Cambodia | South East Asia Travel Guide

Next on my travel journey was Cambodia. This was my favourite country, which quite surprised me considering I had been told that it would probably be my least favourite. But, maybe that's why, I didn't have high expectations, so it exceeded them.

What to do in Phenom Pehn

We started in Phenom Pehn, the Capital City. We stayed in a lovely hostel called Manor House, with a nice little pool. The dorm beds had to be the highest we had ever had before. They were taller than James, which is usually quite hard to do since he's 6ft 2.5in (I've been told that extra half-inch is very important!).

We were a little far from the main strip where all the bars, the night market and the palace were along the river. But, we enjoyed the walk there. It meant we got to see a bit more of the city where the locals lived, apart from the first night when we got lost walking back in the early hours (not ideal).

 Night market

The night market was a bit different to the many we had already experienced. There was a stage for entertainment and a large space in the middle of the food stalls, full of rugs, where you can sit on the floor and eat your food. We soon found a great stall for meat on sticks and okra.

S21 Prison and Killing Fields

This was by the far the best and most emotional cultural experience I had, not just travelling, but ever. I didn't know about any Cambodian history until I started doing my research before our travels and I was shocked that I had never heard about the massive genocide that had occurred here.

Especially since it was only 40 years ago! I urge anyone that reads this to go look it up and find out what happened. The world needs to know about the brutal murders, tortures and imprisonment these Cambodians went through. We also had the honour of meeting one of the survivors at the end.

Imanaged to hold it together the whole way around the prison, but as soon as I walked away from this brave man, I couldn't stop the tears anymore. I was so moved by this whole experience.

Night Life

Experiencing the nightlife after the S21 Prison is like going from one extreme to another. There are a whole array of bars, including quiet, chilled bars, sports bars and seedy nightclubs. We experienced them all and it was a lot of fun, particularly the night James received a lot of attention from ladyboys. He didn't enjoy it as much as I did!

What to do in Siem Reap

Siem Reap was my favourite place on mainland Cambodia. We stayed very close to the centre and it hosts one of the trips I had been looking forward to the most...Angkor Wat.

Angkor Wat

The largest religious monument in the world surrounded by many other temple ruins; we visited Ta Prohm and Bayon, as well as Angkor Wat. The complex of ruins is extraordinary, from the detail in the carvings, to the way the trees have grown through the stone over the years, to the fact that Angkor Wat to this day is still an active temple.

Unfortunately, due to the heat, it was very hard to enjoy our time here because it was so uncomfortable. Disappointingly, we looked forward to our tuk-tuk ride in between temples just to feel the breeze. However, I could still appreciate how amazing the place was and I'm so glad I can say that I have seen this wonder of the world.

Pub Street

A great street full of bars and restaurants (not quite pubs). We had a lot of fun along this street, drinking, people watching and dancing in the street. It was always busy and had a great atmosphere. I prefered Pub Street to Khao San Road in Bangkok.

Cambo beach

This was by far my favourite day here. It's an artificial beach with a pool. We went with our friend Izzy, who we had met at the hostel, and befriended another couple while we were there. We played volleyball in the pool and the winning team, which was us (of course), won a free cocktail. There were diving boards, which, after a while, I plucked up the courage to jump off. Trust me, it took me a while, particularly off the highest one, but I did it and I was so proud of myself. It was just a very chilled, fun day out and it was just around the corner from our hostel.

What to do in Kam Pot

We didn't do too much here because James was ill for the first night and we had issues with getting money out the next day, but it's a nice town with a lovely walk along the river. We also discovered Bugershack! Amazing burgers!

Arcadia

We've stayed in nicer hostels, but this is a hostel with a twist; it's a waterpark. It has diving boards, tubing, a slide, a big blob, a Russian swing, a platoon and a couple of other things. I was a bit of a wimp and only got in a tube and chilled on the platoon, partly because it was on the river, so I didn't know how clean it was, partly because a few people had cut their backs on the slide. But, I had a lot of fun anyway, especially because we met up some friends we had met in Laos.

Quick tip:

Avoid Sihanoukville! What was known as a beautiful town, has been turned into an industrial estate and is no longer a pleasant place to stay. The harbour has a vile smell and we couldn't wait to get out. Luckily we were only there for one night and we got there late as it was just a stop-off point to go over to the islands.

Faye
xoxo