Phnom Penh, Cambodia - By Bicycle
Phnom Penh, Cambodia - By Bicycle
Phnom Penh- An eclectic mix of modern and ancient, hectic and peaceful. For such a small city there truly is much to explore normally, but by bicycle? The city never fails to surprise and confuse you. For such a small city, I found it quite confusing and got lost almost constantly. The street numbers seem to make absolutely no sense but I managed all the same. The traffic can be quite hectic during the busy periods but otherwise pretty relaxed.
Phnom Penh in 2000 - A different story
I first arrived in Phnom Penh in 2000 as a backpacker coming from the south and have returned a few times. Life was quite different in those days. The Khmer Rouge was still in power in some parts of the country and kidnappings and robberies were not uncommon. I have to admit that I didn't truly realize the situation as I would have now. Perhaps ignorance is bliss. All the same,the conditions in Cambodia were much worse than today. Phnom Penh was a dirty city with open drains smelling of sewage and I wouldn't have eaten the street food. Today the city is much cleaner, smells much better and the construction industry is booming with semi-skyrises under construction seemingly everywhere in the city apparently funded with Chinese investment. This was three years ago. In my post from a few months ago bangkok-to-phnom-penh I discussed getting there. Now I'll show you some of the city and tell you how it was to be there.
Surprisingly many tourists rent bicycles and cycle around the city. Besides the heat and sometimes hectic traffic, its a great idea. The city is fully flat with wide roads. The drivers are used to seeing slower traffic and are quite friendly.
This is my bicycle bought in Bangkok a few years back posing in front of the mighty Mekong River. This river is the lifeblood of this part of SE Asia and hopefully will continue to flow freely.
The car ferry taking passengers to the other side of the Mekong. There is a lovely promenade the city has built along the river for people to walk and cycle. In the evening, many people relax and chat river side.
I found this great little stall when I first arrived in PP needing a bit of perk-up. This hit the spot for sure!
I remember these cyclos from 2000 when there were very few cars in PP and not so many motorcycles and tuk tuks as there are today. The locals used them all the time. These days they are mainly for tourists and photos. Would be nice to see the government or an NGO subsidize them somehow to keep the tradition alive.
I'm vegetarian and most Cambodians have never heard of the term. However, the Chinese and Vietnamese Cambodians know. This is from a Vietnamese vegetarian stall in the Psar Thmei or New Market shown below...
This market is quite large and confusing but once you find your place then its easy enough to return. My place was the vegetarian food and coffee stalls. Do be careful with your belongings as there probably are some pickpockets lurking about.
The famous Cambodian style sandwich cart. Cambodia is an interesting mix of Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese and of course Khmer influences all mixed together. This is straight Vietnamese. Or is it Khmer influencing Vietnam? Either way its tasty and sometimes they have tofu sandwiches. Not bad after eating only rice and noodles all the time. Behind is the beautiful artwork on the wall of a Buddhist temple.
I used google to search for a nice cafe. Somehow I ended up at a Vietnamese karaoke cafe. All the same the coffee was wonderful and the waitresses lovely and funny. I don't think they spoke Khmer even...
I call this a boat on wheels because the people board and sit on the planks just as they would on a boat. The picture doesn't do justice to the length of the trailer. Normally this is daily transport to and from the countryside outside of PP.
We all have to end our time on Earth some day. If you're going to go why not go out in style? Beautifully carved Chinese coffins here.
Thanks for reading my post. Notice how I didn't mention the Killing Fields and the Khmer Rouge only once? That's because Cambodia has moved on from their tragic and sad history. We can learn from these people on how to let go of the past and enjoy the present times!
Thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed my post
Inspired to do some travels yourself? The time is coming soon! This one happened a couple of years ago. Stay tuned for more posts!
Please upvote and reblog!
Bringing back memories. Yeah, despite the chaotic traffic, which is easy to adapt to once you know the the flow of things, PP is a great place for cycling. I would argue you could get to most places within the city just as fast as a car could.
I agree. I have to say that I rate PP quite highly as cities in SE asia go... just if they have more affordable tasty food and cheaper decent rooms than its great...