Sihanoukville tends to be used as a jumping off point for the islands and on arrival I wasn’t too taken by the city but did enjoy the visa on arrival application process. Entrants needed a passport-sized photo or were subject to a fine. Queuing behind those getting fined, I was well prepared with my photo to hand. When I made it to the front I smugly handed over my photo just for it to be tossed away to the bin!
The first Island, Koh Rong, was nice, quite small, no roads or cars and with the majority of activity concentrated in one short strip on the beach. It is known as the party island but during my one-night stay there was a late torrential downpour which sent the revellers running for cover from the beach bars, unfortunately I never made it to the Jungle Rave which came highly recommended. Fighting off the bugs I did head up into the jungle to a hippy bar overlooking the small strip and the bay – a great spot for sunset drinks, the views were awesome and I would fully recommend the sweaty climb (take bug spray!).
Next up was the island Koh Rong Samloem… a bit of a nightmare getting there. I boarded the wrong boat even after my ticket was checked. Luckily I managed to jump off on the correct island but in a small fishing village, otherwise I would have returned to the mainland! Fortunately, the boat I should have taken passed through an hour later so I eventually made it to Saracen Bay!
A private water taxi took me down the deserted golden sandy beach to my resort which was amazing!! A higher end beach hut metres from the water awaited! At $100 a night sleeping three it wasn’t a bad shout! The two backpackers who were planning on joining me had to cancel… one patted a dog the night before in a Sihanoukville restaurant, upon leaving went to pat the now sleeping dog which angrily awoke and bit her, she had to make an expensive dash to the capital for rabies injections!
Having some problems with stress and nerves in my life I can safely say that during my stay here I was completely chilled out, relaxed and stress free for the first time in forever! The place was paradise… turquoise warm water, an empty palm tree lined beach, beautiful sunshine and a fresh fish meal served under the moonlight whilst gazing at the stars with not a cloud in the sky! The bay itself remains quite shallow for some distance; you can wade far out away from the beach, away from any distractions, where you can simply float around in awe of the tree-lined bay surrounding you with just the small fish for company.
From Saracen Bay a 30-40 minute jungle walk will take you over the other side of the island to Lazy Beach, even more remote and peaceful but with larger crashing waves (take your camera and some water!). Here I really was one with nature; at its busiest, I counted less than 20 people on the beach, at its quietest it was just me (my average photography skills do not do it justice).
During my Koh Rong Samloem visit I stayed at Sweet Dream Samloem, which I would highly recommend. For more information on Sihanoukville and the islands check out this comprehensive website: https://www.visitkohrong.com/ It is worth noting I wasn’t there during peak season so am not sure how much busier Saracen Bay would be at this time.
Arriving into Siem Reap, via a nightbus, I spent the morning at the war museum and killing fields. At the museum I had to fight back the tears, the stories from my guide (a former general, Sinarth) were horrific and he had all the wounds, scars, burns, shrapnel inside his body and missing limb to prove it. Several books have been written on his life… and the one simply entitled Sinarth is worth a read.
My first night out in Siem Reap was fantastic and I had the pleasure of experiencing the remarkable Tuk Tuk bars (check these out)! Young locals pull their trailers in to Pub Street behind their scooters decked out like a small bar with killer sound systems linked to a laptop on YouTube, the customers are able to buy drinks and try their hand at being DJ for a while! It is a great concept, we spent most of the night between two Tuk Tuks trying to get as many people as possible into the bar enticing them with the tunes… the most we had was 12 and it was by far the busiest in the area!!
Next day feeling a very worse for wear I joined a youth hostel tour of Ankor Wat.. the temples were fascinating such amazing attention to detail and so big, words can’t do them justice. We watched the sunset over the jungle from atop one very crowded temple. During my time in Siem Reap I stayed at the very clean and friendly Onederz Youth Hostel (they have a few across Cambodia now and the two I stayed in were of very good quality/value). I opted for the three day Ankor Watt pass only using it for two days. If you are feeling energetic you can squeeze it all in to one day.
Highlights
Best Drink: Ankor Beer (30p)
Best Food: I met a good friend in Sihanoukville and the food his partner prepared was out of this world! All incredibly fresh, the meats we ate were all alive earlier that day, seafood included, which I don’t normally touch.
Best Experience: private beach hut on Koh Rong Saloem and the Tuk Tuk bars in Siem Reap! Not to mention the stunning Ankor Watt scenery
