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Published: March 26th 2010
I bought my bus tickets to Phnom Penh through the hotel, we used the Mekong Express mainly because it had good reviews on the internet. The pick up was at 6:30 AM and the arrival in Phnom Penh around 1PM. The journey was long but comfortable, the road was narrow and we stopped for lunch. Shea and I wandered around the market and she managed to pick up a cool cap for $1, I was on the look out for the local delicacy, spider, but no luck, lots of other bugs but no spiders.
The hotel had been very helpful in getting most of our transport needs. It helped that they always had a number of licensed tuk-tuk drivers available. They promised me a room with a balcony over the pool when I booked but when I got there, they gave me a choice instead of giving me the assigned room, which I’m guessing, had never been assigned. So I didn’t get the room I wanted (although I was given a choice of a better room, or the one I finally took). The taxi that I asked them to arrange at Poi Pet never showed up, though in light of
the situation with the police at the border, I’m not at all surprised. Service at the hotel was great, everyone was polite and friendly, and I mean everybody! The breakfast was a bit boring and could be much better with a bit more effort, but hey, at least they gave a choice. The bathroom could have been a bit cleaner (there was mould between some of the tiles) but overall, I have no real complaints, the pool was great, the rooms were large and clean, the bed was comfy and a good size and most important of all, the A.C. was excellent! The other guests were mostly westerners though I did see a few Asian guests. And mostly couples. Oh! And the view from the room was not bad either!
River (Brenda’s friend from school days) and Manish were there to meet us at Phnom Penh. I have known River and Manish for quite a while now. We were there at the hospital in Bangkok when Tara was born, and as Manish pointed out later, Shea was taking pictures of Tara back then. They had graciously invited us to stay with them while in Phnom Penh and took us
into their beautiful home and introduced us to their friends, colleagues and the expat life in Cambodia. After settling down (Shea and I napped) we were invited to tag along to a house warming party. Had a lot of fun, met some great people and later, after dropping off the womenfolk, Manish and I hit another party where we made a serious attempt to get shitfaced on B52s that he made and wound up the night at a bar where the band ended their set with David Bowie’s Space Oddity! What an introduction to Phnom Penh! Pity I didn’t have my camera with me, then again maybe just as well.
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Charlie
non-member comment
Nice digs mate!