Oh, my, Cambodia is dusty to say the least. We are without a doubt smack dab in the middle of dry season and it really shows in this region of Cambodia. At first I was very nervous about being here. There is such a marked difference between Thailand and Cambodia that at first I felt a bit unsafe. Our guide, who I have nicknamed Watson because I cannot pronounce his Cambodian name, didn’t make it any better by telling us about all the corruption in the Cambodian government. But hey, sounds just like Illinois!

All kidding aside, today we got a true taste of the hardships of the Cambodian people. After making several adjustments to our bikes, which suck by the way, we were off. The road into Pailin town is under construction, if that is what you want to call it. First of all it is a hard packed dirt road full of pot holes and then the people are hand, and I mean hand, digging and re-building parts of the road. Men, women, children, young and old wrapped in clothes from head to foot to protect them from the continual onslaught of dust created by passing trucks, cars and motorcycles. We stopped to take pictures of a sewer canal being built. There was an even larger project of a bridge being built but there was too much traffic to stop for pictures. People everywhere moving dirt, sorting rocks, carrying cement in buckets. There is an abundance of cheap labor here.

It is very hard to describe in words what these construction sites look like but Rich was able to get some good pictures from the tour bus behind us, so be sure to check them out. We too have to wear scarves over our faces because the dust can get stifling and taste awful. But amazingly enough, traffic does flow and life carries on at a snails pace. That’s one thing that I did notice about both Thailand and so far Cambodia, people move slowly. And I can’t blame them because it is so, SO HOT!

This area of Thailand was once very rich in gems but due to the Khmer Rouge and an agreement made with Thailand, 95% of the gems were taken out of Pailin and left the residents with nothing. The secondary charming fact of Pailin is that is the most heavily land mined area of Cambodia. Watson tells us that over 180,000 mines are discovered and dismantled every year. Cambodia was number one in the world for being the most land mined but due to efforts from the USA, Britain and the United Nations, the number of land mines has dropped from over 10 million to 3-4 million. Even so, Watson advises us to stay on the beaten path. Ya don’t need to tell me twice!

Once out of Pailin, the traffic began to subside but the dusty roads did not. Today’s ride for the most part was on this pot holed, dirt road and about 5% paved. We travelled through small village after village and everywhere we rode, the children ran to the front of their yards to yell, “Hello”. There was this continual bantering back and forth of hello from us to them. As soon as we answered their call another arose. Sometimes you didn’t see the face, only the call. I told Watson that I thought the Cambodian kids were so cute. He said he thought American kids were cuter. I think kids in general are cute no matter from where they hail.

Riding with Watson is much different from riding with Woody. Woody talked with us and pointed out things. Watson just rides and we ask questions. He is a good rider and wears just sweats and a straw hat underneath his helmet. It is pretty funny but it keeps the sun out of his eyes. He doesn’t seem to be bothered by the dust bit he does sweat like us so I know it is hot!

We cannot resist stopping at a school once again for some pictures with the kids. This time there were tons more and all of them wanted to get into the pictures. It was so fun. They would say, “Hello” or an occasional, “How are you?”. A couple of the older kids (10-12) even asked us what our names were. I doubt they understood much of what we said but they howled when we said, “Aw kohn” (thank you) or “Sue s’dei” (Hello). Watson told us that 40% of the Cambodian population is under 16 years of age and 40% of all children will not go to school for more than 3-4 years because they need to work. Watson did graduate from “high school” and then went to Tour Training School and began working for the tourist trade, which is slowly beginning to take hold in Cambodia.

Somewhere around 50K we stopped for lunch, which was good because I was getting sick again. I have managed to pick some bug up that has been wreaking havoc with my stomach. I think between the heat, the dust and the bumpy roads, my stomach is crying for some relief. The food here is pretty bland compared to Thailand but the damage has been done and I have to be very careful what I eat. Luckily we get served rice with every meal and that helps settle my stomach. Today at lunch I took some medicine to try to ward off diarrhea. I am hoping that helps because bathrooms are non existant and going out in a field is not an option, especially if I might get my butt blown up from a land mine!

