Cambodia (Part 1)

Our first impression of Cambodia was SCARY!

We'd just spent 4 hours on a barely air-conditioned bus, with seats the size of postage stamps only to be told that we had to walk (with all of our bags!) a 1km stretch between Thailand and the Cambodian border of Poipet. So, we headed through Thai customs and had our passports nicely scanned on the latest state of the art technology in a lovely new building. Then, we walked out the other side and through the gates to the 'Kingdom of Cambodia' to be met by hoards of children, beggars, carts, dirt, rubbish and the occasional scally type looking person. So, clutching onto our bags just that little bit tighter, we headed to the immigration area in order to get our visa sorted. We were met by a friendly person who told us what to do and passed us the relevant forms, which we filled in. We took them back to him and he asked for an extortionate amount of money so we could get our visa.... however, there was sign behind him telling us how much we should have to pay! We eventually brushed past him after telling him we weren't going to pay him and would only pay an official (who was seated just behind the scammer and obviously knew what was going on!!). The official eventually acknowledged us and took our payment and told us to sit in the waiting area. We did.... and we suddenly thought Cambodia may be a mistake....

It was so different to anywhere we had seen so far. The roads were mud... the children (and some adults) were barely clothed and dirty, and it was a scene that felt so mayhemic it was surreal. However, we had been told that this was the worst border crossing in Cambodia and that we shouldn't let it jade us. We tried.....

Eventually, we got our visa and headed off to try and find some transport to take us to our hotel in Siem Reap (about 130km away). There is one road between Poipet and Siem Reap and it is common knowledge that a particular airline pays the government to 'delay' construction on it, and keep it rather bad. Well, bad is an understatement! We opted for a taxi in the end (thank god) because a bus would have taken some 7-8 hours to do the journey and we could do it in apparently 3 (it turned out to be 4 though!). And, the road was seriously the worst thing we have travelled on since we arrived in... well, anywhere in all honesty! It was mud, sand, water, holes (sometimes 3-4 foot deep!) and it looked like it had been bombed constantly for about the last 100 years! How it could even be hailed as a road was a serious question! It appeared that there was no rule to driving on it, except to avoid damaging your own vehicle, and so you would be careening all over it and heading towards, trucks, people, dogs, goats, cattle even children on bikes! It really was a very scary and uncomfortable experience.

But, when you weren't busy peeling your face from the roof of the car, the views outside were pretty special. There were small shanty towns backed by amazing stretches of green, which were met by mountains in the distance. We even got to watch a storm breaking in the clouds miles away. The paddy fields were really pretty and seeing people wading in them and working, or even washing was a really different scene to what we were used to. Already, it made Malaysia and Thailand feel positively futuristic! The difference was astonishing!

Eventually, we arrived at the hotel in Siem Reap... and after travelling for 4 hours through scantily populated areas, it was a welcome relief to see street lights, shops and especially tarmac! We checked in, were served with our 'mocktails' and cold towel (did we mention it was a 5-star hotel :)), and headed up to our plush top floor suite... hehehe, we only booked it because we knew the journey may be difficult. Still, its a good job we did because the journey had taken its toll on poor little Trace and she was really, really crook! We're talking projectile stuff here! But, we thought we may both need to eat, so, I offered to head out and try and get us a takeaway from across the road. I set out, and stepped outside the hotel. Before I even crossed the road, I had been asked if I wanted a woman, drugs, a massage... and even approached by a rather 'nice' male, who asked me my name and kept smiling... oddly, and looking me up and down :( But the one thing I actually wanted, a pizza, nobody could help me with!!!!!

So, our first day in Cambodia had been mental... and we were a bit nervous about where it would go from there.

After a day chilling and letting Trace recover (we think it may have been a 24 hour bug probably caught off dirty backpackers on the bus!), we decided to head out and explore Siem Reap a little. Pleasantly surprised, the town was nothing we imagined it would be and everyone was friendly and in good spirits, which seemed a complete contrast to what may be expected with such a tragic recent history. Bartering was fun and the stall holders would joke with you and the tuk-tuk drivers were cheeky with their prices- but really harmless. And it just felt like an innocent, almost unassuming place when compared to the sometimes tourist hardened Thailand. Most of the locals have fantastic English and, again, it is their humour that really shines out. The children will be cheeky and instead of direct begging they will play games with you (for example, I got thrashed at noughts and crosses by a little boy who was selling postcards. He told me if I won he would give me some for free... but, if he did, I'd have to buy them, and if we drew, he would leave us alone). We also saw a group of landmine victims who had formed a band and played music on the street- for entertainment, rather than just expecting money from tourists. It just seems a happy place and the people seem to have a real sense of pride. Suddenly, we felt very different about Cambodia and booked an extra 3 nights in Siem Reap.

Anyway, we couldn't come to Siem Reap and not visit the temples of Angkor Wat. We were both quite excited, but having seen a few temples now, we weren't sure how much it would all hold our attention. We could not have been more wrong- words cannot describe how amazing, significant and vast it all was. Hopefully, the pictures below will give some sort of idea. We cannot recommend Angkor Wat enough to anyone (especially Bayon in Ankgor Thom and Ta Prohm- where some of Tomb Raider was filmed)!

Cambodia is definitely no longer thought of as a mistake or scary... at least not for the moment.