BAN LUNG

The bus was hectic, from 6 am until 7pm I sat at the back sandwiched between the locals, the seats didn’t recline and the floor was covered in garbage and fruit peals.  As soon as I stepped foot on land I got swarmed by people offering places to stay at. I couldn’t even move, there were too many of them. All the foreigners of the bus ended up together, all 6 of us got shoved into one tuk-tuk with all of our luggage. When we got to the hostel, Victoria and Fran, two hilarious English girls realized that their passports and bank cards were missing. Instead of freaking out as expected, they joked about it… if that was me I would have gone crazy. I shared a room with Rosemary, a girl from the states. We played a few games of pool on an extra large pool table and had a few beers before calling it a night.

The next morning Rose and I rented a motorbike and set off to see the landscape and find the Beung Yeak Laom volcanic lake. It is a beautiful turquoise lake in the middle of a mountain, and it was formed hundred of years ago by a volcano. It is 800 meters in diameter and 50 meters deep. The water was refreshing but not cold. We met a couple of people and swam around for a couple of hours. We also met a 16 year old Malaysian girl who invited all of us to go clubbing with her hehe. As we were leaving we also met two really cute kids. They ran up to us and were all laughs and hugs. After lunch we tried to search for some waterfalls but the roads were awful so we just went back to the hostel &had another pool match with the English girls who didn’t have any luck as the tourist police closes on Sundays…

The next morning I had booked a 2 day trek. A guy came to pick me up at 8am. He gave me a hammock and 2 big bottle of water to carry. We drove 30 minutes out of town and stopped in the middle of no where. Out of the bush came a young guy who turned out it be my guide. He was only 20 years old but he knew a lot about the minority people, agriculture and the use of different plants in the forest. He also seemed to know everyone that we passed by. We ran into some people washing a pig by a stream, after talking to them he told me that they were preparing feast in honor of someone who had recently passed away. Later on, we passed by a hut where they were making a box like structure out of bamboo. He explained that someone in that family was sick and they were preparing and offering. Once the box was finished they would kill a chicken and place its heart and liver along with some herbs and offer it to the spirits.

The first couple of hours we were walking up and down rolling hills through small villages along a narrow clay path. In front of each hut they had a vegetable garden and either rice, cashew trees, potatoes or eggplants. Chickens and pigs were running around loose. A few meters after the last hut, the forest begun. Lots of flowers blooming under the shade of large trees. The path was almost non existent. We had lunch by a small creak, and an hour later we arrived at a majestic waterfall in the middle of the jungle. We went for a swim. There were no signs of civilization, not one person around. We climbed to the very top, it was about 20 meters high. It was getting late so we had to continue. If it were up to me we would have camped there.

After an hour walk we arrived to another village where we would spend the night. We set our hammocks in a stilted hut which was the village’s meeting house. When someone had an important announcement they would hit a metal ring 7 times and the village would gather. Bing (the guide) got started on dinner singing his heart out as he fried some eggplant. We had various visitors who came by, stared at me and smiled… we ate on a plastic tarp on the floor but the food was surprisingly delicious. As the sun went down the children gathered outside, running around and shooting each other with bamboo guns. The all played together, younger and older, girls and boys.

 I went to bed early but woke up at 11pm, and I really really had to pee. The only problem was that I had no idea where the toilet was and Bing was sleeping. I walked outside trying to keep quiet. The moon was so bright that I through that there were lights outside. I went around the corner in the shade hoping no one would see me but as I was going to do the deed a massive pig woke up and started running towards me. I booked it back inside… lesson learned.

I woke up the next morning at 6, Bing was already making breakfast, veggies and noodles. We started walking at 8ish and after an hour we stopped at an abandoned hut at the edge of the forest. Bing showed me every day items and traps used by the minority people. When we entered the forest the path disappeared completely. I wondered how he knew where we were going, but we surely made it across. As we left the forest it started raining, I don’t know how to describe it but everything was so calm and beautiful under the rain. As we reached the top of the hill I felt like I was on top of the world.

