Five hours and only 150kms later, I found myself in this small dilapidated seaside resort. French colonialists and King Sihanouk had their holiday houses, most of which were destroyed by the Kmer Rouge during the civil war. It is slowly being rebuilt with a few guest houses, holiday homes and I am sure the bigger resorts will build there soon. It is famous for its crabs and there is a row of restaurants down by the sea serving crabs with pepper sauce (also from the region). I stayed at Kep Lodge set up on the hill bordering the National park and with fabulous views of the bay and sunset, great (if not warm) pool and restaurant.
It was also time to get some time on the bike (see photo, not sure it counts as training), and I enjoyed a leisurely afternoon ride along the coastal road, enjoying the sunset (with a very expensive glass of wine) at the Yacht club, cruising past the derelict mansions and a feast of fresh fish, crab and prawns at the aforementioned restaurants! Oh I forgot to mention the lovely French rose wine, a luxury for me nowadays, shared with an Australian couple from Melbourne.
Just a few kms from Kep, is a small group of islands, of which the largest is Koy Tonsay or Rabbit Island and is inhabited by a few local fishermen and farmers. It also has a handful of restaurants and bungalows catering for the day tripper and traveller who aspires to getting away from it all - as if we are not already feeling quite far from the stresses of Western life! The west coast is a long idyllic beach and on arriving by long boat, you stroll about 100m to your bungalow. With development over the last few years, my basic bungalow had an en-suite (long drop and hand shower), mattress on the floor, mosquito net and electric points (the generator is switched on for a few hours in the evening), and a wonderful palm fringed sea view. With very little to do but swim, stroll along the beach, read, eat and drink, it is a truly relaxing and beautiful experience where one can linger over lunch for hours, lie on beach platforms under the shade of palm trees (watch out for falling coconuts) and watch the magnificent sunsets. We were also blessed with a stupendous tropical thunderstorm in the distance with clouds forming tornedoes, lightning and rain showers in the distance.....well until another storm at 3am with torrential rain which was equally magnificent and I felt a little exposed in my bamboo and grass bungalow! The beauty of staying of overnight is that once the day trippers are gone, you almost feel like you are on a deserted island.
I only spent one night at Rabbit island and then it was back to Kep Lodge for some comfort, lounging by the pool, another bike ride in town and then I was accompanied by 3 of the dogs as I headed into the National park for a scenic walk through forests and with stunning views for miles just as the sun was setting.
After a few days of relaxation, it was time for the adventure to continue. I was ready to leave Cambodia and head for Vietnam. One of the reasons I had chosen to head down to Kep was that there is a recently opened border crossing nearby and a fast ferry to Phu Quoc island. Mr Chen was my resident tuk tuk driver (he helped with finding accommodation, boat to Rabbit island and now my border crossing) picked me up at 6am for a lovely half hour drive as the sun was rising over rice paddy fields, and the locals were getting ready for the day. I was then transferred onto the back of a motorbike for a further 45min drive weaving on waterfilled potholed roads - the views were spectacular of salt pans and more rice paddy fields. The border crossing was a breeze and we arrived in Ha Tien, only to discover that the ferry was full!!! A new plan needed, options were to stay overnight and catch the ferry the next day, take a dodgy slowboat or another 45min on the back of bike to to the next ferry departure point (Hon Chong). Hmmmm, decided on bike and ferry option but wondered what the hell I was doing when my Cambodian guy stopped underneath the highway to negotiate with a Vietnamese guy for my transport to the next town! Well, one has to take some risks and trust some people. I was blessed again with beautiful scenery, mainly along the coast and through small fishing villages and arrived at the ferry office with plenty of time for the 1030 ferry. There were only a handful of tourists and then the boat was full of Vietnamese tourists heading to the island for the weekend. The hour and a half crossing took 4 hours due to mechanical problems with the hydrofoil, with the hydro bit not quite working, a lot of reversing and sideways lifting and stalling, but we arrived safe and a little stressed!!! Time for some more rest and relaxation, but now in Vietnam.....
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