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Singapore Cambodia Philippines
  • Darin Hancock
  • Robert Maccarthy
  • Jackie Maccarthy
  • Darin Hancock
  • Robert Maccarthy
  • Jackie Maccarthy
  • Amber Hancock

Singapore Cambodia Philippines

An open-ended adventure by Darin, Robert, Jackie & Amber Read more
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  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines
    A lot nervous and a little excited
    1

    Welcome to Phnom Penh

    April 11, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 34 °C

    It’s hot here too. And its nothing like KL. And certainly nothing like Singapore. And that’s obvious from the time you step out into the street and see all the tuktuks lined up ready to take you wherever you want to go. For very cheap. We found Vanton, er he found us, not sure really. He’s got his own ride, and he is learning English between fares. Very nice guy that took us the 10km into town, which was an experience in itself. The streets of Phnom Penh, like lots of Asian cities and towns, are lined with garbage and junk that has accumulated over a long time. And you don’t have to drive on the road, which aren’t great either, hell you don’t even need to go the same direction as the rest of the traffic. Nor do you need to wear a helmet, just hold onto to your cell phone with one hand, your infant child in the other and keep your smoke goin, you’ll fit right in.Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines
    1Its difficult to get the entire building in one shot
    From 375m above the ground

    Petronas Towers

    April 11, 2018 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    If you haven’t heard of it, you need to google it.
    The towers were completed construction in 2004 and at that time they were the tallest towers in the world. Now they rank around 8 or 9, but still the tallest “twin” towers in the world. They are right downtown, and you can see them anywhere in the city. The top floor is 375m from the ground, floor 88. And that’s where we went to look out upon the city, that is well beneath you at that point. Even the KL TV Tower, the 7th tallest in the world is below you. Not recommended if you are claustrophobic and definitely not if you are afraid of heights.
    Here is another post that will be in two parts due to its awesomeness.    Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines

    Street Food in Phnom Penh

    April 12, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 33 °C

    We checked into a really nice place called the House Boutique Hotel. Bring your Visa card cause its $16 if you want breakfast included. Pool, Air con, beer, western toilets, pretty swanky for this crew. A little ways to downtown and the banks of the Mekong River but still in the heart of this fascinating city. We went for a walk last night and ate some very questionable street food, probably the limit for the adventurous two in the group. Tell you what we think it was later,
    We were treated to a blessing by some monks this morning, right out front of the place, we got to participate in the whole thing. It was really interesting and the locals were so excited that we wanted to be a part of it. Its the Khmer New Year starting tomorrow. We get the distinct feeling the country, or least major parts of it shut down completely for three days. Off to the mini mart we go for some Angkor beer...dont wanna run out you know.    Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines

    The Killing Fields

    April 14, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    You will want to make a decision before you get to Cambodia if you want to see the Killing Fields. You should probably read a little about it, or watch a movie. It’s not for everyone, and even once we decided to go and see it, it wasn’t easy to be there. We started at the Genocide Museum, in the heart of Phnom Penh. Also known as S21, it was a high school until April of 1975 when the Khmer Rouge rolled into the city and began with their atrocities. The Cambodian people are honoured when foreigners come to visit the site. They want the world to remember what happened and they take great care to host celebrations here and at the Killing Fields to keep it on peoples minds. The place is silent when you walk through in spite of the hundreds of people touring through. You can visit one of the survivors, of which there were only a few out of millions, when you leave the site. We didn’t.
    The people that were housed at S21, were brought to the Killing Fields, 15km away, in Cheoug Ek. This area is particularly difficult to see, its very real, and right in front of you.    Read more

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    The Mekong and Tonle Riverfront

    April 14, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    We went downtown on Thursday night to check out the riverfront. The Mekong and the Tonle come together here, and together they are wide. And its beautiful, all done up with lights and flags, and flowers and all. We found a rooftop bar just down the street from the Royal Palace, had some appetizers and then went down the street to do it all again, on the roof tops, as advertised.
    We sat in another bar thinking we could hear karaoke. And when we actually got there, it was the house band. Oh well, the beer was cold and the view amazing, so we stayed. Grabbed some ice cream for the tuktuk ride home which Jackie remembers as being really good.    Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines

    Lets go to the beach!

    April 14, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

    We had a wonderful tuktuk driver for two days, Vanthon, who was full of information and suggestions for us, and he lined up a driver to take us to the coast. In a much more comfortable ride we drove four hours from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville. Otres Beach, specifically, to spend a few days soaking up the sun. For any Canadian that has been to Mexico, or Quebec, you know that the drivers there are nuts. They don’t hold a candle to the Khmer. If you put a bunch of five year olds in vehicles with a full tank of gas and shifted the car into drive, and let them go, that would be similar to your experience in Cambodia. There are no rules, except when it comes to large trucks...large trucks don’t move, so you better. And even then just enough to get out of the way. Sidewalks, the shoulder, the other lane, all fair game.
    A long, eventful and particularly quiet drive, (remember the roof top bars?) we made it to Otres Beach, midday. Time for a coldish Angkor beer.    Read more

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    Eolia Beach Bungalows?

