🏍️ Same Family, New Motorcycle, New Washing Machine 👨👩👧👧 & All Of Them Stuffed In The Tuk-Tuk 🛺
We removed the passenger seats before heading to Phnom Penh, knowing we'd be returning with a moto, washing machine, and more.
Father's Day Donuts 🍩
After we exchanged our washing machine, the ladies were complaining of hunger pains, but I had a trick up my sleeve, a pre-planned donut stop. These donuts were from a fancy shop, well beyond our price range when considering breakfast options, but we are allowed to do some things once and never again.
There were a few custom Father's Day donuts in our box, and despite Srey-Yuu showing a mean face, she was only trying to guard the donuts because I am known for eating exponentially more and also faster than my family, putting donut security at high-risk. As we drove and munched, we headed towards the motorbike dealership part of town.
The New Ride 🧸
After going to a shop with secondhand bikes fresh off teh container direct from Japan, we realized we wouldn't have time to arrange the license plates and taxes, plus the prices were out of our range. Not to be deterred, we sweet-talked the shop owner and told him we had maybe $600 at most to spend, he sent his buddy with us to another smaller shop around the corner with a C70 in our price range, but it was really rough and would need a few hundred bucks of repair work.
I really wanted a Super Cub 70 because the engine size is perfect for a new rider/learner, and my aim is to teach my wife and oldest daughter how to ride. Well, 70s are getting pretty rare, but there was a very sharp looking 90 fresh off the container from Japan, but with a license plate that the shop owner had arranged just for situations like ours. Although it was $750, we decided to snatch it up because it was in such good condition. Anyhow, the Super Cubs tend to increase in value with the passage of time, and that can't be said for all the plastic-clad modern motos that begin to fall apart after a year or two.
On The Road Again 🛺
Once we negotiated a final price, the guys were soon anxious to load the bike into my tuk-tuk without listening to my advice on how to load and tie it down. I have raced motorcross for many years and also transported used cars and motorcycles in a previous life, so I'm actually quite good at transporting things without the loss of paint. The guys were giving me that "You're a stupid foreigner look," so I just let them do it their way, knowing it would be easier to just drive around the corner and redo all the ropes instead of trying to do it myself at their shop.
Once they had loaded the bike in my tuk-tuk in a way that would be sure to scrape copious amounts of paint off of the moto and tuk-tuk on the journey back home, the guy that did the tie-down job demanded a $2.50 tip for his three minutes of shoddy work. Too tired to argue, I paid the ransom and headed around the corner to undo all of his work and retie everything in a way so that metal wasn't touching metal.
Confidence is not something lacking in Cambodia, and it is usually paired with a lack of education and skill, often with disastrous and dangerous results. It's wild to think these guys have sold and repaired motorbikes day in and day out for years and years, but haven't even bothered to learn a few basic helpful knots and how strap a moto down without damaging it or the transport vehicle. Things aren't likely to change either because most folks aren't open to learning a more efficient or better way to do their job. Fast and reckless is the way to get things done, and I often find egos are too fragile for suggestions.
My wife usually pinches me when I begin to make friendly but helpful suggestions. I even tried to tell the guys several reasons why it would be better to load the bike front wheel first, but I was pinched by my wife and the guys laughed at my idea. I really worry about Cambodia's future with such sensitive egos and a reluctance to learn better ways to do things. Anyways, I have digressed as I often do, hope you at least partially enjoyed my ramble. Stay tuned for stories of the journey back home....
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Oh man, this moto purchase hit one of my pet peeves, which you managed to illustrate and explain perfectly: so many people are so certain about themselves and the way they do things, simply because that's how they've always done it, that they would never even bother reconsidering and listening to reason. This is quite annoying, no matter in which extreme.
Just to take the opposite perspective, in a place like Germany the same stubbornness may be true, but the other way round: Over there they probably wouldn't even let you transport the motorbike with a tuk-tuk, claiming that it's "impossible" to tie it down safely. (The result would be the same though: you pick up the bike, ride it around the corner where the tuk-tuk is waiting, and load it yourself.)
The other thing that annoyed me was the exorbitant extortion for shoddy work. This I'm most familiar with from Mexico, together with the "stupid foreigner" look. Argh!!! Why do I let this affect me so much? So to end on a pleasant note, I scrolled up to the doughnut part of your post. That made me smile again.
Another country with this problem is my own, but at least we have a decent education system in the US, so our stubbornness doesn't have as negative of an impact as it does here. I have worked with Germans here in Cambodia quite a bit, and you're right, things have to be so proper that it sometimes goes to the opposite end of the spectrum. And just imagine the situations I've been in, being the middleman/translator for German companies and their Cambodian staff/employees.
I've gotten a bit used to these things over the years, and because my wife always stops me from giving very friendly advice, I realize egos are fragile here and it's useless to do this. Only those that want to learn can be taught, and that goes with just about any subject matter. My main focus is turning these situations into learning opportunities for our daughters, whom I constantly convey the importance of being able to learn an relearn.
Oh man, what a collision of worldviews, and you caught between the fronts! I bet it must have been a trip mediating between the two. But that's how you get trained into changing perspectives. By the way, you have all my admiration for the gentle way you seem to handle people's fragile egos, in the same way as you handle any fragile objects. Your daughters can be proud of the wonderful example you are providing for them.
