Day 44 (Apr 18 2013): On Traveling in Southeast Asia: The Bus From Saigon to Phnom Penh

So our bus trip from Saigon to Phnom Penh turned out to be interesting.  The trip is supposed to be 5-6 hours, which includes getting out at the border crossing and also a ferry ride across a small river.  The beginning of the trip was easy enough – bus left on time and we got to the border.  Even the border crossing went OK, even though we were forced to surrender our passports and money to the bus tour guide while we waited in a big room with 300 other travelers, all trying at once to get through to the immigration officials.

 

Even that went OK.  Once through into Cambodia, we all settled into our bus seats thinking that everything was settled and the hard part of the trip was over.  Then, all of a sudden, our bus stops and we are told that we need to get off the bus, grab our bags, and start walking for “3 minutes” so we can catch the ferry.  This is unusual.  The traffic line to get to the ferry was so long, we had to walk…for about 1.5km (which, if you’re keeping score at home, is way more than 3 minutes, especially if you’re lugging around 20lbs of luggage!).  So, single file, we marched on a thin path in between idling cars spewing out untold amounts of exhaust on the left, and an endless amount of hawker stalls, beggars, and garbage on the right.

 

 

 

Eventually we make it to the Ferry, and ride the thing across the river.

 

Then we are told to march up the hill, and are funneled into a waiting area which doubles as a shack with a tin roof, where we all bombarded by people trying to sell us things (who, it should be said, are all endearing and we enjoy talking to them, but they are relentless).

 

Finally, the bus arrives, we get on, and make it to Phnom Penh.  Perhaps if they had just told us this was going to happen, even with 5 minutes’ notice (instead of 20 seconds), it wouldn’t have been so bad.

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