j + j travelblog

On to Myanmar (Burma)

but first, stuff we found endearing/interesting about Cambodia:

• Westerners seem to still be an anomaly. Many Cambodian's seemed genuinely interested in interacting with us. In fact, many found me particularly amusing and I had quite a few Cambodian tourists request a pic :-). Click here to see what i mean :-)
• It still felt somewhat unspoiled. Angkor is hugely touristy, but PP has escaped rampant Westernization
• Of course, the soaring architectural triumphs of the Angkor temples
• That it was cheap :-)
• the history -- even the disturbing portions of it
  
  stuff we found quirky >> annoying
• the Cambodian's Peoples Party. We got strong, mixed reactions when asking locals about this autocratic-posing-as-democratic government but we got the feeling that corruption and a touch of oppression were not uncommon
• the victims of the tens-of-thousands of landmines set by the Kymer Rouge and during the Vietnam War.
• it was a little 'rough around the edges' at times (which added to it's charm...and dirtiness

the food was kinda disappointing

We left Siam Reap, flew to Bangkok and then on to Ranong, where we met up with our Burmese live-aboard crew on Gaia. A few comments on Mynamar....the government is definitely oppressive - far more human rights violations than Cambodia in the last 10+ years. Corruption is rampant and the border crossing from Thailand was a bit interesting and slightly disconcerting.

After paying our US $100 visa fee, we set off on Gaia for our week-long adventure: