Reset search
Cambodia
  • Vander Wonders

Cambodia

A 11-day adventure by Vander Wonders Read more
FollowInsightsCalendarShareShareBucket list
Newest first
  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Farming with bare basics

    January 28, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    It is really a different world out here. Watching the farmer going in to the stream to fill up watering cans and then walk up and down his fields to water the crop made me think our worlds are so far removed, I can't even remember if I ever had to water my garden using anything other than sprinklers.

    The water buffalo was an awesome wildlife experience, the locals use them as tractors their means to plow fields. I felt like slapping a John Deer sticker on the buffalo's but.

    The poor cow looks like its eaten to much rice and not much of anything else, now I understand why any beef dish here has only about 50g beef on the plate.

    {Roedolf}

    And very chewy!!! -issy    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Dr fish

    January 28, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Probably one of the weirdest things I have ever done. There are 3 tanks, each with different size fish, we were very ambitious and started with the tank with the big fish- putting my feet into the fish tank required quite some mental preparation. The fish munch the dead skin of your feet, and its ridiculously ticklish. They call it dr fish, a massage experience, it was more like laugh therapy. I am still not entirely sure if I giggled had a fit or whether it was just the idea that freaked me out. The entire street was entertained by my hysterical laughs, the tuk tuks driving past all had a laugh at me. The beer calmed me down a bit and relaxed a bit allowing the fish to do their jobs . It was fun and fabulous and by far the best $2 I have spend.

    {Issy}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Children of Cambodia

    January 28, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    We took a tour into the countryside and some small villages. The children fascinated me. There is a clear divide between those committed to go to school and get educated and those that simply get sucked up by the system to work from a very young age. I noticed that majority of them getting themselves to and from school. So many children were lifting each other on bikes way to large for them, others are walking miles to get home.

    Pic of the boy on the truck... he is clearly one who is working with his father from a very young age. He was flashing the dollars very cheekily, and when his dad took off he threw money at me, Like a Vegas winner, I ran into the street to pick it was false 10 dollar note.

    I read this article on their education on a charity site which gave me an even deeper compassion for the kids....Of Cambodia's 14.4 million people, half are under age 22 - and so there is a burgeoning school age population. Education statistics are improving dramatically but are still very low by world standards. Education makes up a small part of the Government annual spend, and the problem is that in absolute terms, this expenditure is very low. Just 1.6% of Cambodia's GDP (Gross Domestic Product) according to UNESCO is spent on education - ranking around 170th in the world. Most western countries spend around 5.5% to 6.4% of GDP on education.

    During the Khmer Rouge regime from 1975 to 1979, education was dealt a severe setback, and the great strides made in literacy and in education during the two decades following independence were obliterated systematically. Schools were closed, and educated people and teachers were subjected to, at the least, suspicion and harsh treatment and, at the worst, execution. At the beginning of the 1970s, more than 20,000 teachers lived in Cambodia; only about 5,000 of the teachers remained 10 years later. Soviet sources report that 90 percent of all teachers were killed under the Khmer Rouge regime. Only 50 of the 725 university instructors, 207 of the 2,300 secondary school teachers, and 2,717 of the 21,311 primary school teachers survived.

    {Issy}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Awesome guide

    January 28, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Our guide (Samueth) made our trip to the temples and the countryside even more special.

    He was really friendly and after every stop he gave us a bottle of water and wet towel with the biggest smile ever.

    He spoiled us with al sorts of snacks along the way. Isabel already wrote about the rice pastries, he also introduced us to sticky rice wrapped in banana leaves. We have seen these everywhere in Vietnam and Cambodia but we were to afraid try it before. Its basically a sausage of rice with a bit of a sweet taste.

    He even gave us face masks so we can fit in with the local. Not really it was to protect us from all the dust on the roads in the country side. I am so glad he did as the dust would have destroyed my sinuses.

    He played mini golf with us and was just around playful that made everything just more enjoyable.

    He spoke great English by Cambodian standards.

    Some Canadian tourist told us about him on our Mekong trip and I am grateful that we had the pleasure of meeting him and spending time with him.

