http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Asia , Cambodia , East en-us Sat, 20 Mar 2010 19:03:12 +0000 Sat, 20 Mar 2010 19:03:12 +0000 Nach einer siebenstndigen Busfahrt berwiegend durch eine staubtrockene Steppenlandschaft bin ich mittlerweile in Kratie angekommen einer kleinen Stadt am Mekong auf der Strecke Richtung Laos. Nachdem ich die wenigen Schlepper abgeschttelt hatte fand ich recht schnell ein gnstiges Zimmer in einem Gsehaus mit Blick direkt auf den Markt und zei Fenstern an zwei unterschiedlichen Wnden wodur http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Kratie/blog-476490.html I had spent a lot of time staring at the bring empty green spot in northeastern Cambodia on my large National Geographic map on the wall in my study. As a 3250 square kilometer national park bordered by large protected areas on the Laos and Vietnam sides of its borders this represented one of if not the last wilderness in mainland Southeast Asia. I hadn't been to Cambodia since December 2005 a http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Banlung/blog-473629.html It was a long seven and half hour bus trip to Kratie flat boring countryside very dusty in places though the roads were all bitumen. Though it was a VIP bus DVD's were still played at top volume most of the trip which gets hard to take after a few hours. A popular DVD series features is a male comediansinger whose screeching songs become very grating to our ears though he's obviously very http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/blog-464348.html I'm already a little concerned that my fitness or lack of it may prove a problem and so this trek may need to be 'tailored' a little. No shit Sherlock as it turned out Anyway got picked up by my guide on a motorbike. This wqas interesting as I have a large rucksack weighing a mere 25lbs and he has a rice sack with improvised carrying loops tied to it to make a rucksack that weighs even more a http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Banlung/blog-461989.html Proper Bacon and fried eggs with fried cubes of potato and onion for brekkie then the moto chap turns up 30 minutes late no surprise there and off to the market.Banlung Market is a big one as Banlung is the provincial capitol. The 'minority peoples'as the khmers call them are here in force selling all sorts of herbs and plants gathered from the jungle where many of them live vegetables like po http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Banlung/blog-461974.html The bus to Banlung was 30 minutes late and there were only 10 people on board. The journey is supposed to take 4.5 hours at least that's what the ticket seller told me. 2 hours later we got turfed off the bus at Stung Treng because they said the bus had broken down It was perfectly all right and I couldn't work out why we were in Stung Treng anyway as it's the long way round. I reckon they didn http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Banlung/blog-461944.html Ratanakiri is great and am off on my first jungle trek for 3 days tomorrow needless to say there is no tinterweb in the jungle and I won't be posting or replying to emails until Friday evening Cambodia time GMT plus 6 hours which is when there is electricity until midnight More Friday folks http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Banlung/blog-460791.html Up and grappling a bicycle down the 80 odd steps down to the boat to cross over to the Island by 0800. We get to the other side and it's a hard slog pushing the bike througj the soft sand for a quarter of a mile before get up over the levee and onto the Island proper a small boy tells me his nbame is ''Dollar'' and then proceeds to ask me for money he doesn't get it I also notice to my amaze http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Kratie/blog-460335.html Ever had the feeling you've been conned I've just parted with 80 and I still don't know what I've paid for it's supposed to be for a trip around the area including a couple of boat fares but the story keeps changing every time I try and clarify what is included and paid for already. I decide to go with the flow and jump into the waiting TutTut and off we head North out of Kratie. The Khmers se http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Kratie/blog-460320.html Ban lung is the biggest town in the rattanakiri province which is up in the north eastern corner of cambodia. It has paved streets but even so it is a very dusty town. A layer of red dust covers just about everything. It is also a bit out of the way but it is pretty unique and we are definitely glad we made it up there.The bus from Kratie went pretty smoothly. As I mentioned in the last blog we http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Banlung/blog-459935.html Kratie was basically just a stopover between Siem Reap and Ban Lung but we made the most of it. Kratie is right on the Mekong and it is famous at least among backpackers for it's nearby pod of fresh water dolphins. We decided to take the bus from siem reap to kratie 8 hours or so see the dolphins the next morning and then catch another bus to Ban Lung 6 hours.Our bus left siem reap at 8 http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Kratie/blog-458335.html We made our way East from Siem Reap to Kratie this took a monotonous 12 hours by various buses all of which broke down at some point. We eventually arrived in the dark never a favourite for any traveller but were kindly greeted by a man and his tuk tuk and a sign for the guesthouse we had earmarked to head too. So off we went and ended up at YouHong Guesthouse 5 for a double ensuite not ba http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Kratie/blog-455010.html Salut Le 14 novembre dernier on s'est elance de Kratie vers Ban lung dans un minibus local. A part les choux dans notre dos qui laissaient echapper une coulisse entre nos jambes un jeune qui ecoute sa musique sur son cellulaire sans ecouteurs un passager qui refuse de me laisser de la place et un autre qui se vide le nez de facon peu gracieuse directement sur le plancher ca s'est bien p http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Banlung/blog-454985.html Salut a tous le 12 novembre on est parti pour Kratie un autre 7h de route. On est arrive a bon port accueillis par une meute de tuktuk qui nous offraient tous la meilleure guesthouse comme d'habitude. On a decide d'aller voir un guesthouse recommande par le restaurateur de Kampot mais etant trop cher pour nous nous avons opte pour un guesthouse suggere par un chauffeur de tuktuk. Aussit http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Kratie/blog-454975.html Tag 1 AnreiseMit Tabletten fuer meinen Bauch bepackt gings um 7 Uhr los. Der Bus war bis auf den letzten Platz belegt. Ich der einzige Barang westlicher Tourist. Wir kaempften uns durch den Verkehr von Phnom Penh und luden hie und da noch Leute und Reissaecke auf. Am Rande der Stadt sah ich eine nackte Frau auf der Strasse. Ob die wohl irgendwo ausgebrochen ist Umso weiter wir von der Stadt w http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Banlung/blog-440346.html 23.07.09 During my last days in Cambodia I had to learn that not everything can be perfect all the time. After a great time in Phnom Penh I enthusiastically went to Kratie which is famous for itrsquos fresh water dolphins and of course I didnrsquot want to miss them out. As soon as I had arrived to this little place on the Mekong river I looked for a guesthouse which already seemed quite aban http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Kratie/blog-427301.html Advice to travellers If you sustain any injury more serious than a papercut demand medical evacuation to Bangkok. I donrsquot know what the hospitals in Phnom Penh and Siem Riep are like but in the provinces the situation is not great. I literally could not believe it when they told me they perform surgery at the hospital in Kampong Thom. How Itrsquos tiny. Therersquos no glass in the wi http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/blog-415789.html The rumor is true.....we are coming home due to lack of funds you have now heard it officially from us. We fly home on 4th October we are still going to all of the countries we planned to just spending less time in each.so excited to see you all. See you all in OctoberLove Laura and Helen x x http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Kratie/blog-413996.html The Cambodian border was a little wooden hut about 100m further down the road than the Lao hut that stamped us out. We were left standing on the roadside with our backpacks for ages while visas were issued to everyone. Luckily a lovely Cambodian lady has seized the opportunity and arrived with a cool box full of drinks for sale at the bargain price of US1. They seem to prefer US to their own cur http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/Kratie/blog-410031.html I havenrsquot done anything worth reporting since I got back from Siem Riep. There was some brief excitement when we received a visit from one of the Phnom Penh psychiatrists and some Belgian women whose function I could not ascertain. They took me melon shopping a delicate art I can now identify a good watermelon by how it sounds and out for dinner where I was fed mixed ants and something t http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/East/blog-409280.html