After Bali I am planning to go to Cambodia, I already got a visa for 30 days. In terms of itinerary, I decided to look a bit in advance what to do. in the country and especially what to eat and so on.
In here, what I would do is a comparaison day by day of what I had planned in the beginning and how this ends up according to the different people I met and recommandations they could have gave me. I think it's an interesting way of blogging because backpacking never goes the way we plan... At least that my experience.
So Cambodia is going to be my first experience of travelling as a solo woman (apart from the fact that i moved to India alone and lived there 2 years and same for my 3 years in Ireland but it was not really travelling it was more an international experience of living). Anyway let's start.
So what i love to do first is normal having a look at 4 things about the country :
1/ The language
2/ The money exchange rate
3/ The festivals
4/ The food
And then only I look what to do and which places not to miss.
USEFUL WORDS
So first come first, useful words :
Cheers : jul mouy (yes that's always the one i look up first haha)
Hello : jumreap sooa
How are you? : tau neak sok sapbaiy jea the?
I’m fine : k’nyom sok sapbaiy
My name is... : k’nyom tch muoh...
Yes : baat
No : dteh
Please sohm mehta
Thank you orgoon
Excuse me sohm dtoh
Goodbye leah suhn heuy
Um I tried to pronounced them... not an easy task, let's see what they think of my accent when i arrived there.
MONEY
In term of exchange rate it seems that I will have some million in my hands, 1 eur is 4765,29 Cambodian Riel, so basically i just need to divide all the price by 5K. To simplify :
1 EUR = 5 000 ៛
5 EUR = 25 000 ៛
10 EUR = 50 000 ៛
20 EUR = 95 000 ៛
30 EUR = 145 000 ៛
40 EUR = 190 000 ៛
50 EUR = 240 000 ៛
1000 EUR = 500 000 ៛
Ok cool, seems to be easy up to 50 000 ៛ it's too expensive for me.
FESTIVALS
And now festivals ... I love look at it because sometime you can end up in really cool celebration or get stuck in a city for days because everyone transit to it. And this time it seems that it will be more being stuck. Indeed, the water festival also called "Bon Om Touk" is taking place on the 2/3/4th of November. It's a race of boats on the Sap River in Phnom Penh where 3 million people transit to.
Good news if I get stuck there I could see the race and participate to the festival and i can also eat the popular "Ork Ambok" that is a rice dish where rice is fried in the husk, then crushed and mixed with banana and coconut, sounds delicious apart fro the fact that I hate the banana taste, fried should be ok.
Talking about food, what else should i tried, Cambodia is famous for the Khmer cuisine. My selection before reaching Cambodia (let's see then what i liked and not like, I like trying anyway).
FOOD
For breakfast I should try the Nom Banh Chok (Khmer noddle) : a noddle bowl with sone green vegetable and banana flowers, i don't like banana but i never try banana flower maybe it's gorgeous.
Cambodian Curries :
The yellow curry With fish : Fish Amok which is the kind of Cambodian curry and seems to be the most famous dish of Cambodia
The red curry : Khmer Red Curry
The beef dishes :
Lap Khmer which is a kind of Beef Tartare (um i love it) row beef salad and some chili flacks sounds amazing, hopefully it won't be too spicy
Beef in brown sauce : Lok lak
In terms of sea food :
The grilled squid on stick are called : Ang Dtray-Meuk
Kdam chaa: fried crab
If i feel like sandwithces :
Num Pang Pâté
In the street I should find easily (my favorite)
Bai Sach Chrouk which is Grilled pork and broken rice marinated in coconut milk and garlic
Steamed pork bun : hard-boiled bun stuffed with eggs and pork
Chive cake
Time for some BBQ :
Grilled pork on skewers
Grilled sausage on skewer
Grilled frog
And sone weird stuff :
Fertilized embryo of a duck.
ITINERARY
So now that i know what to eat let's have a look on where to go, I got some few recommandations from friends and I read a lots of blog article, so before departure here is my plan, I will update the post with what i have done during my travel.
