Off the Beaten Track

So Dad and Colette arrived at Siam Reap airport where I greeted them and used my excellent (ahem!) Khmer skills to get them and their luggage safely to our wonderfully air-conditioned guesthouse - bliss! After a general catch up on life I didn't want to get them too used to the comfort there though so the very next day I whipped them off to Phnom Srok.

We spent 2 hot, noisy nights in Phnom Srok joining in some of the Khmer New Year festivities, meeting some of my colleagues and visiting the now infamous Tropieng Tmar reservoir. We weren't the only ones - about half the population of Cambodia had decided to enjoy the normally peaceful serene surroundings of one of Phnom Srok's highlights! Phnom Srok definitely had a different atmosphere about it and for me personally it was quite strange to see so many unknown people enjoying their holiday time at a place so familiar to me. I spotted teachers and school directors I know selling to the Khmer tourists and there were loads of young people and families out for the day.

The plan for our time in Cambodia was loose so we leisurely enjoyed spending some time in both Sisaphon and Battambang doing the "off the beaten track" touristy thing. Almost everything we did over the next 3 or 4 days was not in the guide book and we loved it! We met up with Cory, Claire and Marcus and mooched around the markets, visited the coffee man, climbed a local hill and visited the pagodas, ate at Sisaphon's finest establishments and got a taste of ancient Angkorian temples north of the town. The Lonely Planet remarks that Sisaphon isn't really worth more than a toilet stop as you pass through and granted, it isn't the most attractive of Cambodian towns. However, if you know where to go it holds some real gems! We packed so much into our time there and Cory helped with the authentic Khmer experience, making sure that everyone got doused in water and talcum powder, a traditional Khmer game at New Year!

Battambang was another packed 24 hour adventure of bruised bottoms and aching arms! The four of us caught up with my mate Tony and his cronies (Buffalo, Poe and Dollar) for a motodop tour of the countryside, bamboo train ride, more temples, caves, mountains and wildlife. I undertook this trip back in September with Mads and it was just as impressive the second time round. Despite the sore backsides the finale of seeing millions of bats pour out from the mouth of a mountain cave and stream like a giant snake out into the countryside on their nighttime insect eating mission was again absolutely breathtaking (not to mention smelly!).

It's been fantastic to see Dad and Colette visiting what has become my natural habitat. The heat, and some of the conversation, has been intense but being the seasoned travellers that they are, they have coped well. Dad's even using water to wash with on this holiday, which is something we're all benefiting from! It's been great to show them a slice or two of what life is like here, introduce them to some of my friends and catch up with their news before we start trekking in Laos..