    {Roedolf}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    First night bus experience

    January 29, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ 🌙 23 °C

    We purchased these overnight "luxury hotel VIP bus" tickets for only $8 per person to get us from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh. Who knows how luxurious a $8 bus ride can be?

    We were set to meet the bus at 10:40pm at the Lucky Angkor hotel which was about a 5 min walk from our airbnb. We were at the hotel just after 10pm just to make sure we don't miss the bus.

    11:10pm an old van pitched up to pick us up, this was VIP service in not such a VIP style. The van dropped us at the bus rank and they told us to wait inside this very old building with steel chairs and not much else in it. Isabel almost got attacked by a rat, or at least she screamed loud enough that you would think the rat attacked her.

    Midnight the bus finally arrived and we boarded skeptically. After struggling to figure out which seat/bed was ours as they all looked like single beds to me. The driver showed us our bed for two, so the single beds I referred to was in fact double beds meant for two, maybe to asians, it was hardly big enough for just me.

    The ride it self was very bumpy but I at least got 3 hours of decent sleep which is more than I can say in a 5 hour plane ride, so thats a thumbs-up. However I did struggle to find a comfortable position in the limited space and poor Isabel had to make herself as small as possible to allow me to just fit.

    My only fear going into this bus ride was a potential road accident as the driver might fall asleep in the middle of the night. Luckily we arrived safely in Phnom Penh to be awakened by the bus scraping its side as it tried parking the bus in depot. Not the worst accident, but not an ideal way to wake up and find out you have arrived at your destination.

    Probably the worst part of the journey for me was the next 10min as tuk tuk drivers like vultures tried to grab our bags and force us to use them to take us to the hotel. We have learned in the short time here that you don't allow anyone to take or do anything until you have negotiated a price or it will cost you.

    The most persistent driver wanted $10 to take us to the hotel which is a complete rip off considering we have paid $16 to come over 200km and he wants that for the last 3km. I negotiated him down to $5 by threatening that I will rather walk than pay more than $5, while I really did not have much of a choice but to use him as all the other drivers was already gone and walking really wasn't an option with my bad back and all our luggage.

    Just after 5am we arrived safely at the beautiful Palm Tree Boutique Hotel. We checked in, they did not have a room available unfortunately as they were full the night before and couldn't guarantee an early checkin as they had to wait for guests to checkout and then clean a room.

    They offered to keep our bags and said we are welcome to sit and wait in the lobby or use the sun-chairs poolside. We opted for the sum-chairs and got some more R&R under the starts until about 8am using towels as blankets. We decided we will have breakfast at the hotel and go hit the sights after waiting a while for a room. Halfway through breakfast they actually brought our room key as someone checked out early, BONUS, we were able to settle in and freshen up before hitting the sights.

    {Roedolf}

    Ek is deur 'n helse tyd om die tuk tukdrywers van my af te hou want Roedolf was nog salig in die bus en ek is vreesbevange hulle steel my tas. Ek het min geslaap meestal gebid, ek het darm rustig langs die swembad met my oogklappe geslaap.
    {Issy}    Read more

    See translation
  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    People can be very cruel

    January 29, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    The main reason why we came to Phnom Penh was to see the killing fields at Chorung Ek and the prison Tuol Sleng (also called S-21).

    To be honest I didn't even know about this massive genocide until one of Jaco's friends in NZ asked if we are going to the killing fields when we are in Cambodia. Strange as this happened more recently (1975-1979) than the German Holocaust and whipped out a 3rd of the population of Cambodia.

    We first visited the killing fields which was bizarrely peaceful with lots of plant growth and birds sounds breaking the eerie silence as people walk around listening to the audio guide and no one says a word.

    No words is probably the only way to describe what we experienced today, and bitter disappointment in how cruel us humans can be.

    The current Cambodian government has resurrected a memorial in the middle of the killing fields that holds all the excavated bones and clothes found at the site during the excavations. This is in line with the Cambodian belief to hold the remains of a deceased in a special place to honor the dead. This memorial not only honors the dead but reminds man kind of how dangerous power hungry leaders could be.

    At S-21 it was much of the same with blood stained floor, very visual paintings and photographs telling the story of the horror and pain that more than 20,000 people in that prison endured in their last days. Only 12 prisoners of this place left the prison alive and some as still alive today.

