was very traditional being all wooden walls, bed, furniture etc. We booked a deluxe room to have our own bathroom. What we failed to realise though, is that there is no hot water. We certainly had a very quick wash. That evening he served us frog and rice for dinner. The frog was stuffed with lemongrass and other herbs and was delicious. We came to this area specifically to go hiking in the jungle, something we have never done before. The next morning, Mr Happy took us on an amazing 3 day jungle adventure. We started out with a 1 hour tuk tuk ride, then a 90 minute boat ride deep into the Virachey national park. After meeting our fellow guide Mr Rang, we set off up the mountain. It was very hard going. The humidity, uneven ground, slimy mud, mosquitoes, spiky plants and nettles and leaches added to the difficulty. The sweat running down each limb was unrelenting. It was like someone turned on a tap which you couldn’t turn off. Before the first peak, I didn’t think I’d make it to the top, let alone 3 days. Mr Happy assured me there was only 1 more upwards push before it flattened out. All of that was in the first 30 minutes. What had we done! After a few hours and by mid afternoon, we arrived at our overnight stop which was next to a waterfall. It was such a pretty spot which we had all to ourselves. We set up our hammocks and had a swim to freshen up. Dinner was cooked on the fire inside a bamboo stalk. It got dark early so we sat by candle light and talked before having an early night. During the night a thunderstorm rolled in. Mr Happy and Mr Rang jumped out of bed to put a put a clear tarp over our shelter. We then watched the lightening and rain pour down. Day 2 was very much like day 1 with water crossings, plenty of leaches and humidity like we have never experienced. As we were walking, the thunder started again. In an effort to get to camp before the rain arrived, we decided to not cook lunch and keep walking. We arrived and Mr Rang had to construct our bamboo hut. The fire was lit to keep the mosquitoes away, we had a swim and wash in the river and put the plastic tarp on the roof. After an early dinner, we sat and chatted in our hammocks and watched the rain tumble down. With the sun gone by 5:30pm, we were all asleep by 8pm. Our last day started earlier, so after a coffee in bed then breakfast we packed up camp and headed out, back up the mountain. A few hot, steamy hours of walking and hacking our way through the thick jungle, we arrived back at the boat to head for civilisation. The boat ride back was a bit quicker going with the current. We said our goodbyes and headed to our overnight accommodation for our last night in Banlung. Over the 3 days we visited waterfalls and rivers, sweated, slept in hammocks, learnt about local cultures, sweated, laughed, sweated and overall thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

After a long 8 hour minibus trip, we arrived back in Phnom Penh to wash clothes and book our next week’s adventure, but who knows Where2Next?…