What a journey!

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We bought bus tickets to the Cambodia border and planned to get a taxi to the other side to Siem Riep. We had heard about the scams that occured mostly on the other side of the border where the bus suddenly appears to break down and then arriving in Siem Riep at about midnight where they escort you to a hostel they get commission for. We weren't going to fall for that old trick!

The bus picked up at 7am, not a big bus with air con and a toilet as promised and showed to us on a glossy picture, just a Belgium couple and an uncomfortable journey ahead. The buses suspension felt like it was bouncing up and down on a couple of bed springs, we still managed to get in a few hours sleep though!

After about 5 hours we reached the boarder after waiting in a restaurant for an hour for no apparent reason, changing buses to one with no back and sides, having our passports taken off us and being overcharged for our visa's. Entering Cambodia we were shocked at how much a boarder can make a difference. We were faced with dirt tracks, children and people begging . After being forced in a taxi by the guy on the bus (which were part of his company) we set off on the very bumpy journey ahead. He was a man on a mission there was no getting away from him, although we tried to escape him a number of times!

Our 5 hour journey consisted of a vast array of pot holes, single track bridges and was the worst journey ever. Although dehydrated we were too scared to take even a sip of water in case we needed the toilet, no service or Little Chefs in sight! We were unsure whether we were still going to get scammed after Mark pointed out we were running out petrol and the driver passed a number of petrol stations (if you can call them that) The driver also kept being phoned on his mobile (we were suspicious!) but eventually we reached Siem Reap. However the driver drove straight passed our hostel even though we pointed this out to him. After refusing to get out the car (I learn't Mark can be very stubborn!!!) he took us back to our hostel were we had a well deserved beer.

In Siem Reap we hired a tuk tuk driver for the day for 8 dollars, who took us around the temples. Starting at 8 am we walked around 5 different temples including Ankor Wat, very impressive but by 4 pm and an enthusiastic tuk tuk driver who was very shocked when we said we had had enough and wanted to go back. Although wanting to stay in Siem Reap longer (good food and bars) our hostel was booked up so we took a 6 hour journey to the capital of Cambodia Phnom Penh.

We dumped our stuff in a hostel and went for a beer, but checked out in the same hour after Mark took pity on my horrified face, as we sat having a beer, that I would have to stay there. In Phnom Penh we had a morbid morning looking around S21 (a prison were men, women and children were sent under the Khmer Rough Regime were they were kept in horrific circumstances before being killed. We went to see the killing fields were they had a monument of skulls and as you walked across the ground bones and peoples clothing were they had dug up the bodies were visible. Interesting but not that enjoyable

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Comments

[lou]

The only way is up!
Good on Mark for not getting out of the taxi I say - Those Asian tuk-tuk/taxi drivers are right scam artists! It doesn't sound like we missed too much fun stuff by not going to Cambodia, phew...and i thought Laos was bad x

[Mark and Bex]

Sick of scammers!
I know it becomes a right pain after a while when people are just trying to pull the wool over your eyes. You feel like saying I'll give you some money but just take me to where I want to go and stop lying and wasting my time!!!