From Kampong Cham to Phnom Penh

On moving day, a Toyota Camay arrived at 07:15, we loaded all of my things, which have seemed to multiply 10 times in just four months. The car leads the way to Phnom Penh and I followed driving my moto.

In the USA and Europe when embarking on a long trip in a car, I always put a little extra air in the tires to give better grip and increase the gas mileage. I did the same for this trip. As rough as the roads are in Cambodia that was not a good idea. About half way, the car turned to take the new bridge over Tonley Sap. The bridge may be new but the road to it is old and very rough. I really questioned the merits of pumping up the tires on this part of the journey.

It was about 125 km (78 miles) from Kampong Cham to Phnom Penh. When I have taken the bus I enjoy watching the scenery, there are people working in the rice paddies, motos scurrying every which way and people in their daily lives along the road. On this trip there was no time for looking around; I had to keep my eyes on the road. Dodging pot holes, other motos and avoiding oncoming traffic took all of my attention.

The driver said he knew Phnom Penh and the way to the guest house. We were about six blocks from the guest house and the car passed the turn. I raced up alongside the car dodging other motos and singled him to follow me. I was quite lucky that I had stayed at this guest house before and was familiar with the area; I could lead the last kilometer.

When I got off the moto, I noticed I was shaking. I am not sure if that was from the bounding around for three hours of riding or the scares on the road.