I arrived in Sihanoukville on the afternoon, after my bus broke down, forcing me to pay a couple extra bucks to hop on another, of the 25th... and hated it. The main stretch of beach was overcrowded with lounge chairs, backpackers, restaurants and bars, all serving up cheap beer and a wide range of "happy" pizzas and other menu items, including happy smokes. The whole area had a huge backpacker party feel to it and all along the beach, street kids, beggars and pushy cambodian women tried their best to find ways to take your money. Fine for some people I'm sure, but not my thing. I had met up with some other backpackers on our lovely trip down and so I had some company for the evening, but was really not too happy about my dirty $5/night bungalow or the constant noise around me. So, the next morning I went for a long run down the beach, past all the bars and around a headland, and discovered a beach that Lonely Planet has yet to publish. A far cry from Paradise, the beach had fine white sand that squeaked when you walked on it, cleaner water, fewer bars or bungalows and only a few harmless salesladies. No beggars, no pumping music, only a handful of backpackers and only generators for power.
I booked the first available and reasonably priced bungalow I could find. After checking out of my place near the crazy beach I was happily settled in a bowl-chair with a Mango shake watching the waves roll in. A couple of the other backpackers I had met came to check out the beach and joined me for lunch before walking back at dusk. I spent the next 2 days lounging around the beach, swimming, reading (3 novels in 3 days :S) and sunbathing. It was a little lonely at times (save for the mouse/rat in my bungalow the first night), but the solitude was a welcome change from the busy past 2 weeks, and I reveled in all the free time to just relax.
I celebrated my birthday on the beaches of Sihanoukville as well - I slept in, had a mini-pedicure on the beach and then walked in to town to call home and get some ice cream. I caught a motorbike back to my beach and spent the rest of the day in a hammock or the sea. I went for a run just before sunset with my iPod and came back to watch the orange sun sink into the horizon. I have still yet to see an unspectacular Cambodian sunset or sunrise. I went to cool little restaurant down the beach, called Karma, for a Khmer-style chicken curry and Angkor beer before curling up with an amazing book "Desert Flower" by Waris Dirie in a hammock by the ocean. I had a lovely day, but unfortunately, something I ate that day wasn't too happy with me and I battled with a bit of food poisoning for the rest of the night. I wasn't totally solo for my birthday, however, as I also had to battle with a giant spider (one which would have surely put my Aunie Sheelagh into cardiac arrest), who refused to drown in my bathroom.
I took my one free/undecided day in Cambodia to recover on the beach. I intended to rent a kayak and paddle out to one of the little islands nearby, but I still wasn't feeling great and I could see some pretty sinister clouds lurking to the west. I made the right decision by staying put on the beach as a huge thunder and lightning storm rolled through in the afternoon, soaking the beach. Instead I lounged in a swinging bowl-chair with yet another good book and took some stunning photos of the eerie lighting in the sky. I thought about heading into town to check my emails and find something to do for the evening but no moto drivers wanted to come get me in the rain. Oh well.
I arrived in Phnom Penh once more this afternoon and splurged on a nice hotel room. I put up with a rat, ants and a giant spider in a crappy bungalow just so I could be on the nice beach, so I figure I deserve a nice, clean bed for tonight. Tomorrow I'll hit up the Russian Market in town and catch a flight to Bangkok in the Afternoon. I'm getting REALLY excited for Pad Thai tomorrow night, and someone told me that Starbucks has now opened a store on the Khao San Road... in which case, I'll be spending Tuesday morning before I hop on a plane to Phuket. Once in Phuket, I'll head to Khao Lak and board a live-aboard diving boat for a 4 day diving trip through the Similian and Surin Islands and to world famous Richelieu Rock. SO Excited! After almost 8 weeks in Southeast Asia, heading back to the relative comforts of Bangkok almost feels like coming home :)
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