Kampot, Cambodia

Kampot, Cambodia

This guy was not happy with my camerawork

The prison at Kampot, Cambodia

I had heard great things about the relaxing and quaint river village of Kamopt. I left my beach paradise a couple of days early to see what it was all about. I booked a mini van at 3:00 PM for $6. Two hours later, I arrived in downtown Kampot. I took a tuk tuk to Naga House where I had a reservation for two nights in a $3 dorm room. This place was pretty awesome. It was right on the river and they had a big, beautiful deck reaching out over the water. 

The deck at my hostel, Naga House, in Kampot, Cambodia

I settled in, grabbed a happy hour beer and quickly met some cool people. I ended up hanging out with two British guys, Gavin and Thomas. We drank by the river and shared travel information. I ordered my first fish Amok, a traditional Cambodian food. It was delicious. There were chunks of boneless, crispy fish in a curry-like sauce with a side of rice. 

Amok at a place downtown Kampot

The following day, I rented a motorbike with Gavin and Thomas and we biked to Bokor National Park. The park itself was "eh" but the ride up was so much fun. It was winding and full of twists and turns. It was maybe 25-30 minutes to the top and fun all the way. There were great views halfway up, but once we got up higher than that we entered the clouds. 

Riding into the clouds

I'm pretty sure this was the old casino. How haunted does this look?

On the decent down Bokor National park we could see the ocean through the haze.

This ride was actually perfect practice for my 3rd time on a motorbike. These speedsters really made learn how to approach turns to try and keep pace with them. After making it down I was much more confident on a bike. Turns out Tom cornered a little too hard racing down and got a flat. We had to wait at a gas station for someone to come and take it and Tom hopped on Gavin's bike. The guy fixed it quickly and for cheap and we returned to Naga House.

The driveway to my hostel on the river, Naga House. 

I had thought about riding to Kep, the nearby city on the coast, but I figured I just had a lot of time at beaches and hanging by the river was cool with me. There were also some caves in Kampot that I didn't make it to. Kampot was really relaxed, slow paced and scenic. I was sucked into the scene and just took it easy.

Kampot, Cambodia

Walking Bridge 

That night we rode into town and I had fish Amok again for dinner. There was a party that night in our guest house but I was too exhausted from the sun and heat and ended up crashing at 10 PM as it was kicking off. The next morning I awoke to two naked people sleeping in the bed below me. When I say naked, I mean not even sheets. Interesting. I must have missed a great party. 

That morning I said bye to the English gentleman who were headed to Sihanoukville and I headed out for a couple more hours with my motorbike. I explored the city, and had some food. 

I then went back to Naga House to return the bike and get ready for my 3 PM minibus to Phnom Penh so I could take an 11 PM night bus to Siem Reap. 

Next stop Siem Reap. 

Koh Rong and Koh Ta Kiev, Sihanoukville, Cambodia

Koh Rong, Cambodia

On our last day together Alex, Christina, and myself headed on a day trip to Koh Rong. The slow ferry is 2 hours and $5 each way. It leaves Sihanoukville at 9 AM. There is a speed boat ferry for $10 each way that takes about 40 minutes. We didn't do the necessary research on the island but we just wanted to go. Apparently, the place to see on Koh Rong is Long Beach. This is a massive, temporarily undeveloped section of beach that is a 40 minute hike through the jungle. This place is full of campers and partiers. From what I have heard, it is an amazing time. Also, from what I've heard is that there is construction beginning there, so the oasis won't last much longer. In addition to that, the campers and partiers have apparently left the beach a filthy mess of trash (which is a bummer). Maybe once it is developed, they will figure out how to properly dispose of trash. I noticed a lot of trash and construction on Koh Rong in general, which are two things that hamper any island buzz.

Our 2 hour ferry to Koh Rong

This guy was cooling off with a swim in his boxers. He's a little shy. 

Lang ho! Koh Rong, Cambodia

The island apparently has 40-something kilometers of beaches out of a 60-something kilometer total coastline. Beaches on Koh Rong are not hard to find. We took a left off the pier and walked for about 15 minutes until we found an amazing cove. We camped out here for a few hours and then took the 3 PM ferry home. I was tempted to stay the night and hike to Long Beach but I wanted to head back with the girls and see them off on their night bus to Siem Reap. 

