Another town.. Kampot

Crab kisses! Not sure the guy next to us had ever had a crab kiss



The journey to Kep was full of wonderful scenes such as this

 After 3 very nice days and nights with Joey on the beach with plenyy of sand,  sea, cocktails sun and fun, we headed yesterday morningoff to another  town called Kampot a couple hours drive away.
It was so funny, we booked a mini bus through one of the bars and when it arrived at 8am it was so dilapidated and full of locals J said would surely only be takingus to the bus station to pick up th real coach.

But no, we were to travel in a 9 seater mini bus that in total had 14 adults and 2 children crammed in it
and looked as though it would fall apart at any minute. We just kept laughing as it seemed every time we stopped and thought some one was getting out another person with bags got in!

Really funny, and we got here ok.

Kampot is a run down old French colonial town, very laid back and wonderful friendly people.

Last night was J's Birthday so I treated him to fab dinner in fab restaurant over looking river. We had cocktails at sunset (seems to be the norm for now) and fab food.

I got talking to the couple next to us from OZ, been  married 31 years and couldn't believe we had known eachother less than a week.. So funny as they dont usually drink and ended up having 3 cocktails each, she was hillarious and quite drunk.

Cooked crabs mmmmm....

The crabs before they were cooked straight from the sea 

Today we went in tuk tuk to town called Kep famous for fresh crab and pepper. we visited pepper plantation and had 20 fresh prawns, 3 crab all cooked from fresh $6, and ate them on sea front,  bloody fab! 

I have met a fellow raw carrot eater, yippee!



Beautiful all around





Fresh pepper as it grows on the vine

These two guys were preparing the crab traps that go inside the crab basket seen in the foreground which are then put backinto the sea to keep them alive and fresh



My Christmas in photos

So, I met my new friend on Christmas eve and as I write this we have been together ever since

Sunset Christmas evening

Joey and I Christmas evening by the sea with bbq fish dinner

Christmas fun!

Our beach shack for 3 nights

The view from outside the shack

Early morning on the beach

Pina Colada boxing day sunset

So, not bad eh?
Santa didn't forgrt me after all.
We are traveling to another town tomorrow by the river, seafood promises to be excellent

A Christmas Card

MERRY CHRISTMAS

The text inside this card reads,

I wanted to send you all a Christmas card, 

but to find one here would have been quite hard.

So, I'm sending a home made one that you can't throw away,

To wish each and every one of you a Happy Christmas day

Lots of love from Lisa in Cambodia

xxx

'A day in the life'

That was the name of the trip I went on yesterday. I came about it by chance and I am so pleased I did.
The company was set up by couple of Australians and the aim of the project is for the visitor to see every day life in a typical Cambodian village and the villagers to benefit from the visit. Our village was Kam Phem.
So, some of the fee goes towards helping them and their every day lives, it could be a donation of chickens or pigs as an ongoing food supply, a well or at least a water purifying system so they at least get clean water (many of them didn't have either). Or materials to rebuild their home, the coconut tree leaves need to be bought, often a member of the family is able to weave them, if not it is done by the 'visitors' on the day trip. Last week that's exactly what they did, help a family rebuild their home, how rewarding.
We started the day visiting an extended family having breakfast, they had bananas that they were squashing between 2 pieces of wood and dipping them into a batter like substance made from coconut milk and then into hot oil to fry.
children were so pleased to see us and forever said hello and goodbye waving like fury even when we were still there.
We then had a trip around the village on an ox and cart, that was fun.

Each month the organisers have a meeting with the village chief and decide who needs the most help. There are 200 residents in total, the 21st century has not yet reached them..
Our job was to assist a lady with harvesting her rice crop as her husband died leaving her with 5 children to raise and the rice needs harvesting in a certain time frame. So, there I was along with the 5 other members of the tour, sythe in hand and harvesting rice for hour and half in the morning sun.  All around was lush countryside, coconut and banana trees, ox, buffalo, chickens, and children. It was simply beautiful and hard to believe it was for real.
We made a good dent in the field  and were very pleased with ourselves-if a bit hot. After wards we had to extract the rice that had been harvested a couple of days earlier and left to dry. I thought we would do so like the lady in my video, but no, we did it with our feet literally rolling the bunches between our bare feet, off came the rice,and a lot of dead skin I have no doubt. Thankfully it does get washed later in the process.
I do have a new found respect for rice and the people who work so tirelessly to produce it.

