Kampot, Cambodia

Wednesday 10th Feb

To break the journey up we decided to take the bus from Sihanouk Ville to Kampot which is a little further to the East but still on the South Coast of Cambodia.

We bought the bus tickets from our guesthouse in Sihanouk Ville, which cost $6 each. The journey took about 2.5 hours (110km). According to the Lonely Planet (2008), the population of Kampot is 37,400 (Newquay is around 22,000). It is a great base for exploring nearby caves or tackling the challenge of Bokor National Park.

Kampot is much more chilled out and less touristy than Sihanouk Ville. When we arrived a very friendly tuk-tuk driver offered us a lift for $1 no strings attached!

When we arrived at the recommended ‘Blissful guesthouse’ it was fully booked, so we decided to stay a few doors down at the Magic Sponge. Recently renovated (previously a bank), the rooms are large, clean and comfortable. The facilities are also very good, with a TV lounge, crazy golf, a pool table, hammocks and free bicycles to explore Kampot. My only gripe is that although the restaurant is very good there was not a single Cambodian dish on the menu! Still this is a good place to have a break from being a traveler!

After chatting to William, an Alaskan guy working thee, he recommended watching a film in the TV lounge called City of Ghosts. Filmed in Cambodia at the Bokor Hill Station, it was a great film to watch before embarking on our trek the next day.

Any family member thinking of watching this film please note all land mines in the National Park have been cleared! Second thoughts don’t watch it! :o)

There were two options for exploring Bokor National Park in Kampot; the first being a one day tour up to station Hill. The other was a two day trek, staying over night at the rangers station and then a 7 hour trek through the jungle the next day. We opted for the latter, which cost $45 each through a tour operator called Smile Tours.