Kampot/Kep Adventure

This is my Father's world,

And to my listening ears,

All nature sings and round me rings,

The music of the spheres.

This is my Father's world,

Oh rest me in the thought,

Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas,

His hand the wonders wrought.

When we Skyped our children on our recent trip to Kampot, Cambodia, Jahred asked very flippantly if we ever work. Well Jahred... Cambodia has the most statutory holidays of any country in the world - 28 for 2016. With the incredibly low cost of travel, it doesn't make sense to stay at home for these holidays. And, so we dug deep into our pockets to pay for $6 train tickets to Kampot Province, a happening tourist hot spot for international and local travelers alike.

We left our home at 6am on a tuk tuk and headed to pick up our friend Carol before arriving at the train station. It was very straightforward as the train was already there. We simply showed our tickets and boarded the Royal Railway.There wasn't much royal about this carriage ride, although it was air conditioned with a clean, Western washroom, so I am not complaining. I have peed into a hole onto railway tracks in previous Asian travels.  It was a bit tight quarters with Greg's long legs and I wonder if it might be worth it to buy two seats per person next time since the cost is minimal. Many were boarding their motos and cars on to the train to have with them in Kampot. Next time, we will follow suit.

The sights along the way were fascinating as we saw much of the landscape, villages, farms and people living in utter despair along the tracks. We were captivated for most of the trip, there and back. 

Cambodians love to snack and eat out! Everyone buys take away food and the train stopped for snack time. I had my favourite - sour mango with chili salt and on the way back I tried grilled lime chicken necks and they were delicious, albeit a bit bony. |Greg opted for raw peanuts, which he disposed of when he got home. Not a keeper, that snack. Apparently the train is making improvements and adding a food car very soon.

We've traveled Asia enough to know not to have super high expectations for the word "resort". We stayed at Villa Medici, which is a boutique resort run by an Italian gentlemen with quite a few foreign staff. The only "off" thing was a funky smell from the well water in our bungalow when the air con wasn't on. The resort is built along the river, offers cruises and water sports, has a decant restaurant with the best baguettes I've ever tasted as well as a landscaped pool area.

 The view from our boutique resort.

One of the highlights was the sunset cruise, where we sat on the roof of the boat. We were amazed that palm trees line the shore line. Sometimes, you can see quite a fire fly display once the sun goes down, but they weren't performing for us that night. There was an unfortunate drowning after a firefly tour this week as a cruise boat hit a sand bar and went down. Four lives were lost.  Kampot is a fishing village so we saw many boats go by, the "ferry" to get across the river and adorable children jumping into the river before bed. We also saw many interesting resorts along the river as we cruised for 2 1/2 hours. It was extremely peaceful and far less built up than similar places we have visited in Vietnam. It was so peaceful that I fell asleep on the roof of the boat only to be awakened to an excited, "Dawne, Dawne, over here". I woke up and asked Greg if someone was screaming my name across the river and indeed I wasn't dreaming. A friend from Phnom Penh had spotted me. It was surreal to be recognized along the river of Cambodia. The town center along the river is very cute, lined with guest houses, a few shops and restaurants. We had a huge rib dinner with baked potatoes and salad and our bill was $10 for the two of us. No Asian town tour is complete without a good foot massage and pedicure for $4. 

Just a 30 km drive out and there is a completely different, less tropical landscape on Bokor Mountain. When we return for another visit, we will spend much more time on the Mountain. Many tourists brought their long boards to ride down the safe, well signed, newly built roads. French architecture is rampant on the mountain as the French once settled there to retreat from the sweltering temperatures in Phnom Penh. Their large scale homes and churches were abandoned twice as the Khmer Rouge reigned and during the Vietnam war. The mountain is well signed to avoid possible live land mine areas. It was fun to explore these homes and churches and imagine what life was like.

