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Published: February 13th 2009
Yes, we're still alive! Nearly 3 weeks since the last blog, and an entire country has been and gone since then, so it's high time for an update. We're now in Vietnam, having travelled through Cambodia from Thailand.
We left you last on our final day in Kanchanaburi, awaiting transport down to the South of Thailand. This turned out to be one of the longest and most convoluted journeys so far - 2 buses, 2 motos, 1 boat, 1 jeep ride, and a train (on which we managed to fall asleep and miss our stop!). Eventually, almost 24 hours since leaving Kanchanaburi, we arrived on Ko Phayam. Ko Phayam is just off the Andaman coast, and a relatively unknown Thai island (compared to the likes of Phuket etc.). Its only 11km x 4km in size and inhabited by a few expats and tourists, and just 1 village of locals who support themselves by fishing, and harvesting cashew nuts. It was exactly what we were hoping for - not too touristy, but still enough places to eat and drink, and not too big, but still plenty of exploring opportunites. We found a great place to stay; in a 'rustic' bamboo bungalow just off the main beach. Predictably this beach was our first port of call, and we settled down to top up the slightly-faded tans. However, James' sunbathing stamina is nowhere near the level of Hannah, so after melting for an hour or so, he took the debatably wise decision to hire another motorbike (this time with gears - of course it's a good idea!), and set out to explore the island. We regrouped later that evening - Hannah sporting a 'healthy' glow, and James remarkably unscathed - before enjoying a cheap meal at a little local place. Hannah's caffeine cravings hadn't been completely satisfied by her morning fix, so we were forced to visit a nearby cafe and indulge in some fresh coffee and homemade cakes. Everything was truly delicious, and we became daily customers. The place was also frequented by a lovely British woman called Karen - a long time sufferer of the travel bug, and currently teaching English in China - she was staying in the bungalow next to us and we became good neighbours over the next couple of days.
The next day began with Hannah's reluctant agreement to get on the back of the motorbike for James to show her some of the sights around the island. Despite her obvious apprehension (due to James' recent track record on two wheels) there were no further mishaps and we had a great time soaking up the island vibe. We ended up finding a fantastic secluded beach and, hired snorkelling gear in hand, we settled down for the rest of the day. The weather was perfect, the beach deserted, the water crystal, and the snorkelling incredible - it doesn't get much better! Another quiet beach was located, and the same formula followed, the next morning. After returning the bike in the afternoon, we took advantage of the complimentary kayaks on offer at our guesthouse and paddled around happily for the rest of the day. The best sunset yet was the perfect finale for our time on the island. We were back on the mainland by the next afternoon, and jumped on a night bus back to Bangkok.
On returning to Thailand's capital, we were tempted to spend a few more days - our first impressions before may have been a little premature, causing us to leave without really seeing the best the place has to offer. A '3 nights for the price of 2' offer made up our minds for us, and James headed straight to the Grand Palace, while Hannah (who has 'seen it all before!') perused some local markets. Once reunited, James convinced Hannah that a visit to the nearby medical museum would be the perfect way to spend the afternoon: pickled foetuses, mummified cadavers, graphic pictures of gunshot victims, and an in-depth look at tropical parasites caused Hannah's swift reassessment of the extent she should listen to her boyfriend in the future. Climbing the 'Golden Mountain' to enjoy views over the city in the late afternoon glow was more to her taste, and a better way to end the day.
Chinatown was first on the itinerary for the following morning, and we spent a while wandering around the bustling district, absorbing the vibrant atmosphere, and the exotic sights, smells and sounds. We then found the best for both of us on offer in the nearby mall - where Hannah could splash out in the unexpected Chinese New Year sales, and James could beat people up and shoot zombies.... in the arcade, of course! A visit to 'Jim Thompson's House' (an American who moved to Thailand to trade silk after the 2nd World War) in the afternoon was a potentially boring activity, hugely enriched by our 'English' tour guide, who pronounced everything funny, and said everything twice. Ahhhh.... racism.
Our last full day in Bangkok wasn't filled with such productive activities - eating, drinking, shopping, and planning our early departure for Cambodia the next day. We were en route to the border by 8am. The Thai/Cambodia border towns are notoriously corrupt (especially on the Cambodian side), and we has to keep our wits about us to avoid getting scammed too severely. However, when even the Cambodian embassy staff overcharge you $10 for a visa because it's their 'express service', there's only so much one can do! We decided to try good old power in numbers - grouping up with another English couple and an American girl - and managed to not get ripped off too badly for a share taxi out of 'bandit territory' and onward to Siem Riep. There's not much to see or do in Siem Riep itself, but it's become a huge tourist centre due to the towns proximity to the Temples of Angkor. This is the main attraction in Cambodia, and the Cambodian people take a fierce national pride from the place - the number one beer is called Angkor, and the Angkor Wat temple is on their flag. Angkor was the capital of Cambodia's Khmer Empire, which ruled over an area much bigger than the size of modern Cambodia, between the 9th and 13th centuries. The ancient city covers a huge area, and features hundreds of temples - all architectural wonders, and some truly mind-blowing!
It was too late to start exploring when we first arrived, but we arranged for a driver to pick up the two of us and Jenny (the American girl from the share taxi) stupendously early the next morning. We rose at 4.30am and made our way to Angkor Wat for sunrise. The most revered temple in the whole complex, and not without reason, Angkor Wat is the largest religious building in the world, and simply stunning - watching the sun rise behind it is a particularly awesome spectacle. The rest of our day was spent visiting the other main temples, including the fortified city of Angkor Thom, the beautifully overgrown Ta Prohm (used in the Tomb Raider film!), and the detailed carvings at Bantaey Kdei, before finishing with sunset 60m up Pnomh Bakhaeng - a long and tiring day, but every second enjoyed! It's impossible to really get across the wonder and awe that these ancient buildings can provoke - it's a truly inspiring place, and one we can't recommend highly enough. We have many fantastic photos that are much more effective in this task than anything we can write, so we'll try to upload a few in the next couple of days.
