Cambodia Dreaming: Getting There by Travelogger

Dec|29|2006

Cambodia Dreaming: Getting There

Posted by Zahir as Adventure, Arts & Culture, Asia, Family

This, and the next few posts are written by a guest blogger, who is an expat living in the Philippines and is a mother of 2. Here she writes about her recent 8-day trip to Cambodia.

Think French provincial architecture, café with river views, baguettes, and cold beer. Now think temples, motorcycles, tut-tuts, noodles and pomelo. Is this Hanoi, Bangkok, even Singapore? None of these cities, but the South East Asian neighbor Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

The family of three, including a four year old and a six year old completely skilled at wrestle mania, and minus the workaholic fourth member, set off for a Christmas holiday adventure in Cambodia. The travel was made easy by booking online with Air Asia, and the car drive with the Christmas traffic, was fast and hassle free. International travel through Clarke is always pleasant, the Custom Officers always seem happy to see the passengers and are up for a conversation.

The four hour journey from Manila to Kuala Lumpur passes quickly after sampling the full range of snacks; starting with Milo, Kit-Kats, crisps, noodles and Oreos. If there was a larger range, the youngsters would have eaten more. There isn’t any television or radio but the air hostesses are pleasant and strict which already greatly appreciated by the parents.

The easiest way to travel from Kuala Lumpur airport to the business centre, 60 kilometers is by bus and this can be arranged on the plane for less than $USD 3.00. This is cheap for sure, especially if you compare it to a taxi fare. The place to stay is definitely around the shopping strip, and Christmas is sale time. Bonanza. Especially when I’ve become an expert on Mango clothing stores around the world, and like to buy abroad so that I don’t happen to bump into someone wearing exactly the same outfit in Manila. Great coffee, excellent gelato, heaven.

Back on the bus to the airport, followed by a two hour flight on Air Asia to Phnom Penh, the capital city of Cambodia. Filipino’s will feel like that they are in an exotic location but also at home as Cambodian’s are extremely hospitable and have a high tolerance for the antics of children.

[tags]Cambodia, family holiday, travel guide[/tags]