The final episode of my 6-day Cambodian trip - visiting Battambang City on February 17, 2024.
Traveling on a night sleeping bus from Phnom Penh to Battambang ($13) for the sake of saving money resulted in my arrival in Battambang at 3 am. 😨 I mean they told me about that at the ticket office but I hoped the bus would be late - it's Cambodia, not Germany... But no. 😄
It wasn't a bus station but a humble office of the bus company (happily with a bathroom). I was sitting for three hours on a plastic chair at the corner of a street, among crates and boxes scattered everywhere. At least, the office wasn't empty, employees were working - loading, unloading, carrying - so I was not completely alone.
Around 6, a janitor's broom started rustling; a tropical cockroach, disturbed by the broom, rushed towards me, climbed onto my backpack, and then jumped at me. I considered that a sign to leave. Had a 1$ ride on tuk-tuk to booked Por Chey Hostel (basic but decent, 3.6$ per night, Google.Maps).
But that wasn't the happy end yet: the check-in time was at 2:30 pm. 😥
"Can I leave the backpacks at the reception" - "Sure" - "Can I visit a bathroom?"
With brushed teeth and the empty bladder, I headed to explore the center of Battambang at 8:30 am. And that's what I discovered.
The face of the old town of Battambang is the colonial quarters from the times of the French administration. 2-, 3- floor buildings form a rectangular grid of blocks. Not without charm.
Restaurants, shops, hotels - all that is primarily aimed at tourists, and there are few of them. It seems that before the pandemic the city knew better times in this regard and awaits returning of those times.
I entered a cafe and ordered a $1 hot Cappuccino to drink with a European cake for half dollar I bought from a cake cart lady. Then I thought "Jeez, do you want diarrhea? who knows how long this cake awaited you..." But no, I had no stomach troubles. 😄
Visited Piphetthearam Pagoda; not much there. Its main temple was just locked (at 9:30 am).
I am sure some people will love this atmosphere. No disturbing road traffic or stray dogs (at least in the daytime),
Coffee shops and European cakes, a choice of cute hotels, all kinds of shops where you can buy almost anything.
They even have one 7-Eleven convenience store there which is amazing for those who are used to the Thai lifestyle. Everything costs 2x though, but that's how Cambodia works - almost everything is import and almost everything costs 2x compared to Thailand.
Battambang has nice surroundings so there are things to explore (as I know from the Web). But no large travel attractions.
I loved Battambang cityscapes but, after a 3-hour walk, I felt I explored every corner of the old town.
Much construction in the old town.
Probably, it'll soon be a neat place with everything new and modern ready to cater to freelancers, for example, Russian relocants.
Or anybody who wants to have a break from intense traveling in a calm pleasant town.
Battambang Central Market:
A bizarre spectacle.
Camry, almost vintage.
Battambang has a railway station. Wiki says "trains to the Thai border now operate every second day, and a service from Phnom Penh to Bangkok is planned". But you can't know for sure.
I loved this railway space. If I stayed another day in Battambang, I would spend it photographing life along the rails. (But I didn't).
I decided to leave the next morning since I had no energy after such an intense 6-day trip. And I felt staying longer in Battambang would feel not a pleasure but a protraction.
I paid $10 at the reception of Por Chey Hostel to book a place in a shared taxi from Battambang to Phsar Prum / Ban Pakkad Border Checkpoint. Actually, this border crossing was my goal since I wanted to come back to Thailand through less touristy (and less bitchy) place than Poipet.
The taxi trip from Battambang to Phsar Prum lasted 2 hours, the crossing was easy. Around noon, I was in Ban Pakkad, Thailand. They had minibuses to Bangkok from there at 8:30, 10:30, 12:30, 14:30 for 500 baht (phone number: 093-009-1600). I took one at 12:30. In the evening, I was in Bangkok, happy to return.
More images and stories from Southeast Asia are ahead! Check out the previous ones on my personal Pinmapple map.
I took these images with a Nikkor 50mm on a Nikon D750 on February 17, 2024, in Battambang, Cambodia.
