Clary's Travel Digression

You're welcome and thanks msolga!

ehBeth: Uhm...yesterday's tea? Isn't it cold? Yucky?

me
OK here I am, missed about 3 days didn't I?
So getting up at 6 and finding a tuktuk to the place where the travellers leave for Cambodia was the easy bit. We then ran across more of those fearsome main roads with all the luggage to a large and comfy bus, and dozed happi8ly to the border, stopping only for lunch of chicken and ginger, and steamed veg, at a friendly wayside cafe, This is a breeze, I thought. Then the border. Dragging the luggage through and over stuff, at midday in the heat, and being glared at by officials in glasses - both sides equally hostile. Then all piled into a minibus, non a/conditioned, but to our surprise only made it 200 yards down the road to the money changer/souvenir shop owned by - guess who- the minibus opeatprs. They made us hang around there for ages, obbiously hoping we would change money or buy stuff, but we didn't. Then all piled into a different minibus (after 2 hours), even nastier and less airy than the last, and made our way out of town towards Siem Reap where Angkor Wat, 8th wonder of the world, awaited us. Unfortunately the road had been blown up so often by the Khmer Rouge and others that eveyone was quite discouraged from ever repairing it, so it was adirttrack with potholes and ruts. Luckily it was the dry season so wedidn't actually get bogged down. The journey lasted 5 hours. By the end of it I was feeling most peculiar, not just the heat and bumps but suspected the food or the dodgy water atthe border sold in a plastic bottle but not sealed- so tottered into the guesthouse they took us to - another arrangement with the minibus family no doubt and said yes to any room. It cost $3 a night with fan, no a/c, and bathroom; a good deal in any language. I couldn't eat, and crawled from shower to bed at about 8 30 - what bliss to sleep! Next day, Sunday, still feeling bad, had quiet morning sleeping, seeing a little of the town, but couldn't face temples in the heat until late afternoon, when I toyed with a little fruit salad and a glass of green tea; I got a taxi to drive round the major sights of Angkor, and yes, it was impressive, and I'm sure I should have been there for 3 days min... but maybe there will be another chance. Meanwhile we'd bought tickets to go to Battambang, the second cityof Cambodia. Given that Siem Reap is probably the third, you would imagine they had easy ways of getting from one to the other. You would imagine wrong. At 5 30 a minibus arrived and bumped us 40 minutes to the river. Thence we entered a boat, quite comfortable seats, a sunshade, and a cool dawn breeze - perfect way to travel. Four and a half hours of fascinating villages on stilts and huge bamboo constructions holding fishing nets later, we stopped, no city in sight, and guess what, another dilapidated minibus waited for us - this time the other side of a precarious wooden plank walk (just the one plank) over the squelchy bits of river and water hyacinth. We had to carry theluggage over that too, a feat I gravely doubted I could do without upending myself into the waiting bog, but to my surprise I managed it. There is no road from that point on the river to Battambang, just a rutted track about one car wide, whose holes and indentatiuns made the Siem Reap road look like a highway. The driver, who looked about 14, was brilliant, nursing and coaxing the old bus with its crew of large foreign travellers with giant rucksacks over the ruts for nearly 2 hours. And then touts trying to get our trade - we picked the Royal Hotel, but grand it wasn't - however you can imagine the bliss of a cold shower, all that dust out of the hair, and then a cold beer and chicken curry at the rooftop restaurant (stomach now in working order again). The rivber was exceptionallylow, which explains the extra minibus trip, but when we were sitting on the roof a huge storm blew up, lovely cracking thunder and heavy rain on the iron roof and the smell of dust being laid. So as the storm abated I tottered out into the world again and found this Internet cafe, $1 an hour (Cambodians don't like using their currency I've discovered)

And now I'm going to fix up a shared taxi to take me to Phnom Penh tomorrow, while Simon the Eternal Traveller stays here to contemplate and mooch. Oh, the Deet hasn't been necessary, because it
's the dry season, mercfully - though mayb this rain will make a difference. Sorry for typos, my hiar is blowing in my eyes because pf a cunningly placed fan above the computer screen...

