CAMBODIA

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This was our first visit to Cambodia. The only deep water port for this country is Sihanoukville. One of the tourist guides calls this town charmless. While Cambodia is still a very underdeveloped country, to us that is actually part of its charm. Sihanoukville is blessed with beautiful beaches and many fortune seekers would like to turn this into another Pattaya or a mini Las Vegas. But fortunately it is still light years away from becoming a sex trade hub or a gambling Mecca. There are a number of casinos here and Cambodia is gaining a reputation for its girlie bars. But right now I think most travelers would come to this country for the beaches and economical travel. It is primarily a haven for backpackers out on their world explorations seeking sun and sand, warm sea water, inexpensive hotels and reasonably priced food.

Cambodia is just now emerging from the horrors of the last half century. Under the Khmer Rouge over one quarter of the population was killed, starved or worked to death. The genocide did not spare the Buddhist religion where 95% of the temples were destroyed and 60,000 monks virtually disappeared into the killing fields. According to one historian, in just a few short years “the center of Cambodian culture, its spiritual incarnation and its institutions” were erased by the Pol Pot regime. There are still approximately 6 million land mines in Cambodia and the maimed can be seen everywhere. The thirty years of war and slaughter have left a permanent mark on the people and the country from which they are still recovering.

We took the shuttle to the city market which is the very heart of Sihanoukville. It isn’t a tourist market but one which caters to the locals. Whatever one needs in life can be found here. There are the usual fruit and fish stands and butcher markets. But there are also jewelers, tailors, beauticians, florists and barbers. The narrow aisles have cats, dogs, kids and beggars with missing limbs. I was surprised by all of the bra shops (padded) and seeing stall after stall of beautiful evening gowns. I can’t imagine for the life of me where in this dusty town anyone would have the opportunity to wear a fancy sequined, strapless cocktail dress.

When we left the port we noticed a young man driving a tuk-tuk alongside our bus. He kept waving and smiling and followed us all the way to the market. As soon as we got off the bus we were besieged by dozens of tuk-tuk drivers wanting us to use their services for the day. But we decided to hire the enterprising guy who tailed us from the port. Wei took us all around the town and out to some Wats (Buddhist temples), past the crocodile pond and into the jungle area where we got to see families of monkeys in the wild. There was a one week old baby monkey clinging to his mother and the bolder adult monkeys who came out to the road to get bananas being sold by a vendor to passing travelers. We ended up at the only five star resort in this part of Cambodia, called the Sokha Beach Hotel. A nice lunch, a long walk on the beach and a swim in the pool completed our outing.

When we returned to the ship we met up with some young Cambodians who are in school learning the hotel and travel trade. Our friend Bart had arranged for their visit to the ship. The security police at the port gate had not gotten their names and they ended up waiting three hours to board the ship. Fortunately our friends Kitty and Norm were coming back from lunch when Sophano, a member of the group, stopped them at the gate and asked for help in getting them through security. Well Kitty took charge and in very short order had them all on board, showed them around the ship and made sure they got some lunch. It was such a pleasure to meet them and to feel their enthusiasm for travel and their excitement of being on a luxury ship. The tourist industry in Cambodia is in its infancy but with young people like these, it is sure to be headed in the right direction. We wished there was a port closer to Angkor Wat or even Phnom Penh but at least we got a small taste of this emerging country.

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Photos

Easy Rider
"My temple or yours,Honey?"

Wei, our tuk-tuk driver
He showed us pictures of his 2 month old daughter.

Wild Monkeys
"Hey Hey we're the Monkees!"

Cambodian Monk
He had a Cell Phone.

Comments

[Norm & Linda]

Cambodia and see you "soon".
Hey, I really liked what I saw in Cambodia. It looks like a great friendly place to visit. Well we finally made a decision on our scheduled cruise to Israel, etc. We can hardly recognize the reservation we made while we were on the 2010 cruise they have changed it so much. So we cancelled it and changed the reservation with Michelle to do the Round South America 2012 cruise. The "plus" for us is that we will be back with you. That really put the frosting on the cake. We are on the wait list to get back on the 7th deck where we would rather be plus saving us about 5,000. We will be there one way or another. If Morton Dean & Mary are still on the ship, tell them "Hi". Morty, me, Emerald Lagasee and Lizzy Borden are all from the same town. Needless to say, I am the least important person on this prestegious list. Keep having fun and love your blog. Hugs, Norm inda

[Sandy Cannon]

Sioux Falls
We just left Sioux Falls today after the SD Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction yesterday. The guys in the band gathered on Wed. and practiced Thurs. and Fri. We had such fun reconnecting with the band, friends and family. We had our fill of rock and roll music last night. The in-house bands started about 5:00 and the inductee groups started at 6:30. Mike's band played from 6:30-7:00. Groups played in 1/2 hour segments until almost midnight. The last group was The Mob out of Chicago. They had 14 members with 7 horn players. The group played at the Mocamba Club downtown in the late 60's to the early 80's. It was a fabulous show band. The only negative about the last several days was the weather: 30's and rain to sleet to snow showers. We are happy to head back south. I had unch with Peeker, Nancy Doorn, Anne Frankman, and Gayle Angle. Gayle's husband, Chet, is terminally ill with lung cancer--not a good deal. She is quite resigned. Other than that sad news, the gals and their families are doing great. I was at Waterford a few times but never encountered your dad. How is he? I always enjoy reading your blogs. Sandy