Found a pool hall consisting of two tables covered in green felt, one without pockets. So if you hit the balls too hard, they rolled off the deck into the river! I decided I shouldn't play, with my poor pool skills. A woman pulled over on her motorbike as I was walking and she spoke a little English (I maybe understood a third of what she said, but nodded my head a lot). She told me to hop on and dropped me off at the bustling market. Walked around a bit and then headed off across the river to try and find dinner. Looked for a while and finally found a place with pots of food and rice. It had a fair amount of people, so pointed to some kind of meat and egg dish. A couple of older men motioned for me to sit at their table, so I joined them. They spoke very little English (knew "thank you very much" and "your name?" which is more than I know in Cambodian). The rest of the conversation consisted of smiles and hand gestures. When they got up to leave, they paid for my meal, much to my protest. But you pretty much always lose the protest when they speak the same language as the cashier and you don't. On my way back to the hotel, another woman (probably a few years younger than me) motioned me over and we sat by the side if the road. She spoke a little English as well, so we chatted for a bit and she made me eat half of her baguette sandwich she was eating. She give me tips on where to go and where to avoid and told me to "take good care". Probably still much safer than what I have heard about Phnom Penh. Watched the clouds turn colors as the sun set behind a temple (wanted to take a picture but thought it would be rude to interrupt our conversation) and then she drove me the rest of the short way back to the hotel on her motorbike.
Finally, I say my goodbyes and start walking back the few miles back to town, but only make it a few yards before one of the ladies had borrowed a motorbike and insists on giving me a ride back. Have I mentioned how much I love Cambodian people? Not that I don't love seeing new sights and hitting up recommended guidebook things, but some times, the most memorable travel days are spent doing nothing with complete strangers.
Tomorrow morning, I head for my 7:30am bus to Phnom Penh. Museums, Killing Fields, and maybe a day trip out of the city are the tentative plans. And just in case you catch wind of it over there... yes, I am aware of the political stuff going on here right now and should be out of Cambodia and into Borneo, lounging at a scuba diving island resort well before the planned September 7th Phnom Penh protest (leave for Borneo via Kuala Lumpur on September 4th.
Hope all is well with everyone!
Love,
Betsy
I decided to take the boat to Battambang, since I have spent a lot of time on buses and the river is high enough to make it in about 7 hours. It left from a floating village outside of Siem Reap called Chong Kneas. It was really a fun trip, even though I was exhausted. Went through lots of floating villages. Mainly tourists on the boat, but we occasionally stop in a little village to pick up or drop villagers off, with padded seats for about 20 people (plus, we are also allowed to sit on the boat roof). Lots of colors and children all stop to wave hello as the once a day boat passes by. They have everything you would expect in a village: Temple, gas station, mechanic, corner store... except it is all floating on water. Want to visit the neighbor? Row on over! Even saw pets (cats, a monkey chained to a tree, and a guard dog paddling around chasing another dog). There are little waterways cut through thick brush. The boat operators quickly roll down canvas over the boat to keep the branches from thwacking us too hard, and it is kind of like a thumping massage. Some guy thought I was Cambodian and took pictures of me, but all in all, an enjoyable ride.
Once we hit Battambang, I found a hotel in the city center, right across from the local market where I could get my $1.25 noodle soup for breakfast. They claimed to have wi-fi, but it was slow an unreliable. So the next morning, a moto driver said he would take me to look for a better place. I told him what I wanted, and he took me to a perfect spot right across the river. Quieter, much cleaner, newer and nicer rooms, a quick walk over the bridge, and they matched the price of my old hotel (since it is low season and they have lots of empty rooms). Made plans for the moto driver to take me outside the town center the next morning and dropped off my stuff. Looked like it was going to rain so spent the day goofing off around town. Walked up and down the river and through all the streets. Went to a museum with old artifacts (big contrast to the high security of the Smithsonian, as these artifacts are guarded with the same glass and lock that they use to store their potato chips and snacks at the local bars). Visited a few temples and chatted with folks. One had a tiny, little kitten that curled up in my hand an seemed content to stay there, so just walked around the monastery with him for a while, much to the monks amusement. Saw a funeral down a side street (funerals can last several days, depending on how far the relatives have to travel).