We arrived at his house by noon and he started preparing lunch with his mom. He told me that she has been around during the Khmer Roughe. He also told me about his family and how his younger sister had been killed by a curse. He said younger children are the targets of curses because their spirits are not as strong. At 2 pm the guy from the hostel came to get me. The roads were slippery and that’s when I had my first motorbike accident. We didn’t fall hard but I was covered in clay.

That last night at Ban Lung was fun; I had drinks with the English girls who had finally managed to get a police report. We watched movies on a massive flat screen TV and we saw a gigantic gecko. 

PHNOM PENH

Arrived by mid day, incredibly fluent tuk tuk driver convinced me to go to a hostel on the lake. Most times I would have declined but he seemed very sincere and he wasn't pushy like all the others. Happy 11 turned out to be a nice place, great location, decent price and it had a rooftop bar. In the afternoon I went to explore a bit of the ciry. I dont think I have ever been hasseled by so many drivers or told "i love you" by so many strangers. I had a very 'western' dinner, pizza and DQ! soo good. I walked around and got midly lost. As the night settled in the city transformed, neon lights ad bars everywhere, crowded sidewalks, chaos. When I opened up the map I found my way in an instant thanks to the grid like layout of the roads. That night I met two Asutralians who turned out to be expats and they invited me to go for a drink. We went to a bar around the corner, everyone knew eachother. The bartender was Scottish and had been in Phnom Penh for over 7 years. Weird but interesting night.


Next moring the tuk tuk came to get me and 2 Irish girls. The driver brought his 6 year old son along for the drive. He was really cute but quiet and small for his age. Our first stop was the Killing Fields. Now for this i need to give a little bit of backgroud: in 1975 the Khmer Rouge evacuated all main cities of Cambodia. The leader, Pol Pot, wanted to kill all 'intelligent' people. According to him, they were corrupt and too materialistic. People were considered intelligent if they: spoke another language, attended school, knew anything about medicine, or wore glasses. The people who were not killed got sent to labour camps where they had to work from sunrise to sunset and were fed very little food. Families were separeted, no one was allowed to speak. The Khmer Rouge killed over 3 million people out of a population of 8 million. Many people also died of starvation, infections and diseased.



We visited the killing fields of Choenung Ek, where more than 20 000 people were brutally murdered. At the site there are 129 mass graves and 8000 skulls have been dug up so far. Most people were killed by blows to the skull and then piled in graves where some where burried alive. Using bullets was considered a waste. Babies and small children were killed by smashing their heads on a tree, which is still present to this day. As you walk through the fields you can see remains of clothes and bones on the ground that had been exposed by the rain. It was a very eye opening experience.







Our second stop wasn't any less cruel, Tuol Sleng genocide museum. The bulilding was originally a school but was turned into a prison/torture chamber by the Khmer Rouge. Inside, thousands of photos of those who were victims of torture. Their eyes baring sandness and hardship stare at you as you walk throgh; men, women and children alike. There were two kinds of rooms, the fist were sigles with an iron bed, cuffs and a buket for toilet. These were mainly used for interrogation and torture. The second kind were extremely small cells where you could barely fit one person, these were the regular holding cells. Some still had blood stains on the floor, others had picrtures of dead bodies. I dont want to go into too much detail about the torture, but it was unimaginably inhumane. They forced people to confess to crimes that they hadn't even comitted, they fed them 3 spoons of rice a day and no water. They were not allowed to talk or move unless asked. Human beings can be extreemly cruel when they are in a position of power.
We went out for lunch but the girls had to leave right after to catch a plane. I decided to visit the royal palace to lighten the mood. It was beautiful, with splendid garderns and very interesting and intricate architecture. The silver pagoda was in the same complex as the temple, featuring numerous golden and silver artifacs. It was surounded by 4 towers carved with complicated designs. I went back to the hostel and after having a shower i met up with Dan and Tan who had arrived to town that afternoon. We went out for dinner and i had amazing noodles with red curry, and then, we went for a few beers at the rooftop bar.