The mode of transportation is mainly motorcycle here and the trick is to see how many people you can get on the bike, plus all your stuff. The record I saw was three adults and two smaller children. One child is usually right behind the handle bars then the adults and another child squeezed in between the adults. If you cannot afford the motorbike than you ride a bicycle that is at least 30 years old, might have breaks and sometimes air in the tires. Mostly the very old or very young were on bikes.

Public transportation seemed to be flat bed trucks or tractors pulling trailers filled with people and goods. I saw one where there were so many people on it that I was sure it was going to dump over. I shook my head as Jim yelled that it was perfectly safe and that he was sure that the truck was equipped with driver front and side airbags. I said, sure it was, they are called children! But if you have to get from one place to another and you don’t have the means, this was the way to go. I hope I can get a good picture sometime.

I rode about another 20K or so and then my body said no more. The heat, the dust, the something in my stomach just would not let me ride. I tried very hard to ignore myself but when I wouldn’t even answer the children waving and saying, “Hello”, I knew I was in the bag. We had 20K more to ride and at my pace it would have taken us 4 more hours to get to Battambang, our final destination for the day. And the sad part is, is that I wanted to ride. Rich had also begun to feel the need to be on the bike. He is much better with the heat and I know he would have enjoyed the ride today. I think he is going to try to ride tomorrow. He can move his arm much better now but I told him to be careful. The hospitals here in Cambodia are terrible.

Janie said I did not miss anything (except an injured ego). There was about 15K of terrible pot holed road, which I knew because we were in the bus going slower than they were! It was so dusty and dirty. I know I keep talking about the dirt but it nothing I have ever experienced. Everything was this clay, orangy-red color: the trees, the plants, the houses, the people! Our bodies were caked in this dirt. I think Janie had on a white shirt!?

Getting into Battenbang was what I missed most about riding today. Janie said it sucked but I think it was because she had just endured the last 15K of dirt road. The traffic was wild. Cars, motorcycles, buses, people everywhere and no traffic lights or stop signs. If you were at all timid about driving, this was not the place for you. Watson says there is a speed limit but I am not sure there was anyway to control it. Trying to follow Janie, Jim and Watson was impossible. Jim stopped for a picture and we just left him knowing he would catch us because he could maneuver in and out of the traffic better than our bus.

We finally reached the hotel and I am not so sure they were excited to see us all covered in dirt walking into their beautiful lobby. But like the Thailand people, the Cambodians are most gracious and eager to please. We had to sign in with our passports at the front desk and I noticed a sign for massages. Oh, yes, this was going to be in my future! After a nice hot shower, the first since leaving Bangkok, I treated myself to a lovely one hour Khmer massage (Thai massage) for a whopping $10US, plus a $2 tip.

Dinner tonight was at a local BBQ buffet. Buffets are good but I could never eat enough to justify the cost but here I would give it a try. Still needing to keep close tabs on my stomach, I kept to rather bland fried rice and some fresh veggies. Rich, Janie and Jim were able to be more adventuresome. The deal was to pick all the veggies and meats you wanted and then bring it back to the table to cook. There was a pot that domed in the middle to create the cooking area and it was surrounded by water that would take up the juices of the meats and then you would put your veggies in there to cook for a soup. I know Rich really liked it. Jim got a little impatient with the whole cook your own meal and went to the guy with the major BBQ grill to get some meat ready to eat!

Janie, Jim and Watson are the real heros of the day. they endured it all. When Janie got off her bike she said, “After doing this, I can do anything”. She is a real trooper. Looks like tomorrow’s boat ride is off so we are going to take our tour bus all the way to Siem Reap. I am looking forward to a day off the bike to hopefully recover from my stomach bug. I know Rich is raring to get back on the bike so hopefully he will be able to soon. We are supposed to get a new bike for Jim in Siem Reap since he riding the same one Rich will be riding eventually. Like I said, these bikes are terrible but I have a much better seat and that makes all the difference in the world for me, especially on these bumpy dirt roads.

We are all safe, we are all happy, we are all tired. Talk to you more tomorrow!

Link to today’s photos

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