On our second day at Angkor, the three of us decided to hire bikes and cycle to some of the lesser-known (but just as impressive) structures. We ended up travelling about 50km in total, resulting in another absolutely knackering, but wonderfully fulfilling day. Jenny was leaving the next day (whereas the two of us had purchased 3 day passes), so we had a farewell meal that evening and parted ways in the morning. After some discussion over how to spend our final day in the area, we decided to hire a driver and visit the highly praised, but slightly out of the way, Bantaey Srei - 40km from Siem Riep. This cost an extra $15, but was worth every penny - it's only a small temple, but a real gem; intricately carved and beautifully preserved - again, photos to follow soon. Boarding our bus to Battambang early the next morning, we waved goodbye to Angkor - possibly the highlight of our trip so far. This particular bus ride featured old episodes of Mr.Bean on continuous repeat, with all the locals engrossed and howling with laughter - slightly surreal, but very amusing.
Battambang is Cambodia's second largest city (although you wouldn't guess so with a population of under 50,000), and while there's not much of interest in the town itself, there's plenty to see in the surrounding countryside. We only had 1 full day here, so decided to hire a motorbike and driver for 5 hours - 2 motorbikes = twice the price, so we took the economically wise, but slightly uncomfortable decision to cram all three of us on 1 bike. First stop was Pnomh Sampeau, a limestone outcrop 20km out of town. We spent a good couple of hours climbing to the temple on the summit, and crawling around in various nooks and crannys (the monkeys were an unexpected bonus for James!). There was only time to visit one more site, so we headed for Wat Banan, a small Angkorian style temple 360 steps up a mountain. Quite impressive, but no match for the splendour of the real Angkor temples. This concluded our flying visit to Battambang, and we were back on a bus and heading for the capital the next morning.
On arrival in Pnomh Penh we only had time to find a suitable hotel before turning in for the night. However, this was followed by a very productive first full day - rising early and visiting a couple of temples, the central market, independence monument, and the country's only mall (box set of all the Bond films for just $10 - James has never been so excited!) in one morning. It became too hot to wander around in the middle of the day, so we found an air-con cafe for a long, siesta-style lunch. Despite this, we still managed to fit in a lengthy visit to the national museum, and a pleasant walk along Sisowath Quay before the day was done.
Day 2 in Pnomh Penh followed a drastically different them, for reasons that will soon become apparent. You may have noticed how we've made no mention thus far of the one event that really sticks out in Cambodia's recent history - the genocide carried out by the Khmer Rouge and Pol Pot 30 years ago. The KR took power in 1975 and, under Pol Pot's leadership, began relocating the entire population from the cities into the countryside, forcing the country to start again at 'Year Zero' - living as peasants in an agrarian cooperative. Hundreds of thousands were systematically killed for any perceived misdemeanour, no matter how slight - something as seemingly harmless as wearing glasses or speaking a foreign language was punishable by death. During the 3 1/2 year reign of the KR nearly 2 million Cambodians perished, a number that becomes even more shocking with the knowledge that the total population before their takeover was only around 7 million. Almost an entire generation was wiped out in less than 4 years.
The KR used an old school in Pnomh Penh as the country's biggest 'interrogation centre'. It became known as S21, and almost 20,000 people were taken there for 'questioning'; submitted to brutal tortures before being executed - only 7 of those who entered ever came back out alive. This place has now been turned into a museum, but little has been altered since the KR's downfall. The tiny cells and classrooms used as holding rooms have been left as they were found. Some rooms are filled with thousands of black and white mug shots, meticulously taken by the guards every time a new prisoner was brought in. It's an incredibly powerful and emotionally draining place, posing the unanswerable question of how these events were allowed to occur. It can produce feelings of awkwardness and even embarrassment from visiting such a site as just another 'activity' for that day. But, it's a vitally important reminder of such a dark period, and treated by the workers and visitors with utmost respect. We left feeling more than a little dazed, and after some thought James decided to head to the 'Killing Fields', but Hannah had seen enough and went for some much needed retail therapy instead. The 'Killing Fields' are 15km out of town, and were used as the slaughter/dumping ground for most of victims from S21. About half of the bodies were exhumed in the early 80's, but the rest have been left - there were just too many graves, and the process of identification was virtually impossible. The area is actually quite beautiful, with lots of lush greenery, birds, and butterflies. It's hard to imagine such heinous crimes being committed here, but the tower of skulls, piles of ragged clothes, and half-dug pits serve as unflinching reminders. All of this may not sound like the ideal way to spend the time, and the day was far from pleasant, but we're still glad we chose to spend it as we did.
A change of gear was needed for our last day in the city, so we sat in lots of cafes, perused some book shops, wandered aimlessly for a while, and haggled like demons in the Russian market. Which finally brings us to today! Another eventless day of travelling - we crossed the border into Vietnam this afternoon and arrived in Ho Chi Minh City a couple of hours ago. Tomorrow will be dedicated to preparing for the imminent arrival of Carol (James' mum), who is staying with us for a week, before we trade her for Mags (Hannah's mum) and Jim (her dashing partner) for the following two weeks. Much mum fun on the way!!! x
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Jim Hewlett
non-member comment
Thanks
Thanks for another fascinating travelblog, and especially for describing me as "dashing"! Jim