DAY 1 Arriving in Phnom Penh
WHERE TO SLEEP :
Hostel : Mad Monkey Hostel Phnom Penh, #26 Street 302, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Why : because it's close to everything
WHAT TO VISIT IN PHNOM PENH
Phnom Penh is a window into Cambodian history.
For the first afternoon i am thinking of walking around the hostel to discover a bit by foot of the capital.
- Independence Monument (is the setting for parades and celebrations),
- Through the Wat Botum Park
- Then up to the Royal Palace (serves as the royal residence of the king of Cambodia)
- And maybe do the National Museum (houses the world’s largest collection of Khmer art)
- Come back via Wat Langka ask when are the meditating session (Info : it's only 600 meter from the hotel it's a colorful Buddhist temple, offering free one-hour Vipassana meditation sessions at 6pm on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays, and on Sunday morning at 8am. Warning: if you’ve never done it before, an hour will seem like an eternity, so it’s acceptable to just do 20 or 30 minutes).
- Then I can rest and go for a drink at BKK1district and check out the Jet's.
DAY 2 Immersion in the Khmer rouge history
- Hiring a tuk-tuk and go to the Killing field (Choeung Ek)
- And go to Tuol Sleng, a former school turned prison and torture centre
- Then I can drive around the city to relax a bit after the horrifying experience of the killing field. - Later go to the Central Market (Psah Thom Thmey)
- Not far there is the Wat Phnom (This hilltop temple in the city, it's also a great place to ask for our dreams)
- Come back to the hotel via Sisowath Quay
- Go for the meditation at Wat Langka.
DAY 3 Travelling to Sihanoukville
FROM PHNOM PENH TO SIHANOUKVILLE
The best options would be to take :
- A mini-bus : 12$
- Mekong Express : $13
- PSD Xpress - $11
. The trip takes a total of 4 to 6 hours, depending on traffic getting in and out of Phnom Penh.
WHERE TO SLEEP
Hostel : Hostel next to Serendipity Beach
Why : because of all the beaches there this one seems to be the best fitting to my expectations.
There are three main areas : Victory Hill, Serendipity Beach, and Otres Beach that are 7km apart from one another. Serendipity Beach is where all the action is. It is located at the center of the Sihanoukville coast line.
WHAT TO VISIT IN SIHANOUKVILLE
Sihanoukvill is called Kampong Som on the Gulf of Thailand full of white-sand beaches.
- I will arrive late in Sihanoukville, the best will be to find the party, JJ’s seems to be the best choice, it's on the beach.
DAY 4 Visit Ream National Park
DAY TRIP FROM SIHANOUKVILLE
I am thinking of renting a motorbike (around 6 $) and go for a 45 minutes ride, it's only 15km east of Sihanoukville to Ream National Park. It costs 1000 riel for the road and 16000 riel for the entrance. There is more than 81 square miles of natural beauty and it will take me 3 to 4 hours to go around the park. It's full of amazing beaches, mangrove forests, there are also two islands, coral reefs, waterfalls.
DAY 5 Travelling to Kampot
FROM SIHANOUKVILLE TO KAMPOT
I can do it with a Tuk Tuk, it will cost me around 5$ for a shared one and 2 hours. I can also take a mini bus.
WHERE TO SLEEP On the river,
Why : it's a bit more far from the city center but it look better and most of the markets and attractions are there.
WHAT TO VISIT IN KAMPOT
According to the people that i talked with, it seems that Kampot is one of their favorite cities in Cambodia.
- Shop at the Market and the Old Market to see what a typical Khmer family buys on a daily basis.
- Go for live music, at Arcadia, Naga House or Bodhi Villa
- Participate to a sunset cruise
- Eat at rikitikitavi : Restaurant & Khmer Roots Cafe
- Rent a scooter to go around
DAY 6 Visit Bokot National park
DAY TRIP FROM KAMPOT
I am thinking of visiting the Bokor National Park with the scooter, there I can see the old French hill station at 1,080m for $0.5 it takes 30mins just to ride up and I might have to spend 2/3h around the park I can also try to find the Pokovil waterfall (but seems to be only during wet season).
