Travelz And Eatz!: February 2021

It was the morning of 20.10.17 and we found ourselves at the airport. That's me wondering why we are here. We were clueless or was it so? Travel here, travel there. There's just so much travelling to be done. 2.5 years later, we would be grounded due to the global CoVID-19 pandemic. We saw this coming and so we traveled as much as we can 😂, the peak where we flew out of the country 3 times a year. This is a luxury that we could afford and we're grateful for this privilege. Even though I've not been to the West, we have somewhat covered all the countries in South East Asia, flanked by Sri Lanka and Japan on both sides of the continent.

We landed and made our way to Sihanoukville Town and a transporter charged us USD10/pax and USD15 for our passage to Kampot. Slightly more than an hour later, we arrived at the town of Kampot and checked into The Magic Sponge Hotel. Nice and clean and looks comfortable, we took a short rest before proceeding to venture out. A well deserved 1.5 hours rest we had and a shower later, we're ready to savour the local sight and food by 1735 hrs. A quiet and rustic town this was. Just the place for us.

And because it's rustic, we stopped by at The Rusty Keyhole Bar & Restaurant for our dinner. Night fall arrived early at 1815 hours. Local western food was our choice, to satisfy the hunger pangs. The streets were quiet and little activity was observed around us. Perhaps the town would awaken the next day with more activities? After dinner, we walked along the river bank and this is where we found most of the locals lounging on the benches, enjoying the quiet of the night. A massage for USD12 before we called it a day.

A hearty breakfast was served by the cheerful and chirpy hotel owner of Alaskan origin. We were scheduled to make our way to Sihanoukville and booked ourselves a chartered van for USD10 for 2 pax. After checking out of the hotel, we trudged to the local market and tried the satay and coffee for USD2. Walking around town made us hungry and we had our lunch of curry noodles for USD3.15. Took one last look at the river, posing with the cigar before making our way back to the hotel to collect our luggage.

Our bus arrived at 1638 hrs and after getting our forty winks, arrived at Golden Lion, Sihanoukville at 1850 hrs where we got ourselves into the local tuk-tuk vehicle that brought us to The Secret Garden Resort after another 30 minute's journey through a dark main road and slightly bumpy ride. Happy with our abode for the next two days, off we went hunting for dinner at the beach at USD14 for 2 pax. The sea was lighted up by lightning and at the opportune time, captured the night scene. You just to be patient and continue trying until you get the image. By the way, only the smartphone was used for all recorded images. Very convenient!

Refreshed after a good night's sleep, had a good breakfast with passion fruit drink. The beach is long and we took 2 hours to walk the 3 km distance and another 2 hours return journey. The first half of the journey was quiet and the next half was filled with family and tourists scattered along the beach, where we tried the BBQ octopus. Delicious! A masssage to sooth our tired legs walking the beach at USD18. So comforting and we dozed off to dreamland in the afternoon heat. Back at the hotel, we booked a taxi to the airport for the next day. A final foot massage before dinner for USD10 for 2 pax. Super cheap!

Woke up at 0635 hrs on our final day here, and enjoyed the cool morning walk on the beach, soaking the feet for one last time in the Gulf of Thailand. Breakfast at 0814 hrs and checked out at 1014 hrs. Taxi to the airport cost USD17 and the journey took only 20 minutes. Passed by sporadic villages along the beach. We walked out of the airport after checking in and had our final local lunch and coffee at the restaurant opposite the airport. For a 2 hours flight journey, this holiday is not too far away. Plan your travel here soon, away for the hustle and bustle of city life. Hope to celebrate many, many more wedding anniversaries with you, my dear wife! 💓