    Two of the 12 survivors are responsible for most of the paintings and literature that tells the stories and they were actually there for book signings today. We only saw them towards the end of the tour and I couldn't get myself to even look at them for longer than a second or 2 without being overcome by emotion over what they have endured and here they are telling the story not only for their own healing but to try and educate the world so that a genocide like this never happens again.

    Hard to experience what we have seen today but I am glad we did.

    What i think strikes me most, is that this happened only a couple of years before the end of apartheid and personally affected every single person in Cambodia (oppressors and oppressed, while population suffered from PTSD for years, no matter which side you were on), and it seems like all the Cambodian people now are almost proud that this is a part of they history and they want the world to know it and learn from it, wouldn't it be great if South Africans can be proud so to speak of our history and show it to the world for everyone to learn from our mistakes. I think that would do wonders to heal the open wounds in our lovely country and build a better tomorrow for everyone in the nation.

    {Roedolf}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Killing fields Choeung Ek

    January 29, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    This is a unique place which reflect the barbarous and cruel crimes of the ultra communist Khmer Rouge regime between 1975 and 1979. Around 20,000 people including foreigners were brutally executed. There are 129 mass graves bear testimony to these unspeakably crimes. There is a tree called the killing tree where babies was smashed against, these people were absolutely merciless. They were of the opinion you need to kill everyone of educational descent otherwise there will be people with revenge/ A memorial housing the remains excavated at this site of Choeung. I was constantly thinking of the trauma to dig things up and clean it and even more so visiting the archives to determine if your loved ones escaped or were killed in the mass murders. The skulls are marked with dots to indicate with which weapon people was killed and whether its male or female etc. Its so tragic how so many were head injuries.

    Not a place I want to visit ever again, but I thankful we did, it was an extremely dark and somber journey into the history of Cambodia.

    More on the history read this
    http://www.cambodiatribunal.org/history/cambodi…

    {Issy}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Tual Sleng Genocide museum

    January 29, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    Tual Sleng also called S21 was the secret center of a network of nearly 200 prisons where people were tortured by the Khmer Rouge regime. It used to be a school which Pol Pot's tyranny transformed into a prison.

    Between 12 and 2000 people were imprisoned here. There are only twelve confirmed survivors, if you listen to their stories your heart will break into pieces.

    The torture rooms, the images of the violence and history of this place is was moving. What upset me the most was the expressions of the prisoners,they are completely dehumanized without any hope. Tue cruelty of mankind is beyond belief. It was with a heavy heart that I left.

    It was really creepy how many people wrote in the visitors book about Trump, and how we should watch America. Some idiot even wrote it on the wall there in the prison...where there is a clear sign that says only write on paper. Needless to say the world is concerned about his leadership.

    On the bright side I really do think that its wonderful that a country is so open about the genocide and actually teach their children so history won't repeat itself.

    RIP
    {Issy}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Recharge@tuk tuk cafe

    January 29, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    It was emotionally draining visiting the Genocide sights. We processed all the information over some Cambodian bbq'e skewers and fresh passionfruit juice A wonderful late afternoon lunch snack was well deserved.

    {Issy}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Phnom Penh

    January 29, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    I felt very lazy but had to clear my mind and process all the gruesome information of the communist brutality earlier today. I went for a little run to Sihanouk boulevard, I saw the Independence Monument which was built in 1958 for Cambodia's independence from France in 1953. The North Korean embassy impressed with its glamorous gold. I was also lucky to catch the sunset and make it back to the hotel in decent light.

    {Issy}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    La Patate

    January 29, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Meeting up with Sarah and Mark, the beloved Bermies and one of my cool running buddies. We had dinner at a Belgium/French place. I cultivated Roedolf with Chateaubriand. We ended up barhopping trying various vinegary wine. A really fun night exchanging simcards for Asia catching up with fellow travel fanatics.

    For Mark its all about the destination not the journey!! Interesting perspectives.

    {Issy}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler
    1

    Cycling Phnom Penh

    January 30, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    The hotel offered free cycles, naturally Isabel and I went for a cycle through town to the Royal Palace.

