sihanoukville..

having been about a week on the beautiful beaches of sihanoukville we decided on a change of scenery. the four of us, feeling somewhat inadequate in numbers (having said goodbye to our party gal, jess) piled into the backseat of a small car after having learned that there will be 7 people attempting this 2 hour "shared-taxi" ride to kempot..

we were slightly distraught by this, but they assured us that this is how it's done here, so take it or leave it. (we attempted to argue, but realised they meant it and had no remorse what-so-ever dropping our bags and driving away,) so we grudgingly continued.. stopped downtown to pick up the other passengers, (presumably 2 more, as we are already a party of 4, plus driver).. and to our surprise, it was actually a couple that got in the front seat, along with a toddler and a breast-feeding infant.. (as has been stated many times on this trip: safety has also taken a vacation..) after about 5 minutes of driving, we stop yet again. to our horror/amusement, another woman gets into the auto.. gets in, to the left of the driver, sharing his seat! now really. how is one supposed to maneuver oneself and make logical driving decisions when there's a woman sharing your seat, and a breast-feeding infant plus family on your right? and four petrified canadians in the back voicing their opinions on the situation..? regardless, we made it alive. (makes a good story though, doesn't it?)

arriving in kempot, we found a quaint little hostel and settled right in. walked along the river and witnessed a beautiful sunset.. the next morning waking to set out to "bokor hill station".. now: to make a long story short, i will try to summarize the 'experience'--scroll down, and re-read the blog in which i described our drive from laos into cambodia, to siem reap--with all the lakes and gravel ditches and whatnot.. now: this was quite the trek, and yet it was under completely 'reasonable' conditions.. bokor hill station involved going 1000+ meters up a mountain-side, in a truck with 7 people piled in the back and 5 in the cab, during rainy season, in a road highly under construction.. i will leave it at that. use your imagination, you might get close..

bokor palace, as it's rightfully named was built around the 1940's (forgive me if i'm wrong).. by the french who were colonizing the area. they made this beautiful building as a casino/hotel, filling it with only the best of the best.. in the 1970's it was overtaken by the corrupt 'khmer rouge' who used it as a military base and was host to many deaths, including 15 american commanders.. (the mountainside was a good way to dispose of bodies..) pretty dramatic building for such a fall from grace.. it has an eerie feel, compelling.. we were allowed to go inside and roam at will.. crazy to imagine the stories within those walls..

the next day we took a tuk tuk into kep to see some bat caves, the beach, and a pepper plantation, which cambodia is famous for.. we got to try some green peppers straight off the plants.. spicy deliciousness. unfortunately, the green peppers do not last more than a 3 days so we couldn't take any home.. but i do have a bag of dried black pepper with mom's name on it.

now we find ourselves back in sihanoukville! after such adventures we need the tranquility of a nice familiar beach.. four more days, and we'll be ready for what's next.