Off to Kompong Cham.

6 / 4 = Yeat didn’t show to pick me up, so I walked to the bus stop. I doubt I had a seat anyway on the 8:30. It looks like Pursat is enroute to places and a seat is given if one is free when a bus arrives. The ticket stands wave the buses down as they approach. I have a book to read and know how to wait, so ………….. I got away at 9:30, not bad. This bus didn’t have plastic seats down the middle, but rice sacks. It amused the other passengers watching a gangle bloke walk over these rice sacks. It was a laugh. I got my book out to amuse myself. The lady next to me amused herself by picking dickies out of her sons hair and crushing them between her thumb nails. Everyone to their own. It is common practice out here.
From the bus Phnom Phen looks like a sprawling city, like many others outside of Cambodia. The other places I have seen in Cambodia, are nowhere like this place, just small towns. This is definitely a capitol city. Not huge, towering office blocks, but lots of areas commerce and housing mixed together. It has a definite city centre with wide roads, offices and modern shops and eateries. The place where the money is.
Just so you don’t forget this is S.E. Asia, loads of tuk tuk and moto drivers greet us at the bus station trying to influence the passengers to a hotel, or shuttle the locals to their destinations. There were only 4 westerners on the bus, but that didn’t dampen their enthusiasm. One of the other westerners is a Belgian lad I got chatting to at the services. He has a guesthouse in Kep. He is married to a Cambodian lass, so that may be a stop off at some point. He is a real easy going lad and still travels Cambodia when he can get time from the guesthouse. He has just been to see a circus in Battambong. It looks like I left too early.
The tuk tukers are enthusiastic, but not aggressive and directed me to the bus stop for Kompong Cham, my next stop. I have a good wait, so sat in the water sprayed seats and did some people watching.
Boarded the bus and was sat next to a very pretty Cambodian lady, or nearly. The seats in front of us had a young monk sat there and when the lady who had the next seat saw him “No way” was her reaction. I didn’t know why, but anyway, it was me and the monk. The bus lady told me to sit there and as she was dressed in black and red, I thought she may be Khmer Rouge, so did as I was told.
Approaching Kompong Cham a storm broke out, but luckily it had blown over by the time we got there. At Kompong Cham, I took a moto wearing both my bags. I am getting a bit cocky now. I’ll come cropper soon. By the time I got back out of the hotel Mekong, it was dark. It is opposite the Mekong river, which is still very impressive, even in the dark. Stall holders have setup along this part of the promenade too, so after a coconutty curry, I sat here with a beer for a super chill, the only thing missing was the stars.