I wake up to a glorious day in Phnom Penh this morning. The sky is clear blue and there’s a stiff breeze snapping the flags of the nations along the quayside to full attention. I walk down to the FCC for a light breakfast. It’s the perfect spot for a meal on a day like today. Sitting in the open third floor dining room, looking out at the river, where some long boats are practicing for races later today, I almost wish I was spending the weekend here instead of heading down south.

But by the time the car comes to pick me up, the breeze has died down and it’s beginning to get hot, so I’m glad to be escaping to the seaside. The drive down to Kep takes about two and a half hours. The two lane road is relatively good, although there are several one-lane bridges to slow things down. There are not really any sights to see along the way, although the landscape of rice fields and country houses is rather pretty.

 
We arrive in Kep in the early afternoon. In French colonial times, Kep was the premier seaside resort, but was abandoned in the 1970s when the Khmer Rouge began their bloody rule. My home for my stay here is the Champey Inn, a collection of 16 bungalows scattered around a swimming pool facing the sea. The rooms feature a rather spartan design, with painted concrete floors, simple wood furniture and stark white walls. The Champey Inn sits on the slopes of a point within sight of a collection of ramshackle restaurants sells the area’s famous crab. The rest of the point is lined with the shells of abandoned villas.

While Kep is coming back to life as a tourist destination, it’s still well enough off the map. While there are a few hotels and guest houses in the area such as the Champey Inn, there’s little else to divert the tourists – no nightclubs, no mini-marts, and even very few restaurants aside from those at the hotels. That is starting to change, so if you’re interested in seeing an ‘unspoiled’ place, you better go now.

See the Kep photo gallery for a lot more pictures from around the area.

Today I’m off to a previously unexplored (by me) area of Cambodia. To get there, I first have to fly to Phnom Penh. I chose Bangkok Air because it was cheaper than Thai, which is usually the case where they’re competing on the same route. Although Bangkok Air has its detractors, mainly about their pricing on the routes where they don’t have to compete with another airline, you can’t really fault their service.

Not many people know this, but Bangkok Airways has a lounge in almost every airport that is free for all passengers to use. I know that not many people know about the lounge because the Bangkok one was practically empty while I was waiting for my flight to Phnom Penh. That’s probably because not only does the airline not advertise the service, but the location at Bangkok is rather out of the way and there are no signs pointing you to it until you’re almost there. I think I’ll keep their secret so I can continue enjoying the free cookies, snacks, drinks, internet and magazines in peace.

The lounge isn’t the only thing that impresses about Bangkok Air. They had to use a remote parking space for my plane, so we all had to board buses to get there. Now, all the other airlines that use buses just load everyone on the transports and lets them sort themselves out at the plane. Not Bangkok Air. They used two buses and put those seated in the front of the plane on one bus and those at the back in another. Boldly printed on everyone’s boarding pass was a notice to be at the gate at least 15 minutes before the departure time, and sure enough, at no later than 13 minutes before our scheduled departure, both buses left the terminal. This is all frightfully organized for a Thai airline.

But enough about Bangkok Air. I arrived in Phnom Penh in the evening for a one night stay. I decided to check out the Bougainvillier Hotel based on many positive recommendations. As it is only one night, I’ve taken one of the cheaper rooms, which are smaller and at the back, facing another building. The room is small but not cramped, and very artfully decorated with silks. There’s a new flat screen television on the wall facing the bed, but no telephone. That may just be a temporary oversight, as the room appears to have been newly redecorated. I managed to poke into the larger front rooms, facing the river, for a look. They are substantially bigger, almost palatial for a hotel, and with the river view they would be great for a stay of several days. The hotel was remodeling their lobby, expanding it into the next two buildings by all appearances, so more changes are in the works.

Tomorrow, it’s off to Kep!

Those of you planning to visit Indonesia will want to keep in mind that the Passenger Service Charge ("PSC" or Departure Tax) has been raised to 150,000 Rupiah (about US$15). The new fee applies to all passengers departing from all international airports. Domestic service charges, which vary from one airport to another, do not seem affected.

Apologies to anyone who was trying to enjoy a quiet evening out in Seminyak this evening. I was just a guest at what must have been one of the parties of the year. The search lights, fireworks and live dance club band were not my idea. But when a L’Oreal model marries the son of a well-off (at least before they paid for the party) Indonesian family, I guess you have to pull out all the stops. It felt a little weird being among all these beautiful people, but everyone was having a good time.

The setting for this little soirée was Villa Atas Ombak, a beach-front estate at the far north end of Seminyak. It’s very private, and there are only five rooms in total. You have to rent the entire estate, for a minimum of five nights. This means that when you’re there, you and any friends you invite are the only ones in residence, so it’s like having your own cottage on the beach, complete with pool, kitchen and all the other amenities.

While there is a kitchen (and probably a cook as well) you are just five minutes from some of the best restaurants in Bali, like La Lucciola, Kudeta and Hu’u. You could probably even walk there along the beach, watching the sunset and working up an appetite.

Yes, it all costs a pretty penny, but if you’re looking for a perfect wedding venue, this place would be hard to beat.

The promised relocation of the public (metered) taxi queue at Bangkok’s new Suvarnabhumi airport has finally taken place. The taxi queue is now on level two, the same floor as arrivals, so now you can just head straight out the door once you exit customs to find the taxi queue. There’s no need to go down one level.

One thing to note is that the staff of the airport’s own "limo" service have stepped up their own high pressure tactics, and now wave small signs saying "Airport Taxi" in your face as you leave customs. Now, I’ve got nothing against this service, they have nice cars as well as vans, and if there are several of you traveling with a lot of luggage, they’re probably a better choice than regular taxis, most of which have tiny trunks, but I hate "in your face" tactics. It’s a horrible way to greet visitors to the country, but the airport management doesn’t seem to be able to stop it.

It’s perhaps also worth reminding you that the airport limo service isn’t a limo service, at least not in the way North Americans would interpret it. The service uses ordinary unmodified passenger sedans, vans and SUVs. None of them bear any resemblance to what an American would think of as a limo.