Waking up at 6 a.m., and checking in to see how Clary's been doing. And Clary's been doing! All that heat and dust is making me crave a cold shower, even though it's not hot and dusty here.

It continues to read as the most wonderful, scary, marvellous opportunity.

Yes, very exciting! You're a much more intrepid traveller than I'll ever be, Clary.

Fabulous story, Clary. Oh, God, I hate a "dodgy" stomach and suffered along with you. Simon is staying to "mooch?" What?

Wonderful ride on the river... the minibus trips sounds awful though. Are you using dramamine or other airsick/seasick/carsick meds?

I sure hope you took a photo or two! Stay well.

Oh, dodgy stomach in a rocking bus, noooooooooooooooo!!
Also the plank. I would have been in the drink with my luggage floating away.. into a hyacinth clump..

love that YOU are doing this, and I can ride along..

Hey there Clary

Glad to hear you made it to Cambodia and are still in one piece! I watched a program today about said country and was more than a little worried. Did you know there are approx. 4-6 million unexploded bombs and land mines in Cambodia? I am sure your guides etc. will be keeping you within checked perimeters, just make sure you don't wander to far off the beaten track!

Glad to hear Deet was unnesssary, we wouldn't want your rear end falling off or anything now would we?!

Landing back in London was a bit grim. I was met with fog, rain and a bone chilling 5C! Thankfully, I have been cheerfully ensconced in my cosy little flat with fat cat and plenty 'o heat!

Take care and best of luck with you continuing adventures!

Amanda
x
(the one who laughed at virtually everything - must have been the Deet!)

Hi may1sky, welcome to A2K!

Wonderful to read your latest entry, Clare. I feel as though I'm on the trip with you.
Yes, yes, be extra careful about what you eat & drink! I went through agony, a few years ago, after becoming a bit reckless & eating a salad with some raw bits in Java. On my last day there. <sigh>Won't go into the details but it was NOT fun!

Sounds like this trip is doing wonders for you. Worlds away from the problems of home. Good!!!

Thank you for the fascinating stories, Clary. Keep 'em coming, please.

Welcome, may1sky. Nice to meet you here.

Yes, may1sky, lovely to meet you! You're a friend of Clary's?

We've been nicely introduced to may1sky

Good to see she got home safely.

Ah, may1sky, you're Amanda! (Thanks for enlightening me, ehBeth.)
A pleasure to make your acquaintance & warmest greetings from Oz!
A pity you couldn't have travelled for longer, hey?

Hey, nice tomeet youall again, even and specially Amanda, hope the CAT was well...
and now I've cut the umbilical cord with Simon and it's OK, I'm still alive! Today was good, got up at 6 forthe cool of the morning and went for a walk alongthe river, past French colonial shop/houses, to theGovernor's Mansion, still intact and presumably still housing some sort ofgovernor. Tried to go tothe Museum but the posted opening time of 8 just wasn'ttrue. Dodging the motorbikes and 'mobilettes' (mopeds?) is the mostdaunting thing in Battembang, andone has toadmire the drivers' skill - winding about pedestrians and giving way to cars as wellas balancing about 3 or 4 family members of different ages on the bike; they don't get fazed, just do it beautifully. Midmorning I got a shared taxi (next step up from bus, hasa/c) to Phnom Penh; I agreed to pay $4 more for the front seat which was more spacious and cool, though of course in the front line for accidents... therewas a seatbelt, youjust looped itover your head (sorryabout this sticky spacebar, the keyboard is very old and worn!) The three other passengers were men, one of whom was constantly on the mobile phone and not only spoke some English butalso bought me a Coke at the lunchstop (where I prudently didn'tlunch, just ate bananas from a largebunch I got yesterday); at the second stop, the car got a thorough wash and we had thejuice of young coconuts, v refreshing. The road was miraculously wide and smooth and hard-topped for about100 km, then there was a bad section but they were actually using earthmovers and there were piles ofgravel around so it was in the process ofbeing built. It got better again aswe neared the capital. Phnom Penh strikes me as attractive and spacious, and I chosethe riverfront to look for ahotel, soI have an aircon room with large views over the Tonle Sap for $20 - not the bargain of the last 3 nights but very acceptable. Agirl's got to spoil herself sometimes. People have been helpful and friendly.
It's difficult not to think about the bloody history, so recent - the English speaking man in the taxi musthave been a teenager at the time of Pol Pot and wasprobably in the Khmer Rouge. I am NOTgoing to museums of theKilling Fields, my sons did but Ifeel Iknow enough to lastme a lifetime. Tomorrow I shall stroll downriver to seethe Royal Palace and the Silver Pagoda. AANd now, 9hours and 2 bananas since breakfast, I think it's time for"?dinner. The Riverside Restaurant looks nice, a short walkaway... can watch the sun throwing its last beams across the river and pretend I'm a French colonial wife, newlyout from Paris - they were intrepid in those days!

