We ended up in Phnom Penh three times as all roads lead there and we had to go past to make it from South of Cambodia, back to North and then out of the country – via a bus to Vietnam. We first stayed at The Fancy Guesthouse where we paid $16 per night for a clean, but windowless room. When we stopped over for one night in Phnom Penh for the second time we decided we didn’t want to pay this much considering it was literally a stop over – 8 hour bus to get there and then the following morning another 8 hour bus. We visited a couple…
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Elephant Trek in Sen Monorom, Mondulkiri
Besides the politics, we were very excited to embark on our elephant trek today. Mr. Tree drove us out to the local Bunong village where we met our guide at his house. His wife had just given birth four days ago. Their house was basic with an open fire inside. Soon after we met our elephant and set off on our trek. For the most part it was narrow paths, sometimes they were really compact and hard making them very slippery, but the majority of them were very muddy and slippery as it had been raining for days. Every chance she got, she would go off the path and feed…
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Elephant Valley Project – E.L.I.E. – The Local Perspective
We had read a lot about the Elephant Valley Project, an Eco-Tourism Project by E.L.I.E (Elephant Livelihood Initiative Environment) in Sen Monorom, Mondulkiri, and um’d and ah’d whether to do it or not. At US$60 per person per day (US$30 if you volunteer – half day with elephants, half day building, or gardening etc.), this wasn’t cheap for us and tricky to justify and fit into our tight budget. We did a lot of online research and found only great reviews on Jack Highwood’s Elephant Valley Project. We had heard and read a lot about the mistreatment of elephants in Thailand and other countries, so it was a relief to…
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Training Day – On A Semi Auto Motorbike
For a while now we have reluctantly hired automatic motorbikes and struggled up hills with them. With the off road conditions of Vietnam looming, we knew it was time to learn how to ride a proper motorbike – both of us. Michael at Bacoma Guesthouse was a very nice Swiss guy, so I approached him about it and he said that it is easy to learn. He offered me his bike for a trial ride down the drive way. I knew in theory how and he also explained it to me again. The ride down the driveway was no problem and I felt comfortable enough to hire a semi-auto now.…
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Kep, The Sleepy Colonial Ghost Town
We spent a few days in the sleepy Kep and explored some of its charm. The best way to do that is by riding around and exploring. That is exactly what we did. There are heaps of broad and empty streets and back streets to explore. A lot of the ghost town feeling comes form the many half finished and run down French colonial villas. These are tucked away behind jungle in the most beautiful spots. The one below had an incredible view and we sat on the roof for a while. Some are being renovated and others are doomed to collapse in the future. We were told that land…
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Salt Fields Kampot. Another Little Gem In The South Of Cambodia.
On our search out to find secret lake in Kampot, we ended up stopping by at the salt fields Kampot. This is what I love most about Cambodia. There are so many things to see here. With the freedom of a motorbike it is very easy to explore these hidden secrets of Cambodia. The Salt Fields Kampot As you might expect, there is not a big surprise at this sight! We drove up the little dirt road, already covered in the road dust from the day. Once we made it over the little hill, the salt fields revealed themselves. The best part was the serenity of the scene. We rode…
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Any Doctors reading this?
Lionel needs medical help. This may have been caused by sand flies on Koh Rong – but it’s steadily getting worse… Any ideas?
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Crab Carnage
Made it to Kep, about 30 minutes away from Kampot – depending on how many locals the bus picks up and drops off, and it’s a cute little town. Kep is full of old French colonial villas that are in ruins after the Khmer Rouge era where starving locals looted and picked anything they could use to survive eg. Firewood, any material of value etc. Very cool town, but the main reason I wanted to explore Kep was via my mouth and stomach, as it’s Craaaab City! We’re staying in a cute rounded bungalow owned by a Swiss-Khmer family, Bacoma Bungalows, and my priority for choosing it was its close…
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The Best Road in Cambodia – Bokor Hill Station
We loved yesterday’s day of exploring the area on our bike and decided to stay one more day in Kampot and ride up to Bokor Hill Station, north-west of Kampot. The casino complex that is already open was quite an eyesore on the way up. This was a 41km ride to the top, however the road here was in better condition than roads back in Australia. After 8km, we turned into the Preah Monivong National Park, paid our 2000 Riel entrance fee and off we went. The ride up is beautiful, lots of very nice corners, perfect for a motorbike. There was not much traffic and the view quickly became…
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Kampot Pepper Farm, World Famous Pepper Grown In Cambodia
When we drove out in an attempt to find the secret lake near Kampot, we decided to stop by the pepper farms on the way. There are a few Kampot Pepper Farms that you can visit. We certainly learned a few things about pepper that neither of us knew before. For example, how do the different colours of pepper grow? Sothy’s Eco Kampot Pepper Farm We rode out past Kep through the pepper plantations and turned in at Sothy’s Eco pepper farm. It was inspiring to see how much pride they take in their pepper here. You can learn a bit more on Sothy’s website. There was no one else and…
