Arrived in Phnom Penh

We said goodbye to our host Manel at Manel Guesthouse in Senmonorom. We had a really good stay there. Manel and his family treated us really well. He even gave us each a hug when we left. Can't recommend them enough. We can tell already that this will be our best memory of Cambodia. 

The minivan was there to pick us up at 9:15am for our six hour drive to Phnom Penh. 

Once again. there were a few empty seats most of the way, and although it was cramped for leg room I managed to sit on an end seat with space by the door for my legs. We found that the six hours actually passed fairly quickly.

Cost was $14 USD ($18.90 CAD) each.

Not much worth photographing along the way though. And of course photos out the bus window are rarely worth keeping anyhow.

Crossing the Mekong River.

We had two bathroom breaks but we had some snacks with us and didn't buy anything for lunch.

Arrived in Phnom Penh at 3:15pm and took a Grab tuk-tuk $1.25 USD ($1.68 CAD) for the two and a half km ride to the hotel.

View from our tuk-tuk.

Phnom Penh wasn't on our list of places to visit. (We are only here to facilitate a border crossing into Vietnam.). And I had read that it's not the nicest city. First impressions are that it's a bit of a shithole, really. But as we always say, keep your expectations low, and you won't be disappointed!

One of the problems is that it's more expensive than it has any right to be. And that's applicable to accommodations as well. I had a really hard time finding what I thought was going to be a suitable place to stay at a reasonable price.

We ended up at the Saravoan Royal Palace Hotel. Trust me, the name sounds fancier than the place actually is! But, it's suitable and it's in a good location where anything we want to do is walkable or a cheap tuk-tuk ride. 

The room itself is actually okay.

The bed and pillows are comfy.

And it's a fair size room.

No view out the window though.

Free coffee and tea in the room.

The rest are chargeable items.

Decent bathroom as well.

But, it's $31.60 USD ($42.50 CAD) per night which is a little high for this part of the world. Fortunately, that includes breakfast and we are about to go down and find out if the breakfast is worthwhile. Reviews are mixed.

Anyhow, we slept well and are going to go out and explore a bit. We're very close to the river and there is supposed to be a nice walk along the river. But, it's going to be baking hot with a forecast high of 35C (97F) each of the three days we're here.

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