Hi Clary
Keep on pushing the envelope, girl! There are lots of us rooting for you, and enjoying your colourful posts.

Be well. McT

Honey - you are intrepid in these days!

I am going to have to read up on the Silver Pagoda - it just sounds so interesting.

Hey, well, still impressed with this area of the capital at least! Dined very acceptably off AMOK which sounded crazy but actually wasjust a local fish curry, delicately spiced, with rice and a little salad and a beautifully carved rose made out of a carrot. And a Tiger beer. But there were EXPATS there having happy hour, so I shall choose something alittle more ethnic next time! There was a loud English voice shouting and swearing overhead, and I didn't stop to enquire why. Sometimes it's better not to acknowledge one's nationality!
This morning I woke early. I looked out of my 4th floor window and saw an elephant on the grass bit next to the river, ?grazing gently. A boy gotit to lift him onto its head and it ambled off. Not a temple elephant, with lots of ornamentation and paint, just a normal, working beast. The next time I looked out, there was a lot of plinky plonky music and a procession of banners, children, and a house-shaped float went past. The maid who joined me at the window said it was Chinese, and I saw many people in white so assumed it was a funeral or at least a memorial for someone important.
At breakfast (omelette - there are baguettes as well, and proper coffee - not a French colony for nothing!) a monk with a large yellow umbrella and startlingly orange robes came and stood outside on the pavement,and restaurant staff took it in turns to go and offer alittle money in return for a blessing. It seems such a peaceful place I can hardly believe that people have been so cruel here, so recently.
Then I went to the museum, largely statues of Hindu gods+some Buddhas; pretty young women were giving little sticks of jasmine flowers out, so you could offer them + some money nteresting Buddhas - interesting way of getting donations! And then to the Royal Palace, a lovely place with those formal French-style gardens with hedges clipped severely, and lots of pretty roofs and pavilions. There must be loads of pictures on various websites foryou all to see, probably better than I could see in reality! The most amazing thing to me was a continuous fresco round the walls of the enclosure with the Silver Pagoda in it (rather a disappointment, that, just a bit of the floor tiled in silver); the frescos depict an idealized Cambodia, sea and trees and hills with people living and enjoying themselves in palaces and the occasional wooden stilted hut, a few godsand animals here and there. It reminded me of Florentine painting before the Renaissance, with flat religious depictions in front of stunning Tuscan scenery.

Lovely to be keeping in touch with so many people - via this diary - I hope my friends and family are reading too, if silently!

You mean we're not your friends?

(The "hits" to "posts" ratio is more than 10 to 1, if I remember correctly)

Good morning. I'm a bit late, should be on my way by now, but I couldn't resist a peek 'n' tap.

Yay - well of course you are friends, but in the larger scheme of things you are comparatively recently on the scene!! Hopeit's not a chilly morning whereyou are!