[Battambang, Cambodia] It appears that there is not much to do in Battambang so we got up late and arranged to see two sites with a tak-tak driver. On our way into town yesterday we were given an ad for motorcycle rentals at $6 per day. It’s something we have been wanting to do for ages but always chicken out of since we don’t have any experience. In Siem Reap we had looked for motorbike hire but it seems the government has clamped down heavily there – guess they don’t want any tourist roadkill or maybe it’s just to protect jobs. In any event it was tempting in Battambang, but we opted out. Maybe in Thailand where they drive on the left hand side of the road.

Our driver first took us about 25km South of town to Phnom Banan. 300+ steps led up to the wat which predates Angkor. It was in reasonable condition and is still an active temple but it was architecturally and artistically uninteresting. Being the only tourists around we took some time to just sit and relax. It was very peaceful. Pity about all the ‘Danger ! Land Mines” signs.

The next stop, Ek Phnom, was 12km to the north of town. This temple is in bad shape. It is an active wat attached to a large modern temple but bears a fair amount of graffiti. Many parts have collapsed or are about to and it seems that nothing is being done to preserve it except for a few ‘Danger’ signs. The new looking and over sized Buddha statue opposite the temple is impressive but could use a paint job – other than that the site was dull.

It appears that Siem Reap and Angkor get all the glory and deservedly so. To give you an idea. Siem Reap has over 8000 registered taxi/tak-tak drivers. Battambang has around 100. To be fair though, Battambang is worth it just for the boat trip here. Back in town we had lunch and went in search of information about buses to Bangkok. Our hotel had told us that the buses were not running due to flooding and had arranged a taxi that would get us to the border where we could find a ride on the Thai side – that sounded suspicious. Capitol Tours to the rescue once again. Their buses were running but we would need to change to a minivan to bypass the flooded areas and all for $13 (and 12 hours). Sounds okay to us.

We are really looking forward to getting into Thailand tomorrow. Have to mention my V. While I was watching a movie she was surfing the Interwebs looking at… Furniture? No. Clothing and handbags? No. Jewelery? Thankfully no, Off-road and touring motorbikes? Yes please 🙂 She is just the best.

[Pictures: Danger – Mines. The big boy needs paint]

– Posted from my iPhone via WiFi