12/18/15
(I spent 6 hours traveling from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh, so there is relatively little to update. Sorry!)
I will try to break they dual style of writing today (mostly because I did nothing except sit in a hot van all day). When I started this leg of trip, I knew my finance will take a huge hit: not because I spend a lot of money traveling, but because I always want to do a lot of things, go a lot of places that cost money. For example, while Angkor is relatively cheap ($40 for 3 days pass), I spent way more on renting bicycles and taking tuk tuk rides to far away temples. While I was in Ko Chang, I wanted to ride elephants and do island tours. All these come at a heavy price (literally). I have been busting my budget and must now cut back. (Yup, you will soon see short post on my day spent on the beach while reading a book). What truly make me feel bad is when I see so many younger travelers partying all night long and yet managed to spend less on party than me on sightseeing. When I got excited (no, not that way) about visiting Angkor for 3 whole days, people I met in the hostel thought I was crazy. I think this is part of the problem so far: while I found some cool like minded travelers in South America, I have not met many in south east Asia.
All I have to do today was easy: take the minivan from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh (what a cool name). I waited from 8-9am, while trying to settle atm issues (the hostel has an atm. I tried to draw money, but it failed…yet it deducted money from my bank). I was eventually picked up around 9am and took to the van, filled with locals and surprisingly, a lot of children too. I think everyone was amused to see me on the van, but mostly left me alone. The road to Phnom Pehn was pretty terrible, and we bumped and grinder our way there. The driver was pretty aggressive, which made me happy since that means we would get to the destination early; but bad for some passengers who became cat sick. With children wailing and people retching, it was a cacophony that i would not soon forget. I am amazed I was not sick, but in fact manages to nap a little here and there. I arrived safe and sound in the new city around 3.45pm. Seeing I am in a place near the river (which helped a lot with the heat!), I went for a quick run around the area.
Seeing how beers are mostly $0.50 to $1 here, and that I now love above a really run down pub, I decided to eat a quick dinner nearby, spending $5 for noodles and $1 on beer. Thankfully, my lunch was only $4, so that fit into my daily budget. As I start planning for things to do, I realize that I will likely break my budget to see everything I want to see. I guess that’s the dilemma of a traveler: see more or save money? And where are all my like-minded travelers at?!!
Chen's Travel Blog 