Our last new place on our trip! Battambang is Cambodia's 2nd biggest city but it's really laid back for a city. Even the tour we went on was super relaxed.
We met our tuk tuk guide at 10AM and went to do the thing we were most excited about: Battambang's bamboo railway! We saw the locals assembling the trains, which consist of two 60kg metal wheel sets, a bamboo platform on top, and a lawn mower engine.
The tracks were laid down by the French and stretched across the whole country connecting Thailand and Vietnam. But then the Khmer Rouge happened and what is left is this little stretch reinvented for tourists.
We got on our own private train and let the conductor rattle us down 7km of the single-track warped railway going at 50km/h. If we came across another lorry coming in the opposite direction, one cart simply unloaded and disassembled the cart and laid it next to the track. The rule is whoever has the lightest load has to give priority. At the end of the track, we got the opportunity to visit O Sra Lav, a little village I am sure only exists for tourists. The whole experience is super touristy yet super fun.
We let our tuk tuk guide drive us to two of the most famous temples in the area stopping along the way to see the countryside: a local fishing village, small temples, fruit bats, local fruits and vegetables being dried in the sun, and Cambodia's first winery. We haven't yet acquired a taste for the wine.
Our first temple was Wat Banan. Glad we did it first as you have to heave yourself up 340+ steps. Like most of the temples, it started as a Hindu temple and received a Buddhist makeover in the 12th century. It's clearly been looted, a little vandalized, and the towers are crumbly which kind of makes it more impressive. It's like you can see its history right in front of you.
Phnom Sampeu is a mountain temple complex with lots of monkeys and gorgeous views.
The killing caves of Phnom Sampeau are located here. The Khmer Rouge used these caves as a dumping ground for all the victims they bludgeoned to death. Now there is a memorial of skulls and a peaceful reclining Buddha.
At dusk, an endless wave of bats fly out of the mountain toward the nearby lake. It looks like someone sprayed a hose but instead of water, out came bats.
Battambang offered much more than we expected. Final stop: the hustle and bustle of Bangkok!
-Priscilla
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