7. Sihanoukville

I drank four or five beers last night talking to Karen, and I think it was not much past 9 PM when I went to sleep. I woke up about 6 AM and came downstairs to hang out. It's pretty here. It feels good. I'm happy at last. Funky little beach front hotel, Khmer music playing on the sound system, sucking up some Nescafe, big breakfast. Gekkos everywhere, dogs running around on the beach playing. One looks like a stray but in good health, the other two are little shaggy lap warmers.

These gekkos are everywhere, crawling on every surface. Kinda cute. 

I took sent my laundry out before lunch, 1 kg for 1 dollar. One of the pants needed some repair, cost one dollar, but I had to hop on the back of a moto (motorcycle taxi) to take them there. The ride cost one dollar. While I was out, I wanted to get my man-bag (murse) repaired, so we went to an upholstery shop. There they fixed it up real good for one dollar. Then I wanted some beach flip-flops, so we went to the market. I found a real nice pair just like the moto taxi guy was wearing. Cost?

Flip flops. Step right up folks and get yer flip flops here.

Seven dollars. What do you think I am, some kind of cheapskate? I think she probably had a pair for one dollar, and I really did think about buying some. You know, to keep in the spirit of things here. But the moto guy's flip flops were really stylin' and I so want to be cool, so I went with what he was wearing.

This is one big market. No shirt? No shoes? No problem.

I mean, it's really big. 

It's almost 2 PM now. I really haven't gone anywhere except into town for those errands. Just sitting around here at the beach, on my second beer. I sucked a fish face for lunch. That's right, sucked all of it. I ordered the sweet and sour fish, and it came whole. So I sucked the fish cheeks, the fish lips, sucked the fish eyeballs and what little fish brain it had. If they have sinus', they got sucked out. It was all pretty good. Came with two little peppers on top, and lordy goddy they were hot. Ate them both. I didn't take pics of the fish....face....sucking....thing, probably would have had to get one of the waitresses to do that for me, just as well I didn't hmm? But I did take a pic of this evenings meal of grilled squid.

That's a glass of good Irish whiskey there. Karen keeps it on hand.

Just went up the beach, and around the bend, had a look at some other places. There's really a lot of choice here, don't know why the moto driver didn't take me to any of them.

This is at the end of Serendipity road looking up the hill.
This road was poured last week. Lots of big changes going on in this town.

All of these places are from $8 to $20/night. Prices are higher now because of the holidays. Lots of people here.
Sunday Guesthouse seemed nice but I didn't take any notes on it. I kept the card, so that means it's in the running.
Sokhom Guesthouse had a $10 fan room, wifi, tv, soft bed.
Koh Meas II Guesthouse was OK. $10 fan room, hot water, tv or $15 A/C and tv
G.B.T.3 Guest House was cheapest, $8-$10 for fan room, but slow wifi. Medium soft beds, recommended by a customer I spoke to (though he complained his room stank)
Serendipity Beach Resort was very nice, new place, $20 for A/C, tv, AND A BATH TUB, very nice. This is the place I would have stayed had I known.
Rega Guest house $14 fan room w/hot water not tv, free wifi $0.75 beer. (most places beer is $1)
New Sea View Vill $15 fan room, no tv for 2 people or $10 for 1 person. Or $20 for a/c, tv, free wifi
Siddhartha Run by Arthur, guy about my age, sound like an Aussie. Older men smoking at the bar. Friendly. I liked it, but that's cause I fit in. $13 fan room, hot water, wifi, and one of the customers sitting there as I was talking with Arthur said he recommended the bed. Posteurpedic mattresses.

Now I've been here a few days and I've had a chance to look around. There are indeed cheap rooms here, just not directly on the beach. They are more difficult to find and you have to sort of know where to look, and me not knowing the place, riding into town with my backpack a little before dark did not. My hotel is rather high-priced in comparison, laundry is more expensive, no soap or shampoo provided--but I'm here and the food is good, and I get up in the morning and lumber downstairs looking for coffee, and....there's the sea. Just right there. I stand there while the coffee brews about 7:00 AM and watch the sea and the pretty boats rolling. And the staff really makes me feel at home. So I stay. A fan room will do you fine, and you don't need hot water, really. Who needs TV? Now, wifi is something else, and most places even the cheap ones have it.  It's not working for me, might be my android.

I like my new flip flops. When we went to the market yesterday I tried on several, but didn't find any cheap ones that felt good. I liked the kind the moto guy was wearing, but they were $7. I eventually went back to those after trying others, glad I did. They're really nice. I'm staying here at Coasters one more day, that's enough to get a feel. Maybe take a boat trip to one of the islands....but maybe not. Speaking of boats, here some pics of some on the beach.

On second thought, definitely not. I'm just sitting around a lot. I little while ago I decided to move on. I'll be catching a bus and heading west tomorrow morning, they sold it to me all the way from here to Pattaya, convenient. The ticket cost $26. I'll make the border crossing at Koh Kong and then onward, mini-bus all the way. I'd like to take it slower than that, see some of the towns along the way, but it would take quite a bit longer than a single day to get to Pattaya. Pattaya: I suppose I should see what that's all about. So I'll just see the world out of a bus window, like from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap--that was a 7 hour bus ride in a rattletrap bus. I suspect it will be at least that long, maybe get in as it gets dark. 


Today's internet cafe has crappy mouses, crappy keyboards, crappy monitors. I'll try to find another one and see what I can put on here this evening.