    The bikes were clearly designed for asian people which is more Isabel's size, and I was a sight for sore eyes on this bicycle.

    This was also our first taste of actually driving on the roads here as most of the time there are no sidewalks or bike lanes, so you just have to brave the traffic. Funnily enough you just go and ring your bell as you go and no one seem to run into you. Its really amazing that there is this understanding on the roads to avoid each other even if there really are no rules.

    {Roedolf}

    It was pretty quiet at around 10, but our drive back at noon was terrifying I would be stuck in a traffic jam and can't see Roedolf, who is miles in front of me. The traffic on our way back around the Independence monument is pretty similar to that of the arc the triumph and that on a bike is a matter of commitment and faith. I constantly thought what I am doing? And then I pie myself that its ok and at least we have good travel insurance. The fact that we stayed out till 2am after minimal sleep the previous night on our bus journey, didn't exactly contribute the best cycle ever, but we managed to soak up the atmosphere, see the Royal palace & have loads of fun. Everything is pretty much an adventure in Cambodia.

    {Issy}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Palm Tree Boutique Hotel

    January 30, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    What a pleasure staying at this hotel!

    Room was great, staff was super friendly and helpful, they even arranged bus tickets for us to Sihanoukville.

    The best we have had in Asia so far.

    {Roedolf}

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Just a stopover in Sihanoukville

    January 30, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ 🌙 16 °C

    En route from Phnom Penh to Koh Rong Samloem we got a last minute deal at Moonflower Bungalows in Sihanoukville. Sihanoukville is the gateway to the islands.

    Nice little stopover, massage, dinner, sleep, stroll on the beach and quick breakfast.

    {Roedolf}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Berg rys

    January 30, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ❄️ 0 °C

    Wanneer jou moed in jou skoene sak.... want dis alweer 'n hoop rys. Ek was wel beindruk met die grootte van die prawns, seker oordat ons nou by die kus is. Ek sal my voortande gee vir 2 extra prawns ipv n berg rys.

    Eendag as ek groot is gaan ek nooit weer rys eet nie...

    {Issy}    Read more

    See translation
  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Serendipity beach

    January 31, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    After a fair amount of travelling and lots of sightseeing from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh we are ready for some downtime. We are waiting at Serendipity pier for a speedboat to the islands, we picked the smaller island away from the party crowds, Koh Rong Sanloem. I can't wait to put this backpack down and just relax.

    {Issy}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Ran out of gas

    January 31, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    Our rustic adventure got off to a rocky start. Our ticket was for the 11am speed boat that takes 30min to get us to Koh Rong Samloem, at least that was the plan.

    We got to the pier about 45min ahead of time and the boat arrived at the pier at 10:55. It took the best part of 30 minutes to get everyone from the island off the boat and get us on the boat. So the boat ended up leaving the pier at 11:35, the boat was filled to capacity.

    About 20 minutes later we dropped off about 30 people at the main beach and picked about 50 people up. It was extremely crowded but we were the next stop so we did not really care. When the boat pulled away you could feel it was struggling because it was overweight.

    We were just about too far to be able to swim back to land when the boat ran out of gas. What a nightmare, trying to get it refilled in the middle of the ocean. Another 20 minutes of just floating around while the refill and they got the boat started again.

    Finally we arrived safely at M'Pai beach. Only took 2 hours to get here. Now 4 days of relax and no traveling, but we have to face the boat trip back again.

    {Roedolf}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Sunset bungalows

    January 31, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Can't believe we are here!

    Awesome little bungalow, with a real old fashion out house attached to the bungalow.

    What more do we need just to relax.

    {Roedolf}

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Eiland lewe

    January 31, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    Na in check, het ons die rustigste dag denkbaar. Dit was heerlik om net te onstpan, ons het 'n rustige middagete by restaurant met 'n 360 grade uitsig. Ons slaap 'n twee ure middagslapie, gaan snorkel voor ons plekkie, Roedolf koop 'n plaas oor die seepgladklippe en ek skrik my morsdood ek sien hoe ek hom na 'n boot moet dra. Die hangmat voor ons huis is ongelooflik, mens kyk na die uitsig en wees net.