KOH KONG

I must confess that Im a little out of my mind sometimes. I mean, most sane people stay on the main track, but I enjoy taking small detours, sometimes for the best and others not so much. I took a 6am bus and got to Koh Kong by 11am. The bus only stoped at the staion for 30 seconds and they neglected to tell me that we were in  Koh Kong until we started moving again.... They dropped me off at a random restaurant along the road. The bus was full of tourists to my relief, but it turned out that I was the only person getting off at that stop, everyone else was going directly to Vietnam. I took a motorbike to a hostel I had researched (had to be a little better prepared after the Kong Lor fiasco). I went for a walk though the town and realized that not many tourists must make it there. After walking for half an hour I managed to find a restaurant, no menu, just pointed at random pots and pans. Weirdest meal Ive had so far, no idea what it was.
With lots of sign langugage I managed to get a moto driver to take me to the mangroove forrest. It was 15 minutes out of town and had a 600m walkway surrounded by mangroove trees. At the end of the walkway there was an observation tower overlooking the whole forest with the river zigzaging through it.

The next day I had booked a trekk. When I woke up it was pouring rain. Got on the tuk tuk with my trusty raincoat and we went to pick up a french couple. We drove to the river and got on a slowboat. The rain had calmed down butit it was still drizzling. The mountains in the rain looked spectacular, with creeping clouds and a misterious air that hovered over the whole forest. The ride was over an hour and we got off in the middle of the jungle. Thats when I realized that our main guide was mute. The french couple was nice, they were funny but seemed a bit out of place judging by their clumsy steps and overly prepaired equipment. First we reached the bamboo forest which was rather strange. When bamboo treees get to a certain height they can't support themselves, forming arched tunnels. After a steep climb, we got to a lookout point.  You could see all the mountains and the river. Beautiful.

We continued on throguh a different kind of forrest, taller trees, small streams, and leeches. I lost count after 9... it was quite shocking at the start, but you learn how to get them off. The key is to make sure that both heads are detached and its easier to use a stick or a rock rather than your hands. I was quite lucky though; Leonel got one on his mmmm (and he was wearing long pants) and Chloey got one on her bum. Too funny.

We had lunch by two small waterfalls. The guides urged us to go swimming but it was too cold and the current looked really strong. After lunch, they broke the news that we had to cross the river. It was rough, the current was pushing and the rocks were incredibly slippery. I held on to my belongings so tigthly, like I was holding on for my life. The guide had just lost his cellphone to the current and it had dissapeared down the river in less that a split second. Throughout the rest of the trekk adventure awaited. The jungle was dark, wet and slippery. The path faded and the leeches continued to attack. We were meant to crosss back throgh the river but the current was picking up and had become too strong to cross. The guide had to create a new path with his machete. Eventually we made it back to the place where our boat was, but one of the guides had to cross the river to get the boat. He managed to get across and in a few hours we were back into civilization.



Despite the rain, Kong Koh went out with a bang!



more pics at:    http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151748709545476.477254.503055475&type=3

SIHANOUKVILLE

The night bus from Siem Reap was horrendous. The driver and the crew seemed to be having a party. The bus stopped every hour and I had to share my bed with the guitar and my small pack, which didn't leave me much room. Finally, at 6am I had made it to the bus station, where I hopped on a motorbike. I was at Utopia within 10 minutes. The reception was not open yett, so i snooped around: a pool, food court, bar and $2 dorms. Seemed like my kind of place.



