Braving the Big City: Phnom Penh, Cambodia

The journey to find these big green doors!!

The guesthouse graden where we ate breakfast

One of our cross streets to the guesthouse

After a quick, uneventful minibus from Kratie to Phnom Penh, we were dropped off in the middle of the city to hoards of tuktuk drivers pounding on the glass of the minibus to get our attention.  Allan and I had been prepared for this type of attention so we quickly grabbed our bags and walked away from the bus stop to hail a tuktuk, elsewhere.  After negotiating on a price and having the tuktuk driver assure us he knew where our guesthouse was, we jump into our chariot and brave the insane traffic.

Grabbing a coconut for our journey

However, the tuktuk driver did not know where to take us.  Though we had an exact address and everything, we were unable to give him the correct cross streets.  As it turns out, to have a successful tuktuk ride in Phom Penh, you have to know EXACTLY where you are going or you probably won't get there.

The riverfront prommenade.  A hotel going up on the other side of the river

Our tuk tuk driver drove in circles for about 15 minutes and asked other drivers along the way where the guesthouse was situated.  Someone finally held the key to our stay and we were then navigated down a little back alley to a huge locked door with a simple sign stating "Alibi Guesthouse".  Sweet success.

The gate of the Royal Palace

Me with the Royal Palace

We checked in, were brought to a glorious room WITH hot water and a comfortable bed and literally had a quick cry to celebrate our good fortune.  (This guesthouse still remains one of my favorites, even now.)  After taking showers and changing clothes, we were out the door to investgate this large city.

Riverfront Buddhist Temple

The tourist area of Phnom Penh is riverfront and also surrounding many of the major sites of the city: The Royal Palace and Wat Phnom, just to name a couple.  We decided to walk the river prommenade and I am still so impressed with how clean and well kept the city was, especially knowing that 14.8 million people live in it.

From the rooftop patio, overlooking the prommenade

We walked, we took pictures, we navigated the streets, and we got lost.  Either way, it was a great introduction to Cambodia and our new home for the next 5 days...