    April 14, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Not sure the name actually. Its a really nice place, a mere 50 steps from the sand and shore of the Gulf Of Thailand. This whole stretch seems pretty quiet. On one of our walks it appears that the one end is nearly empty, the other way also pretty quiet. Stands to reason. Right now at 10am, its 31 and feels like 41 degrees. The ocean is bathtub warm, and there’s a little bit of garbage, but the view is stunning. Lots of beach chairs available, and bars and restaurants and even some entertainment. We were treated to a fire show last night, up close and personal, by some amateur “fire show” people. Who weren’t locals, they may have been local to Australia or Canada, or the states, who knows, but they dropped their sticks a couple times and spun the damn things inches from your face. It’s a lawsuit waiting to happen.
    Time to drop off our laundry and walk the other direction.    Read more

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    113

    Sihanoukville Ferry

    April 16, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C

    We checked out of the Eolia Beach Bungalows on Sunday morning for the white sand beaches of Koh Rong. Otres Beach is really pretty, and there are lots of places to stay and eat, but as far as resort type beaches go this one doesn’t rate high. It’s slightly overpriced and very dirty, but we are glad we saw it. Our impression is that its all about to change, with lots of new investment and plans for swanky resorts.
    We took a tuktuk into Sihanoukville to catch the speed boat to the islands. The pier is chaotic to say the least, and thankfully everyone was just as confused as us. And it was hot.
    Amber made friends with a local monk and exchanged names and numbers. More to come on that.    Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines
    1

    Longset Beach

    April 16, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C

    On the island of Koh Rong, Longset Beach is about three kilometres up the beach from all the thumping bars and nightclubs of Saracen Bay. Well not all. There is one nightclub that is a little ways down the beach but it may as well be in front of our cabana. We think it closed down around four in the morning. Thank goodness for earplugs. The beach here is very different from where we just were. There is little to no garbage, the beaches are clean, white and soft like talcum.
    The bungalows, while absolutely beautiful, aren’t exactly “critter” proof. The floors are loose fitting wood plank, the walls, loose fitting mahogany siding, the roof, loose fitting thatch. So there’s bugs. And lord knows what else. But there is mosquito netting over the bed. That is small consolation for Jackie and Amber who aren’t a fan of sharing their rooms with anything from the insect kingdom.
    But the people are nice, actually the owner lived in Ottawa for thirty years and came back here ten years ago and built this resort as her retirement. The place is a hubbub of activity, raking, sweeping, I am sure its a full time job holding back the jungle.    Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines
    5Jackie is getting better at her selfies!!
    We looked at staying at these places5Amber just about stepped on a millipede. And screamed.

    Jungle Hike

    April 16, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ 🌧 13 °C

    We had a decent breakfast in the restaurant and had a really good conversation with the owner and her daughter. Her daughter is visiting from Ottawa, born and raised in Ontario but pretty well connected here in Cambodia. Her mom owns this place, Pura Vita, and her dad owns a business in Siem Reap. She shared her story which is fascinating and her daughter gave us some ideas for the rest of our trip, for which we were thankful.
    There’s lots to see on the “4km beach” as its called, and they recommended a walk to the old pier; the place where the mother used to land in a boat and walk through the jungle, to the location of this resort. By herself. Through a mangrove lagoon, chest high. In the dark. Ten years ago to build this joint. She has guts like no other.
    So we walked along the beach, checked out whatever place we came across, got to the pier and turned around and came back. Pretty amazing countryside.    Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines
    1

    We went left

    April 18, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    There’s not a lot of activity on this beach. And that’s just fine with us. Yesterday we walked to the right, to see what we could see. Today we went left. To the end of the beach. And had a few drinks and lunch and walked back. And that’s a day... well throw in a fire show, and a massage lady beating the living piss out of a gecko, and thats a day.Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines

    Day trip to the pepper fields

    April 18, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ 🌙 25 °C

    When we were in Long Beach the lady from Ottawa strongly suggested we go to the pepper fields in Kampot. Have you ever heard of Kampot Pepper Crab? Cambodia’s signature dish. Supposedly amazing. And Kampot is apparently a really neat city of 39,000 on the Kampong River. So our driver took us through the countryside, which is beautiful, all along the coast. The lady was right, it is a neat looking place, with lots of little fishing and farming villages on the way. We ate at an awesome little Indian restaurant before we departed to the hills to check out the pepper farms.Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines
    11

    Kampot Pepper Fields

    April 18, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ 🌫 3 °C

    About thirty kilometres southeast of the city are the pepper fields. It’s arid country, rocky, kind of hilly but still quite scenic if you like that sort of thing. You turn off the highway onto a gravel road thats really only wide enough for one vehicle, and a bunch of motorbikes. There’s lots of little farms, and little farmhouses, Cambodian style... cows, ducks, skinny chickens, water buffalo, and kids everywhere.
    We think its the last day of the Khmer New Year, so people are all about playing pool, yes pool, water fights, which we partook in, and generally enjoying the last day of the holiday. A great place to take a girl on a date.
    And then we got to the pepper farm. The guide is enthusiastic and new, so not a wealth of information, but the tour was good, short and interesting.    Read more

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    1

    Its a Family Affair

    April 18, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    On our way out from the pepper farm, there was a family picking rice in the front of their house. We asked driver to stop so we could get really touristy and take some pictures. We were a little embarrassed that we were intruding and not being respectful, but it didn’t stop us. They put on a show for us.Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines

    Cambodian Wildlife

    April 19, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ 🌙 7 °C

    Everywhere we go we run into the local wildlife, insects and lizards especially. Here are a few shoots til now. Still waiting to see a bearcat and the tiger.

