Our next day trip promised to be a long one, and we were ready and waiting when the mini bus pulled up outside Horizons around 8.00am. Today we're visiting Prasat Preah Vihear, a temple further north from Siem Reap, on the Thai border. But first, a history lesson..... Preah Vihear, a Hindu inspired 11th century temple, is located in the Dongrek Mountains, which hug the border between Cambodia and Thailand. It is perched on the edge of a giant cliff, about 625 metres above sea level in Preah Vihear Province, Northern Cambodia, 625klm from the capital city of Phnom Penh and 270klm from Siem Reap. The magnificent ruins of this ancient Hindu temple have been the cause of serious border skirmishes between Thai and Cambodian soldiers at recent as 2011, when 17 people were killed during ... read more

I'm back at Tokae Restaurant before they open on Friday morning, about 6.15am. Why do I leave myself so much time? I should know by now buses are never on time and today's was no exception. I had plenty of time to eat breakfast and enjoy a second cup of Lipton's. Eventually the mini bus was on the road, overcrowded as usual. I think today we had 21 adults and a very cranky toddler on board and I was relieved to fall out of the van in Kompong Cham three hours later, over the crying child and having to carry my backpack on my lap due to lack of space. I gave my fellow travellers a sympathetic smile and a wave as I disappeared down the road on a moto, heading to Daly Hotel where I ... read more

According to the four year old travel guide another passenger in the mini bus to Sen Monorom was travelling with, the road connecting Ban Lung and Sen Monorom was mostly impassable, difficult to navigate and should only be tackled by experienced dirt bike riders with excellent local knowledge. Well, things have changed, somewhat. The four hour trip was mainly over a built up gravel road, which was slowly being turned into a highway, with roadworks at intervals and short stretches of bitumen in between. The dust was horrendous, thank goodness I was inside an air conditioned mini van. The road deteriorated in the last hour and became narrower and bumpier before the van finally limped into the pot holed streets of Sen Monorom's market. I'm surprised we made it without breaking down, as the van had ... read more

Monday morning and I'm cycling again but this time on a 4 hour countryside tour with Grasshopper Adventures. This ride was 30klm long and took us off the beaten track and through the villages and rice paddies around Siem Reap. There were only three of us on this ride, as well as Thy, our guide for the morning. We left Siem Reap at 7.30am, riding good mountain bikes and wearing decent helmets. The roads were little more than local tracks, one way and single file. It was an enjoyable outing even though I'm no stranger to rural Cambodia. I enjoyed tasting deep fried rice patties at a local market, snapping a few photos, and calling out 'hello' in response to greetings from the kids. We arrived back in Siem Reap at 11.30 and were presented with ... read more

This morning (Wednesday) I decided to take a closer look at Psar Leu Market, a local produce market, which still remains largely undiscovered by tourists. It's located on National Road 6, the main highway between Siem Reap and Phnom Penh. It's quite a walk from Horizons but I ambled along and got there eventually. Road works are in progress, it seems the road is being widened. No detours or work place health and safety regulations enforced here. The traffic swerves around the heavy machinery and keeps on going! Outside Psar Leu the machinery was hard at it, digging an enormous hole and piling up the dirt to lay underground piping. Utter chaos reined.....hundreds of motor scooters parked outside, people and produce going in all directions! Psar Leu is a sprawling covered workaday market buzzing with locals ... read more