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Our wonderful trip to Cambodia - Xmas 2009 and New Year 2010
December 23, 2009
Our first few days in Cambodia...
We arrived at Phnom Penh airport at noon on Sunday and decided not to stay but head out straight to the beach. I didn't feel like being cramped in a tiny or big bus making stops all the way, so I booked a taxi and paid 40 US$ for the 4 hour drive. It was well worth it. We got to Queen Hill Resort on Ostres beach and I was surprised how far away it was from the town center, about 3 km. The next day we swam but found the beach to be deserted. I decided to rent a motorcycle for 6$/day and explore the town and the other beaches.
Finally I saw a nice place called Leng Meng Guest House which had nice rooms and a restaurant on the water front. We moved here yesterday and it is nice. We spent the whole day on the beach yesterday, and Rémi had the most fun with Cambodian kids for a few hours as I read. But we had too much sun, so today we need to be more careful and stay away a little. We were not so lucky this morning on the beach in finding friends for Rémi, mostly stuck-up Europeans who did not want to play with him. Food is a bit pricy and we easily spend 20$/day and the room costs as much. But last night we had a nice seafood BBQ dinner, and today we will try new restaurants nearby. I think we will go on a boat ride tomorrow, explore the nearby islands, do some snorkeling, fishing and meet some people.
December 31, 2009
The last day of the year...
Wow, time just flew by as one day after the other, we went to the beach. It was a good thing to move to the busier beach so we were close to everything - the main beach at our door step, the shops, the restaurants.... so this made life easy. We even bumped into Rémi's French tutor from Vietnam Virginie while walking down the street and a few minutes later, a VECO colleague from Indonesia, Stef. It really did feel like a small world. Every day we would walk down the beach, and usually stop where we found kids playing in the sea. Then I would stop at a long chair with parasol in front of a beach side restaurant and would keep an eye on Rémi. Of course I swam from time to time and the sea was warm and lovely, but most of the time I just stayed in the shade, relaxed and read novels a little. Some "shacks" had wifi so then I could use my iPhone to go to Facebook and surf the net. We would go back to our room around 3, shower and rest, before returning to the beach to watch the sunset with a nice drink. Sometimes Rémi would draw, and many kids selling things on the beach would stop and draw with him for a few minutes.
A couple of days ago I wanted to "break the routine" and get away from the beach, especially since Rémi was taking way too much sun and his skin was pealing like an onion. So I went on a boat trip to visit nearby islands, do a bit of snorkeling and then return at the end of the day. This cost 18$ for both myself and Rémi. The boat that took us around was a tiny thing with just benches to sit and a tarp to cover. A few days later, someone had told me about a deluxe boat trip costing 25$ (Rémi was free) so we went on that one. Dear oh dear was that nice. A super deluxe yacht with 3 floors, couches and sofas, a bar and a top floor for suntanning. We went to a nicer island, Ko Rong, which is deserted and has beautiful white sandy beaches. Definitely more value for the dollar.
And of course, 2 days before leaving, we met this really nice family from Sweden with 2 daughters, one 8 and the other 9 years old, staying at our hotel. Even tho the kids spoke no English, the younger one really took to Rémi and he to her so it was great. Then last night when we met my VECO colleague with his 3 kids, between all of us we had 6 children, all getting along and playing. I wish we had met them before! We had a nice farewell dinner last night, then all went to the iPod store to buy some music and movies, then off for ice cream. Today we left Sihanoukville at 8 am with the Mekong Express Bus, a nice air con bus company which took 4 hours to reach Phnom Phen. We are now staying by the riverfront at the Bright Lotus Guest House, right in the nice downtown area in front of the Silver Palace. Already we walked around the area and I found it beautiful with many street cafés and colonial buildings. Tomorrow we'll try to discover more of the city and visit the palace while most people are recovering from a new year hang-over....
January 1, 2010
The first day of the year!
As many parents know, new year usually is now more low key with everyone in bed before the countdown. The thrill of it all has dimmed for me, and I was happy to go to bed at 11 am, knowing full well we would be up early to great the new day of the year. We've had a lovely time in Phnom Penh. It is not the devastated and severely impoverished city of 10 years ago. Now the streets are nicely paved, the city seems to be developing, and there seems less beggars now than before. Walking along the waterfront, the many cafés with terraces have lots of charm with their colonial look. We've managed short trips about town - first walking by the river, then today going to the national museum right in front of our hotel, then to the nice "Russian" market where I bought a lovely standing bouddha carved in wood. We also stopped at 2 temples along the way, and later went to Temple Phnom which was as disappointing with its tacky paint as 10 years ago. I was crazy enough to venture to Sorya Shopping Center, 6 floors of wall to wall people, ideal for pick-pockets so I was ultra careful keeping my hands in my pockets. We've done all these activities one at a time, coming back to the hotel to rest in between and this worked out well with Rémi, with many promises of Game Boy along the way to keep him going.
January 2, 2010
The vacation is over...
Last day in Phnom Penh. Last night we met up again with Steff and his family who arrived in PP. We went for dinner and with 4 active kids, they took over the restaurant. Then back to our room for an early night. This morning we had breakfast with them again, but Steff was wise to go out and buy pastries to eat at the terrace of our hotel - easier to kid-manage. I then went to the Royal Palace with Rémi to snap a few photos but it was hot and there were many bus loads of tourists so Rémi got cranky. Now back at our hotel with only one hour left before we have to vacate our room, then lunch and off to the airport to get home. It has been a lovely trip and Cambodia now has a special place in my heart with lovely memories...