Part Two: Cambodia.

It was a pretty jam-packed and stuffy mini-van ride, but after a couple of hours, we made it to the border of Cambodia. It was finally time to say goodbye to the familiar language, food, people and land and say hello to the unknown. We grabbed our bags, hopped off the van and wandered up a street until we saw a Thai flag waving in the air and a small immigration building. Welp, here we go...

Stop 2: Cambodia. (Koh Kong ---> Sihanoukville---> Phnom Penh)

Before arriving in Cambodia, I had been warned numerous times about the safety concerns in the country. Between hearing random horror stories and reading about brick throwing and the frequency of theft, I was a little nervous. However, Cambodia was also the country I knew the least about and was therefore the most excited to see. And let me tell you- it did not disappoint. It was rich with beauty, history, character and glorious, glorious food. We only spent five days there, but I am already mapping out my next visit. Cambodia- I dig you. I dig you a lot. 

Highlights: 

* Getting to the border. Usually when you stamp out of one country and into the next, it's a one-two stamp process, but not in this case. We stamped out of Thailand and then were left to a stretch of barren land with no indication of where to walk. We slowly wandered forth, admired the random stretch of land on the water and continued forward until we saw a gate. But still- no sign, no other people, just us. When we saw the building, we were immediately beckoned over by a group of men, but we'll leave the rest of the story to the 'Not so highlights' section. (The suspense is killing you, isn't it?).

*Our first dinner in Cambodia. It had been torrentially down-pouring outside, so we were starving by the time the rain passed and we could find food. We had no idea of our whereabouts (Koh Kong is the border town- a quick stopover to get to the next destination), so we meandered into the first place offering food we could find, which just happened to be a pub next door to us called 'Paddy's Bamboo Pub.' It was a charming place where random backpackers sat while a large group of Cambodian men sat and had a jolly time drinking beers and playing cards. Dinner was AMAZING (Khmer curry...yum) and as we finished up, one of the Cambodian men came over to us and said "We would like to invite you to sit with us. We would like to enjoy with you.' How could we refuse? So we pulled up our chairs, drank some Anchor beer and had a grand ole time with them. Only two of the men knew English, but we've perfected charades, so it was all good. There was A LOT of 'Cheers!-ing' going on and a lot of "Do not forget us!" Obvi not! The highlight though was the man, the myth, the legend- Paddy himself! He was an unbelievable man who shared his story with us and made our time much more enjoyable. He even dropped what he was doing the next morning to drive us to the bus station in his tuk-tuk. He was pretty popular among the locals. Paddy is definitely a big deal. (I advise that you 'Like' him on facebook- Paddy's Bamboo Pub- DO IT!)

*Sihanoukville= Backpacker's paradise. The place is teeming with backpackers from all over the world. It was completely chill and so incredibly fun. And I ate very well there- hummus, olives, toasties, sandwiches! We had some good life moments on the beach, relaxing, chatting, taking jumping shots and enjoying the scenery. 

*Tuk--tukking through no man's land. We had walked a good hour away from our beach in Sihanoukville (also known as Snooky) so we decided to tuk-tuk it back since it was past dark. We hopped in and then took the most epic ride back to our hostel. The only route was a bumpy red dirt road, unlit, and full of potholes and puddles. It was ridiculous, but also amazing because we passed through a small village, where families of 10 gathered into a small hut with mats on the ground and a tiny TV playing football games.  It gave us a quick glimpse into their simple lives. Also- I am still completely impressed that the tuk-tuk even made it back to our hostel. 

*The fact that Sihanoukville is known as Snooky.

*Currency. The Cambodian currency is the riel, but they also use American dollars. It got really confusing when you paid in USD, and then got the change in dollars and riel. Oy. But the money also prompted a continuous outburst of "I've Got Riel" sung to the tune of J.Lo and Ja Rule's winner "I'm Real."

*The bus ride from Snooky to Phnom Penh. I can't bring myself to say that I actually enjoyed the 5 hour ride, but I really loved seeing the countryside and passing through villages, observing people in their everyday lives and taking note of the massive amount of yaks/cows/buffaloes. 

*Phnom Penh day of tuk-tukking. We hired a tuk-tuk for a day to take us to the Russian Market, the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, lunch, the Killing Fields and the Central Market. We were lucky enough to have a friend of a friend map out our day for us and give us tips (MUCH appreciative of that). The day consisted of iced coffee (the best in Phnom Penh!) with the locals, some shopping, good eats, a lot of history shocks and a lot of reflection. 

*Friends! And I'm not talking about Megh and Sarah (although they are cool, too). Friends is an NGO-run restaurant, salon and shop that educates and trains former street children. We made a night of it by getting manicures at the salon, buying some souvenirs at the shop and then indulging in an incredibly delicious tapas dinner accompanied by a Pineapple Chili Margarita. Holy moly- deliciousness overload. 

*The digs. One of our friends in Suphan has a friend working in Phnom Penh and organized for us to stay in a serviced apartment for our two nights in the city. It was great and a huge jump from our spot in Koh Kong. 

*Food. I know- I sound like such a fatty, but it was seriously amazing. Just ignore the fried spiders and fried baby birds and focus on everything else Cambodia has to offer. One of my favorite meals of the trip was the Cambodian Crepes. I...died. 

*The Riverfront in Phnom Penh: bumpin' and beautiful! We met up with some friends there both nights to eat and be merry.

*The people. The Cambodian people were so kind, so friendly and very keen to chat. Our encounters involved a lot of "I will never forget you!' and wishing us well in life. I was also blown away with the amount of English everyone knew. In Thailand, I have to rely a lot on whatever Thai I know, but in Cambodia, learning English seems to be top priority because almost everyone knew a fair amount. 

Friends at Paddy's!

    

Puppies at Paddy's. Told ya it was awesome.

Walk along Serendipity Beach in Snooky

Snooky!

Best Iced Coffee in Phnom Penh!

Friends: Pineapple Chili Margis! And showing off the Manis.

Geez- look at me gushing on and on about Cambodia. I could probably go on for a good while about our time there...but I won't. I'll leave the 'Not so Highlights' for Part 3 because  there is a lot to be said about Cambodia and it's history.