I don't really know how to 'fairly' describe Sihanoukville.
It's a little bit like Blackpool in some parts.. not to do it down, but the (S)Ex-pats neon strip at the 2 lions roundabout is a casino, neon lover, lager lout seedy sexpat haven.
As if there is any surprise then, that I would be sick for two days after eating lobster spring rolls on the beach and drinking cocktails named after sex positions in a bar that proudly screened 'natural born killers' on the wall!?
But the 'Khmernival' showed a different side to the town. We went to support the team in their performance. A community carnival celebrating the best of the regions talent. There were some strange, and quite frankly badly judged dance sequences going on. A boy band with a Michael Jackson complex and an ego to match whilst young girls wailed back in the crowd. And some small children bravely hurling themselves through plastic hoops, and sometimes, shockingly, missing the opening by a fraction?! The Epic team were on another level however. Their well coordinated dance moves, funky hip hop music and sheer skill was great to watch! They combine elements of different dances and moves into one.
There is a helluva lot of coastline to explore if you venture a bit further (a few miles walk) than the average tuk tuk is willing to take you.. the beauty of which, you can never get lost so long as you always have the sea on one side! ;) Something the guidebooks don't tell you, I think, because they are so protective of it. It ain't so secluded if 'everyone' reads about it in 'rough guide'!
One day, my friend, Karin and I went exploring and ended up on a secluded private beach resort. So, went and sat on some white leather sofas and ordered cocktails, naturally. $7 for a meal. Which in London is £5 roughly, so pretty cheap. But having spent $1 for a meal back in Kampot, it felt a bit lush to do so.
One of the best things about Sihanoukville is it's stretch of coast. Karin and I must have walked for hours and miles along it until we reached a small grouping of huts, and a small sign with 'castaway' scrawled onto it and a picture of 'nelson' from Tom Hanks' film of the same name. So obviously, with the western film reference, we hadn't explored far enough to escape and discover a new world, but thought "well, why not?!" We were, after all at the far edges of the beach and heading into the wilderness of Ream national park, mainly lowland evergreens and mangrove swamps. Not good considering I'd left my walking shoes in the back of the taxi on arrival to Sihanoukville!
The hut was made out of thin bamboo and a hop and a skip from the sea. The shower, a bucket, the toilet, a bucket. It was a great recovery!
