Bodhi Villa

The spot I am staying is divine! Bodhi Villa Chill Out is the name :) I am in a floating bungalow on the river, there is a little wooden walkway that goes out to room and the water facing side is just long wide curtains that blow in the wind. It is so beautiful and the sun rises over the opposite side of the river with the breeze waving the curtains so you catch glimpses of the sunrise but are not blinded by the light. We hung a hammock on the open side too so we can pull up the curtains and just lay in the hammock for a book or nap….absolutely fabulous spot. A great guy named Hugh (Aussie) owns the place and the bar is rockin every night and has a full stock of western favs (including the Captain :P). The food has been one of the best parts too, everything on the menu is delicious! We actually had to stay someplace else the first night in Kampot cause this place was full but it was worth the wait, my friend Tanya (from the Yoga school in Koh Phangan) recommended this spot and I will be giving her a big thank you for that! If you are in the area it’s a must! I am actually sorta sad to be moving on but I have been in Cambodia a while now and my visa is up soon so time to move on……

Kampot

Kampot is a wonderfully central location for South Cambodia, there is Kep to the East and Sihanoukville to the West, the river, caves and Bokor mountains/National Park.

I have taken day trips to all, it is so much nicer to just settle somewhere and go out from there than be constantly on the move. The National Park is actually closed for construction (or the part I wanted to visit)…..there is a “ghost town” in the mountains, it was built a century ago by the French and has a hotel, casino, and even small palace but was abandoned TWICE because of fighting in the region and it is undergoing revitalization again so I hear. Next time I am here the casino will probably be open for business, I would have liked to see it empty and with all the original architecture…….but oh well. The rapids upriver have been fun as well as a day trip to Kep and great oceanside seafood at a shack in the crab market. The town of Kampot is small and quiet and pretty much shuts down after dark but this has been one of my favorite places and I think I may just come back here again someday.

South Coast Cambodia

I am staying in a little slice of heaven on the south coast of Cambodia. A little town about 30,000 people where the river and ocean meet. It was about a hundred years ago a tourist hotspot for the French when Cambodia was a protectorate and part of French Indochina but has been derelict since the turmoil beginning a half a century ago and only just ending in this area a decade ago. There was actually still fighting between the Vietnamese and the Khmer Rouge guerrillas in the 90’s. you can see the scars of war and most especially land mine victims all around but you also see the very rapid development and urgency with which the culture is hurdling itself toward new technology and modern life. Kids ride around on pimped out new scooters with flashy cell phones but live without running water or sometimes even electricity. There is development everywhere though, construction is booming and they say in 10 years it will be another Thailand….aka #1 tourist spot in SE Asia (fact is if it weren’t for the civil war and fighting it might already be). Thailand really has it down to a science, you can get anything and go anywhere all designed with travelers in mind ;P Cambodia is on its way there, many of the roads are still barely travel worthy but tourism is fast becoming a main base of the economy. The people are SO incredibly nice and just sincere it is truly refreshing.

Phnom Penh

Okay well it is a Capital City but I just don’t get why the cities in Asia are always so damn dirty. I mean rubbish has been created by people as long as people have been around, have they always just tossed their trash on the ground? Where are the trash cans? The respect for the earth (which you would imagine a culture still consisting of many agricultural oriented people would have) It is such a huge turn off to walk down streets with litter everywhere. Bangkok was of course the worst I have ever seen but ug. I did go to the National museum and the S21 prison museum. The later was incredibly creepy and depressing. Such carnage and violence and it was so very recent, or seems so, the 70’s were not that long ago and MANY people from that era are still alive. I was surprised to learn that people who were a part of Pol Pots regime are actually still free and alive, not to mention that there was still fighting in outlying areas till the 90’s! Whoa. Also interesting was the unique blending of Hindu and Buddhist theology in the Angkorian history. There is an interesting mix of Buddhist and Hindu statuses and temples, and all very beautiful. I don’t think I will be here long, between the dirty, rainy, crowded city and the coast, the coast is winning….on a bus again tomorrow :)

Living our Dreams

I am so intrigued, I am fantasizing about it, even testing plans in my head of how I could work it out. Living in SE Asia & traveling forever, not just a vacation with a time limit and return deadline but packing it in and starting over in a paradise where you can live for a fraction of the cost back home. I have met so many people along my travels who have chosen to live this laidback ex-pat Asia lifestyle. The cost of living is incredibly cheap and I suspect they are all running from something (I know many are). Is that the draw for me, what am I running from? I feel so tempted by this easy, anonymous, tropical life. I have been trying to figure out what to do with myself for a while and just seem to always find things I can do, things that work, things that don’t work but nothing that really sticks. My restless spirit is finally experiencing a little calmness in my travels but I think even settling in Asia it is the settling that will bring back the restlessness regardless of the where. Cheers to all the people who have found and are living their dreams in SEA.

THE Angkor Wat

Although the entire archialogical site is generally referred to as Angkor Wat the is the name of the main and grandest temple in the complex. With a moat over 2 miles long and central tower spires that rival the Taj Mahal! Supposedly there were once crocodiles in the moat as it was a defense mechanism but since kids swim in there I think they must be all gone ;P I have never seen a more magnificent building in my life. It is still a temple too! (though many are) with monks and daily offerings and prayers at the buddhas. The pools are not used and much of the site is in various states of repair and work to save and restore it but it was totally awe-inspiring none the less.