On to Kampot

Done with all that Phnom Penh has to offer, today we are packing up and taking our talents south to Kampot. Travel days are generally pretty uneventful, and this one is no exception. A late breakfast, an hour or two of catching up on emails and other sundry work-related tasks, and then about three hours in the back seat of a private car (which, for $35 is an easy choice versus getting back on a bus). On the way, we make a pit stop for what the driver tells us are the sweetest coconuts in all of Cambodia (that’s a setup almost too tempting to pass on, but I’m keeping it clean today).

Kampot was a main administrative center under French rule, and the influence is still present in the shophouse architecture. Before the Khmer Rouge destroyed most of the fields, the region was known for producing some of the finest pepper in the world, an industry that is slowly recovering. Growth is definitely happening here, but not yet to the point chain hotels are setting up shop. Cheap food and shared rooms mean plenty of backpackers and eccentrics looking to disappear.

Our accommodation is on the edge of town, and rather than rely on tuk-tuks to get us from place to place, we’ve taken a leap and rented a sexy red scooter. We’re missing our SAMCRO jackets and only the high beams work, but we manage to get ourselves around safely, visiting a few markets and then stopping for dinner. Taking a break from our steady diet of fried rice and noodles, we splurge on a good old fashioned burger (covered in a delicious pepper sauce) with honest to goodness Heinz ketchup.

Based on this evening’s success, we have another scooter on order for the morning and plan on heading up Bokor Mountain tomorrow, a 35km ride from Kampot.