Summary of My International Travel 2018 – Part 5 Sihanoukville – Cambodia

Please refer to my earlier blog called ‘Cambodia Sihanoukville – A Seaside Paradise Lost 2018’

With my upcoming return to Phnom Penh at some point I believe I will also return to the Billabong Hostel seeing how it had ticked all my boxes. Today is Sunday, and I was excited to awake to an alarm .. go figure!! (Dislike alarms). Hate is such a drastic hurtful thing .. so now I use dislike. Alarm done … everything sorted, yes .. I showered and cleaned my teeth, checked out so easily and the tut-tut had me at the station in time for the 7am train departure to Sihanoukville on the West Coast. I walked straight onto the platform and the train wasn’t that long in length. A rather quaint setup with one caboose car, 2 carriages loaded with cars and motorcycles, a diesel generator carriage, 2 passenger carriages and the diesel locomotive. Not much time to do a further inspection so I quickly found a spare seat at the rear of one carriage on the right side and it had a rack for my 2 backpacks. Awesome!! The air conditioner was just above my rack. I was not expecting any air conditioning. Bonus. Not long, every seat was taken .. we are on our way. Definitely the only Australian on this train.

After about 1klm West, we enter a tunnel for some 500metres surprisingly (the land is so flat for the entire city and surrounds) and then we enter the few kilometres of lower economic city dwellings where it is such a narrow corridor between rows of houses. Reaching out with hands I could almost touch the roofs on both sides. Can’t believe, these rear of houses, are so close to the tracks, so I’m thankful the speed of this train is respectfully slowed at about 15klms/hr. It was amazing to see so many residents on their rear verandahs in their nightwear unashamedly out in the open for all of us to see, stretching and yawning to the awakened new day. Young children washing themselves in the nude. This is real life and culture .. right in view. I hope I was being discreet in taking all this neighbourhood culture coming to life. No photographs taken of course, respecting everyone’s privacy.

In taking a long curve we are heading South through the outer suburbs with speed climbing to a whopping 60klms/hour (sarcasm). At some point we will be heading generally West and now see why it is a 7hour trip. With the train schedule to Sihanoukville set at 3 times per week (every 2^nd day) is because the track is single only all the way however, we do 2 sidings where we pull over for about 5-10mins at a time to allow the commercial and freight trains to pass by, we then rejoin the main track again. At each siding there is a toilet, coin donation and mostly for women on the platform. The men usually wait to the last minute and jump the train to the right side for ablutions over the main track before the train departs. What a view … and again, no photographs!!!! 😊

At one platform-stop waiting for a freight train to pass, a Cambodian woman turned around from her bench seat in front of me and made conversation to other strangers in Khmer language. As she spoke, she handed me a large slice of mango she was professionally slicing up. Her eyes were glowing with kindness. I was totally blown away with such generosity, smiles and care of another human. Huge smiles abounded by everyone and my English of “thank you” and my praying hands was well received also. That was lunch for me and she declined my energy bars in return but understand why … Western processed food of sorts. BTW, I’m not a person that wears sunglasses when I’m in a close communal setting. Seeing eyes is a sign of respect for me and a way of silent communication (transparency, if you like) so it may have helped the lady in sharing a mango. Just my thought.

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The landscape for almost the entire journey is much the same, dried out rice fields (rainy season almost 2 months away), low standard cattle pastures, farm houses with their own cemeteries and religious monuments close mainly to the railway boundary, mountains and hillsides in the distance all in parallel to the tracks it seems. It is so dry and nothing much for crops, etc for it is a normal average of 39°C and dry humidity. Can I tell you the most frustrating and annoying part of this trip? The continuous track sound whilst repetitive, is acceptable as a train journey and to be expected however, at each crossing whether it be a goat track, road or anything that resembles a crossing the train blows its warning ‘horn’. It is the sound of a ‘cow in pain’ searching for its lost calf. Believe me, by the time we reached Sihanoukville it must have sounded at least 200 times, no kidding and very LOUD! There is no real option but to keep my eyes open and enjoy the sounds and views … mini naps at best is all that can be achieved, until the next crossing.

Finally, in about the 6^th hour, the landscape changed to a leafier treescape set in between hills. We were travelling into a series of valleys with a bit of jungle both sides, then around a large sweeping bend, a harbour of sorts and then the final stop at the station platform. The port and train station are located in the NW of Sihanoukville so my first lodging base is not much further from the station. I have not seen a carriage departure this fast from a train since the New York subway. By the time I latched on my backpacks and stumbled out every tut-tut was gone and only a couple of scooters left. No doubt I am left paying top dollar as it is too far to walk to my hotel and the cheapest fare, I could get was $10USD. Ripped off!!! $2USD was the accepted fare rate for the distance needed. “Not happy Jan”!! (An Australian saying from a well-known TV add). Somehow the rider fitted my large backpack on and with me on the back we headed off for just a few kilometres.

