Transport in Cambodia? yea right.

June 24, 2009 Nicky

Cambodia. Traveling through the rough and rigid jungle roads during rainy season- IMPOSSIBLE. Why did we choose to be the dumbass backpackers to attempt this?

Here's an excerpt from my journal...

6/23/2009

WHAT WERE WE THINKING?! TRAVELING IN RAINY SEASON IN NORTHERN CAMBODIA? WHERE GETTING FROM POINT A TO POINT B ON A SUNNY DAY TAKES HOURS, HOW ARE WE SUPPOSE TO DO IT IN A MONSOON?

I am writing while sitting on an old decaying palm tree trunk, swatting these annoying neon green flies that won't stop biting me, and staring at the mess before me.

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A "road" and I say a road in quotes because I don't think it comes close to classifying as a road at all-- it's more like the best slip 'n' slide you could ever imagine. This "road" has 7 inch grooves EVERYWHERE and it is to SLIPPERY to WALK ON. I just saw a few people bust their ass trying to ice skate across it. The life-sucking mud is everywhere. There's no escaping it. It is trying to eat our bus right now and it is winning. There is a line of people, trucks, cars, tractors, animals, motorbikes... all stuck and no one seems to know what to do. Here's the run down- 1 watermelon truck, 1 dumpster truck, 3 big buses, a shit ton of vans, a few tractors, and of course to many motorbikes to count. This line goes on as far as I can see in BOTH directions. Everyone has left their stifling hot vehicles and we are all sitting stranded on the side of the road waiting helplessly. My question: what are we waiting for, dry season to come around again?

I feel my blood boiling. The Cambodians? Calm, cool, & collected. It is obviously a daily occurence for them.

I tried to get to the bottom of it and get someone to tell me what we were waiting for, how long, and what we were all going to do. I was told, "No one can go because the road is far to slippery and the bigger trucks and buses are sliding OFF the "ROAD". We are waiting for a TRACTOR to come tow us all out!"

Until then, we sit here. Swatting neon flies. Staring around in Amazement. Avoiding the mud at all costs. & Sweating a lot. Oh, Cambodia.