Getting tossed around in the back of a pick-up truck
This was a first for me, and hopefully a last!
We are in Kampot, a sweet sleepy little town in the south of Cambodia. We took a day trip up Bokor Mountain one day to see the old Casino/Hotel and the Black Palace (where one of the old King's had his summer home). The buildings were abandoned after the Khmer Rouge settled in and then civil war broke out...leaving them to grow strange bright orange mold (or moss?) and looking like buildings out of a haunted house movie. The views up in the mountains here were spectacular, but the way up was incredibly violent. There were about 10 of us in the back of a pick up truck, there were padded seats along the sides, but you had to hang on for dear life because of the horrible roads (I thought Mongolia had the worst roads!). Not only did you have to hold on so tight that your hands would go numb without realizing it, but you also had to be aware of the branches coming straight for your head so you could duck in time....trust me, you wanted to duck in time as we all learnt.....some of us quicker than others.
The views from the top were worth the 2.5 hour drive up, we didn't see any leopards or tigers though (there have been spottings in the past on Bokor Mountain). Both Aurelia and I woke up the next day with sore muscles and bruises...thank God we are doing this trip while we are still relatively young, you could have broken a hip or two back there!
The next day we spent the day in Kep, watching the sunset after a hike up a mountain with a cold drink in hand. We also had some delicious crab and squid caught straight from the ocean in front of us, we actually watched the women bring in the crab traps from the water and cook it up for us, can't get much fresher than that!
We are in Kampot, a sweet sleepy little town in the south of Cambodia. We took a day trip up Bokor Mountain one day to see the old Casino/Hotel and the Black Palace (where one of the old King's had his summer home). The buildings were abandoned after the Khmer Rouge settled in and then civil war broke out...leaving them to grow strange bright orange mold (or moss?) and looking like buildings out of a haunted house movie. The views up in the mountains here were spectacular, but the way up was incredibly violent. There were about 10 of us in the back of a pick up truck, there were padded seats along the sides, but you had to hang on for dear life because of the horrible roads (I thought Mongolia had the worst roads!). Not only did you have to hold on so tight that your hands would go numb without realizing it, but you also had to be aware of the branches coming straight for your head so you could duck in time....trust me, you wanted to duck in time as we all learnt.....some of us quicker than others.
The views from the top were worth the 2.5 hour drive up, we didn't see any leopards or tigers though (there have been spottings in the past on Bokor Mountain). Both Aurelia and I woke up the next day with sore muscles and bruises...thank God we are doing this trip while we are still relatively young, you could have broken a hip or two back there!
The next day we spent the day in Kep, watching the sunset after a hike up a mountain with a cold drink in hand. We also had some delicious crab and squid caught straight from the ocean in front of us, we actually watched the women bring in the crab traps from the water and cook it up for us, can't get much fresher than that!
posted by Mary at 4:35 p.m.
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