Thursday through Friday
Thursday, June 10th
Woke up at 5:45 AM to have breakfast at 6 because the bus was picking me up between 6:10 and 6:30 AM to take me to my boat ride at 7 AM. The bus (of coarse) got there at 6:30 AM and the boat left at 7:30 AM. The Lonely Planet says the boat ride to Battambang is suppose to take approximately six hours, but depending on the water level it can take anywhere up to eight or
nine hours, or more (but really? or more??). Jake warned me that water levels could get you stuck, so I was sure to ask the lady scheduling my boat trip for me, the nice lady at Encore Angkor, to double check to make sure that there was enough water. The night before she assured me that she had checked and was told there was enough water. So off I went!
Hour 1: Kinda bored. Nothing much to see. Water is kinda shallow on the river, but it's ok, we should be on the lake soon.
Hour 2: At the lake, and the water still looks kinda shallow. Hmmm... but it's a lake right? It can't be THAT shallow.
Hour 3: Wow, this is AMAZING! So happy I did this! Wait... why are
we stopping? Why is the man taking off his clothes? Why is he jumping in the dirty water? And wait!!! Why is the water only up to his thighs?! Oh no!!! Why is he pushing the boat??? Oh no.... we're stuck.
20 to 30 minutes later: he's getting in again. That must mean we're not stuck anymore.... but he does not look happy.
Hour 4: Still haven't moved. Something is wrong with the motor. Oh wait! Wait!!..... Here we go! Oh oh.... mud is going EVERYWHERE (including on me)!! And it's coming out of the motor, that can't be good.
20 to 30 minutes later: We're moving!! But water is going everywhere from out of the motor. That can't be a good sign can it? Look how pretty! But if it's this shallow on the lake, how's the marsh going to be??
Hour 5: We've been at the mechanic (an old man with a house boat on the river) for about 45 minutes now. Little kids in uniforms are passing us by. Cute kids :o) So glad I am doing this.... The marsh seems a lot deeper than the lake! Kinda odd, but whateves. Yeah, more water is suppose to be coming out of the side of the boat - and WAY less mud.....
Hour 6: The boat is fixed and we're moving! That's what it's suppose tolook like.... We've picked up some locals (who paid aboutout 1/10 of what we did), and now we are crammed. Nowhere to put my legs. We should probably be there soon. Awesome, but so happy it's hour six. And we've stopped! But this doesn't look like a town. Ohhhh.... we're just here to grab food? Ok, guess I'll get out and use their restroom (since the one on the boat looks kinda sketchy). Oh look, the restroom is a hole over the river.... ok... good thing I really didn't have to go.... at least not #2..... On
our way again... look how pretty :o)
Hour 7: guy said about 3 more hours and then got off the boat... Wait!! He was our mechanic!!! I don't know if I can take 3 more hours. Wooden boat, no back support, Cambodian lady on the right hogging up all the space. Military guy to the left and in front w/pistols in their belts.... I'm going to take a nap.
Hours 8 - 9: Neck hurts from trying to sleep sitting up on a wooden beam that's suppose to be considered a seat with the side of the boat as back support. Couldn't nap. This is pretty. Oh God, get me there. Although this is nice scenery. Man my back hurst... Try standing. Sit back down (not enough room to stand).
Hours 10 - 11: We're never going to get there!! The sun is setting, I'm still on this boat, it's hot and humid! I'm going to die on this boat... I must be in hell!
Hour 11.5: We're stopping! Oh wait, it's just to drop locals off... We're stopping again!! More locals off.... yeah, we're stopping, more locals off... wait, motor off.... everyone getting off.... We're here!! Land!!!! I need a beer.....
Friday, June 11th
Debated on taking a 13 hour bus ride to Siagon again, but I can't stand another long trip right after yesterday. Luckily I met some cool people on the boat yesterday (a Canadian, an Italian, and a Dutch). So I decided to sightsee with them instead :o) After negotiating a deal with our tuk-tuk driver for the day, we were off!
First we decided to go see (and ride) the bamboo train. According to Mr. Rich (our tuk-tuk driver who spoke decent english), it is called a bamboo train because in 1979 when the cambodians began using the train tracks for local transportation (and after they were "freed" by Vietnam), the trains were moved by bamboo sticks, like a boat. Now the drivers have a small motor on the back that moves the trains around. We decide to send Christiana (the Dutch) to negotiate the price - which ended up pretty funny since the driver didn't speak any English! Finally we were off! Those tracks don't look straight... bump bump bump.... it feels like we are on a roller coaster! Jajaja! Oh oh, there's another train coming right at us! Jajaja! We stop. We have four passengers and you have two, you should get off. Oh wait, there's another train behind you. I guess we'll get off. The two drivers disassemble our train, he moves forward, we wait for the next driver to pass, he stops and helps us reassemble our train and we continue forward. After a beer at the next village we head back to our tuk-tuk driver so we can head to see a temple.
Yes... another temple, after Angkor Wat I really didn't want to see any more temples... but what else is there to do here in Battambang? After about a 1 hour drive via tuk-tuk, and a LONG steep hike up stairs (with little kids trying to fan us to make money) in extreme heat and humidity, we reach the top of the temple. The ruins are amazing, and the signs reading "Enter at your own risk" make you realize that the buildings are leaning and are not really based on anything but some sticks trying to hold it up. Regardless, the view from up here is AMAZING and totally worth the hike.
