6th February: Battambang, Cambodia
To beat the worst of the heat, we got up early and took a tuktuk a little way out of town. This morning, we planned to ride the famous bamboo train! Most of Cambodia’s railways were severely damaged as a result of the Khmer Rouge regime (more on than over the next couple of weeks, I’m sure), and its aftermath. As a result, locals often cobbled together makeshift vehicles called ‘norries’ to use on the remaining tracks in their area. That’s the case in Battambang, although perhaps not for much longer as the railways are gradually being renovated and reopened.
Locals no longer use norries for transportation and they are solely a tourist attraction these days. In fact, in anticipation of the return of trains to the existing track, a fake new tourist version of the bamboo train has been opened! However, we were at the still functioning original. The norries work by having two axles supporting a flat bamboo sheet. An old engine is added on top and a belt connects it to one of the axles. The entire thing can be deconstructed in a matter of seconds so that norries travelling in opposite directions on the single-track can pass each other! It’s remarkably simple but ingenious. Our ride first took us a couple of kilometres back towards town, over a precarious bridge and multiple level crossings – these felt a little sketchy! After turning the entire thing around, we headed back past the start point and out past fields. Luckily, a couple of norries going the other way were taken apart for us to pass!
Back in town, we found a place out of the sun to chill with coffee and do a bit of planning. Before heading back, we also had a lovely lunch. One of my favourite flavours here is the spicy aniseed basil, which was a box our fried rice ticked. Otherwise, we had two sizzling dishes with a Japanese/Korean influence (which seems to be strong in Battambang) – teriyaki tofu, and teppanyaki. There was one really obnoxious American customer, who both us and the owner were shocked by. Every time we caught her eye, all of us ended up smirking and laughing, not knowing how to react to this guy. Thankfully, he eventually left and also left behind a sizable tip – as if money somehow makes up for a lack of basic friendliness and manners.
I was very tired once again, so we got another tuktuk back to the hotel. After some chill time and bus booking, we went for another wander just before sunset. We began exploring the large Wat behind the hotel, from which chanting and music regularly came from, but it was even bigger than we realised, and I felt as if we were intruding. When some of the resident dogs (monks here always seem to look after dogs) warned us that we weren’t welcome, we took that as a reason to turn back before having made it to the part we wanted to see.
On the road outside, I spotted an unusual roadkill – a squashed tarantula! I’ve studiously ignored the prospect of these existing here until now but having seen them roasted yesterday and flattened today, that doesn’t really hold any more! We walked to dinner, avoiding any dark areas and holes, just in case!