Time for lunch, we were to learn a traditional village Khemer dish, this is where I came in as he (the guide) asked for a volunteer to help chop.
So this is the scene, the lady that we were helping had a pile of organic herbs, chillies, vegetables looking a bit like cabbage, a ginger like root and other things to chop up, a small dish of fermented fish and red ants-I kid you not.  They were in a bowl shallow water many still alive.
So on the given chopping board with the given clever I began to chop, all was going well and half of it was added to the water that was boiling in the pan on the tiny fire.
Then the protein was added to my board and I was expected to carry on chopping including this foul smelling fermented fish and half drowned ants, it makes me laugh now, but I just passed the chopper onto one of the guys in the group and said it was a mans job.

So he dutifully chopped until it resembled a paste with small skinny red legs sticking out of it.
It was then wrapped into a banana leaf and steamed over the pot. We were invited to sit under the shade of the tree and lunch was served.
A bowl of rice, cabbage soup with bits of wood like pieces in it and steamed fermented fish and red ant pulp served with slices of  green banana, this was to be used as you might a dorito with some hummus, I wish.. And I though I liked to try new food, to be fair we were only meant to be trying it, and a couple of them tried it all, I did try the rice.
An education though to see how food is prepared from the land no more than a few feet away.
A posse of villagers arrived and  tucked into the traditional food while we ate some sarnies and fresh fruit ha!

When I asked where the loo was I was asked if I wanted to do a 1 or 2, it was explained that a no.1 can be done any where and a 2  we could use one of the richer families loos near by.
I didn't need a 2 nor did I fancy squatting in a red ants nest so I cheated and went to the real loo instead.
The day was wonderful and one of the 3 highlights so far along with the elephants and Angkor Wat. These people really have nothing, the children didn't have a single toy between them, they slept on woven mats on bamboo floors, sometimes 10 to a room, most living from one meal to the next, but they were the happiest  people I have ever seen.
The last part of the day was to visit a school in the village, it had been paid for by a charity and had walls and roof unlike the old one that was a few pieces of corrugated iron. The children can only go 4 hours a day as there is not enough teachers, so the younger ones go from 7-11 and the older ones 12-4pm. It is the same teacher all day (the average teachers wage is just $30 a month) A tuk tuk driver working for a hotel gets $50-$60

They were so well behaved and quietly doing their work despite us sticking our heads through the open windows taking photos. When we questioned why they were so well behaved it was explained that if they are naughty they get punished, firstly 2 hours in the classroom corner and then have to say sorry to the class, a 2nd time, run or walk around the school for 2 hours and if that 'work stand out in the playground and don't move for the entire 4 hours. The latter very rarely happens.

Well, that was the day in the life of a villager and me on my travels, it was very humbling.

This  girl has to look after her brother all day while parents work in the rice fields

A lovely way to begin the day

A dab hand at rice harvesting

The lady we were helping, she is just 45yrs old, behind, her living space and hammock

This was the stove at our lady's home, a banana leaf as an oven glove, very resourceful

The lady's niece

So green all around

This is the home and bedroom of  9 children, the parents sleep on a bamboo bed nearby, contraception has been introduced to the Parents by a charity, better late than never

This was their kitchen, a small stove, and a couple of plates

Another day in Angkor region and surrounding villages

I had a different tuk tuk driver today, this one was also able to speak good English and we set off 7.45am for the furthermost Angkor site 36km from here.
The drive out was really scenic, through villages and forest, the site was lovely and the usual order of the day is to continue on and see the rest in the area.
However after telling the driver how much I loved to see the village life and the real Cambodian way of life he offered to take me to a couple nearby.
Many of the houses don't have a well let alone running water in their homes, and those that do have had a sign outside with the name of the donator.
When I asked how much a well  would cost and to be fitted he replied $100. I was stunned that I was seeing such poverty, yet every where we went we were greeted with smiles, waves and 'hellos' from all.
The Mothers and children were all waving as we drove past, and the little ones would run up to the tuk tuk (we were driving slowly). They loved it when I took their photo and then showed them. Many homes only had parafin lights or battery powered ligh bulbs. He told me the usual pattern is 8.30 to sleep and up at around 4am, to go to the rice fields.
The women join them later and grandparents watch the small children, 'as they are good for nothing else' he said. the cooking method is by clay mound built on dusty ground with a hole in the top and with a hole in the side for wood. A fire is made and a huge pan places on the top and the days rice is cooked (they eat it at least 3 times a day)
.
We stopped to watch a lady in the rice field cutting the rice and through his interpreting I was able to ask about it. She was 52 and it's the only work she had ever done.

