A dirty Journey In a Dusty country

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So we had some hitches leaving Koh Kong. We didn't have enough money to leave and there were no AtM's in Koh Kong so I had to head back to the border with our trusty helper Pia on the back of his motorcycle. we left early with hopes that Jessie and I could make the boat at 8am. upon arrival at the border (i had to cross to use the ATM) we discovered the ATm was broken. So back to the guesthouse we went. At 9am Pia's boss said called the bank company and the problem was solved. We returned to the border only to find that this was not the case. I had to talk a Thai border offical into letting me hire a bike to take me to the nearst bank in Thailand (about twenty minutes away). After much humming and hawing I was permited to leave my passport with him and seek out a bank. At the check point I was asked for my passport and had to yet again explain the situation. Not as easy as it sounds. After forty minutes of harrowing motorcycle riding I was permitted to cross the border back into Cambodia... finally we were on our way. We got the front seats in a share taxi that would take us from Koh Kong to Phnom Penh. The journey was incredble. We traveled over dirt roads through the jungle, many of which were so bumpy that I ended up sitting on the drivers lap more than once. When we arrived at a river we had to cross on a "ferry" if you consider two outboard motors, palmtrees lashed inro a platform and pontoons a ferry. Part way through the journey it began to rain, a consequence that turned the dirt roas into slick mud resembling baby poo in colour and consistency. Our van almost skidded of the road and over a cliff on the slippery shit. After everyone had changed their underwear and got their breath back the driver once again began to blast Cambdia pop music and speed down the dirt road.
After we reached the paved road the van broke down and our faithful driver flagged a pick up to take us and 12 other exhausted travellers the rest of the way to Phom Penh. the ride was another 2hrs. We found a driver to take us to Diamond's guesthouse after being turned away from Okay and we agreed to let him take us around the following day. After cleaning 40 pounds of red dirt and road dust from our ears and noses we ate then crashed in our room.
We were up early with giddy excitement for one of the most depressing days of my entire 26 years. The first stop was S21, a school that was converted into a prison/ interogation/ torture for Cambodians under the rule of the Khmer Rouge. It has since been converted into a museum. S21 housed 22,000 enemies of the party, seven of which survived. If they did not die at s21 they were sent to the killing feilds for slaughter. This place had an errie pulse enhanced by the many instruments of torture, empty rooms and mug shots of the many victims of this hell on earth. upon entering the first building i felt a weight in my chest and a lump in my throat that did not pass until we were far from there. The most unsettling thing was the floor; filthly yellow and white tiles over which screaming cambodians were dragged to their torture, on which they were left to die of their wounds or strave, where that sat and wept for the family they would only see again in the next life.
From s21 we went to the killing feilds which was not nearly as bad. It was actually beautiful until we remembered exactly what transpired on this ground. It was said that to save bullets many victims had their throats slit with a knife if it was available, with a palm branch if not (or simply for a change of pace).
After the killing Feilds we had to stop for lunch ( we both had head aches) but were barely able to eat. After our unenjoyable meal we headed to an orphange, another disparing sight to round out our day of chuckles. Picture Britney Spears' house. About the exact opposite but worst. There was razor wire lining the pit of garbage that was the front yard. The building itself was constructed of scrape material. The building leaked like a sieve and was not protection against harmful vermin like a rat I saw in the market which was about the size of my foot and had the plague, tb, polio and was missing part of its tail (probably from a landmine). The orphanage subsists on donations only. The government doesn't help and neither do cambodians. We pledged $60 usd and purchased vegetables and meat so the kids could have dinner. One boy came over, gave me a hug, said thank you so much and gave me a drawing of the Cambodian country side. A heart wrenching day to say the least.
The next day we decided to keep it light as we had plans to head to Siem Reap the day after. We decided to shop and made our way between fair trade shops that train and employ "street kids, landmine victims, single mothers, and other poorest of the poor" to make handicrafts, the proceeds going to further training and the wages of the workers. we can't say what we got because that will spoil christmas, but we definatley regret having to hump our gifts around for the remainder of the trip.
We retired early and made plans to head to Siem Reap where I'm writing from now. We didn't do anything except travel today and I'm covered with crickets and grasshoppers and is my keyboard, my screen and the lens of my glasses. I can only hope none have crawled into my ears and laid eggs that will hatch and burrow into my brain. Ta for now, I need to get awat from these little critters. Next stop, Ankor Wat.

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Comments

[Sharron]

Crickets and grasshoppers..........
Other than wanting to desperately take a shower, with the feeling of crickets and grasshoppers crawling all over me, your latest entry to your journal certainly helped us visualize your most recent episodes and I still continue to love that sense of humour! Sharron

[Sharron]

Life in Cambodia is certainly exciting
Certainly sounds like a distinct way of life in this country, so unlike the relaxing beaches back in Thailand.....you will need a vacation just to recover from your current experiences for sure!