Cambodia

4th May to 10th June 2002

With my original travel plan discarded months ago, my plans changed once again and my flight to Australia was delayed for another couple months. On the recommendation of a fellow traveler I decided to take a trip to Cambodia.

From the Thai border, I travelled via pickup to Siem Riep to visit Ankor Wat. A boat ride got me to Kampong Chan a little ways south east. Following that pickups, busses and trains took me to Phnom Phen, south to Sianoukville and then back to the capital. A long slow ride up the Mekong with a couple slow stops took me all the way up to the border with Laos.

Travelling through Cambodia, I visited larger cities filled with thousands of scooters, almost abandoned beachside resorts and bamboo villages in the jungle. Much of the country appears to have last been developed during the French colonial period, with only the major cities and tourist areas showing much new growth. Throught the country there were many signs of the wars that occurred here over the past 30 years. Destroyed bridges, bomb craters and uncleared minefields can be stil be found.

Despite the troubles of the past, most people I met had an very positive outlook on life; a lack of bitterness about the past and much hope for the future. Definitely an attitude that most of the world could learn from.