A couple of days later, I decided to spend a night on Koh Ta Kiev. I heard it was like being on a deserted island if you stay at the Last Point. I booked a $5 dorm and the boat picked me up from Seagarden at 11:30 AM.

my bed at the Last Point in Koh Ta Kiev

The Last Point on Koh Ta Kiev Island, Cambodia 

My dorm on Koh Ta Kiev Island, Cambodia

This path leads to the other side of the island where there is an Absinth distillery. 

The brick oven pizza at the bar/restaurant was not even kidding, some of the best pizza I've ever had.  

Map of the island

Jack fruits! 

The Last Point is away from the tourist side of the island and it is completely peaceful. They have a shaded and magnificently designed bar/restaurant/common area with hammocks, music, cheap beer and amazing pizza. If you find yourself in Sihanoukville and you want a relaxing island experience on a budget, the Last Point is the place.

Our captains taking us from Koh Ta Kiev, back to Otres Beach. 

Hammocks!

If you have the money, I heard the best and most secluded beaches are to be found at Koh Rong Samleom. You can stay in boutique yet rustic bungalows or I hear you can camp as well if you can get yourself there. If you just want to party and don't mind roughing it, I think Long Beach on Koh Rong is koh right for you. Either way, do yourself a favor and schedule some time to get off the mainland. I wanted to spend more time on the islands, but I had heard great things about the river village Kampot so I wanted to spend a few days checking that out before heading to Siem Reap myself. 

Next stop, Kampot. 

Otres Beach, Sihanoukville, Cambodia

Our seaside paradise at Sea Garden on Otres Beach, Sihanoukville, Cambodia

Our ride from Koh Chang to Sihanoukville was anything but simple. We took a minibus from our hostel, to the pier and the van got on the ferry with us. It then drove us to the Cambodian border. At the border, the Cambodian side refused to take US dollars (Cambodians most used currency) for the visa fee and insisted on Thai baht. We had to go back across into Thailand for change our USD to thai baht. I was pissed. We heard the fee was anywhere between 30-40 USD and this made our fee $49. It felt very much like an excuse for them to take more money. 

We got picked up in a pick up truck that dropped us off at a major highway intersection and we waited for a bus. They try and tell you that the ride is not paid for by the travel agency we booked through, but it is. 

We stopped at a roadside restaurant that had luke warm cooked food sitting out in big pots. My spidey sense was kicking in pretty good telling me not to eat anything there but we were starving and this was our only option. We had a fish stew and it was actually pretty good. 

We arrived at the Sihanoukville bus station which is out of town. They do this on purpose to force you to spend more on tuk tuks getting to your destination. We were swarmed by offers as we exited the bus but we walked outside the bus station to find a cheaper fare. We found a guy willing to take us to Otres Beach 1 for $8. The standard fare from Otres 1 to downtown Sihanoukville is $5. 

15 minutes later, we were at our accommodations, Mushroom Point. This was an aesthetically pleasing place with mushroom styled bungalows all in natural wood with straw roofs. The food here was also incredible with massive portions. We were staying in the only dorm they had which was a big circular room with circular beds above the restaurant. Each bed had a mosquito net and its own fan (which was great) but it was $10 a night when booked on hostelworld and we knew we could find cheaper and comparable accommodations. 

That first night we went out to a jungle rave that happens every Thursday night. We took a tuk tuk past Otres 2. Once we were at the river, there was a raft waiting by the shore. We hopped on it and our captain pulled us across a 40 meter wide river by pulling a taut rope connecting the two sides. We made it in before 11 so we didn't have to pay the $5 cover. 

Raves are not at all my scene but we were told we have to check it out. We were very early and not many people were there. There was a truck that they turned into a DJ booth, massive speakers, a bonfire, a bar and even a ferris wheel! We hung out there for a few hours, survived a downpour and headed out at 2 AM as it was starting to get crowded. There were people waiting to be shuttled towards the party as we were leaving. When I got back to our room, I caught a rat eating my emergency snickers bar that I had forgotten was still in my backpack. Gross. Otres Beach has a serious rat problem. I hat a rat brush up against my barefoot as I was eating dinner one night. Gross. 

That next day we did an island hopping tour for $12. We did some snorkeling and spent almost 3 hours at the long beach on Koh Ta Kiev. They served grilled chicken sandwiches on baguettes. We ate, swam and sat in the hammock. Life is good. 

After a couple of nights at Mushroom Point, space opened up across the road at Seagarden. This is the place I wanted to stay all along. It's a beautiful new property right on the beach with a $5 per bed dorm. I highly recommend this place. 

Alex and I rented bikes and headed into town to check it out and buy some sunscreen. In hindsight, our time of departure (almost noon) was a mistake. After visiting the market, Alex felt real sick with heat stroke. We had to take a tuk tuk home and strap the bikes into it. 

Otres Beach, Sihanoukville, Cambodia

Otres Beach sunset

Otres Beach was lined with Pine Trees

The food on Otres is very good, touristy, and expensive. Previously we had been budgeting $7 per day for food and meals at most places on otres are $4-7. However, not a Mom's Kitchen. Mom is the sweetest and cutest Cambodian woman originally from Kampot. She has a convenient store and serves breakfast and dinner that she cooks outside on both a gas stove and a grill. The food was great, cheap in small portions. I had the fried rice with vegetables at least once a day. Mom works hard to put her daughter in school, and her 2.5 year old son is always running around naked. Mom has the cheapest prices on the beach: 75 cents for a coconut, $1 for all shakes (get the banana). 

The next day, we rented a motorbike and went to the waterfalls. We were told it wouldn't be good because it's the dry season, but there was still a magnificent waterfall that was just short enough to still be able to stand under it (maybe 8 meters). That night, Alex wasn't feeling well, so I took Christina for a ride into town while I still had the bike. We had a beer at the Led Zephyr, bought some art and headed back. 

We thought this was the waterfall we had come to see. 

Until we found this massive waterfall

Typical gas station. 1 Liter bottles of bacardi full of gasoline. 

Angkor beer, Cambodia's best. I was surprised how much draft beer there was in Cambodia. 

Otres beach is a heaven. The water is clear, the beach is endless, the people are great and the atmosphere is fantastic. I could easily pass a few months here without a second thought. However, if you want to escape even further into paradise, I suggest checking out some of the islands. In hindsight I would have liked to spend more time on the islands and less in Otres. However, my last two days in Sihanoukville I did check out Koh Rong for a day and stayed a night in Koh Ta Kiev.

Next stop, the islands of Cambodia. 

Koh Chang

Koh Chang, Thailand

We arrived in Koh Chang after an hour slow ferry ride from the port near Trat. We negotiated a price with the pick-up trucks with benches in back (taxis). It was more expensive than we thought it would be. I think it was 150 baht each to get us all the way down to lonely beach. The roads on the island were pretty windy, steep and narrow.

Our beautiful vessel to Koh Chang

Um... whatchu got there?

This guy had his... rooster out in the open.

We arrived at lonely beach and walked up a steep hill away from the beach (and noise) to our rooms at Oasis Bungalows. This place was absolutely incredible. We approached a massive wooden structure that served as the restaurant, front desk, and hang out spot. There was a view of the ocean above the trees and plenty of thai pillow cushions to go around. They even had a treehouse attached that gave a much better view. We spent some time chilling up there and soaking it all in. Christina had an amazing deluxe bungalow with AC and Alex and I had a Jungle Bungalow that was only 450 baht and really nice as well. Our Jungle room was pretty rustic with a fan and outdoor bathroom. However, it was so well designed that it was perfect. It was built high up off the ground so no frogs, spiders or bugs disturbed us. I highly recommend Oasis and specifically the Jungle hut if you are on a budget. Koh Chang itself is also surely worth a visit to escape the heat of Bangkok.

The path to our Jungle bungalow

The treehouse at Oasis Bungalows, Koh Chang

View from the treehouse

Lonely Beach, Koh Chang

Monkeys on a wire

That day we headed to lonely beach. Alex set up the hammock and we spent the afternoon in and out of the water. It started to look like rain so we headed back. We had some delicious pad thai at the restaurant at the bottom of our hill, changed and went out to see the night scene.

There were two main streets running perpendicular to the beach that were full of bars with happy hours and live music. Some even offer free bbq if you buy a drink. We settled on a place with live reggae (of course). It started to rain which prematurely ended the outdoor live music. When it seemed to have stopped we decided to look around and see what else there was. As we walked past a chill looking Bob Marley themed bar it started to downpour again so we jumped in for cover. The place ended up being as relaxed and comfortable as it appeared and we were happy with the timing of the rain. When it cleared up, we headed back to our huts.

The next day we rented a motorbike and went to White Sand beach. This beach was a lot prettier and cleaner than lonely beach and we had a great day of it. Once we realized the sunset was going to be a dud, we headed home for dinner and an early night in preparation of our early trip to Cambodia the next day. 

Next stop Otres Beach in Sihanoukville, Cambodia.