Phnom Penh...piece of cake

As usual, any apprehension I may have had about crossing a remote and little-used border staffed by reportedly corrupt officials bent on separating me from my money was COMPLETELY unwarranted. The trip from Chau Doc to Phnom Penh, although a little longer than anticipated (fighting an unusually swift Mekong current and, of couse, minor boat engine malfuntions), turned out to be a relative piece of cake. After motoring up the Mekong for a few hours, we made it to the Cambodian border by mid-day and turned over our passports and fees for processing. By the time the regular gaggle of food vendors had cleaned my pockets of soon to be worthless Dong, the passports had been signed, stamped, and returned. Good to go! Back on the boat for a few more hours before reaching the first town of any size, along with its paved road. Transfer to a waiting mini-van, and by 8:00pm we were rolling into Phnom Penh.

If there's one thing I hate when traveling, it's pulling into a strange city after dark - and by 6:00 southeast Asia is pitch black. Knowing full well that I was about to be another scammed schmuck, I grabbed a room at the guesthouse where I just "happened" to be dropped off. After a long day of travel, I was in no condition to go looking up and down dark alley ways for an alternative - especially since I had absolutely no idea where I was. I mean, the van driver just told us we were in Phnom Penh. We really could have been anywhere - I wouldn't have known any better. All I knew was that the locals weren't speaking Vietnamese anymore. After dropping my bags, filling my stomach with a plate of vegetable and rice, washed down with a cold beer, I was out.

As I stumbled down the stairs from my room the next morning, I looked out across the city and was happy to find that, instead of being sequestered in a random far-off corner of the Phnom Penh, I was smack dab in the middle of what passes for downtown. The spires and stupas of the Royal Palace looked as though they were a couple doors down and a quick glance at my ratty map showed that I was at least within walking distance of the river front. Both good signs. Phenom Penh isn't a big city, but it's nice to be in the middle of things, especially when your primary mode of transport are your Chacos.

After a morning of wandering (and getting lost) it was plain to see that I had crossed some sort of cultural divide when I entered Cambodia the day before. The Chinese-influenced Vietnam has given way to the Indian-influenced Khmer culture. Phnom Pehn feels much more like Thailand with it's colorful wats (temples), stupas (pagodas), and safron-robe wearing monks. Looking back on it, I don't recall seeing a single robed monk in Vietnam. But suddenly they are everywhere - even sitting next to me in the internet cafe as I type this. At first glance, Cambodia looks and feels poorer than Vietnam, which isn't surprising given its history. But I've just gotten here and before I start making any comparisons, I've got to get out and about. It'll take a few days to get my visa for Laos processed so I've got some time to explore. As for now, I'm just happy to be in Cambodia....wallet intact.