Trip to Cambodia part. 3

Our second island hopping destination was Koh Rong Samloem. After arriving to Saracen Bay by a speed ferry we started to look for a place to stay. It was much more quieter beach than Otres and we actually had to walk a while before we found some desk that looked like a proper reception.

If you're travelling outside of the actual high seasons there's no need to book every accommodation beforehand. There's always some free dorm bed or room at somewhere. At least if you aren't that picky about standard frames or luxury services. 

This longer voyage was a bit safer than the earlier boat ride to Koh Ta Kiev.

     

We managed to book us a double bed from a dorm which was kinda wide open. So, the space itself was again all open and also a little breezy (as it were air-conditioned) 'cause there wasn't any doors etc. When going to sleep we just pulled down the tarp (suom. pressu) to block the rain for coming straight to our drying clothes. And regardless of all the nightly voices and unknown crackles I slept strangely good during our entire trip. Thanks to the refreshing weather of Southeast Asian climate.  

Silence is one of the hardest arguments to refute.

- Josh Billings

At Samloem we could finally read some books and properly ease up our pace for few days. Before this we had only fled from horrible hucksters and looked up to some monumental sights of Angkor. Now our main task was to take it easy and enjoy some early morning swims and overall silece.

As usual our stay lasted for 3 days. So, we had already learned by now that 2 nights it's enough at one place. Within those days we had yet again just enough hours to explore the beach and to do what we liked. And what comes to food I think that we ate the most disappointing meal in Sacaren Bay. There might be several reasons for that but I bet that the biggest one is that all the dishes they served at restaurants, were modified to tourists. I mean that they had adjusted the flavors and reduced a lot of the spices.

For us foodlovers it was a real pity 'cause we had some high expectations for them. But in the end we flushed our deeply sorrow with few drinks and hoped for better luck in the future!       

My favorite spot was in that particular hammock.

And remember guys not to get sunburn over your body. It's not nice and your body is your temple.

From the island we took another speed ferry ride to the shore and headed to the bus station from where we continued towards our next destination, the city of Kampot.

God gave me a great body and it's my duty to take care of my physical temple.

- Jean Claude Van Damme

Trip to Cambodia part. 2

From Siem Reap we took a night bus to the coast. Though the drive lasted overnight it wasn't that bad 'cause the bus was filled with sleeping berths. And just to make clear, there wasn't any seats. Only places where you could lie down and try to make yourself feel comfortable.

Accept the challenges so that you can feel the exhilaration of victory.

- George S. Patton

At this point you might be thinking about the space in the bus or how roomy these "sleeping seats" really are? Is it actually possible to sleep in those kind of busses? When booking the tickets, there were both single and double seats to choose from. We shared one double seat and could just straighten our legs. So, there were barely enough space for smallish people. And only for that reason it might be a bit too small (confined) for those who are taller than regular human beings.

And yes you can sleep in the busses if you're not that sensitive for noices or bumpy roads etc. I slept maybe only half a night, but the all in all the trip went well. It took 10 hours to get from the inland to Sihanoukville. Our first tasks was to find a ride and some nice little bungalow by the beach. As usual the bargaining took a while, but 'cause of our expertise we managed to get us a cheap ride to Otres Beach.

It didn't take that long to go swimming from our little "porch".

After arriving to Otres we started to find out the prizes of different accommodations. At the end we chose a place called Chez Paou from where we got a private bungalow with a fan and a mosquito net. Both of those were kinda standard equipments in most of the places.

There were one common bathroom which we shared with the other fellow travellers. It turned out to be a good thing 'cause we were both terrified by bugs and insects. During the entire trip I also noticed that it's much nicer to sleep in a room which isn't all white from top to bottom. The darker the walls are, the less you can actually see what's lurking you from the ceiling while you're sleeping.

We stayed at Otres for 3 days and in that time we got to learn that there were no place to hide from the hucksters (suom. kaupustelijat). So, to get rid of them we took a long boat to an island paradise named Koh Ta Kiev. There were no running water or electricity grid and that's why the power was on only at certain time in the evenings. This place were just what we needed. Far away from the fuss and expecially from those not-so-nice-vendors.

Life is a travelling to the edge of knowledge, then a leap taken.

- D.H. Lawrence

We booked single beds from the treehouse which was a dorm styled bungalow. And 'cause we didn't know what to expect we're kinda cautious. Will there be some nasty creatures with eight legs or more? Can we sleep in 360 degrees open space with no walls around us, in a treehouse over 3 meters above the ground? All went partly ocay and we managed through the night. But why only partly? Well, I had ants on my bed when we first checked the treehouse. Luckily we had earlier bought some mosquito repellent (actually two kinds of repellent) which worked just fine to those little bastards.

Then I must say that though the island itself was awesome and the night in the treehouse was memorable, the place (Kactus) where we stayed was a bit too (how would I put it) peaceable. If you know what I mean. But enough of that. While waiting for the sunset, we ate dinner and got some new ideas for our travelling plan. One new city to go to. Be aware of that this is what may happen to you too if you've the guts to start a conversation with other fellas plus you have glass of rum in your hand. But due to this we got to see another side of Cambodia. Another city with its own history.

They say that G&T helps against the mosquitos.

I can highly recommend this paradise for those who aren't afraid of the sea and all the waves. If you last through the boat ride you gonna have unforgettable time in this island. But better to plan your visit soon 'cause there are rumours about casinos and actual roads.

We all live under the same sky, but we don't all have the same horizon.

- Konrad Adenauer