Day 7 Travelling to Kep
FROM KAMPOT TO KEP
I can get a Tuk Tuk for 10 $ or a moto for 4$ but i have to be careful with the policeman.
WHERE TO SLEEP The city is quite small and there are plenty of amazing hotel, quite cheap and some hostel starting at 2$. I want to try to go to the Tree Tops Bungalows (from $5 – $25 a night). If the tree is too expensive go next to ti : Khmer Hands Bungalow (just 2 min walk).
Why : because I am a big fan of tree houses. And it's not far from the main attractions point.
WHAT TO VISIT IN KEP
- I love visiting nice hotel and next to the tree houses there is Kep Lodge I could go for a beer and watch the gorgeous ocean views
- Walks in Kep national park (The main entrance into Kep National Park is behind Veranda Natural Resort : I can also check this expensive hotel it look awesome) home to macaque monkeys.
- Go to the crab market. Kimly restaurent does crab in 27 ways, to be exact ($6 / US$7). The Kampot pepper crab is the highlight.
Day 8 Visit the Koh Tonsay Island
DAY TRIP FROM KEP
Koh Tonsay also called the rabbit island because of the form is 20-minute boat ride away from Kep and is completely removed from civilization. It’s possible to walk all the way around this rabbit-shaped circumference in a single day. Koh Tonsay is one Southeast Asia’s few remaining island paradises. If I return the same day the tickets cost $7 it's $10 for the next day.
Day 9 Travelling to Phnom Penh for the water festival
FROM KEP TO PHNOM PENH
I can just book a bus but I am not even sure i will be able to enter in the city because of the festival if it's the case i can return to Kampot or Sihanoukvill depends on the one I like the most or drive directly to Battambang. I will need to figure out this part when i am in Cambodia.
Day 10 Travelling to Battambang
FROM PHNOM PENH TO BATTAMBANG
I will also book a. bus depends on the availabilities and the festival.
WHERE TO SLEEP Sone ideas but nothing precised : Tomato Guesthouse: $2, Here Be Dragons: $3, Chhaya Hotel: $3
WHAT TO VISIT IN BATTAMBANG
Battambang is a small city about 100km south of Siem Reap.
- Ride on the bamboo train : takes you on a 20minute ride to a small village. Worth a trip if you go in a group (it costs about $5 each for a group, $10 if you go alone), the easiest way to get here is by Tuk Tuk.
- Chill out by the lake and watch 3 million bats make their daily journey out of the cave.
- Simply hire a Tuk Tuk driver and he will give you options of what to and customise your own day.
- Circus (the magnificent Phare Ponleu Selpak) is here is no coincidence: the city has an enduring tradition of producing many of Cambodia’s best-loved singers, actors and artists.
- Not a lot to do apart from trying street food and going around
Day 12 Traveling to Siem Rep
FROM BATTAMBANG TO SIEM REP
I am planning to do it by boat seems to be a nice experience a bit long, I have to make sure to have all I need in terms of food an activities on the boats, maybe making video, my journal etc. It's a 6 hours trips (or 3 hours by bus if i don't want to get on the boat).
WHERE TO SLEEP Hostel Downtown Siem Reap Hostel
Why : Because a friend of a friend is the owner :) and it's quite central. I can also try to get to Happy Guest House that has been recommended too.
WHAT TO VISIT IN SIEM REP
For the next days until departure I will visit Ankor Wat (meaning “City Temple”) only 7km away from Siem Rep. Built around the first half of 12th century by King Suryavarman II. I will get sone pass ; 1-day pass ($20), 3-day pass ($40) and a week pass ($60).
The main temples to visit seems to be : ta Prohm, Angkor Thom ( Locals pronounce this temple “Uncle Tom”)
So here is the plan I will update the post with what i did and how much does it cost me compares to the different researches I have done. Most of it I wanted to try to get on a 20$ a day challenge. I am not quite sure yet.
Let's go adventure.
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