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*NEWS* Photos Must See!
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Sonja's Travels - A lone western female traveling the Far East Note: Sonja is a scuba diving intern here
with us at Mermaids Dive Center in Pattaya, Thailand. Sonja is The hangover from hell, the early morning rise with zero sleep, the cramped minibus blaring insanely painful Thai music………..the dreaded visa run. At some point all of us interns here in Pattaya have to make a trip to a border, even with a multi-entry educational visa. However, this doesn’t have to be such a tiresome ordeal as you may expect. What started out for me as a three day visa run, and temple tour to Cambodia quickly became a month long backpacking adventure. And lets face it, apart from scuba diving, (of course) that’s what we all come here to do. I had no idea that travel could be achieved so easily,
and cheaply, particularly for a young single girl, until I actually arrived in
Siem Reap. With a luxury coach ticket from there to The day I arrived in
Cambodia,
I must admit, the nerves were silently shaking! Especially as I realized I had
actually arrived in the dusty border town of Originally, I planned to take the afternoon bus straight to Siem Reap, however as there are no buses from Duan Lem I resigned myself to taking a taxi, this was the most expensive journey I paid for during my entire excursion! In hindsight, I could have reduced this cost by taking a taxi only to Battambang, and spending the night there to then go on to catch the bus to Siem Reap the next day. This would have immensely & appreciatively broken up the six hour long dusty, red, and extremely bumpy road journey! (I say road however, I really should say the worst dirt track in the world! Unless of course you have a Land Rover with a V8 engine, a lot of gasoline & enjoy off-roading). On my arrival in Siem Reap I made my way to the Greentown Guesthouse which had been recommended to me, and although it was very basic for a meager three dollars a night-who can complain? The Cambodians really are genuine lovely people, and will do anything to ensure you feel comfortable, safe, and happy. I soon befriended a member of staff, Nak. Within a few moments Nak had my tickets for the temples sorted and, the next day off we went a touring.
If you can handle early rises then defiantly enjoy a beautiful sun rise, if you prefer to sleep in then aim for the sunset. Both are truly inspirational but, do try to find a nice quiet spot as it can become quite busy with all the tourists. If you intend to do Siem Reap on a budget then your
hostel will more than likely not have a pool. So, if you fancy a relaxing day
sunning yourself then why not head down to the recently opened Aqua bar run by For two dollars a day you can swim in the pool for as long or as little as you like. Doubled with the intense heat, and the fact the pool has a built in bar you won’t want to leave! Alternatively, you can relax in the hammocks, play chess on the giant table or marvel at Johns snake collection! John is a great source of travel information so if you’re feeling "Temple’d out" then it’s definitely worthwhile heading down there. So, after a relaxing (And slightly drunken!) afternoon
spent at the Aqua bar I headed down to
The main attractions in If you find you have a couple of days spare while
visiting Cambodia’s capital then try to spend a day about the town as there
are some nice local attractions worth seeing. With its relaxed feel, and
friendly locals it’s very easy to navigate your way around with the help of a
local map. You can also spend a day working with children, and
give something back to this special city. The street kids are really great, and
in all honesty it is hard to see them working instead of playing. To be able to
spend a day with them painting and telling stories is extremely rewarding, and
great fun to boot. There are some great little bars/cafes down Moskito Bar is exactly as it sounds, a buzzing little bar! (Pun totally intended!) Recently opened by Glaswegian ex-pat Eddie, Moskitos is a trendy little place with extremely comfy sofas that stays open until the last person leaves. Eddie has a lot of fantastic theme nights he wants to introduce so it’s well worth a visit…..or two. Now, for those of you who just cannot resist the lull
of the ocean, head to down to Shianoukville. It’s only a short coach ride from
Phnom Phen, and really shows With approximately eight different beaches to chose
from you really are spoilt for choice. The nicest beaches I found were
Occheuteal and, Serendipty. If you’re looking for complete R&R then head
to If you find you are beginning to dry out on land then head to Victory Hill to book you’re diving with Gerrard at Scuba Nation. The friendly Dutch owner offers overnight trips to some of the nicer dive areas, and what better way to wile away an evening after a days diving than staring up at the stars shining over the sea. Scuba Nation is a very professional PADI outfit, and while Gerrards prices may be slightly more than his competitor the quality of service, and equipment certainly outweighs this cost. So, onto the next leg of my journey which led me
through to Head to a reputable travel agency in Phnom Penh, and your visa shouldn’t cost more than thirty dollars, and take only a couple of days to come through. The coach journey should be roughly fifteen dollars, however expect to pay more if you want to be taken straight through to the border crossing. If you do go for the cheaper option however, it is very straight forward finding your way through, and there are plenty of people on route if you take a wrong turn or find yourself feeling confused. Be sure to change most of your remaining Cambodian Riel, and Dollars to Vietnamese Dong before you leave, but do hold some back as there are some small fees you will need to pay at the border crossing. About five Dollars should be sufficient. Most people tend to go straight through to the old
capital of the south of We were able to leave our rucksacks at the tour shop while we headed off to find accommodation. If you’re not lucky enough to have such a tour representative then find the nearest tour shop, and ask for a map of the area. Also ask if you can leave your belongings while you search for somewhere to stay. I met plenty of people that did this, and experienced no problems in doing so. There are plenty of quaint little guesthouses to choose from. If you’re on a budget stay clear of the larger establishments, and head to one of the side alleys. They are perfectly safe, and house many little guesthouses which are usually family run. You can haggle on the price particularly in low season with a larger discount for the longer you stay. Ho Chi Minh is a bustling place with a real down town Vietnam feel. It is a must visit if you pass through with its French, and Chinese influence it pays for a harmonious feel. It’s true to say that life in Vietnam lives on the streets. Everything happens there from cooking, gossiping to business meetings. It’s fast pace to catch up with modern day life intertwined with the Pagodas of the past make it a bewitching, and hypnotic city. During my Stay I visited the Cu Chi Tunnels, the War Remnants museum and, spent a day about the town. The Cu Chi Tunnels are great place to go, and see. Steeped in the history of the Vietnamese war it really opens your eyes to the Vietnamese peoples struggle for freedom of occupation against the one of the world’s super powers. With their limited weapons at the time it really is quite amazing how they utilized the land, and surroundings to fight a battle that would go on for ten long years.
The War Remnants museum can be quite stressful
especially if you have never experienced anything like it before so why not head
to the The Mekong Delta trips are defiantly worthwhile doing also, as you really get a lot more than your moneys worth. If nothing else it’s worth going just for the short detour to the sweetie factory. Try the handmade coconut, and chocolate ones! Delicious!
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from the Midlands in the UK and a wonderful girl. Certainly not one to shy away
from adventure Sonja decided to turn the negative boredom of a visa run
(updating a visa) into a really positive adventure travel around South East Asia
for a month...and why not? Please do read Sonja's account of her trip.
(Un-edited).
The
temples of 
Phnom
Penh
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