I really should update these blogs more often as again I can barely remember what has happened since the last installment. But....
I made my way to Kampot from Sihanoukville where I checked into 'Magic Sponge' guesthouse where the owner was just as strange as the name. He had a creepy way of saying 'Oh you're welcome' when I thanked him for things which made me fear for my life ever so slightly. There was also no one else staying in the guesthouse which was slightly disconcerting. I went off to explore Kampot in the blazing heat, and discovered a very pretty river and not a whole lot else. Met a tuk tuk driver and let him persuade me to go to the Tek Chou rapids which was quite pleasant although all the water was brown and muddy. Nonetheless I had a little dip in the water (it was very hot) and watched some of the local kids fishing. On the way back my driver told me he wanted to take me to try some palm wine, so I agreed. He drove me along a bumpy dirt road to what appeared to be someone's garden, and we sat on the grass while a man climbed up a huge palm tree to collect the palm wine, which was brought to us in a bamboo shoot. It was a bit warm and frothy, and a bit strange but quite nice! Since there was still no one around in my guesthouse when I returned I took myself out for a solitary dinner and got an early night.
The next day I went on a tour to Bokor National Park. The description of the tour promised an hour's jungle trekking, amongst other things, but what the tour actually consisted of was a drive to some old abandoned buildings, and a look at a big ugly building site. Our guide talked to us for a long time about all the building works that were being planned, and then told us there was no point in doing the trekking as there were no animals to see and if he took us on a trek there would be no one to drive the mini van. So that was great. The one positive outcome of the day was that I met a couple of English guys (Bert and Simon), who later introduced me to a German girl (Johanna), so I spent the evening with them on a sunset boat trip along the river, and then dinner and drinks, rounding off the night listening to a local band playing at one of the bars. Unfortunately by the time I got back to my guesthouse the front gates had been locked. I went next door to the guesthouse Bert, Simon and Johanna were staying at to find that they were also locked out, but we all managed to climb over the barbed wire fence of their guesthouse and they let me sleep in their room for the night.
The next morning we all made our way to Kep, which is a very quiet and lovely seaside town. I rented a very rusty old bike and cycled around the town, visited the beach and the crab market, had an afternoon dip in the pool at our guesthouse and then had a delicious crab dinner with Bert, Simon and Johanna in the evening. The guys had to leave the next morning, but Johanna and I decided to visit nearby Rabbit Island. We stayed in a very rustic bungalow (a mattress on the floor) with an outside shower (bucket of water) for the bargain price of $2.50 each. Rabbit Island was very lovely and quiet, and we spent the day wandering around in the jungle, lying on the beach and getting massages. Unfortunately after a refreshing dip in the sea I got back to the beach to discover that my wonderful, GENUINE havaianas had been eaten by the local dogs.
Johanna and I made our way back to Kep the next day for one more night by the sea and then got a bus to Kratie in the hoping of finding some river dolphins. We found Kratie to be a fairly busy, very dirty market town with only one bar which was unfortunately closed on the day we arrived. We had a quiet night there, and then went off in search of dolphins the next day by way of a 10km tuk tuk ride passing through quiet villages with stilt houses and cute children and then an hour boat trip along the Mekong river. And dolphins we did see, which was very exciting. They didn't come quite as close to the boat as I would have liked, but the boat driver turned off the engine and as we sat there all around us we saw loads of Irrawaddy dolphins coming up for air - amazing. Back in Kratie the one bar in town was open that evening, so we rounded off the day with dinner and gin and tonics.
The next day Johanna and I parted ways and I made my way to Siem Reap... which I shall write about when I am less hungry. Stay tuned.
