Hey everyone, today’s blog post is days nine and ten of my trip to Cambodia in September 2019. Back in September 2019, I went on a group tour around Cambodia for 12 days. Most days we had a different activity planned however, sometimes we would spend the day traveling. In this blog post, I talk about the river cruise that we went on and Bokor Mountain which we visited on day ten.
On day nine the morning was a lot more relaxing as we didn’t have to get up early so I decided just to relax around the pool and read some of my book. I also thought that it was a good time to sit by the pool as the sun wasn’t as strong as it can be around midday. In the afternoon, we went on a river cruise down the Preaek Tuek Chhu river which was more of a booze cruise. If you have been reading my blog or have been watching my videos for a long time then you would know that I don’t drink. It’s not because I don’t like alcohol in fact I would love to drink if I could it’s more because my body can’t handle alcohol. Therefore, I decide just not to drink at all rather than feel really ill.
Therefore, the river cruise was more peaceful for me as I could sit and read my book while admiring the beautiful scenery. Everyone else was on the top deck playing drinking games in the sun. That day I knew that I had enough sun so I decided to stay most of the time in the lower deck which is shaded. I actually really enjoyed the river cruise as it was a nice break from always doing something or always traveling. After the cruise, we headed back to the hostel where I had mac and cheese for dinner. Like I had mentioned before the majority of the restaurants that we were taken to mainly served western-styled dishes including the hostels that we stayed at. After dinner, I had a shower and got into bed as even though we didn’t do that much during the day I was still quite tired.
The next day, I had yogurt and fruit for breakfast at the hostel before we made our way up Bokor Mountain. The Bokor national park wasn’t too far away from our hostel as it took about an hour until we reached the top of the Bokor Mountain. I found the national park very interesting as there were lots to see such as this buddha which was huge as you could see it from miles away. Our tour guide gave us the choice of going up the mountain which you could drive up or going on a trek to a waterfall. As a group, we decided to go for the mountain option as we were all quite tired from the previous days and didn’t fancy doing around a six-hour trek.
When we reached the top of the mountain although the view wasn’t as good as it could have been because we were just above the clouds you could still see the sea which was quite cool! It was a real moment for me because I felt like I was on top of the world because I had traveled all that way by myself. Although sometimes on the trip I felt quite alone when I reached the top of this all of those feelings went away and I felt like I could achieve anything. It’s funny how being on top of a mountain can make you see life in a different light. I am also really glad that I packed my gym gear for this because it was a really hot day and it was the perfect outfit as we did a bit of walking but it wasn’t to the extent where it turned into a hike.
The top of Bokor Mountain is huge as there were several temples that were at the top as well as a waterfall. One of the temples really caught my eye as it was so beautiful inside. All of the temples, in Cambodia, are very well kept and very beautiful inside. I loved this temple because there was so much to see inside and it was just so striking. There were a few different temples to go in to, however, we just went into the one temple.
We then visited the Popokvil Waterfall which is also at the top of Bokor Mountain. The waterfall was huge and it was really cool to see one up close, it was also very loud. I have never seen a waterfall that big up close and it sort of reminded me of Niagra Falls but on a smaller scale. We got to stay at the waterfall for a bit which was quite nice to just sit and watch the water flowing but also to people watch as lots of locals and tourists were there to take photos.
In the afternoon, we visited the local water park the group I went with all went on the water activities available and I just sat and read my book. I didn’t really fancy getting in the water as I was quite washed out that day and I knew that I would be going in the sea the next day when we reached the island. Also if I am honest quite a lot of the activities didn’t look that safe so I thought it would be best for me to stay clear. Before everyone went into the water we all ordered lunch, I decided just to get something simple so I went for an egg roll with chips. Although it was quite a random combination I actually really enjoyed it and it definitely filled me up for the rest of the afternoon. I really liked the bar area there as there were lots of places to sit and admire the water rides but also just to take a moment out and fully relax.
After the water park, we then went back to the hostel where we all had showers and then got ready for our evening meal. That evening, we went to a restaurant along the river which was known for its BBQ ribs. It was about a five-minute walk from the hostel and was super cute as it had festoon lights on the outside. It was also our tour guide’s birthday so it was nice to celebrate with him and go out for a meal as a group. I decided that as they specialised in ribs that I had to try them and they definitely lived up to our tour guide’s expectations as they were delicious. After dinner, we all headed back to the hostel and I went up to the room to turn in for the night as we had another long journey the next morning.
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