HOP TO IT - Kampot and Rabbit Island, Cambodia

.........our previous blog post about getting to Koh Rong Sanloem from Phnom Penh......

Rich in a garden, Kampot, Cambodia

Relieved to be off the speed boat from Koh Rong Sanloem and not feeling seasick, we made our way to Sihanoukville railway station, an ugly beast of a building in the middle of the industrial port area. Securing a ticket early (we had heard the seats get sold out), we had plenty of time to relax and eat a meal and drink a fresh coconut from the friendly lady at the simple stall on the far side of the tracks. 

More and more tourists showed up in the station, then an announcement was made that the train would be delayed by 30 minutes....and then another 30 minutes. It was hot and people were starting to get fed up. When the train was seen to be pulling in to the platform, everyone rushed to the door in order to board before the thing had even stopped. The train was completely different in style to the previous one we had taken from Phnom Penh to Kep. This one was modern, no open windows, and only two carriages- hence the scrum to get on. After we all waited for the other passengers to disembark, there was yet another announcement that there would be a further 30 minute delay. Finally, we were allowed on, waited in the stifling heat for yet another 30 minutes, then eventually the trip began (and the AC was raised to an artic temperature). 

Modern (and tiny) train from Sihanoukville to Kampot, Cambodia

On arrival at far flung Kampot station, there were not enough tuk tuks to go around, so we walked some way to a main road, and flagged one down. It took us an hour or so to find a good place to stay for a week or so, and in the end, we were happy with our room with a bathroom, fridge, two big beds and a strong fan. The friendly manager also informed us that use of the bicycles were free of charge. What a bonus!

Our Kampot room

Having visited Kampot and loved it 13 years ago, we had some recollections of eateries and spots we remembered to be cute and appealing. As we started to explore the town this time, we realized there was basically nothing at all that was was familiar. Traffic was much increased, new roads and guesthouses had been built, there were more buildings in general, and there seemed to be less of the French Colonial historic part of town, but that could have just been the encroachment of the new development. We also didn't recall there being two streets full of girlie bars! The river side now had a paved promenade, and none of our remembered places existed anymore. Although this was slightly disappointing, we adjusted, and still found many aspects of Kampot that were positive and enjoyable. It was also a relief to be back in the "real world" after being on touristy Koh Rong Sanloem. 

Giant durian roundabout at night, Kampot

Bar sign, Kampot

Wonderful remnant of French colonial architecture, Kampot

Local bakery, Kampot

Rich loved this!

Having fun in the second hand shop, Kampot

The best thing about Kampot was the food. There were so many options for eating, and we ate at a different place almost every night. Apart from the multitude of khmer and Western food restaurants and cafes, there was a night market and endless street stalls selling noodle and rice dishes.

Breakfast of champions, noodle soup

The other distinguishing thing about Kampot was the amount of expats here. Cambodia has always been popular with long term stayers because of the easy and generous visa options, but we couldn't get over the crowd here. Mostly retirees, we presumed, and mostly European men, but there was certainly a mix of all sorts, and it made for quite a cool vibe. 

Taking full advantage of the free bikes from our guesthouse, we whizzed around town most days, trying to avoid busy areas and intersections. The bicycles were a great help for Rich, not having to walk painfully about town- he's fine on a bike. Locals were actually very good defensive drivers, slow and careful. They also treated us on our bikes as absolute idiots, wary when we approached, which was probably the best technique all round. 

On the most energetic day, we cycled up to some calm and peaceful spots on the Tuek Chhu River, away from the bustle of the town centre. This area of bumpy backstreets leading to small canals and waterways was charming. Smiley people and kids waved at us, Buddhist temples had monks lazing around the grounds, and a few low-key resorts had rustic bungalows set over the water. Some also had beautiful gardens complete with picturesque bridges, and floating pontoons on the river- one even had an extensive boardwalk over the mangroves.

Strange mangrove flower, Kampot

Tuek Chhu River, Kampot

Dusty French wine bottles, Kampot

Small temple in resort grounds, Kampot

Mangrove boardwalk, Kampot

Realistic looking, but fake dollars for Chinese New Year, Kampot

Colourful pillars, Kampot Buddhist temple

Grounds of the small Buddhist temple, riverside, Kampot

Another day we took out a motorbike, in order to travel further afield. The salt fields, although not as impressive as others we've seen (the best were on Diu island in Gujarat, India) made for a compelling yet scorching day out amongst a more rural setting, quiet gravel tracks, and simple wooden houses high up on stilts. Unfortunately, as is often the case in parts of Asia, the experience was slightly marred by the excessive amounts of rubbish randomly thrown into every stream and ditch by locals. 

Water lily flower, Kampot

Salt piled up ready to be harvested, Kampot

Typical house, around Kampot

Small pot, resort grounds, Kampot

Unfortunate amount of rubbish, Kampot

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Due to our enthusiasm to arrive in Koh Rong Sanloem and see our friend before he started work, we had previously cut our time short in the lovely seaside resort of Kep. We now stopped there on the way back to Phnom Penh to complete a few activities on our list.