After we hike down the steep steps and buy some water (did I mention it was hot and humid?) we get in our tuk-tuk again and go to "the mountain." As we drive up to the mountain you can see an amazing buddhist temple at the top. We decide to grab a quick lunch before it starts to rain and head up the mountain. "You really should take a guide," says Mr Rich. "If you don't take a guide you won't be able to find the caves." How hard can they be to find? But the guide is only $2.... fine, we'll take a guide (soooo not going to be worth it, but what's 50 cents each?). Oh yeah, and what time do we have to be back? 5 PM? That's the time the 1 million bats come out? Oh, not 1 million anymore? 2 million? Ok... we'll be back by 5 PM.
Wow this hike is steep! At least it's on a road.... "Bang! Bang! Bang!" Little "soldiers" run by us with sticks pretending to shoot us! Oh no!! I pretend I am shot and injured, the Italian and the Canadian stop to take pictures. Us girls continue to hike... we are not in the best shape of our lives and need all the time possible. Fork in the road, but it's obvious we should go to the left.... we didn't need a guide. Plus, he's really quiet... hardly talks... and said his english was really bad. As we walk up to one of the high points our guide (who I later find out is named Wa Da, but goes by Da) jumps on the roof of what seems to be a water tank that holds rain water. We look over the valley to the mountains which he explains is the Thai border. This building (pix on the left) used to be a prison (he explains), during the khemer rouge time, but now it's a buddhist temple. I later find out that Da studied buddhism and lived in a pagoda for most of his life. At the age of 12 he ran away from home (a few years after his mother passed away and father remarried). He lived and studied there until he was 18. Now, at 21, he studies english and gives tours, trying to save money to pay for english classes and one day attend university (he's going to have to give a lot of tours if he's only charging $2 a tour!). We continue on our tour to the cave (the reason we are up on this steep mountain!). Ok... so maybe we wouldn't of known which way to go to the cave, but there were plenty of monks around and we could have figured out where it was.... As we went in to the cave Da explained that this is where people from the prison were executed. They were mostly teachers and students, and they were thrown from the top of the cave to their deaths. Their skeletons have been gathered and put to the right and left of the
cave (I chose not to add that picture, but email me and I will send it to you if you'd like). An older lady and man were at the bottom with a laying buddha, incense and red string. After a 50 cent donation, the older lady (sitting on the left of this picture) tied a red string around my wrist and thanked me. We proceeded to get in to an in debt discussion with Da regarding the Khemer Rouge and their time in power. Approximately 3 to 6 million people were murdered in Cambodia during this time (Da said six, I have read three), no one from his town because they weren't educated, but a lot of people were murdered. His parents were sent to work in the fields, and afterwards went to a refugee camp in Thailand. They were separated when they went to the fields, and it took them a year to find each other after the liberation. Only 3 million Cambodians were left alive after that time in history. Da went on to tell us how that part of history is not allowed to be taught in Cambodian schools. He mentioned how he was curious when he was younger, and he once asked his teacher about it, but his teacher shook his head and told him he didn't know anything about that. (Da's english is a lot better than he says it is! Insightful conversation...)
On Da's recommendation we're off to another cave. Yeah, we would have NEVER found this one! We walk down some stairs and look! Monks! The Italian has wanted to take a picture
with monks, and here's his chance. Da approaches the monks and asks if it's ok for us to take our pictures, and they agree (do they ever disagree with anything?? :o) With the help of Da we proceed to have a conversation about them, where they are from, how many people live with them in their pagodas. They are from the same town but three small pagodas. I promise to print up the picture and send it to them (although the address they gave me was in khemer......) and the proceed to invite me to their village and their pagoda. We are their friends now and we just have to show up to the village and ask one of the villagers and they will point us in the right direction. We will stay with them. Well, that's enough reason to go back to Cambodia for me!
After our brief chat with the monks we hike up some more to the thinking buddha (which is huge) and his disciples praying for guidance. We go up higher to the new temples (which we originally saw on our drive up) and enter another temple and talk about buddhism with another monk. He's only been studying for a few years and it seems to be that Da knows more about buddhism than he does! Oh oh... it's almost 5 PM! Better go head down to see the bats. $2 well spent on the guide.
The bats are going crazy... but they aren't coming out yet..... How long do they come out for Mr. Rich? "One hour," he replies. I don't believe you! That has to be more than two million bats (they're flying out in a pattern now, heading towards the river to find insects... damn river with hardly any water that I was on for over 11 hours yesterday!....). "Don't believe me?! We stay and see and you believe me then!" Replies Mr. Rich. Ok, ok, I believe him. It's been a long and AMAZING day.....
We drive back to the hotel, relax a little and head to a restaurant to watch the Mexico vs. South Africa game (which is being displayed by projector on the side of a building). What do you mean off-sides? That should have been a goal.... right? Can't understand the explanation (we're watching it on Vietnamese TV). After a frustrating kick (for me), and holding it for about half the game, I decided to go to the restroom. "Hurry up Mexican!" Crap!!! I missed the goal! Oh well, at least they are tied now.
Good day... Good day.
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