The next day, my moto driver came to pick me up at 9am and we headed for the bamboo train. It is really just for tourists now, but it was actually a lot of fun (and will be gone in a few years when they build a real train from Phnom Penh). It only one set of tracks (which are run down and not very straight) and you have to get off when a train comes in the other direction so they dismantle the train and take it off the tracks so the other train can pass and then reassemble it. But it goes through beautiful, lush, green rice fields and the driver let me drive the train for a little while (much to the other passengers dismay).
After the train ride, we went to visit a narrow, rickety village suspension bridge that looked out over the river. It bounced as motorbikes passed and I squished up against the sides to let them pass (until a moto carrying a bunch of cargo came and I ran to the other side, as it was clear we both would not fit and I didn't want to create a traffic jam) My driver laughed an called it the Batttambang Golden Gate Bridge. Then we headed to a temple with 354 steps up to the top. There were five crumbling temples built before Angor Wat. I liked the feel of the unrestored temples, but didn't explore too much, as my driver warned me that the area around it may still have landmines. Then a basic roadside lunch of tomatoes, chicken, and rice and a coconut water to quench my thirst after all those stairs.
As we through little villages towards another temple that I had to climb up a small mountain to get to, my driver stopped to get me a freshly picked dragonfruit from a roadside fruit stand run by a lovely, old Khmer woman. She and my driver said somme words and he laughed. he explained to me that she said I talked like a foreigner but was dark like a Cambodian. She let me try all the delicious fruit and we went on our way. Made it down the muddy pot-hole filled dirt road to the next temple and started the climb. Halfway up was another temple over run by monkeys. Stopped and had a coke (which I inadvertently shared with a monkey who decided it was his turn and took it right out of my hand). So continued up to the top. Beautiful view off the area and a monk invited me to sit down. We had a nice long talk and it was very peaceful. He told me of being orphaned and becoming a monk. He now runs a school for village children and orphans because "it makes his heart feel good and when you die you can't take things with you, but the good and the bad you have done can live on."
The next day, I got up a little before 5am and found a tuktuk driver to take me to Angkor Thom. Most groups go to Angkor Wat at sunrise, so being the only person climbing around these temples was breathtaking. It is where several shots in Tomb Raider were apparently filmed. Lots of separate structures within the walls, my favorites being one with huge faces made of crumbling rock, another with long mazes of dark hallways and high walls with murals. Spent hours running around alone before the first tour groups showed up.
Decided to walk and just stop whenever I found a temple. Each was a little different, made in different times and by different rulers. After walking several kilometers, some Australian guys that had hired a tuktuk insisted I hitch a ride with them, so went to a place called Ta Prohm. Oh, and that Google maps camera car happened to be over here right now so I may show up walking on multiple dirt roads in Siem Reap. These temples were also neat, as they are being engulfed by huge trees. They are also doing restoration work on some, which was interesting to watch. Took a lunch break for some traditional Khmer coconut curry soup with fish, vegetables, pineapple and a side of rice. It was a delicious roadside lunch! Walked further on the loop of temples and finally felt templed-out for the day, so hired a guy with a motorcycle to take me back to my hotel.
The next morning, I slept in until 8, a luxury for me. Had breakfast at the delicious hotel buffet (they have cheese... and real cheese is almost impossible to get in SE Asia due to refrigeration issues). Decided to run errands and wander around, so walked to town and explored, booked my boat ticket, and found and signed up for the cooking class someone had recommended. Around lunchtime, I decided to try Angkor Wat again. The tuktuk drivers gave me a tip to go during lunch, as many tour groups head back during lunch. Found a motorcycle driver who said he could drive me, wait for as long as I wanted to stay, and drive me back to my hotel for $5. I had a much better time... a fraction of the people and got to explore for hours. Really impressive piece of architecture and very different from the previous temples visited. Took an afternoon swim to cool off during the afternoon rain and tried to go to see a local boxing match at the arena, but they are apparently only on Monday and Wednesdays.
