Report # 71 Sihanoukville, Cambodia March 11, 2016 Friday Partly cloudy & 88 degrees Part #1 of 4 87 Pictures

Sent: Saturday, March 12, 2016 12:11:10 AM
Subject: Report # 71   Sihanoukville, Cambodia   March 11, 2016   Friday   Partly cloudy & 88 degrees    Part #1 of 4    87 Pictures

The port of call for today was Sihanoukville, Cambodia.  The best beach destination of Cambodia, Sihanoukville is the major fishing port for Cambodia.  Located 155 miles from the capital of Phnom Penh, this port was developed as the sole deep water port in 1964.  It is a sprawling urban center with white sandy beaches, warm tropical waters, and an abundance of seafood.  The city was named after King Father Norodom Sihanouk, who grew up in this area.  He was overthrown in a coup in 1970, with civil war following until as recent as 1997.  The USA gave Cambodia 30 million dollars to improve the roads to the capital, which also helped to improve their economy.

There are five Buddhist temples around the city with multiple statues and carvings of Buddha.  Although a few of the ship's tours took the folks to some of them, we had different plans.  That included taking the complimentary shuttle to the downtown marketplace.  The shuttle times were 8am to 5pm.   Going outside this morning was almost shocking, since the temperature was already 80 degrees at 9am.  The humidity was going to be terrible too.  The good news was that there were a total of seven shuttles to take the folks to town.  This kind of tells us that not a whole lot of people took ship tours here today. 

We left around 9:30am, and joined the continuous line to board a bus.  It filled up quickly, since some of the crew members were also going to town.  The all aboard time was 6:30pm, so we would not need to rush back.  Doubt we would be gone that long, because we really did not know what to expect once we got to town. 

The pier area was less than attractive with littered streets and rubble everywhere.  Once we got past the pier gate, the roads opened up into wide streets and more civilized buildings.  It was a 20 minute ride uphill all the way to the shuttle stop at the local marketplace.  This place was far from being a mall.  Just the opposite, it was an open-air "everything under the sun" market.

The funny thing that happened once we got close, were the throngs of motorcycle taxi drivers that chased the bus with signs advertising their services.  Once the door of the bus opened up, we had to navigate our way through these fellows, with the help of some local policemen.  The market was across the road, and the guys followed us all to the entryway.  They were not happy to take NO for an answer.  They did speak passable English, but NO was not in it.  There must be a law that they cannot follow you inside the marketplace, but they did hang around waiting for us to come out later on. 

The market was divided into sections that carried different items.  That included clothing, shoes, toys, produce, and meat departments.  Between those vendors, you could find seamstresses, masseuse ladies, hairdressers, barbers, and manicure stations. There were even some semi-precious stones and gold jewelry counters.  Electronics and housewares were also part of the scene. 

The most interesting area was also the most indescribable.  Perhaps primitive, bordering unsanitary, uncomfortably crowded, and way too busy could be a few conservative comments.  Guess we are used to grocery stores where everything is covered, and the fresh food and meats or fish are not sold off of the floor.  A wet, slick floor with stones with holes where the water and whatever can flow outside into gutters was where we walked.  It was filled with live, dead, and dried fish, so you can imagine the mix of smells.  Pork was being chopped, beef trimmed and hung on hooks, fish were being gutted and scaled, produce being washed.  You name it, we saw it.  Very few of the tourists ventured into this area, due to the bad smell and uneven cement slippery floor for one thing.  We did get good photos, trying not to be too intrusive with the locals shopping for their daily meals. 

We ran into more than a few friends, including Leslie and Handler, who did not spend a lot of time in this place.  Expecting to find some handicraft-type products, we were all disappointed to find none were here.  The nicest items being sold, were the flower arrangements.  But there were only a few stalls of those. 

After spending almost an hour here, we considered going back to the ship.  However, after running into Greg and Heo, who suggested a side trip, we changed our minds.  We brought out the map that we got on the ship last night, and Greg pointed out the nicest places to see.  Wanting to find a good venue to eat lunch, Greg and Heo recommended The Sokha Beach Resort, not too far from here, but really not walkable.  We were game to give it a try.

It just happened that one of the taxi drivers was waiting for us outside the market.  He was one of the less aggressive kids, so we made a deal with him to take us past the Golden  Lion Traffic Circle, then down to the beach area.  The taxi was really a motorcycle attached to a covered four seater cart.  It was such a relief to get out of the stifling market, and get some fresh air. 

So we stopped for photos at the huge golden Lion statues, then on to the Ochheuteal Beach for s short stroll.  This stretch of beach had to be the most accessible for swimming.  We had enough time to bargain for two tinted seashell mobiles for our room, then we were off to the lovely Sokha Beach Hotel and Resort.  This luxury resort is located on the beach and has 58 acres which includes a casino, and one mile of white, sandy beachfront.  More than likely, it would be costly to stay here.

We entered the Asian-inspired lobby, that led to a bar and restaurant that flanked the large swimming pool.  It was there that we took the best seats in the house, right across from the gardens and meandering swimming pool.  Ordering two margherita pizzas and two Angkor draught beers, we sat and enjoyed the scenery that looked out over the Sokha Beach and gulf.

Eventually Greg, Heo, and spa manager Rene came by on their way to the pool.  As long as you buy drinks or have lunch, there would be no charge for using the facilities and pool.  We had not worn our suits underneath our clothes today, so we did not intend to go swimming.  One thing we know for sure, is that we did not have to spend $105 per person to come here for swimming and the use of a day room with a group for 3 ½ hours with the ship's tour.

Our driver met us promptly at 1pm, where we continued our ride to the next stop, Independence Beach, not as nice as the first two beaches we stopped.   Same idea though, with tables, chairs, lounges, cafes and souvenirs in a small beachfront area.  Took some quick photos.

