YA LEUM.17 — Friends, flowers on our way
I woke up early to take a bus to south of Cambodia for some beach time. Phnom Penh was barely awake, but I was fresh and eager to move to another town. One more trip of 6 hours ahead of me, but traveling is a sort of an addiction, so I had the same smile I always had when I am back on the road.
My destination was Kampot and Kep. I heard the two towns were close to each other, with beaches, nice restaurants, and bars for backpackers to hang out.
Kampot is a mix of colonial-era architecture with a taste of a hipster downtown and Kep, a laid-back town perfect to relax, with almost no movement, just with some Cambodian locals around.
I thought the last option was a good idea to start, since I imagined I could easily move from Kep to Kampot and would find plenty of affordable accommodations.
Wrong assumption.
When I arrived in Kep I did not even realize when the bus arrived. The stop was short, and when I got off the bus, there was no movement outside.
I looked around and had no one to ask for a tip, neither any place was open.
Moments later, I noticed a western guy was as lost as me, so I went to talk to him.
“Hi, do you know any place here to stay? This looks quite empty.”
The nice guy answered, “Not really, I am also looking for a room, but I don’t know exactly where to go”.
We walked together to ask around and found out some places to stay, but all quite expensive. We were both backpackers and not willing to pay the price of a 3-start guesthouse type.
Well, one of the rooms were affordable, in case we would share with another person. So, we looked at each other, and why not?
Yes, I thought twice or even three times about sharing a room with someone I do not know. But I had a good feeling from this new friend, since the first moment we talked. I could not be more right.
He just warned me he had a friend coming to Kep and maybe he would need to find a new place. No problem for me!
François is a French guy from North of France, traveling on his own since he left Australia. A guy with a happy vibe, a beautiful smile and always willing to drink that beer.
I met plenty of French people. They are everywhere! They travel and they walk. Any hike, trail, trek, or climb, there will be always a French person. A medium class woman, a hippie boy, or a retired man, you can find them all.
We dropped our things in the room and went to have a beer by the beach. We shared traveling stories and the plans for the upcoming days.
Kep is a small town to spend a few days by the beach. Talking to each other, we realized we were expecting something different. However, that expectation did not withdraw any good feeling we had with the town.
There are things to visit and do!
The day of our arrival, I had my first swim! That made me beyond happy. The beach was empty, and I have not been in the sea already for a year. Sandy beach, warm temperature, 2 minutes from my accommodation… yes right?
Then, we visited the crab market to try the seafood by the shore, visited around with the motorbike and check other markets with delicious fruits.
Two days later, François’ friend, Alex, arrived. I thought we would split because they wanted to visit other things.
Finally, we remained together, Alex stayed in the same guesthouse and we explored the area the three of us. The bond among the three of us was instantly. Our personalities were matching on different levels, creating an interesting and fun balance.
Alex, an English guy, is a young poet contemplating life in words and photographs. They had met in another Cambodian town and decided to meet later in Kep.
François, with his good and explorer vibe, is always ready to explore something new, alone or with someone.
And me, the eldest between the three of us, ready to mingle with anyone with a good heart and a fun word.
Still in Kep, we visited the national park. We shared one motorbike for three, not smart, neither safe, but fun! The distance was short though. The park was perfect for an afternoon walk where it is possible to get some nice views of Kep, Kampot and the sea. The park was empty, do not forget I travel in low season, so very occasionally we would wave other walkers.
One of those moments, a group of 4 people passed by us and I recognized one of them.
I could not believe it!
It was Jojo, do you remember him? I traveled with him for a couple of days, 2 months before in Thailand. And for my biggest amazement, I met him in a middle of an empty national park. The enthusiasm was big! We were happy to see each other again. We took a picture to symbolize that coincidence and exchanged a few words to then continue in opposite directions.
In our last evening in Kep, we did a pic-nic by the beach, with an evening swim included. It was full moon, there was a big group of locals barbecuing and dancing which we later joined to play games.
In the day after, this small group of solo travelers, but now living like friends, decided to move to Kampot.
Kampot is a bigger town, with plenty things to experience. We took a short bus to Kampot and found a cozy guesthouse with a huge room with bunkbeds. We stayed.
At this point, we were already getting along like if we would have been knowing each other for long time. For some reason, something bonded us until today as we keep talking to one another.
Alex was always carrying his super cool and hipster camera, taking photos like a professional. François would make a little fun of the intellectual approach on the pictures and I would talk to people on the streets so Alex could use better perspectives for his photographs.
It was a hot day, we stopped for a juice. Kampot is filled with endless milkshake combinations stands, with small but cozy benches and air-fans point to them to attract more customers.
We stopped for a quick refreshment, but the lady, like all the people in Cambodia, were the sweetest, kindest, friendliest person you could meet.
We had a cold, tall, lovely fruity based milkshake. She was so incredible nice, we stayed longer to talk to her. She offered some other fruits to try new flavors.
Later, her friend brought lunch and the lady convinced us to eat with her, which we kindly denied, since it was her lunch. However, she put so much effort, we finally accepted her amazing meal. At the end, we were full and happy, with so much food and good vibe.
After lunch, we rested there because it was even hotter. So, we ordered another juice which made us stay there for about 2 hours.
For 2 hours in a row, she made us try all different types of food, as she kept saying “food, food, happy, happy. You food You happy”.
Is this an act of love? Sharing food is also about giving love.
When we finally decided to leave, besides being happy and full, we were also dizzy. We figured it was all the sugar mixed in the juices, milkshakes, and fruits. We resumed our walk, and in 30 min we were feeling just fine.
Another day in Kampot, we drove the motorbike to other town for sightseeing, on our way back we decided to walk and randomly stopped at a local stand.
There was a handsome old man sitting outside of his house, with the most calm and beautiful look I have ever seen. We sat by his side, because of his hypnotizing look. He waved us with a smile and accepted our presence.
Beauty has no standards, forms, definitions, age or countries. Beauty is somehow a sort of feeling… and Cambodia is full of it!
We looked at each other and communicated with no words. We just sat close to him and smiled, perhaps we believed we could understand the wise look of this mysterious man.
We asked to take a picture and left with a good feeling.
It was fun to be around each other, we would talk and laugh. If the surrounding was boring, we would make our own little party. If the surrounding was entertaining, then we would mingle with everyone.
One night, as we were walking by the bay of Kampot, we stopped to buy a snack. On the side, there was a group of locals eating seafood and drinking beers. As a way to welcome us, they invited us to join. We said yes, we just did not expect we would stay with them for the rest of the night eating street seafood and drinking beers in buckets.
The group was big, they were all friends from other cities, meeting in Kampot. On my eyes, they were all incredibly beautiful.
The Cambodian beauty is exotic and delicate. Their features are elements of nature.
Just one of them could speak English, so once again, we were back and forth trying to have a proper conversation. But who cares? Body, expressions, hands, looks, words make it all.
Human beings connect on unknown levels. And we bond, as we would be writing letters of love. One more learning of this life changing trip.
We stayed hours. We laughed, ate, drank, and almost sang. I was just worried that seafood would give me an unforgettable belly ache. François was not so worried, and Alex was just eating the bare minimum.
Alex left earlier than us but on his way home, he changed his mind and came back to the little party on the street.
Much later, we all returned home together. Along with the empty streets, we laughed at all tiny moments, while the barking dogs scared our way.
Two days later, we packed our stuff and drove until our last stop together — the island of Koh Rong.
Traveling inside is a lonely journey, that is sprinkled with soothing flowers leaving a calming fragrance behind that makes the path an easier place to be.
July 2017,
Patricia Assis
