BootsnAll Travel Network



Archive for the 'battambang (cambodia)' Category

« Home

a taste of cambodia

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

check out pictures here (thanks kariena!)

after three fun-filled days in siem reap, i decided it was time to move on to see more of cambodia. i’d really enjoyed trying some of the traditional khmer (cambodian) dishes and i’d read about a cooking class in a town called battambang, which could be reached from siem reap via a six hour boat ride along the tonle sap river. the boat trip itself was rather uncomfortable, but i did make a new friend along the way.

believe it or not, my new friend kariena is from hawaii! i hadn’t seen many americans since laos, let alone someone from the same state, even the same island! kariena is originally from new mexico but has been living on oahu the past two years. i’m suprised i haven’t run into her in downtown! =) it’s always fun to travel alone, but sometimes it’s just as fun to meet up with new friends, so kareina and i both checked into a hotel in battambang and signed up for a cooking class at the smokin’ pot restaurant, then head out to explore the (very tiny!) town.

we arrived at the restaurant the following morning and met some of our other classmates for the day. the owner, vannak, was really cool and answered all of our questions, then took us on a tour of the market. the markets in cambodia are crazy! skinned frogs sitting in pools of blood (it seriously looked like a frog murder scene), fish jumping all over the ground then getting thrown back in their buckets, pig joints and sausages everywhere, along with various fresh fruits and vegetables. unlike the markets in thailand and laos, where you usually see stalls set up at the markets, everything was spread out over the ground! it was quite an experience.
[read on]