    {Issy}    Read more

    See translation
  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler
    1

    Taxi Island style

    February 1, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    After an absolute disastrous first night in paradise we are happy to wipe the sand off our feet from the sunset bungalows and move on to our main place where we will be staying 3 nights.

    The shower tap broke off in my hand as i was opening it and water gushed out everywhere, Isabel rushed to help but was unable to close the main pipe tap outside the bungalow, she then went to call a staff member to help, the guy managed to stop the water bit he was unable to fix the tap, but said he will see if they can find a spare.
    Later in the restaurant we asked the rude french manager if they were able to fix it and he said no, when I asked him for some compensation or discount for our discomfort he continued to accuse me of being to strong and breaking it and threatening to not serve us food and chase us out in the middle of the night which will mean we will be sleeping on the beach. With some sweet talk and some french by Isabel we managed to get food and stay the night. They managed to fix the shower by the time we got back to the room but the rudeness of the manager already earned this place the worst review I have ever wrote for accommodation.

    There are no roads on the island so either we walk the 25 minute walk with all our luggage or we take a water taxi.

    Work smart not hard thats my moto.

    {Roedolf}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    100% better!

    February 1, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    This place is so much better, the bungalow is still pretty rustic but has a little more of a finished look. At least the bathroom is tiled and it has a bit more room with a proper balcony.

    These places always look more appealing in photos than it does in real life. Theres sand everywhere and it's impossible to not get sand in the bungalow even if there is a bucket to rinse your feet at the bottom of the steps.The mosquito net is no longer white from all the times it has been used and you can actually hear birds nesting in the roof. But what do you expect from a remote deserted island? Its as bare basic as you get, the running water comes straight from a nearby stream and is not drinkable, you only have electricity from 6pm to midnight.

    We are not here for comfort but to enjoy nature. Nature is exactly what you get here, you can hear the ocean from your bed and its just a complete different pace here, one day feels like a week and there are not much to do other than sit around, sleep, swim, lie on the beach, snorkel, eat and drink.

    Needless to say we have not done much today.

    {Roedolf}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Island walk

    February 1, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ 🌫 12 °C

    We decided to walk to the village from our new place, it is a bit further from our first night stay. It is pretty rustic all round, no atm's not power everywhere, I can't believe there are still places like this.

    {Issy}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    One man's trash is anothers life raft

    February 1, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ 🌧 13 °C

    We went for a stroll down the beach to the village (at least what they call the village here, its more like 3 shops and a couple of backpacker hostels on the beach). On the way back we found this campsite that someone clearly lives in and he has made himself a raft from empty water bottles.

    Pretty clever but I am 100% sure I don't want his life.

    {Roedolf}    Read more

  • Vander WondersCambodiaTraveler

    Good morning my island

    February 2, 2017 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    How glorious to wake up after 9 hours and open the door to this view!

    Day 123 of our trip was a "lui lekker day". We started the day with some breakfast which I will remember for the worst coffee ever (basically oil) and trying to eat our food before the flies eat it first.

    The coffee was so bad I could barely drink a quarter of it and even Isabel could only manage half a mug. Believe it or not, the photo is the coffee with milk already added, the milk did not even change the colour slightly.

    Yes there is a fly in the fruit salad, that's basically seconds after they put the plate down, We weren't able to take more pictures of the rest of the food because we needed both hands to try and wave the flies away.

    After breakfast we relaxed in our hammocks on our balcony as you do on an island and then did some yoga on the beach like true hippies. Took a swim and had a late morning nap.

    We only woke up because our stomachs told us to do so we had lunch and then relaxed some more in the hammocks. We used this time to work through a bible study piece in our "love and respect" bible study book. I must say this was one of best quiet times we've had, its just so much easier to be quiet and listen when you have nowhere to go. May we learn from this today and take it with us wherever we go.

    At 4 pm we convinced our lazy selfs to do something physical. It was between a little hike to the next beach or some snorkeling, so we chose snorkeling as it seemed like less work.

    Awesome day on the island.

    {Roedolf}    Read more

  • 2025© FindPenguins
  • Home
  • About us
  • Group Tracking
  • Press
  • Terms
  • Privacy Policy & Cookies
  • Help Center
  • Legal notice