Then we talked to a lady who was in her front yard bashing bunches of the rice grass on a wooden plank to extract the rice, the straw that is left goes for feed for the cattle. I have made a short video.

The ride through the 2 villages was lovely, neither had a tarmac road only dirt track, the children skipped around bare footed and the younger ones barely dressed, the older ones wore tatty clothes but all with a happy face.


Typical village children





A typical house





Life in the fast lane



Harvesting the  rice, back breaking work



The Mum had just gotten off, this is a typical sigh on the roads, note Dad isn't wearing shoes

Second day at Angkor Wat and other sites

After a chilled out day yesterday I asked my tuk tuk driver to pick me up at 7.45 this morning. I have a 3 day pass and tomorrow I will do a completely different circuit.  Today I wanted to revisit my favourite sites and see them in a different light at different times.
Quite honestly you could go every day for a year and never get bored, the more you look the more you see i.e the intricate carvings on almost every stone and wall, some of which are so high but still they bothered.
More facts on Angkor Wat, the moat all around it is the length of 2 football pitches and it is a further 4 lengths walk up to the main entrance.
Now, I am not into football as most of you will know, but I appreciate that is a long way, especially as I have now walked it twice.I will put some photos on as seem to have taken loads - Mum, I know you said try not to, but I just couln't help it...

I climbed as far as you could inside one of the towers and the view from the top was wonderful

Hello from Angkor Wat Temple

This again taken from the tower, gives an idea of how it is set in dense forest



Ta Prom It is simply amazing to see

 The next 4 pics were within the Temples, the children appeared to be alone, none of them knew I was taking their photo

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These 2 children were with their Mum



This spider and its web were about 10ft from the ground, both were very large

Sorry to hear of the weather you are having back home, it's lovely here, I will need to buy some more suntan lotion before long.

I am just off to the night market to chat with the ''you lie buy laidee" men and women

I have already succumbed several times so already have next years Xmas presents sorted - if you like 3 bracelets for $1 that is x

Angkor Wat

Its 4.15pm here and just got back from first day at the Angkor Wat.
In case you don't know, its absolutely vast with many temples and sites covering miles.
I had my tuk tuk driver for the day and having read up on the places I wanted to see we set off.
He then took me to them in an order that avoided the usual route of tourists, and good for where the sun was for the best photo opportunities.
As they have at least 2 entrances he took me to an one and met me the other side an hour or so later, however long it took he was always there waiting - along with many other tuk tuk drivers.
This is by far the best way to see it as there were so many tour groups all being herded about and therefore all waiting while the others took photos of the same thing.
I just walked the other way and for much of the day was on my own. What I didn't take into account was, its not just ruins but as it's in a forest it's absolutely beautiful and green, like being in a massive park with huge trees all around.
It sometimes took 10 mins to drive between each site, along the way was on a well paved road lines with trees.
Angkor Wat is surrounded by a really wide moat so along with the trees and gardens it's stunning even before you see the temple. It takes approx 20 minutes just to walk through the entrance to the Wat so that gives you some idea of its vastness.
I spent much of the time just sitting gazing at the stones and carvings in all the places I went as they were all amazing marvelling at how they came about and how long ago- many 1000 years old.
I was really pleased I was alone today, it was so nice to spend the right amount of time at each place, I loved the peace and tranquility of it all. Just me and Kiman the lovely driver that had a guide book for reference and a constant supply of cold bottled water for me after every stop, all included in the price.
I bought a 3 day pass that can be used over 7 so will do something else tomorrow then I have arranged Kiman pick me up 7.30am Sunday to go to a  couple of the places further away (about an hour in tuk tuk) that time is cool and avoids the crowds. It is so lovely I may well go back to some I saw today as it will always look different depending on what time of day.