Basically, the first suburb (Phum Bei District) is where my first 2 weeks accommodation is placed in good faith, called the Diver’s Inc Hotel situated on Victory Hill. On first sight, it certainly isn’t much with the reception area at the side of the small carpark with tables and chairs had-hoc which is also the in-house bar. My first stumble is checking in. I’m now required to pay up front in $USD which was not in the conditions of booking in advance. Using my ‘Australian language skills’ I managed to get a few days grace in which to visit a bank thus allowing me to get some credence to this establishment, especially when 2 weeks is involved. My room was downstairs straight off the carpark (hotel built onto a steep slope) with only 1 window looking out to a neighbour’s back yard (restaurant) that one should only look once. So overgrown and rubbish everywhere. My room had an ensuite, and the room/ bed allowed adequate sleep so can’t complain too much. There was a kettle, some coffee & tea so that helped a little after buying some muesli for brekky. The pool was further down some more stairs from my room level and was barren to look at, but peaceful, I guess with construction noises not far away. I swam in it once on my first day but a tiny scratch on my foot soon became infected fast so no more swimming for me. The hotel reception didn’t take my pool comment at all, so at least I know where I stand now and certainly took my time going to the bank. My first -aid kit worked very well again.

My ex-GF, Dale back in Australia, spoke often about the Queenco Hotel & Casino on Mlop Chrey Beach as a place to hang out in style and peace, so this was my first day venture out. It was a 500m walk around and down the hill and I was hounded by tut-tuts the entire way. I had my day pack on and walked against the traffic so I could see what was coming at me .. but I quickly learnt from Phnom Penh, etc that it is not a given. The Casino and restaurant area is very nice and comfortable. The hotel & gym are now located across the road in a very large white building. Inside the casino and foyer area was very quiet but every customer in the bar/ outside dining area were Chinese but the staff mostly Cambodians who were very welcoming. It looked very upmarket so I was hesitant to the menu for lunch however all up, the lunch with a beer was $7USD so really can’t complain. I found a spare beach table to sit for a while and take in the view of the bay, mostly just watching the lapping water and floating pier. The pool behind me was in full swing with so many Chinese occupying the area. Some hours had passed before I ‘forced’ myself to venture back to my hotel. Back into the hotel I managed to sort out Skype on my laptop, so I face-talked to my daughter, Kate & Son-in-law Jason for a heartfelt family catchup. Such a heart-warming experience.

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The next day, I returned to Queenco, and upon entering the carpark, I stood and watched workers placing a large volume of new solar panels onto the casino’s steep roof. My construction work history kicks in whenever I see renovation or redevelopment. I kept looking at their unsafe work practices and seeing how they appeared to be monkeys scrambling all over the roof. While I was observing, a pat on the shoulder startled me a little. A Canadian man, Paul introduced himself and wanted me to join him in the bar area overlooking the bay (Gulf of Thailand)/ ocean.

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Paul, about 40ish, spends 6months here and returns to Canada and works 6months there, and has been doing this for more years than he can remember. We sit on a high table looking straight out to the bay. He orders a double bourbon and coke. I chose mango juice (9am now). We spoke for hours and he said it was the best conversation he has had for decades. Yeah .. sure, but we did speak on many subjects and I wasn’t bored either. The staff knew him very well, ordering his 5^th serving of bourbon before leaving. Paul had been here for a month into his 6mth ‘sabbatical’. Walking out, I passed an immaculate Rolls Royce near the front door with Paul calling it the Chinese Tut-Tut taking Chinese around the city, etc. I later found out; he wasn’t kidding.

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For the next 2 hours Paul organised a regular tut-tut to show me around Sihanoukville. We covered some areas along the coastline, apparently all the way down to Otres 1 & Otres 2 beach areas. Paul raced into a local humpy shop & brought out 4 cans of beer to which he drank in a real hurry. At the last beer can he saw a woman he knew at Otres 2, so I found myself deserted in the tut-tut. We were a long way from my hotel but the driver got me back there alright except for the fare which required a bit of negotiation. Suffice to say, it was still a good day and wising up to the anomalies of Sihanoukville and how Chinese throw money around whereas backpackers and the like are understandably frugal with their money.

