It was only a two hour drive from Kampot to Sihanoukville so we took a van. Our driver was terrible, which at least made it interesting. We left over an hour late because the driver was late picking us up, drove everyone by his house so he could change, and stopped to pick up some food for himself. Moving at light speeds, with his hand hovering or pressing the horn, we passed ever car on the road as he attempted to make up the hour delay in the journey. The man sitting behind me, who could have very well been Rocky’s twin, spoke up to the driver “You are a fucking asshole, you know what an asshole is?” Of course this only made the situation worse. The driver yelled something in Khmer and then let a large noise that resembled someone hissing and spitting at the same time. The next time our driver stopped, he tried to put Rocky in the back of the van, which also didn’t go well. At one point he stopped on the side of the road a few miles from town and told us to all get out and to find a tuk tuk the rest of the way. I’m still not sure if it was a joke or what, but eventually we made it to town.

We had one evening in Sihanoukville before heading out to the island of Koh Ta Kiev. We spend three beautiful days on the island. Our room was 3 walls with a roof and the open wall facing the ocean. The edge of my bed was about 15 feet from the water’s edge with a view I wouldn’t mind waking up to for the rest of my life. It was very minimalistic, unique, and a perfect get-a-way. There was electricity only from 6-10pm and showers, well I wouldn’t really call them showers. The “showers” consisted of a large trash can filled with slightly dingy well water and a pot to dump it on yourself. Needless to say, I didn’t have my two showers a day that I am use to, but it’s all part of the island life.

Unfortunately, Marge and I were both dealing with stomach issues the three days we were on the island. My luck of course is that there was only a squatter toilet and it wasn’t very close to our room. I must say, I have gotten pretty good at using squatter toilets after our time in Africa and Asia. My other misfortune was that our room wasn’t next to the bathroom. Who doesn’t love a small hike down a trail to a squatter toilet in the middle of the night with a head lamp when you’re about to shit your pants? I had several of those moments, to which I will just look back and laugh about next year when I am sitting on my porcelain throne with electricity, running water, and toilet paper that can be flushed! Experiences are what makes the trip a trip though, and not just the big fun activities.

Coming back from the island, we spend a few days right outside Sihanoukville at a beautiful ho(s)tel. For $5 a night we had a bar, pool table, swimming pool, and several balconies to relax on before taking the morning bus to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.