By 7am I got a dorm bed and a locker and soon enough I was on the way to the beach. Had breakfast overlooking the ocean. Spent the day in the sun, reading and getting mildly harassed by the vendors. Good recovery form the exhausting bus ride. I did learn a lesson though: when a lady asks "If you buy, you buy from me?" you must always say no... I made the mistake of saying maybe later, and ended up getting it from some other lady which got me into HUGE trouble, as the fist lady got very angry and swore at me in Cambodian...ooops. Back at the hostel, I was talking to a guy who turned out to be the owner and offered me a job there: free room, free food, free alcohol and some money, all to work at the bar until midnight. Very persuasive but no way haha. Later that night I met 2 girls from Chile and we went out for dinner together. I had roasted eggplant filled with rice and topped with mozzarella...yum! we decided to go down to the beach to get our free drinks. Serendipity beach is as many travellers call it, a small sized Cancun. The beach is lined with restaurants and bars with colorful neon signs. There were lots of travellers I had met along the way and  many other familiar faces. By 11:30pm it was packed and in the midst of the chaos and loud music I looked up and right in front of me were Bonnie and Henri! Needless to say, we ha a wonderful night, ending with the sunrise at the beach.

Next day same sort of deal. Beach during the day, massage, made friends with pretty much all the children on the beach. It must have been quite the sight; white girl surrounded by about 6 Cambodian kids. We played games and they tried to convince me to buy bracelets...one girl made me a free one and when I said no thanks, her response was "relax baby, is good luck" with a Jamaican accent. At night, I went out with the Chilean girls and 2 Dutch guys. We had free drinks at the beach, JJ's and then at Dolphin as it seemed to be the routine. At around 1am a group of us decided to go swimming. The water was just the right temperature, refreshing but warm. Back to the dance floor, then hot-dogs, and back to the hostel by 4am.


The next day I went to get my Vietnam visa, which turned to be a very simple task; drop passport off in the morning and get it back in the afternoon. I decided to go to a different beach for the day, something away from the tourists and vendors. With my guitar in hand I took a moto to Otress beach. I got off at a restaurant/hostel in the middle of nowhere. As I was eating my fried rice, I saw a big dog in my peripheral vision.. it turned out to be a cow trying to steal my food! how is that even possible!?  In less than 5 minutes, the restaurant was surrounded by them. I finished eating and walked along the beach. There was a 4km stretch with absolutely nothing and no one in it (despite the odd cow here and there). I picked a spot by a tree, and finally understood why people yern to have a beach to themselves. In the evening, I went to pick up my passport and then decided to go for a run. As I was finishing up, I ran into Tan, Dan, Bastiaan and Eveline. I went back to the hostel, showered, and we had dinner together. A nice way to end my stay at Serendipity.

SIEM RIEP

I parted ways with the girls and made my way to the 18 hour bus ride. Neils, Paul, Tanya, and Dan (from the motorbike crew) where there too, but Neils was the only one heading to Siem Reap for the moment. We had to transfer buses mid way through and he kindly let me take the last available seat, while they pulled out a child-size plastic chair for him and a couple of other people and put them on the aisle. Got in late at night, the bus station was dark and I was still half asleep. We ended up joining a couple of Germans with Bastian and Eveline who had booked a hostel already. It turned out to be a 3 star hotel, we were greeted with water, cold towels, and snacks as we would be greeted every time we entered the lobby. The room was massive it had AC, TV (with cable!), candy, free toothbrush & comb, all rare commodities that backpackers don't often get. All for $15 per room (for 2), with breakfast included.

The next day we slept in and Niels and I got bikes and ventured into traffic. It was CRAZY. Cars, bikes and tuk tuks going in all directions. It was a 2 lane street turned into 8 lanes of alternating traffic. INSANE. We made it to the park where all the main ruins are and decided to do the large circuit. Before I go into the details of the temples I think Angkor deserves a bit of an introduction. The archeological park contains the remains of the magnificent Khmer Empire. The temples were built between the 9th- 15th centuries and the main temple (which ill get to later) is Angkor Wat, is one of the 7 world wonders. The first temple that we reached was Banteay Kdei, which used to be a monastic complex.









Then, Pre Rup, which was quite the climb, but provided a great view of the jungle and country side surroundings. 