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The next day I returned to the Casino for a late brekky only to find Paul at his table again with his bourbon. We again, spoke for a while, including the tut-tut fare yesterday with no result for me. Paul said he has booked a flight to Thailand now as he could not stand staying in Sihanoukville for much longer. It was no longer his escape haven. After our catchup it was the last, I would see of Paul, so I hope he is OK and dealing with life the best he can. For the next few days, I would walk everywhere, again with tut-tuts hounding me for a fare. I wanted to keep my fitness and had no direct place to see. My walks uncovered all facets of local life and the enormous volumes of demolition and construction everywhere. Local creeks ‘flooded’ with all kinds of rubbish (packaging waste mostly), footpaths, what’s left of them full of construction materials, generators, rubbish leaving virtually only the roadway to walk upon. I’m confused on Dale’s description of paradise here with so much destruction and construction staring me in the face.

I could write volumes of what I encountered here in Sihanoukville so I’ll leave you to refer to one of my earliest blogs; Cambodia Sihanoukville – A Seaside Paradise Lost 2018. Long story short, Sihanoukville since approx. 2016 has been invaded by Chinese developers building some 40+ high-end casinos bringing the total of casinos to approx. 87 or so come mid-2019. Tourism stats show since 2015 a 704% increase in ‘tourists’ generally which would also include volumes of Chinese workers, gamblers and the like. A 37% increase each year, year over year … No other word but .. Invasion. The city already had a regional population of approx. 900K with little infrastructure. 

For dinner, I would walk up to the corner from Divers Hotel past my well used family laundry (beautiful people and only $2USD each time for washing and folding) to a corner restaurant. Usually the meal with a beer would be around $4USD. I sat there each time watching a young mother and child with the Grandmother run a little humpy shop. They were always open, well into the night. One early evening I sat at the restaurant watching the humpy shop family pack everything up into a cart in very fast fashion and leaving. I was quite saddened with what I was seeing. Behind the shop was a vacant overrun part demolished land. A bit of a mess really. The next morning, I saw machines on the vacant block clearing everything in sight including the humpy shop. It was horrible but looking up the smaller street I saw a new metal cladded ‘shed’ at the edge of the block. The family had already shifted in and selling goods. What a pleasing surprise. They were so happy & myself so relieved. Things change fast in this city and with little or no warning. I’m not sure how long the family will trade out of this new ‘shack’ with things constantly changing around them.

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One day I thought I would venture further into the CBD heart of this city purely as a walking marathon heading towards Independence Park on Ekareach Street 100, near the Post Office. It is the main street with access all the way down to the ever-stretching CBD. It was quite a challenge in the heat with the first obstacle being to cross a busy 2-lane roundabout. Most main roundabouts have nature symbols in their centres and this one had large sculptures of twin blue dolphins. Somehow and using my skill of survival I cross in between trucks, cars, tut-tuts and scooters and noting pedestrians are not usually seen walking in this area. As I progress closer to the CBD, I walk past so much demolition, construction and rubbish filled canals/ streams with the noise, dust and constant moving of people, etc like ants all going along in their daily activities. I walk along footpaths until a road passage is required to get around the mess and storage the footpaths are used for. I’m taking in all the places I may need in the future, the shops, telcos, markets and the like. This is quite a walk with a view to the consistency of demolition and construction and haphazard safety practices. Basically 1 in 3 premises were either being demolished, renovated or built.

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Post blog: The building photo shows a typical block construction. This type of about 7 floors collapsed in June 2019 killing 28 workers and injured 26 at around 6am. The workers usually live & sleep on the first floor while they construct the building. Most workers were asleep at the time. After this tragedy the owner and builders were imprisoned and then the Cambodian authorities condemned approx. 20 new constructions and were ultimately demolished.

There is nothing else that stands out in view so I’ll soldier on in the hope something will come along around the bend. Where the constructions start again, each premises were forced to have generators out the front to handle the all too frequent power outages so you get a mouthful of fumes occasionally walking past. This main street is virtually a crooked ‘L’ shape overall so now I head along the shorter leg where the CBD appears to end slightly and Google Maps indicates a beach and pier in about 2klms (already done 3+)! I’m in need of a good watering hole with my water getting low.

In the distance I can see a huge roundabout ahead full of shining gold but nothing in focus as yet so my step speed increases as I go past a large school with what appears to be a combined primary and secondary school in redevelopment and numerous large, older casinos in operation almost neighbours to the school. This golden glow confirms I have landed upon Sihanoukville’s major and most famous tourist location, the Golden Lions within a very large roundabout to the intersecting of 5 streets. Built in 1996, these 2 lions are huge, with the male lion in a roar stance standing over his becalmed lioness. The main theory of such a monument is to portray the over-coming strength of the Cambodian people to the insidious Khmer Rouge tyranny ending in 1975 with the male lion showing strength and bravery and the lioness showing calmness and loyalty while they in a safe harbour while a male is around in protection.

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After taking in these impressive lions, I again, use my skills to cross and evade the free-for-all traffic on the roundabout, excessively more than the last one and it does take bravery and timing of the first steps forward. Don’t stop or swerve .. just keep walking to the same tempo … and don’t make eye contact .. they will avoid you at all cost. Concrete trucks have a different rule I think.