Head up the Nam Ou river through beautiful cloud covered limestone mountains. The weather moves fast, bringing sunshine and then downpour. Arrive in the little village, and instantly liked it. Ask around and am pointed down the main road (there is only one road with a temple at one end and the end of the road within sight). Of course the place is at the far end, and it starts to pour as I carry my backpack through the muddy street. Since there is no road access to this village, there are no tuktuks (the only time I would have really liked one) and I only see one motorbike) but lots of chickens and ducks. An elderly man allows me to duck into his house as it really pours for a few minutes. I see a sign for the ever elusive Suan Phao Guesthouse and Bungalows on the road, but it doesn't look like much and is attached to the pharmacy. Stepping in, a neighbor goes to find the owner. A woman comes from across the way and thankfully, she speaks some English. I explain what happened and return the key and she is very appreciative. She asks I need a room, and I am a little apprehensive, based on the look of the house, but say I will take a look. She takes me a few meters around the side dirt path and it opens to a garden and five bungalows, right on the river. It is perfect. She gives it to me for 50,000 kip (about $7) a night. They recently got 24 hour electricity in the village (used to only run from 9am til 6pm) and it has an indoor shower and toilets (still have to fill with the water bucket to flush but beats going outside with the rest of the town and bathing on the side of the main road in one of the few town faucets). But there is a big bed with mosquito net, the roof doesn't leak, and there is a balcony with a hammock overlooking the garden, river, and mountains (and I LOVE hammocks... I would probably live in one if I could). I spend the rest of the afternoon and evening swaying on my hammock, watching small hummingbirds and butterflies feed on the garden flowers until night brings out the loud sound of cicadas, crickets, frogs, and fun jungle insects, and bats fly by occasionally, with flashes of lightening in distant mountains.
The next three days was mainly spent relaxing in the hammock, reading, watching the villagers and their pigs or other livestock walk around, drinking the Lao tea and coffee and ginger tea that the owner brought me or heading down the street to her sister Ning Ning's restaurant. There can't be more than 100 people in this town and a handful of tourists during rainy season, so if a restaurant isn't open, you just wait or wander down the street looking for the owner. The first night there are a couple other tourists in the bungalows and the second night are a few more that I helped bring when the afternoon boat comes in (you can hear it puttering up the river long before it gets here). The last two nights, it is just me and family members. Turns out the reason the pharmacy is here is because her husband is the village doctor and she used to be a nurse in Vientiane and Luang Prabang. They also have a wonderful 12 year old daughter who knows little English, but visits with me. We occasionally draw pictures to communicate (she is a pretty good artist) and she likes wearing my hoodie sweatshirt a friend gave me for my travels. In the evening, I find a nice little restaurant and bar with excellent Lao whiskey cocktails and a nice owner.
With several days here, I am in no rush to go trekking, so I wait until a sunny day. The red road occasionally goes through cold mountain streams and goes up and down the mist covered mountains, alongside green rice and corn fields. There are little dirt paths that seem hidden until people pop out or disappear down them that lead to small villages. Butterflies are everywhere, and land on me as I explore. Cows, chickens, and pigs run around. Shoeless village women carrying machetes walk beside me for a ways and then smile and disappear into fields. Stop in to a small village for a break and watch the kids play. I am given some type of bamboo drink by a friendly family that is shared amongst several other villagers that stop by. It was refreshing and a little peppery (hopefully the water used to make it was safe, but it would have been rude to turn down their hospitality... stomach of iron, don't let me down!) Hung out for a bit and then continued further on the road. After about 5 hours of the up and down road, the villagers try to get me to pass in this deep river (past their waists) as some strip down to cross it. But I decline, as I figured I would not be able to keep my bag and camera dry and the hill after it appears to be a steep, endless incline. Turn back and head back to town.