I change hotels in the morning to a cheaper one round the corner without a pool.
I did my research well as both are in an area thats lovely and quiet for resting but less than 10 min walk to the eateries and night market etc. Talking of which, I wish I had an empty rucksack as I love all the things they sell.
All the sellers will have a conversation that goes something like this:

You lie buy lady
no thanks, I already have one
ok lady you have two then
no, sorry I dont want another one
ok lady you just looking then maybe buy
     or
you lie buy lady
no thanks I dont have any money
ok lady you go to the ATM and I wait for you
no I dont want one
ok lady you buy for your friend then

And I thought I had an answer for everything!

Ta Prohm An amazing place where the roots are taking over the temple,

Angkor Wat

 

I had to climb lots of steps to get here - you can see the tree tops,the faces are 4 to each tower and this building has 37 towers remaining from the original 52.  It's hard to imagine this was built 1000 years ago and all the giant stones had to be brought here and carved before being winched into place. A photo doesn't do it justice, its awesome when you are there.

Monks at the Wat

 

Siem Reap

I set off for the 6 hour coach trip to Siem Reap at 12.30 yesterday, it was a fairly slow road in places as only a single carriageway for some of the time, but what scenic journey.
I can best describe it as one long postcard.
For almost the entire journey we were driving through beautiful countryside dotted with banana and palm trees, vegetation and rice paddies, and with stilted homes all along the way. The homes need to be raised as  to avoid being flooded when the rains come.
These homes varied from the poorest, barely held together with bamboo and palm leaves to those walled with corrugated iron, next, were those made from planks of wood, then bare brick held crudely together with cement and then what we would describe as a house, painted concrete walls and a paved front patio area.
Many of the others had dusty porch areas covered in whatever materials they could afford for much needed shelter.
There were many people tending their land, some with ox and cart to assist with the loads, water buffalo chilled out in murky waters and old and young alike laid in hammocks in the shade. Children played barefooted along the way.

We had 15 min stop along the way and this little girl was having some mango

I arrived to be greeted by my tuk tuk driver arranged by my b and b and taken 20 mins to my bed for the next 3 nights.
Once again I chose a place with a pool, this one $25 a night for twin room, this includes free internet, breakfast, and tuk tuk locally.
In case I haven't already said, the main currency used here is American dollars hence all prices quoted. Also there is not a British pound sign on the keyboards.
Within another 15 mins I was in the main streets that have a really chilled atmosphere, so many choices for food and drinks at various prices. I ordered a pina colada, green fish curry and stir fried veg and it was $5, found cheaper places after that.
I was in my comfy bed with a/c on and asleep for 10pm.
After early breakfast I decided to take it easy today and have a look around locally.
I walked to the Old Market that is just full of all that I love. For those that are familiar with the North Lanes in Brighton its kinda like that but lots bigger, in fact I think most of the things in the Lanes are from here or Thailand.
Selling mainly silver jewelery, silk scarves, bags, throws cushion covers you name it, hippy type clothing, and then lots of fresh food stalls in the middle.

A local Monk doing his shopping

The moped seems to be transport for almost anything, this guy had just driven in with all these bananas

These 2 cycles had fruits for  sale on the back, why didn't I think of that?

Portable florist

Xmas dinner?

These ladies were sitting on tiny stools selling their wares, looking bored stiff

2 gay hairdressers in the market

The food section was right in the middle if all the other stalls, it got really busy later on

The whole journey here and all that I saw today has been a photographers dream - and that's before I get to one of the most photographed places on the planet, Angkor Wat.
I have arranged a tuk tuk driver to pick me up at 8am in the morning and I will go to the top 3 first. It's so vast it can take a week or more to visit most of the temples and ruins but I will go for 3 days and stagger it over the week.
I also plan to do a local cookery course which sounds fun.
Today I have spoken to a German guy who has lived here for 2 years, a guy from the States traveling for 2 months who was in India before this and a couple from Ireland who were encouraging me to visit Laos and Vietnam while out here. I will definitely consider it and have a look at the options, maybe go from Thailand when I am back there,
Listen to me, considering my options, a traveler I have become...