Dec 9-13 2022 |
Cya Phnom Penh, on to Kampot, famous for black pepper, and Kep 30km down the road - someone said it's a good place to go.
Stayed 2 nights in Kep, Birds of Paradise resort, near Holy Crab restaurant - both excellent. It's one of Cambodia's famous beach areas (Cambodia is not well known for its beaches...).
Moved on to Kampot. Nice colonial town, many expats, including a 76 yo from Saskatoon who was pitching me on a land purchase (he owns 13 properties...ya never know...). One highlight of Kampot (especially if you are from Singapore!), is the giant Durian in the middle of a round-about, uptown (world's largest, I imagine), pic below.
Did the obligatory ride up Bokor Hill outside Kampot. A decent jaunt, but the wind was intense, and there is not much up there (mostly abandonded and/or failed-looking developments, like casinos and housing). At the top you get a great view of Phu Quoc island, part of Vietnam, straight offshore (but with no direct links from Kampot). The best part of the trip to Bokor was seeing the huge number of monkeys along the road, which seems like an endorsement for wildlife preservation in Cambodia (unlike Laos, where I didn't see a single monkey in 3.5 weeks of travel).
A couple of things caught my attention in Kampot (and everywhere thereafter). The first were the many tall gothic tower-looking buildings - no windows, just slits or portholes on the walls. Turns out they are swiftlet birdnest "farms", producing one of SE Asia's most legendary products, basically bird saliva. Some houses are built with shop on ground, house on 2 floor, and swiftlet aviary on top. The noise these places make at night is intense. The second thing I noticed was the ABA Bank / National Bank of Canada, the most modern, best-branded bank in Cambodia. I'd never heard of National Bank of Canada (turns out it 6th largest bank in Canada). It's hard to figure out how a Montreal-based Quebec-focused bank has entered Cambodia, which has to be one of the world's most challenging markets. But gotta say, these guys are so far ahead of their competition here, they offer a super modern experience. Young expats I met rant about ABA. Will be interesting to see how it plays out, Cambodia is one of the fastest-growing economies in Asia/World (with lots of China investment.....see next update about Sihanoukville).
Ride: 150 km | 2.5 hrs
Stay: Birds of Paradise | $20 | 3/5 (Kep) / Marany Guesthouse | $13 | 4/5 (Kampot)
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