The Dusty Road To Sihanoukville

CAMBODIA

2.12.2004

Thai - Cambodian Border

After grudgingly leaving Koh Chang I headed for the Cambodian border. I was on my own for the first time.

I took the bus to Trat and then to Hat Lek on the Thai side of the Cambodian border. The border was a simple walk-through gate heavily guarded on each side by millitary officials armed like a S.W.A.T. team.

I met a girl from the Chech and buddied up with her for the chaotic crossing. Chaotic because of all the random paperwork and taxi drivers on the Cambodian side heckling us for our custom. Once over the border we took a cab to Koh Kong, a small desolate town near the border. My first impressions of Cambodia were not great. Dusty roads and very little activity.

It was that evening that I met two very friendly people, who would become my travelling companions for the following 7 weeks (I did not know this at the time!). Two girls, Jacqueline and Alison, both hailing from Victoria, Canada. I sat and talked to Jacqueline for a while about life, the universe and everything.

The Journey

The following morning we were up early for the bus to Sihanoukville. Little did we know what lay ahead.

The bus journey was quoted as being 5 or 6 hours in length. Ok, fair enough. So off we went. What an unforgettable journey this turned out to be. The roads were the most pot-holed, dusty, bumpy, eroded, treacherous surfaces I've ever had the pleasure of travelling on. We broke down twice. The second break-down involved removing a shock absorber from the rear wheel. Ironic, but the journey got a lot smoother after that! There were a couple of 'ferry' river crossings invloving a few boats strapped together with a few planks of wood thrown over them, very dodgey indeed.

We arrived, eventually, after a gruelling 8 hour rollercoaster of a journey.

Sihanoukville

Reading my diary to sculpt this piece sends a huge dread through me. How will I ever finish this! I have reached the 10th or 15th page of my diary and I have the rest of this one and two more diaries to go! Ouch. This is going to take far far longer than I first thought!

Sihanoukville was cool. A nice introduction to Cambodia. Cambodia was very different from Thailand from the outset. The people were different. The currency was crazy (currently 1 GBP = 7,317 Cambodian Riel!). The arcitecture was unique. Sihanoukville was a smallish town, very spread out. Named after the Cambodian Prince, Prince Sihanouk. My history isn't fantastic so I'll leave it there on the facts.

Sihanoukville moments...

• Scuba Diving with ScubaNation
• Jacko and I at the Kbal Chhay Waterfalls
• Geckozy's (Our Guest house) resident dog 'Haba' meaning 'leaf' or 'marijuana' in Japanese
• Snake Farm
• Drinking rice whiskey, with locals, from a bottle containing sea horses! The most foul concoction ever!
• Attempting to enter the Angkor Beer Brewery for a look around, only to be told 'NO'.

'Jacko' Jacqueline and Myself on our newly rented motorbikes. Much fun proceeded!

A young girl at the Kbal Chhay Waterfalls

Following Sihanoukville, Jacko, Alison and myself had formed a formidable trio. All getting on swimmingly we decided to stick together for the time being. Off we went to Phnom Pehn.