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines

    Sometimes people just piss you off

    April 19, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 35 °C

    It didn’t take any of us very long to reach the limits of our patience with other travellers. We spent about 45 minutes in the departure lounge at Sihanoukville with this group. I wont share the details.
    Here is public enemy number one. If you see her, throat punch her for us.    Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines

    Night Market and Pub Street

    April 20, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    Like all SE Asian towns and cities, theres a night market where they sell all the same stuff on one street as the other. Lights and loud music and people everywhere. It’s a spectacle not to be missed. The one in Siem Reap is a little smaller than the ones you’re used to but fun nonetheless. Adjoining the night market at one end is the Pub Street. A couple of streets that cross cross each other, with yet more lights and much louder thumping music. Hundreds of places to eat, drink and shop, you can even watch small children dancing on stage. Cambodians exploit children like no other. We walked around for a bit and had a beer on the second floor of some place to people watch, which is always great fun.Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines

    Lotus Plantation

    April 20, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    When we were in Koh Rong, the woman we met from Ottawa, whose mom owned the place we were staying told us about the lotus plantation. We took a twenty minute car ride out to the lotus fields...what they use lotus flowers for we’re not sure; ceremonies and such we think. And there is some medicinal uses as well. They grow in the mud in about a foot of water. Incredibly pretty themselves, but right out in the middle of farmland, and kinda stinky. But you can go out there and rent a little hut for the day in amongst the plantation and just enjoy the day - pretty neat idea.Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines

    Angkor National Museum

    April 20, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    From everything we read and what we had been told by other travellers was to go check out the National Museum prior to our visit to Angkor Wat and all the temples. Seemed like a reasonable plan, even driver thought so.
    Unfortunately, its much less a museum and more an art gallery. The 3D dome in the centre of the building is a stunning piece of work and the twenty minute video was interesting cinematically, but none of it informative in any way.
    And then there is a bunch of original artwork downstairs for sale. And ice cream, which we tend not to miss very often. Might want to save your money for a guide at the temples themselves.    Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines

    EoCambo Residence

    April 20, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    We have had pretty good luck with accommodation. Really only one place where the room may have not met everyone’s standard. We stayed at the Don Bosco Hotel School in Sihanoukville and were extremely impressed. The place we are in now must have taken the cream of the crop from that group and brought them here. The service is impeccable. They love to hear how your day was, what your plans are for the next day, every whim, they are on it.
    The rooms are spotless, hot water, no smell, no insects and they literally run to to help you out, simply awesome. EoCambo Residence, street 22, downtown eastside, Siem Reap.    Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines

    Floating Village

    April 20, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    We read about these before we left and it was on all our wish lists. You drive past the lotus plantations another ten minutes and you find the end of the road, at a man made channel that leads out to the Tonle Sap (literally means freshwater lake). The channel is a few kilometres in length, and its dry season, so there might be three feet of water. Muddy, filthy water. And you go in these long skinny, tippy boats not fit for any kind of travel except for the kind you would expect in SE Asia. Once you get close to the lake, you have to get out of this boat into a much smaller and tippier boat and cruise through the floating village. There are 1115 families living on floating houses at this part of the lake; there’s a community hall, bar, church, school and little shops for the locals to buy their goods. Our guide grew up on the floating village, his family still lives there. And the people seem happy. Apparently there are around two million people living on the Tonle Sap...might explain the filthy water.Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines

    Phare!

    April 21, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 34 °C

    There is a school in Battambang, (say it like Battumbong) that takes disadvantaged kids and develops their musical, dancing, acting and acrobatic skills. To raise money for the school they put on cirque du soleil type shows.
    It’s just outside of town a few minutes in a tiny little dome circus tent kind of thing, holds maybe 300 people?
    But for the price of admission you get a fabulous show of daring acts, acrobatics, dancing, and singing. It’s actually really good and totally worth it. If you want the ultimate in entertainment pay for the front row, otherwise save your riel and get the seats on the side.
    There’s beer and popcorn too, what more could you want?    Read more

  • Singapore Cambodia Philippines

    The Angkor Wat

    April 21, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    You read about it in books, maybe you’ve even been here. We have all wanted to see this place, some of us since we read about it in elementary school. There really are no words to describe the Angkor Wat and the surrounding temples. You have to accept that there are literally thousands of people there the same day as you with the same anticipation.
    Words, and unfortunately pictures, wont do it justice.
    Here are a couple posts that don’t even scratch the surface of what you see here. One of the seven ancient wonders of the world. Wonder, thats a good start.    Read more

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