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Ending Days: The Southwest Coast
KAMPOT, KEP, SIHANOUKVILLE
Kampot is not picturesque in the classical sense, but charming in its own way. This old colonial town lingers on the banks of a river that reflects the brooding Bokor Mountain in the day and the most vivid pink sunsets in the eve. Kampot is one of those old 'faded' towns, full of buildings streaked black by moisture, with chipping paint from years of disrepair. It is the worn and weathered buildings that make Kampot beguiling, in addition to the French-styled balconies, shuddered windows, ornate archways, and the lazy, sleepy pace of the place. It's not that Kampot has been deserted. No, Kampot has only been neglected -- but in the most loving way -- since Sihanoukville, the beach resort town several hours away, was built in the late '50s.
Kep, on the other hand, has been mostly deserted -- what remains of the town today largely consists of skeletal structures -- remains of homes and sea side resorts riddled with bullet holes and consumed by jungle vegetation. Some of the ruins are inhabited by squatters, and aside from those people and a few seafood stalls next to the beach, there is nothing left of Kep but bruised and crippled buildings -- it's a great place to explore.
Located about 25 km from Kampot, Kep used to be THE colonial retreat, founded by the French in 1908. Once the French were gone, Kep lived on as a vacation destination for Khmers into the '60s. The town was destroyed during the Khmer Rouge years, when the area was occupied by KR soldiers. What was left was looted by locals to survive the famine of '79/'80 when Cambodia was occupied by the Vietnamese.
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We spent several days in Kampot; the city makes a great base for exploring the ruins of the Bokor Hill Station and Kep. It's also a great place to relax: the quiet, lazy atmosphere is a treat. There is a decent sized ex-pat community in Kampot, made up of English, Australian, American, and Dutch nationals. Therefore, there are good nights of conversation over beer, access to lots of local information, and awesome BBQ ribs (the Rusty Keyhole serves great food).
We took a taxi to Sihanoukville, a two hour drive. There is no other way to get there from Kampot and the price, $18.00, is not cheap. Sihanoukville was a bit of a let down: the beach was dirty (pipes dump liquid from who knows where onto some areas of the beach) and lined with cheap and unattractive restaurants/bars, all with the word 'shack' in the title: The Dolphin Shack, The Beach Shack, The Shack of all Shacks, etc... We found a clean and cozy corner of the beach (known as Serendipity Beach) and stayed in a wooden bungalow for a few days which was even more slow-paced than Kampot.
One interesting thing we learned in Sihanoukville: the Cambodians swim while fully clothed. Theirs is a conservative society and not one soul owns a bathing suit. Most of the time, the women wear long pants or skirt -- shorts are even a bit racy. Earlier in our trip, in Battambang, we met a young man who liked to come to Sihanoukville to see Western women on the beach. "Otherwise," he said, "I'll never get to see anything."
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We left Sihanoukville on a sea-going boat that took us to the town of Koh Kong, where we crossed the border into Thailand and a whole new world...
Kampot is not picturesque in the classical sense, but charming in its own way. This old colonial town lingers on the banks of a river that reflects the brooding Bokor Mountain in the day and the most vivid pink sunsets in the eve. Kampot is one of those old 'faded' towns, full of buildings streaked black by moisture, with chipping paint from years of disrepair. It is the worn and weathered buildings that make Kampot beguiling, in addition to the French-styled balconies, shuddered windows, ornate archways, and the lazy, sleepy pace of the place. It's not that Kampot has been deserted. No, Kampot has only been neglected -- but in the most loving way -- since Sihanoukville, the beach resort town several hours away, was built in the late '50s.
Kep, on the other hand, has been mostly deserted -- what remains of the town today largely consists of skeletal structures -- remains of homes and sea side resorts riddled with bullet holes and consumed by jungle vegetation. Some of the ruins are inhabited by squatters, and aside from those people and a few seafood stalls next to the beach, there is nothing left of Kep but bruised and crippled buildings -- it's a great place to explore.
Located about 25 km from Kampot, Kep used to be THE colonial retreat, founded by the French in 1908. Once the French were gone, Kep lived on as a vacation destination for Khmers into the '60s. The town was destroyed during the Khmer Rouge years, when the area was occupied by KR soldiers. What was left was looted by locals to survive the famine of '79/'80 when Cambodia was occupied by the Vietnamese.
---
We spent several days in Kampot; the city makes a great base for exploring the ruins of the Bokor Hill Station and Kep. It's also a great place to relax: the quiet, lazy atmosphere is a treat. There is a decent sized ex-pat community in Kampot, made up of English, Australian, American, and Dutch nationals. Therefore, there are good nights of conversation over beer, access to lots of local information, and awesome BBQ ribs (the Rusty Keyhole serves great food).
We took a taxi to Sihanoukville, a two hour drive. There is no other way to get there from Kampot and the price, $18.00, is not cheap. Sihanoukville was a bit of a let down: the beach was dirty (pipes dump liquid from who knows where onto some areas of the beach) and lined with cheap and unattractive restaurants/bars, all with the word 'shack' in the title: The Dolphin Shack, The Beach Shack, The Shack of all Shacks, etc... We found a clean and cozy corner of the beach (known as Serendipity Beach) and stayed in a wooden bungalow for a few days which was even more slow-paced than Kampot.
One interesting thing we learned in Sihanoukville: the Cambodians swim while fully clothed. Theirs is a conservative society and not one soul owns a bathing suit. Most of the time, the women wear long pants or skirt -- shorts are even a bit racy. Earlier in our trip, in Battambang, we met a young man who liked to come to Sihanoukville to see Western women on the beach. "Otherwise," he said, "I'll never get to see anything."
---
We left Sihanoukville on a sea-going boat that took us to the town of Koh Kong, where we crossed the border into Thailand and a whole new world...
posted by Cheryn at 11:42 AM
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