Number one on the list was Rabbit Island, or Koh Tonsay in Khmer language. A short ride away from the mainland on a colourful boat, the small island was a world away from the bustling scene on Koh Rong Sanloem. On arrival, which involved climbing down a ladder into the shallow sea, we were greeted by the closest bungalow owner, who showed us an adorable hut a few steps from the water for US$10 a night. We immediately took it, and liked the place. The island had no electricity, only running generators a few hours in the evening, which suited us fine for a few days. About ten small scale resorts lined the beach, all rustic, with wooden huts and sunlounges on the beach, all serving the same basic food. The usual wooden gazebos with hammocks and mats were also present for the locals who descended on the island in groups on the weekends. For a few days, we had an extremely quiet time, enjoying the fabulous sea breeze, lazing around in hammocks and on the beach. Probably the most exciting thing to happen was when a snake fell out of a tree above us and landed on Richard's foot, before slithering away in the sand.

Path between resorts, Rabbit island, Cambodia

Sunset, Rabbit island, Cambodia

Our cute hut on Rabbit island, Cambodia

Scene outside our bungalows, Rabbit island, Cambodia

Shady beach in the morning, Rabbit island, Cambodia

We were happy to return to Kep, and spend a couple more days exploring, including the Kep National Park and surrounds by motorbike, and eating amazing seafood at the famous crab market. 

Seafood feast, Kep, Cambodia

A few days in Phnom Penh sorting out our immediate travel plans, rounded out our two months

 Cambodian trip. We had been pleased to explore more of Cambodia's coastline towns and islands, and the laid back feeling of simple travel was just what we needed at this time. 

Our last sunset, Kep, Cambodia

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Cambodia has a lot going for it, but it is not a foodie destination, at least not in terms of khmer food. They have a few national dishes, but we found them to be a bit bland and uninteresting, especially after spending so much time in neighbouring Thailand. Amok (a mild coconut curry) and lok lak (stewed beef on rice with a fried egg) were two local dishes we did enjoy.

Beef lok lak, a khmer dish

One food aspect we did absolutely love was the baguettes, a remnant from the French era. Found absolutely everywhere, these were most basically served on the street with pate and pork, with pickles on the side, but also different restaurants stuffed them with everything imaginable.

Baguette with pork and pickles

In areas of Cambodia catering to long stay foreigners, such as the southern coast, much of the Western style food was amazing and relatively cheap, and made for a favourable change from rice and noodles. This is something unique to Cambodia in South East Asian countries, and we appreciated the contrast in cuisine. 

Roast pork Sunday lunch, complete with Yorkshire pudding!

Of course, tropical fruits were in abundance, particularly all varieties of mangoes, bright purple dragon fruit, the ever present juicy and delicious pineapples and a surprising amount of passionfruit. 

As previously stated, fruit shakes were our number one delight drinks-wise, and a close second was fresh coconut on the street, often cold and so refreshing. After much indulging of alcohol in Thailand, we didn't drink at all apart from catch up drinks with our friend on Koh Rong Sanloem. That was a shame in a way with beer being so ridiculously cheap. In fact, the prices hadn't changed much from when we were here 13 years ago, starting from 2,400 KHR/US$0.60 for a Happy Hour cold glass of draft Anchor/Angkor/Cambodian beer. 

Yummo fruit shakes, Cambodia

Our Phnom Penh obsession, cold fresh coconut

Well, maybe just one beer......

Local transport was plentiful and inventive. Phnom Penh especially was chock a block with different variations of tuk tuk, from the Indian style auto rickshaw to rormork contraptions with a carriage behind a motorbike. Cheap and easy, we used them often, usually paying 4,000KHR/US$1 for a short trip. Amazingly, some of them were attached to Grab, or other payment apps. 

Rormork with tuk tuks in background, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Phnom Penh city buses were surprisingly modern, clean, regular and air-conditioned, and a great way to travel longer distances around the city, especially at 1500 riel/US$0.36 a trip. There weren't many routes, but we quickly sussed out the ones we could make use of during our stay. 

Travel in between towns for us was a mixture of bus and train. It was so difficult to find out information about train routes and times online before we arrived in Cambodia, due to the terrible Royal Railways website, and travellers just generally not favouring train travel in Cambodia. But once there, we found it easy and cheap to book a ticket at the station. The trains types varied, the best trains being the spacious older types with open windows and bench seats, and the other being more modern with excessively cold AC, tinted closed windows but with more comfortable seats. One downside was the stations were generally not in the centre of town (apart from Phnom Penh), so a tuk tuk was required at each end of the journey. There were two railway lines from Phnom Penh, one to Sihanoukville and the other to Battambang. Both left once a day, early in the morning, and took around six hours. 

Not the most attractive train station, Sihanoukville, Cambodia

Love the open windows on the old style trains, Cambodia

Intercity buses were expensive, and pretty much the only way to get to certain places. We kept wondering how the locals travelled, as they certainly couldn't afford to pay the high bus prices- we supposed there must be a two tiered system for bus prices, as for almost everything else in Cambodia. On the plus side, the buses were generally well organized, on time, air conditioned and picked up from the hotel. 

Accommodation was generally cheap, simple rooms with fan, bathroom (always with a toothbrush, soap and comb!) and WIFI. We paid between US$8-US$15, the price seemingly dependant on the number of tourists in the vicinity. 

Our simple room in Kep, Cambodia

Cambodian map complete, for George

Close up of our route along the coast, Cambodia

......next up, we're back to Malaysia for some medical manoeuvres, we'll keep in touch......