Travel Day: Siem Reap (Part 3)

Today marks my third visit to the Mochit station in three consecutive days - I think the staff’s beginning to talk. So determined was I to get things right this time around, I handwrote my destination in Thai (ผมอยากจะไป อรัญประเทศ ) to show the folks at the ticket booth (thanks for emailing it to me, Dan). It worked.

It’s not difficult to see the stark contrast in living standards between Thais and Cambodians when making the cross into Poi Pet. On one hand, you have wealthy Thais spending vast fortunes in fancy Vegas style casinos (gambling laws are less stringent in Cambodia – it’s illegal on the Thai side). On the other hand, you have impoverished Cambodian children and landmine amputees begging for money outside on the unpaved litter strewn streets.

I think license plates must be optional in Cambodia as most vehicles don't have them. This Texas plate probably serves more as a status symbol than an identifier:

Roads in Cambodia are among the worst in the world so I’ve heard. Many, including NH6, the stretch between Sisophon and Siem Reap are nothing more than cleared dirt paths interspersed with giant pot holes.

Just after sunset, little cities of light bulbs glowed bright over endless rows of fields lining the highway. A Cambodian sitting at the back explained that each one of these lights is a cricket trap.

A trap consists of a blue fluorescent lamp with a white bed sheet tied beneath it. A bucket of water sits at the bottom of this setup, where crickets fall after bouncing off the sheet. According to the guy, 15 tons of them are caught every night in this region (this number sounds a little high and is probably exaggerated). Most of them are fried up and exported to Thailand though maybe not in that order.

It took three days (35 of the last 72 hours have been spent on buses) but I’m finally in Siem Reap, the launching point for the Angkor Wat complex. It’ll be good to settle in for a couple of days.