Getting My Sarong On: Sick in Sihanoukville

On our last day in Phnom Penh, we spent a bit more time at the orphanage and relaxed around the lake district. We had bus tickets that would leave first thing in the morning for the beach destination of Sihanoukville- like, the only beach destination in all of Cambodia.

Again, I truly wish I had my own pictures to show you, but I found some that will do the trick on google images. I hope I don't get sued.

The plan was: get there as fast as possible, skip the party town and trashy beaches in Sihanoukville town, and head straight for Bamboo Island. We had been told by everyone who had been there previous that, while Sihanoukville was a bit trashy, Bamboo Island was pure paradise. And I wanted a little more paradise before I had to get on a plane once again.

So, we woke up early, had a breakfast of meusli and, in Pat's case milk, in my case yoghurt. This was going to work to my benefit later in the day. For all you people planning a trip to Southeast Asia: milk is generally a bad idea if you aren't used to it unpasteurized. In any case, we arrived in Sihanoukville and Pat wasn't feeling the greatest. In fact, he didn't leave our room for the next three days. The downside: we couldn't go to Bamboo Island (I cried a little). The upside? Pat didn't spend his daily budget of 20 bucks on food or fun, so we got to use it on a lovely hotel with a pool. That kept me occupied for our time there. Cable TV kept Pat occupied.

I did get to look around the town, and it wasn't as bad as everyone told me. Ya, ya, there are big parties every night, ya ya, the beach has a bit of a litter problem, but seriously, it was a cute little town full of sweet, friendly and polite Cambodians- quickly becoming one of my favourite nationalities. And, yeah, the food wasn't exactly authentic Cambodian fare, but it was some of the best western fare I found in all of Southeast Asia, so I wasn't exactly complaining. I would return. I hope I get to, someday.