The best stop was at a dense forest of trees on the coast line, where we got to see a large group of monkeys on the roadside rocks and in the trees.  Most of them were big males with about all the females packing babies of all sizes.  Now the funny thing was watching some of the little ones trying to get the tops off of water bottles.  Using their sharp teeth and dexterous  fingers, they eventually managed to get them opened.  Then they drank just like people do.  Shocking to see how smart these little creatures can be.  Of course, some of the younger ones had chewed holes in the bottoms, letting o water leak out.

More motorcycles topped as well as cars, where people were feeding the monkeys snacks of bananas and mangoes.  The seemed to like the sweeter food.  It was amusing watching the group as they begged from the locals, jumping on their bikes, or climbing the cyclone fencing, and swinging from the tree branches.  Two goats were also part of this menagerie.  As more people began stopping along the roadside, we continued on our journey.

Passing some existing resorts and some new properties that were in the beginning stages of building, we ended up back at the pier.  We paid our driver and thanked him for a fun time.  Just as we entered the pier gate, some crew fellows began dealing with the driver for a ride to town. Hope he picked up another fare, since he was nice.

We had to wait for a few minutes for a pier shuttle to take us back to the gangway.  As it turned out, we were the only ones on the bus for the two minute ride.  And there was still a chance to buy a few more souvenirs before boarding.  A table of goodies was set up under a tent, along with some Cambodian girls giving a group of ladies a pedicure and foot massage. Must have been a good deal.  Anyway, we got a set of olive picks in a holder and one silk pashmina in pink shades.  Just a little keepsake.

The air-conditioning on the ship was a life-saver.  We cooled off in our room, enjoying ice cold sodas, while downloading what seemed like a million photos.  Later in the afternoon, we made our way up to deck nine to watch what there was of the sunset after 6pm.  The skies on the horizon seemed to have taken on the smoky smog of the day, successfully blocking the chance of a colorful sunset.  The orange-tinted globe disappeared quickly, the it was dark.

All aboard was 6:30pm, at which time, two buses arrived with the overland guests that had gone on a three day, 2 night excursion to Angkor Wat.  A few of the ship's officers were there to greet them, along with some crew guys to schlep their luggage back on the ship.

On the aft deck eight, we watched the Amsterdam slip out of the harbor while visiting with some of our best buddies.  As we got further into the Gulf of Thailand, we joined the hundreds of well-lit fishing boats once again, on their way out for night fishing.  The ship's horn blasted a couple of times, because some of these boats must have cut across our path.  If not moving quick enough, they would surely lose, and we would win.

Everyone had stories to tell of their day in Sihanoukville, some good, others not so good.  As for us, we had an unexpected fun day, trying things we never had before.  Everyone has a different level of comfort, like Barb and her friends, who went on the shuttle with the intentions of making their way to the resort we went to.  However, once they saw the rush of taxi vendors engulfing the bus, they stayed on the bus, and came directly back to the ship for the rest of the day.  Too bad, they surely missed a great lunch.

Dinner consisted of a tomato bisque soup, some tasty appetizers, rolled turkey breast, a vegetarian Mexican manicotti, and breaded pork steak.  All quite good.  None of us ventured to the show (too tired) with Annie Gong, an accordionist from China.  We are certain her show was good, but we were going to lose an hour on the clocks tonight, going forward, instead of backwards.  We don't like that………

Looking forward to a day at sea on our route to Singapore.

Bill & Mary Ann 

A boat in the harbor of Sihnaoukville, Cambodia

A bridge to an island

Beach near The Port of Sihanoukville

Pier small boat landing

The dock

The gangway, souvenir tent, and buses

Barbara H & Gene, our Cruise Director

Buses for tours & shuttle buses

Colorful transport

Leaving the port area

Getting more civilized

Roadside temple

Roadside vendors

A small guest house

Two young Buddhist monks

Small businesses near the port

Crowded parking lot of the marketplace

Energetic motorcycle taxi drivers

Trying to get into the market

A typical motorcycle taxi

Very busy parking lot

Huge display of fruit and veggies

Rambutan fruit

The bananas looked good

Watermelons

Good way to get around town

Pretty nice hats…..probably cheap

Waiting to sell roasted peanuts

Long dresses were nice

Most clothing sized for tiny Cambodian ladies

Kids were cute

Drivers waiting for customers

A seamstress

Tight quarters, hot too

Don't know how they work like this

Shoes….most all small sizes too

Barber shop

More vendors

Sausages and more

Rice and grains

Must be a long day for the vendors

Spices

Veggies sold right off of the floor

Parted pork

Ingredients familiar to us

On boy, a pig's head

Beef products

Chickens, complete with feet

Shrimp and other strange food offerings

Butchering the beef

Not sure what this was?

Whole chicken and wings

Cutting and hanging – all unwrapped

Dried shrimps

Quite aromatic – very fishy smell

Cooking dishes on the spot

Wet, slippery cement flooring

The fish section

Alive is preferred

Assorted fresh catch

Good for soup

One-stop shopping

Fresh, but smelly

Sold fresh daily

Once it is sold, they can leave for home

Scaling fish

Chicken feet are delicacy

Shark is used for soup

Time to rest

Massive market

Small shellfish and crabs

Produce looked better

Narrow, tiny aisles

The fish sales continue

A small catch

Some of these fish were still alive

Spices

Hard to get down the aisle

Typical crabs

Cooking

Cambodian dishes

The perimeter stalls

Clothing

Might be tofu sold by the weight

Shrimp of all sizes

Eggs and veggies

A monk praying over some little kids and their mom