!PIZZA
It boggles my mind how you were able to fit a washing machine, a motorbike, provisions & baggage for your journey, two adults, and two children, all in the same tuk tuk. 😳 You deserve some kind of medal for that, I think! And what a nice looking motorbike! And such tasty doughnuts, even if you got the "stink eye" from Srey-Yuu! 😂
Haha, we even astonish the Cambodians who are already masters of overloading. I think my dad had a Cub 90 in his younger years, definitely gonna send him a pic to see if it jars his memory. My wife saw your comment, and now I have to teach them the meaning of "stink-eye."
I can't imagine how you and your family will travel such a long distance from the capital back to your hometown using a full-loaded tuk-tuk. Isn't it dangerous while on Justin's trip?
I am very sad to read the words "you stupid foreigner", because those words are so inappropriate to say, it is the arrogant nature of an uneducated person. I hope you are patient with them my friend.
And yes, I really enjoy your every chatter my friend, and I also always look forward to the content you share. because in your content there are always humorous stories, knowledge about family education, good relations between mothers, fathers and children, and also stories about socio-culture in Cambodia.
The journey back home was many hours longer because we have to climb the mountains, plus the added weight of the moto and gear we bought in the capital slowed us down a bit. In the moto shop's defense, they never called me a "stupid foreigner," they only implied it with their eyes and by also by not listening to my advice on how to load the bike. Thank you for your always thoughtful comments my friend.
With my pleasure my friend @justinparke. Btw, i have delegated a total of 25 HP to the ASEAN Hive Community. Sorry, that's all I can delegate to our community my friend 🙏
Thanks bro, every little bit counts, even 1HP will not go to waste in ASEAN Hive.
I like your blue bike! Yep, I am also wondering about the weight the tuk tuk carried because the washing machine is heavy. I just hope you made it home safely!
We arrived safely, but not without some hiccups along the way. All in all the tuk-tuk made this journey cost us only $25 in diesel instead of 4x round-trip bus tickets or private taxi fare plus motodups and tuk-tuks for transport within the capital. Another bonus is that we don't get carsick in the tuk-tuk, and can take as many picnics as necessary to reach home.
Congratulation to your new motobike, i wonder why you shouldn't choose the new one, oh yes, the old one will be the antique that will be gem in the next few years.
The newer versions of this bike are almost $3,000 USD new, and because they are now mostly plastic, they break quickly and the resell value drops way too fast. The oldschool Honda Super Cubs seem to increase in value every year, even if only $50 or so, it's better than buying a $3,000 bike and having to sell it for a $1,000 some day.
Wow.. your tuk tuk is super useful. Just like the pickups here in Sarawak. The ultimate palm oil and furniture carriage. Egos too fragile and confidence too high. Hahaha a combination of a disaster if one day Cambodia starts to have more effecient businesses in the future. Happy Father's Day..
I really wish tuk-tuks were more common around the world, but it seems safety regulations and emissions standards usually keep them out of many markets. I do hope Cambodia figures things out some day. Until then Vietnam, Thailand, and China will continue to make dominate many sectors of the economy here. Even the most popular cell phone service company is Smart Axiata, a Malaysian conglomerate. From what I have seen, the only that sets Smart apart from the rest if they have customer service and and train the employees how to be professional and courteous.
Hi hi.. Justin.. haha.. Axiata belongs to one of the richest man in Malaysia. The most popular choice for Malaysians is DIGI. Axiata feels a bit like this old man in Malaysia. I never knew that Axiata has already rooted itself into Cambodia. China is really getting pretty dominant in many countries. I think Cambodians maybe have not really realized it? Is that the reason?
So far China hasn't really entered the tech sector of Cambodia, but it seems their main focus is making factories to produce exports for China, especially little fruit snacks like dried papaya ,etc., that can be grown here cheaper than in China. More than anything else are construction projects, of which China buys all the supplies from its own companies in Cambodia. Even here in the middle of nowhere, the local truck driver said he has to go the Chinese depot to get sand and rocks, and communication is very difficult there.
As far as Axiata, I don't think anyone knows it as a Malaysia company, most Cambodians think it's locally owned, and I think that is smart Malaysian business practices. They created a new name for Cambodia, Smart, and distanced the company from Axiata, making Cambodian customers think it's a fully homegrown company. China does the opposite, always making it very clear when they are in town doing business.
Nice new moto, hope it reach your place without scratch😄
Safe and sound, home and already rolling down the roads, thanks.
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First of all, congratulations on the new cub. The license plate looks pretty darn cool though, at least to me it's foreign enough to look cool. Ours is British style, British standard. It's just nothing less than watching Mr.Bean on TV and think how he drive a Kuala Lumpur registered Mini in the UK.
Donut looks extremely KrisspyKreme to me.
And loading a motorcycle from the back, that's because the shop guy expect you start the Moto and drive it off the ape for unloading🤣
There's not many places in the world that still use non-Latin letters on license plates, but Cambodia still does, albeit mixed with a bit of English. A common site here is expired California license plates, both because they have the same color scheme as Cambodian plates, and from a distance the police can't tell. Also, most used cars enter Cambodia from Thailand, the USA, and Japan, and when you're lucky enough to end up with a California plate, you definitely don't take it off.
Krispy Kreme indeed, couldn't find any cheap local donuts on that morning, but I was determined to make that morning a donut date. If any major stunts happen on the Cub, you'll be the first to know bro.
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