Eastern Mebon which used to be located on an island (now dried out), known for the elephant statues.



Ta Som where a little girl around 6 years old came up to us and counted to 10 in 6 different languages so we would buy bracelets from her. 10 for $1 was the main message but after being hassled by so many vendors you get used to saying no. The other main tag line they used was "if you buy, you buy from me, okay?" (never say yes... )



Krol ko





Preah Khan which was the first capital (before angkor wat). Here, there were 2 entrances, and well... we went through the 'wrong'one if there is such thing so we had to walk quite a bit. We could see the main temple in the distance and after seeing so many, you start to get lazy, but we bet a beer, if it was awesome enough id win... and guess what? it was most definitively worth the walk :)





We had saved the best for last: Ta Phrom, where Tomb Raider was filmed. We entered as bus loads were leaving. We had the whole thing to ourselves! it was dark and eerie, as they have let nature take over this temple in particular. A few steps in a guard stopped us and told us they were closing because it was getting too dark :s ... disappointment. We had a drink (he owed me) and started making our way back to the hotel. But on the way, rain, and lots of it. It was incredibly refreshing and kinda fun but we got soaked on out 4k's back. That night, Tan, Paul, and Dan joined us and along with Bastian and Eveline we went out for dinner. we had a Khmer bbq: 

snake, crocodile, frog lets, beef and shrimp which you cooked yourself on a grill like plate in the middle of the table. What a feast!


The next morning we were up before sunrise and in the darkness we made our way to Angkor Wat. We sat on a carpet at the foot of the pond in front of the temple and watched as the sun came out. It was so peaceful and beautiful despite the crowd . The reflection on the water among the lotus flowers.







I went inside alone, and it was just incredible, the carving, the details, the size of it all. No wonder its one of the finest monument of the world.


After, we went to visit the rest of the temples in the main complex. Fist was my favourite, Bayon, which is filled with massive stone faces. To be precise, there are are 54 towers of four faces each which makes a total of  216 faces. 



Then Baphuon which was initially supposed to represent a sacred hindi mountain, Mount Meru. However, a Buddah was added as the region converted from  Hinduism to Buddhism.

Then the elephant terrace and the terrace of the leper king and Tomb Raider which was a lot bigger than it seemed in the first day. It was like out of a fairy tail. Trees growing everywhere, fallen walls, small passages. Out of a dream. After that, we were pretty templed out so we saw a couple other smaller temples and went back to our hotel. 

We had to rest up as it was Tanya's bday that night. When we got back to the hotel, the tuk tuk tried to charge us a bit more than we were told but we ended giving in. The manager, Mr Kim, was not okay with this. He told us he would pay us out whole $2 back... we said it was okay. So at 11:30am he pulled out a 6 pack and offered us a complementary drink that none of us could deny. He is the nicest man I've met. He even told us that the reason why he provides all the rooms (every night) with a bed time story is because he wants his guests to feel at home, and because his grandma used to tell him a bedtime story every night. Too cute haha.

That night we all went out and celebrated all night long at the famous "pub street" which was packed with foreigners despite the fact that its low season. 

The next morning Neils had to leave to Phenom Penh and I believe so did Tanya and Dan. So I was all on my own for the day. Begun by getting a fish foot massage with my complementary beer and peanuts. Then hired a very nice tuk tuk driver to take me to Banteay Srei  which is dedicated to Shiva. It had incredibly intricate carvings and half animal half human statues. Well worth the long way to get there.

Then, the landmine museum. They do a better job at explaining it than i do: http://www.cambodialandminemuseum.org/menu.html

The main lesson is that during the war, millions of landmines were dropped by the US as well as planted by the Khmer Rouge. There were so many that there aren't any maps of where they were laid out. Even today, some remain active, exploding and hurting mainly farmers and village people. When you walk in the streets this is evident as there are many people missing legs and arms. The museum is also a house for children who have been affected by landmines. It was heartbreaking. If you have time, please check the website above.