A day off from cycling today, and I was quite happy for the break. We had an almost 5 hour speedboat trip up the Mekong River, crossing the border into Cambodia. It was possible to be inside in comfortable seats on the boat, or outside in the wind, so the time went quickly as we watched life on the river speed by.
Once we got to the border we had to disembark twice — once on the Vietnamese side and then again on the Cambodian side — as they processed our Visas on Arrival. Because we had greased the wheels a bit (paid $5 more for “express” service), it only took about 35-40 minutes in total. One of our group had a challenge in that she only had about 3 blank pages in her passport left, so she had to write a letter and “make an offering” to ensure that she could get into Cambodia. After several hours watching the river banks and seeing fishing boats and farming communities, Phnom Penh was visible on the horizon.
After a very delicious lunch at a touristy restaurant at the river (Cambodian food is more like Thai), we set off to see two local sights. Phnom Penh was once considered one of the most beautiful cities in SE Asia, and despite the recent turbulent history, it still retains a distinct colonial charm. It is located at the confluence of the Mekong and the Tonle Sap Rivers and there are wide tree-lined boulevards and colonial-era building from the French occupation. Our first stop was was a pagoda built on a hill for an ancient king. Nearby were fruit bats hanging from the trees and monkeys fighting over the candies left along the small altars.
From there we took cyclos — being propelled along in a chair by a man on a bicycle — to the Royal Palace. This compound dates back to 1866, with the last palace built during the French colonial period. With 85% of the country practicing Buddhism, these temples and provide a place for offerings of tea, fruit, candy and small bits of money. The complex houses the Silver Pagoda, named for the over 5000 heavy tiler tiles that cover its doors. (No photos were allowed.) It is also known as the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, the spectacular temple currently contains a collection of Buddhas in gold, silver, crystal and bronze and was preserved by the Khmer Rouge to demonstrate to the wold Pol Pot’s supposed interest in the conversation of Cambodia’s rich cultural riches.
Our guide for the day, Sum, took us aside and answered questions about the terrible time of the Khmer Rouge — both of his grandfathers were killed during the time from 1975-1979. The country has a devastating political history, only some of which I was able to understand… I need some time with wikipedia to get a better sense of it. I do understand that there continues to be much political corruption and the supposed democratic elections aren’t really.
Dinner was at a restaurant for re-habilitated youth and was quite accessible to Westerners. Except for the man next to us who ate a fried tarantula, which are farmed here to eat. (During the Killing years, half of the 3 million who died did so of starvation, so they explored anything to eat — spiders and ants — to provide protein. He said it tasted like chicken.
Back to the hotel after a torrential downpour, and to bed. No internet tonight — staying in a rural homestay where the electricity goes off at 9PM!
Bringing home a monkey.