Well the bus ride from Pakse to 4,000 made the one I previously described seem like a walk in the park. There were about 30 of us crammed into the bed of a pick up truck! Luckily I had some friends to laugh with on the ride. Pictures to0 come I cannot begin to describe the craziness of that trip! Fast Forward now to Cambodia. I arrived in Karatie Tuesday the 27th of July. When the bus pulled up there were several tuk-tuk drivers fighting for the chance to pick up the people who were getting off the bus. They approached me with little business cards of local Guesthouses giving me their 30 second spiel then one guy busted through the group and said, "Right now the city is experiencing a power outage the only hotel that has electricity is..." I said", "SOld!" Hahaha I thought I was going to "rough it" on this trip but then I got out here and actually felt the HEAT and humidity!hahaha ; )
My moto driver introduced himself as Ben and after I checked in to the hotel he took me to see the famous fresh water Irrawaddy Dolphins which the city is famous for. There I took a boat to the middle of the Mekong River and saw the illusive dolphins (only 70 left in the world and 45 of them in this section of the Mekong). It was very zen like being out there on the water patiently waiting for a glimpse of these precious creatures really really special. Then I got back and Ben drove me around town pointing out areas of interest and places to stay away from! He was a great guide whom I could ask about Cambodian life. He was one of the few Cambodians who I met that spoke really good English. Then next day he picked me up from the hotel and we zoomed around town getting batteries and taking pictures before I had to catch my bus at 8:00 am. He also introduced me to a new favorite food. Sticky rice steamed in a sugar cane and then corked with coconut leaves! awesome snack AND Eco friendly packaging! I was really impressed with the resourcefulness of the businesses here.
Siem Reap and Angkor Wat here I ...... ooops
I thought I was going to Siem Reap but apparently me and some other travelers got hoodwinked into staying the night in Phnom Penh. We were supposed to get off the bus before PP and get on another bus but the stop never came and we had to stay the night in PP because no other buses from PP were going out that afternoon. It wasnt a total loss though, I met some friendly Parisians and one Brit and we got the cheapest guesthouse possible $4/night and then went out for some street food infront of the King's Palace. PP is a lively city with tons of motos tuk tuks and cars zooming past. The riverfront is very cosmopolitan but one block in you encounter "lady bars"pretty much brothels teeming with sex and drugs. Not good. we also saw a ton of land mine victims some of which actually having to be carted around to beg for money. I was surprised at how many Lexus and Mercedes' I saw around town. I know a weird thing to notice but coming from Laos and Vietnam you rarely see a car besides a luxury one, and this city seemed to have some VERY wealthy people in it.
The next day we got up super early to catch the bus to Siem Reap to explore the religious temples of Angkor Wat..... more on that later!
ta ta for now!
My moto driver introduced himself as Ben and after I checked in to the hotel he took me to see the famous fresh water Irrawaddy Dolphins which the city is famous for. There I took a boat to the middle of the Mekong River and saw the illusive dolphins (only 70 left in the world and 45 of them in this section of the Mekong). It was very zen like being out there on the water patiently waiting for a glimpse of these precious creatures really really special. Then I got back and Ben drove me around town pointing out areas of interest and places to stay away from! He was a great guide whom I could ask about Cambodian life. He was one of the few Cambodians who I met that spoke really good English. Then next day he picked me up from the hotel and we zoomed around town getting batteries and taking pictures before I had to catch my bus at 8:00 am. He also introduced me to a new favorite food. Sticky rice steamed in a sugar cane and then corked with coconut leaves! awesome snack AND Eco friendly packaging! I was really impressed with the resourcefulness of the businesses here.
Siem Reap and Angkor Wat here I ...... ooops
I thought I was going to Siem Reap but apparently me and some other travelers got hoodwinked into staying the night in Phnom Penh. We were supposed to get off the bus before PP and get on another bus but the stop never came and we had to stay the night in PP because no other buses from PP were going out that afternoon. It wasnt a total loss though, I met some friendly Parisians and one Brit and we got the cheapest guesthouse possible $4/night and then went out for some street food infront of the King's Palace. PP is a lively city with tons of motos tuk tuks and cars zooming past. The riverfront is very cosmopolitan but one block in you encounter "lady bars"pretty much brothels teeming with sex and drugs. Not good. we also saw a ton of land mine victims some of which actually having to be carted around to beg for money. I was surprised at how many Lexus and Mercedes' I saw around town. I know a weird thing to notice but coming from Laos and Vietnam you rarely see a car besides a luxury one, and this city seemed to have some VERY wealthy people in it.
The next day we got up super early to catch the bus to Siem Reap to explore the religious temples of Angkor Wat..... more on that later!
ta ta for now!
holy cow! i'm overwhelmed. keep em coming ;)
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