Walking up the short hill of Ochheuteal St 500 I take note of more hotels, backpacker lodges and what services are available, as this appears to be a better part of the city to base myself. My immediate priority is the Serendipity Beach & Pier where I see the calm bay, dead-end traffic, numerous tut-tuts and so many backpackers coming off the pier from ferries. A few are very sunburnt. I take a 10minute breather to take in the fresh salt air (no construction dust or smell) and the activities along the extended beach (Ochheuteal Beach) to the South which takes you to Otres 1 & 2. The immediate North is a headland type setting and thick with vegetation so I’ll check that out another day. For now, I’ll just people watch and see what unfolds. I note a lot of backpackers are using a popular ferry shop (Speedie Ferry) to buy tickets to the islands just off the coast (Koh Rong & Koh Rong Sanloem are the main islands). I’ll keep this in mind for the coming future. There are several ferry places to buy tickets but I’m feeling more confident to this popular one.

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At the start of the pier there is a restaurant, Yasmine, where I can get a $1USD schooner of beer and a table next to the window to continue my people watching. The staff are superb and friendly, yet some of their customers are withdrawn and non-inclusive to others. It is well occupied by backpackers (eating mostly pizzas) while waiting for their ferry or to eat & drink straight after alighting. Thoroughly enjoyed this setting and after 2 beers started to head back up the street. Tut-tut operators hounded me, and mystified as to why I’m not taking up their services. I’m not ready to go ‘home’ yet.

Reaching the top of the hill I find a great little supermarket which had some breakfast food I could eat in my unit plus some health drinks for later. I’ll be coming here more often. Almost next door is a sound of popular rock and it’s drawing me in so passing the gravel entry past tables it is a large shed with large sport TVs, a bar and café with backpacker accommodation at the rear. This place is called the Big Easy and it certainly became my hang out base almost every day. Met a fellow Australian behind the bar, Adam and we connected immediately. He grew up in Lennox Head NSW not far from my hometown and has been away for several years and liked Sihanoukville so much he stayed. Apart from backpackers there were International teachers, massage ladies and beer drinking travellers catching up there so again, lots of people watching and talking when the opportunity arises.

I spent 2 weeks at Divers Hotel on Victory Hill but I frequently based my days at The Big Easy and I felt at home here with great staff, although I wouldn’t employ young male Cambodians as the ladies are more switched on, courteous and professional whereas the males are just pure lazy looking at their phones constantly. Across the road, Adam told me the travel agent will assist in extending my passport for 6months with unlimited fly in/ fly outs for the standard fee of $55USD. I was apprehensive in having to hand over my passport for 10 solid days awaiting approval but there is no other way and it does take 10 days. Gulp! When I landed in Siem Reap I applied for the Business Visa ($35USD) in lieu of the Tourist Visa for an extra $5USD so that I could extend my visa to the 6month limit whereas the tourist one you cannot extend and it only lasts 30days.

The Big Easy is one of the last remaining backpacker and night places in this district and they’re all becoming extinct. The Chinese dislike these establishments and International travellers and quickly buy them out and destruct mostly. One large place across the road has already been demolished for about 12mths with no redevelopment expected. Even along Ochheuteal Beach, adjacent to the Serendipity Pier the Chinese have demolished the very large market on the coastline and leaving it as a tip of rubbish and wasteland of approx. 130m x 60m. The villagers are severely depressed on this vandalism and the loss of property to make their income. Remember, I call the Chinese criminal invaders and here is the absolute proof!

A few doors down from the Big Easy is the Monkey Republic which is another backpacker establishment, however both these places were full up due to their great premises and scarcity of backpacker accommodation, so I had to rethink my non-itinerary scenario. I noticed a long- and well-established Mick & Craig’s Hotel a bit closer to the Golden Lions and it looks to be adequate and affordable however with my fast approaching checkout day of Divers Hotel I took Adam’s advice to see the main islands, starting with Koh Rong. In buying a ferry ticket and return I was able to book 8days doing the islands tripping and then another minimum 4weeks at Mick & Craig’s Hotel after, until I can see further into the future. While I’m away my extended visa will be processed as well. The island tripping can be awkward if you don’t take lots of cash as the internet is restrictive and most places don’t have card facilities and there are almost no ATMs.

A bit of advice I shouldn’t have taken from Adam was to seek out the most non-tourist location. I chose Sok San Village as my first stop based upon the internet pics and comments. My next blog, Part 6, will advise how this went and will take you to both major islands before returning to Sihanoukville.

Many thanks for reading my blogs and I look forward to any comments/ feedback. Stay happy, healthy & safe.