Cambodia - Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville

Someone asked me once what I liked about going on a vacation in a third world country. That's how they see Cambodia. It might be an underdeveloped country but there are a few tourists spots which are as good as any other in the region. And since it is not as popular as Thailand this is a lovely place to travel to. It's very relaxed and not plastered with high rise hotels. At least not yet.

We started this journey in Phnom Penh and were amazed by the variety of good restaurants you can find there. Many of them (e.g. FCC and a tapas restaurant called Pacharan) are located on Sisowath Quay (often known as Riverside). They come with nice balconies so that you can watch what's going on on the streets and have a superb dinner at the same time.

Another hip area is Street 240. You will find many restaurants, cafes and galleries there. Apart from that there is not much to do and see in Phnom Penh. There is the national museum and the royal palace but that's pretty much it. But who says that you always have to do something. We stayed in a very cozy boutique hotel (Frangipani Villa). But next time I would probably choose something closer to Sisowath Quay.

After Phnom Penh we headed south to a beach town called Sihanoukville. We loved the atmosphere there. The only problem is getting there as there is no other option than taking the public bus transport. We were fine with that but you shouldn't expect any luxury trip. The bus passes by the dirty suburb of Phnom Penh until finally reaching into the greener shore.

In Sihanoukville there is not much to do other than lying on the beach or going for a boat trip to one of the nearby islands. But the beach comes with fine white sand and is packed with little bars and as long as you buy a drink they provide the deckchairs for free. And this won't make you pay a fortune.

After sunset you can start the evening with a drink and then choose from one of the many beach restaurants.