With only two weeks in the country, I want to see as much as I can, even if some towns are not typical tourist destinations. Although I could spend another few days visiting temples, we packed a lot into two long days. Today we are taking a bus around the west side of Tonle Sap area and over to the city of Battambang, which means Lost Stick. This is a photo of the monument to the guy who stole the stick? Still waiting for confirmation.
We decided to go with one of the cheaper bus companies. The AC is just as good on those filled with Westerners. And, fortunately there is no Fast and Furious or Battle of the Planet of the Apes video blaring the entire time. However, communication is lacking a little. We stopped in Bantam Meanchey, with no word how long a stop it might be. Half the people hopped off the bus, including Erin and Nick. Two minutes later the bus takes off and winds around through town. Evan rushed to find what was going on. Well, the driver wanted to stop somewhere else to eat. We could have gotten off if we had wanted. Evan walked back to the first stop while I sat on the bus with our belongings. I don't think I would have wanted to be Erin, walking out of the bathroom without her bag and seeing that the bus had disappeared.
Low season in a sparsely tourist end area meant that we were assaulted by tuk tuk drivers when the bus stopped, not a common occurrence here. But we found our way to a hotel, and quickly set out on some sightseeing as Nick was heading back to Siem Reap the next day.
The bamboo train was our first adventure. Apparently there were only two train lines ever built in Cambodia, one from Phnom Penh up to the Thai border and one from Phnom Penh to the south. Both were built in french Colonial times but fell into disrepair and all traffic was stopped. However some intrepid locals came up with an idea to us the tracks for their own transportation purposes. Using two axles that fit the rails, a rubber belt, a small engine, and a bamboo platform, they roll along the rails to distant villages. If there is an oncoming bamboo train, someone stops, one train is carried off the track in pieces, the other rolls by, then stops to get the first one all put together.
The track is so bad that you are bumping and jumping and pounding the whole way. Occasionally we crawled ahead at a a snails pace to avoid bouncing off the rails.we stopped at a small village, had an incredible cold coconut, and some interesting conversation. My friend here has several children, one a doctor and the other a teacher. She was 56. Same same.
From there we went to a mountain outside of town. It is famous for several things. First, its caves are home to more than 5 million bats. As we drove towards the mountain, our Tuk Tuk driver, Chin Chim, pointed out these smudges in the sky each was a swirl of bats. As we got closer, the smudges were taking over the sky until we came to the mouth of the cave where it was a constant outpouring of bats. He told us it takes more than an hour for the bats to all leave the cave. Twice a month they go in at night to collect the guano,,
We took a jeep to the top of the mountain to see the sunset over Battambang. There are some hills in the distance, but the city itself is in the same flat plain we have been in all over Cambodia. Rice fields as far as the eye can see. Flame trees are in bloom right now, creating a spectacular sight.
There is a pagoda on top of the mountain that was reflecting the last rays of the sun. On the other side a full moon was rising.
The most important thing about the mountain was its use as another of the killing fields. There are limestone caves throughout this mountain. They would bring those to be killed to the top of the mountain where there was an opening to the cave far below, and send them to their deaths. There is a shrine to those killed and a buddha watching over their bones in the cave.
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