 

We had lunch at the Casino, which was Western fare, but we regretted that decision once we arrived at the waterfall. Apparently, the waterfall is the place to eat! There were swarms of people, enjoying the food stalls along the rocks of the falls, despite the signs that told them not to eat there. When we visit again, we will bring a mat and a book to enjoy the gorgeous scenery that reminded us of Northern Ontario. It was amazing to us that the landscape only 20 minutes away from the river lost all tropical flavour. 

Next we visited Kep, which is a favourite beach spot of the locals. It is on the Gulf of Thailand and is being built up more and more with sun huts equipped with hammocks. The shore line is rather rocky and not the greatest beach, but the view from the hill is lovely. A must do is the crab market, but because it was a holiday (the Water Festival), the line up of cars to get in was mind boggling. Our taxi driver called someone who could speak English to inform us that it was an impossible task to get there. Instead, we ended up at Veranda Resort and it was unbelievable! If any of you come to visit, you must stay a night or two here. It is considered very expensive at $100 a night, compared to our $40 a night, but it is well worth it. It truly is one of the most beautiful spots I have ever seen. It is all natural with raw wood decor, pebble stone stairs, butterflies and dragonflies all around the trees and flowers. Greg and I have promised each other we will spend a weekend here in the future.

When it was time to go, neither of us were ready. We definitely want to tour this region again and take the time to really explore and enjoy the nature. Our train ride back was eventful to say the least. Our 8am train did not leave until 9:50 and a 76 year old German Baha'i faith "missionary" sat beside me on the train bench and gave me his spiel. The poor guy spat every word out and had a cloth to wipe his mouth but it was getting all over me! I was ready to hurl. Greg was off somewhere watching at a distance, taking photos and not stepping in to help me at all! Thanks Greg. Finally, I told this old gentlemen I needed a mango in the worst way and I got up to purchase one, eating it far away from him whilst he claimed his next victim. On the train, we sat next to a lovely Khmer family with two teenage boys and two smaller children. The older boys were eager to practice their impressive English skills and kept us captivated in conversation. They shared many of their views on life, the future, Cambodia and I am sure the future for this country is good with a generation of young people like these two. As we got closer to the city, there was an announcement that the train would be making stops to bring passengers to the Water Festival! What? The train was full! Not Asian full, however. And so, at railway crossings, throngs of people, dressed for the red carpet, would file into the train, filling the aisles way beyond capacity. It was getting hot, long and uncomfortable but the Cambodians were delighted at my shock in the situation and it made the whole ordeal kind of fun!

We were unable to tour a pepper farm due to the road conditions following some rain. That is on our list for our next trip with one of you visitors. Kampot pepper was grown and exported out of Cambodia,  famous in French cooking. When the Khmer Rouge wreaked havoc on the country they all but destroyed every pepper farm, not wanting the country to advance. Much successful work has occurred to restore this industry and it and tourism keeps Kampot a hot spot!

Days before our plane left for Cambodia, a well traveled friend asked what there was to lure him to visit Cambodia. (as if I'm not enough, right??)What could Cambodia possibly have to see that he hasn't already seen? It was hard to explain without having seen the country myself, but the amazing temples, museums and history were not enough to interest him. Now that I've seen nature's largely untouched beauty that abounds here, I could assure him there is absolutely beauty to behold. There is a reason Cambodia is filled with Australian and New Zealand tourists. Their countries are beautiful, but there is more to be seen. I hope I never become so well traveled that things don't amaze me anymore! It's a wonderful world and seeing this part of it is life changing.

Next stop...Siem Reap to spend American Thanksgiving with my former choir student, now Seoul Foreign School teacher, Calvin! We are going to explore Angkor Wat...on his bucket list.

I do not take these opportunities to travel lightly. We feel incredibly blessed to be working here in fulfilling roles and to have the holidays and means to travel. 

My next blog post is answering questions people have asked via emails, FB messages etc. If you have a question about life and culture here or about visiting...hint hint... fire away so I have something to write about.