Thailand is often referred to as "country of smiles". We agree that most people we met were nice, friendly and willing to help, though we encountered also quite a lot of inpolite behaviour, cheating, laziness or lying, surely caused by the crazy amount of tourism and the strong will to make money. Only after crossing the border to Cambodia we noticed a huge difference in the attitudes towards us. Where as most Thais we met were indeed very friendly and polite when doing their jobs, we were absolutely ashtonished by the genuine loveliness of Cambodians. If you happen to smile at someone, what you get back is the biggest smile you have ever seen in your life. School kids yelled "hello!", waved and giggled every time they walked past, older people always gave us smiles or a "hello" when passing us on their bikes. Tuk-tuk drivers asked once if we need a ride, and even if we said no thanks, they gave a wide smile and left us in peace. Cambodians are also always up for a laugh. They are not as scared to offend you with their jokes as the Thais seem to be and they will use every opportunity for a conversation and joking. You can't help it, you just feel so welcome and at home that you can't do anything but love this country.
This puts in a nutshell what we experienced in Kampot. It is a small town 2 hours away from Sihanoukville towards Phnom Penh. It's a beautiful and relaxed place, with not much to do. You can do tours to nearby hills to admire the view over the Gulf of Thailand or to the waterfalls in the surrounding areas, but because of bad visibility and the dry season (no waterfalls) we decided to skip these activities. Instead we found a hostel with reasonable prices and big selection of hammocks and we just chilled out for a few days.
Anni is also on a mission to try a massage in every Asian country. In Cambodia we try to think a bit more than usual about where to put our money. Our budget is small but we try to spread the money to different people as much as we can by supporting different businesses. We try to go for local owners or at least to a place employing a lot of locals. Or in case of a massage: give it to the blind. A chain called Seeing Hands Massage operates throughout Cambodia, also in Kampot. They only employ blind people, which is a business idea we were happy to support. Ben was still traumatised by the "beating up" the blind Chinese gave him few months ago, so Anni went with an English girl we met at the hostel. For 5 USD she got a full body massage for an hour. And no, it was not as rough as the previously mentioned Chinese one. They even asked if we wanted a strong or a medium massage, and always kept asking if it was okay. Anni highly recommends.
After Kampot we headed to Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. We didn't expect the same friendliness of a small town. Okay, it was not same, but it was close. Tuk-tuk drivers in Phnom Penh are a bit more persistent because the competition is tough, but it was nothing compared to Bangkok and its arrogant taxi drivers. We found Phnom Penh to be quite a likable city. Everything and everyone is so alive and normal. People, tuk-tuks and motorbikes are everywhere, but not once did we feel unsafe in the traffic or just walking around. Our driver warned us that people try to grab our bags if we don't hold on to them tight when in a tuk-tuk, but we had no problems. We guess it's wise to be a bit careful in any big city, no matter where you are.
We spent our time in Phnom Penh like most tourists. We walked around and explored the central market and the National museum. Most important of all, we visited the Genocide Museum and Killing Fields from the Khmer Rouge regime, when 1,7-3 million Cambodians were killed by Pol Pot and his army. Although we were mentally prepared for quite a lot, it was still shocking to see photos of the tortured and murdered victims. But you simply can't come to Phnom Penh without visiting them both.
Cambodians have possibly the cruelest history and a cruel present with a big number of landmines still waiting to explode around the country. It is also, after Myanmar, the poorest country in South East Asia and it's very corrupt. And still they are the happiest people we met on our travels so far. We don't know how it is possible, but we love it.
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