Kratie – E.A.T.

Cambodia ~ Where to Stay

April 23, 2014April 23, 2014Posted in Cambodia, Cambodia, LodgingsTagged backpacking, Cambodia, hostels, hotels, Kratie, Mad Monkey, Me Mates Villa, Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, SihanoukvilleLeave a comment

Phnom Penh:

Me Mates’ Villa– This clean white and black house is set off from a small street in the middle of sprawling P.P. They have great beds in 8 person rooms with two en-suite bathrooms with water hot enough to peel paint (not that you need that in a city with such outrageously hot days). A small, but convenient common room with internet, drinks and food helps for meeting people and planning trips ahead. Recommended

Diamond Palace 2– A value hotel with good wifi and clean, tiny rooms. It’s got a nice location next to the river and palace.

Sihanoukville:

Wish You Were Here– These bungalows are actually on Otres Beach. They are decent sized A-frame, dorm rooms looked hot and cramped though. It is not on the beach side which is more of a disappointment than an inconvenience. Shared bathroom and dim, cool bar with slow-moving bartenders. The Indigo bungalows looked nicer and were beachside with their own bar.

Siem Reap:

Mad Monkey- A prototype of a party hostel, this is THE stop for backpackers. The bar on the 4th floor has sand underfoot and stars above. Beer Pong and specials daily until midnight keep things moving. The common courtyard pool A la Melrose Place has bean bags for chilling and shade for reading. Tours available for Angkor, but too expensive, find your own transport. Showers were not strong, but towels and toilet paper provided.

Kratie:

Mahoungkong Guesthouse– I think all the guesthouses in this area are very similar to this one towards the end of the main drag of riverside accommodations. The 6US$ price tag was right for an en-suite bathroom double bed room with fan. There was a small television provided that felt like a nice luxury.

Kratie ~ Freshwater Dolphins in the Mekong, Rapids and a Painted Temple

April 16, 2014October 21, 2015Posted in Cambodia, KratieTagged Cambodia, irrawaddy dolphin, Kratie, locals, Mekong River, templesLeave a comment

In between Phnom Penh and the Laos border in eastern Cambodia, sits a slowly developing city with slight charm. The city is only two parallel streets with about 7-10 connectors. There is a small market, outdoor night BBQ and fruit shakes. The sun sets over the Mekong like a glowing pumpkin into a green bath. There is a glut of cheap guesthouses for about 6-10 dollars. See here for review of the food at U-Hong Guesthouse. I stayed at Mouradourm, and he (Hap) hooked me up with a bus ticket to Laos that included all border transfers and boat travel and a dolphin tour the next day. The room wasn’t very clean, but had a good bed. The next day we went to see the freshwater dolphins. There is an estimated 80 dolphins left in the Mekong and they like to lazily congregate in a deep pool. There is no playing or interest in the boats, they just swim around belching from blowholes as you try to snap a picture of them mid-breach. It’s still cool seeing dolphins anytime, anywhere.

They have Beluga Whale shaped heads.

After the expected anti-climax of the dolphins, we popped back on the motorbike for a long drive past the clapboard houses and jungle of Cambodia, and reached a rather nondescript temple. Inside was a different story. I am well acquainted with the mythology of Christianity and probably could tell you the 12 Stations of the Cross and recite the Beatitudes and the 10 Commandments, but I don’t know much about true practicing Buddhists or Hindus. These pictures told fascinating stories that I didn’t know, but am happy to invent.

Don’t overeat.

Don’t run naked with wolves.

Don’t spy on sleeping women.

Don’t forget the Buddha.

Drink the wine of flying people.

Don’t piss off the Goddess of the Sea!

It was beautiful inside this temple. Every inch of wall and ceiling space was used in paintings such as these. A large gold Buddha sat restfully in a central position. There were card readers divining fortunes for the bowed down believers. Some carefree kids were having New Year’s water fights. It was a good surprise.

We had a small soup lunch, chugged some water, and our motorbike took us over shaky bridges, dirt roads and scattered rocks. We stopped at the Mekong rapids where a shanty town has arisen on the banks to provide a picnic area for river dwellers. Food and drinks are sold and hammocks provided for a small (2US$) fee. I gently fell asleep swaying to the hammock’s rhythm and the pulse of the river while arguing with myself about why I can’t just relax and enjoy something in the moment and stop worrying.

Poutine in Cambodia

April 16, 2014October 21, 2015Posted in Cambodia, FoodTagged Cambodia, Kratie, poutine, river towns, T.D. Alfredo's, U-Hong1 Comment

Yes, that title is correct. A dish that feels at more at home in the chilled fall evenings of Quebec, or the cheesy confines of Wisconsin, has somehow migrated to Kratie, Cambodia. At the guesthouse called U-Hong, somewhere in the middle of the two parallel streets of downtown Kratie, they sell bus tickets, dolphin tours and the best poutine I’ve had in Asia. It needs to be said that the best I’ve ever had is in my hometown of Phoenixville, PA, at an infamous little diner called T.D. Alfredo’s. I’ve never actually had proper poutine from Canada, I’m American, and therefore know about cheese fries and gravy not so much pommes frites avec fromage. Either way, cheese should be melted, gravy hot and fries’ crispiness gently wilting under the liquid goodness. This was that.

The native food entree was chicken and ginger, which was nice and fragrant. The place had cold beer, good music, and a easy vibe befitting this river town. They also offer rooms, which probably inexplicably have signed Gretzky and Lemieux jerseys in frames above the bed.

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