20,000 visit Sihanoukville on first day of holiday

Cambodian residents visited Sihanoukville on the first day of Water Festival

SIHANOUKVILLE (The Cambodia Herald) – An estimated 20,000 people visited Sihanoukville on the first day of the three-day Water Festival holiday, officials said Wednesday.

Seng Kha, the provincial tourism department chief, said similar numbers were expected on Wednesday and Thursday.

Beach vendors said they were not happy as prices had been fixed by provincial authorities.

"We cannot raise prices as we wish because authorities have ordered vendors and restaurants everywhere to show food prices on menus," said a vendor named Sokunthea, noting that market prices for food and other products had risen.

The government has canceled boat races in Phnom Penh for this year's Water Festival as a sign of respect for the late King Father who is still being mourned at the Royal Palace.

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Cambodia gets 2.86 mln tourists in ten months

 
Tourists are waiting to see sunset

PHNOM PENH (The Cambodia Herald) - The number of foreigners visiting Cambodia rose 24 percent from a year earlier to 2.86 million in the ten months to October, the Ministry of Tourism said. 

Vietnamese ranked first with 638,560 visitors followed by South Koreans with 337,700 and Chinese with 265,330. 

The ministry said 3.3 million visitors were expected for the whole of 2012, up from last year's 2.88 million visitors who generated $1.9 billion in revenues. 

The number of Cambodians traveling abroad rose 14 percent from a year earlier to 656,240 in the 10-month period, the ministry said.

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Artist takes Angkor temples into new dimensions

Siem Reap computer artist and techno geek Bruno Levy has been shooting for the stars with his ambitious Angkor-Planet Project, a far-out flash-based interactive online guide to the Angkor ruins, backed with a real-time gallery in Siem Reap. But Bruno has crashed to Earth with his latest commercial side venture, Magic Postcards. It seems he can’t win with these special optical illusion postcards printed in China – hold the postcard one way and there’s a vision of a monk standing against a temple background. But tilt the card and the image changes. The temple background remains the same but instead of a monk, there’s a woman dressed in a slightly racier version of ancient Angkorian garb. Back in 1992 the music trio Right Said Fred had a hit singing “I’m Too Sexy for My Shirt,” but in the here and now in 2011, Bruno is sighing that he’s too sexy for Siem Reap. Or at least his magic postcard is. Recently a Khmer-language newspaper called for official scrutiny of the postcards as not being in keeping with “Khmer culture”, and said that the Apsara Authority, who had recently banned some foreigners from the temples for wearing “sexy dress”, would investigate the matter. But while Bruno says he hasn’t heard from any authorities, including Apsara, and isn’t aware of “being under investigation”, he’s had to withdraw his postcards from sale at retail outlets. “I cannot sell them at the moment,” he despairs. “Many shop owners have read this article. One shop owner immediately told me they would stop selling the cards, and other owners told me they were worried. So I had to withdraw them all from sale.” Bruno has consigned the Magic Postcards business to the “too difficult” basket for the moment, but in the meantime he’s keeping busy evolving his weird Angkor-Planet.com website, and creating his extra-large computer-generated temple artworks that are a combination of futuristic kitsch, present-day reality, and ancient Angkorian mysticism. Previously, Bruno was a Parisian director of documentaries for French companies but he says that in a gradual evolution, he “followed the technological movement”. This led him to become an artistic computer programmer in ad land. But then his fascination with Cambodia led him to visit the country on and off for almost 10 years before he packed up his laptops and moved permanently to the Kingdom of Wonder four years ago, eventually settling in Siem Reap with his Khmer true love. In Siem Reap, he’s taken his strange but compelling far-out art into the universe of his mind and into the outer reaches of the world wide web, creating his global Angkor-Planet website in which he shares his personal vision; past, present and future. In some of his computer-generated paintings, Angkorian temples become Star Wars-like space platforms surrounded by light floating off into the darkness of the outer cosmos, and UFOs infiltrate other temple scenes. Everything about Bruno and his work suggests that he is a Yoan, a practitioner of Yoism – a techno geek cult that claims to be “the world’s first open source religion”, or the “open source truth process”. It began in the US in the mid-1990s and its practitioners, or “participants”, call themselves Yoans. Yoism is loosely based on more famous open source movements such as Wikipedia. In July 2006, the Los Angeles Times reported: “Yoism – a faith invented by a Massachusetts psychologist – shuns godly wisdom passed down by high priests. Instead, its holy text evolves online, written by the multitude of followers – much the same way volunteer programmers create open-source computer software by each contributing lines of code.” But even though his art echoes their principles of mixing and matching religious memes and themes, when this is put to him he breaks out in a bout of incredulous bewilderment, either feigned or otherwise. “Yoism?” he queries, “What is Yoism? I have never heard of it.” Perhaps it’s just sheer coincidence that on his trippy website one of the really great and grabby interactive features is a paint-your-own-Yoan. He claims his use of the word Yoan comes from a Khmer word which is derived from Pali and when coupled with the Pali word for yantra means something along the lines of “Buddha forming yantra”. In the end, though, whatever his geeky cosmological humour reveals or doesn’t reveal, the reality is that his art is eye-catching in its weirdness, and perhaps all that can be said about Bruno is God bless him – whoever or whatever God is in his website at any given moment. Source: The Phnom Penh Post

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Angkor Wat continues to drive tourist numbers

Tourist arrivals to Siem Reap and Angkor Wat increased by almost 25 percent in the first eight months of the year compared with 2010, according to statistics obtained from the Siem Reap Tourism Department.

An increasing number of Asian tourists, especially from neighbouring Vietnam, had benefitted the Kingdom’s tourism industry, said Chhoeuy Chhorn, the department’s administrative director.

“The increasing number of direct flights from regional countries is encouraging more tourists to visit Angkor Wat,” he said.

A total of 1,048,158 international tourists visited Angkor Wat Temple between January and August, a 24.4-percent increase from the 842,873 tourists visiting last year, the figures show.

“I strongly believe that international tourists will continue to increase in the coming months, due to the growing number of chartered flights arriving from South Korea and China,” Chhoeuy Chhorn said. 

In August, Siem Reap Airport received 28 flights from South Korea and China, he stated, adding that 3,000 Thai tourists visited the temple, showing that “everything appears to be back to normal”.

The statistics show that Vietnam was the largest source of arrivals to Angkor Wat, with 188,064 tourists visiting in the first eight months of this year, a 37.5-percent increase over the same period in 2010.

South Korea and China ranked second and third, respectively. According to ppp

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CDC approval Investment coming from Cambodians

CAMBODIAN businesses have emerged as the Kingdom’s leading source of investment funds, surpassing China in the first four months of 2011, according to figures from the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC).

Cambodian investors received approval to invest US$1.2 billion, while China and the United States invested $1.09 billion and $95 million respectively between January and April.

The total value of approved projects in Cambodia doubled in that period, with 27 projects, worth $2.506 billion, approved by the CDC, a 176 per cent increase on the 35 projects, worth $907 million, certified during the corresponding period last year.

The tourism sector benefited most from the increase in capital investment during the first four months, according to CDC director of the evaluation and incentive of investment Youn Heng.

“In this period we saw a large increase [in capital], especially in the tourism sector, showing the confidence investors have regarding Cambodia’s situation,” he said.

As the backbone of the Kingdom’s economy, investments in the tourism, industry and service sectors were crucial,  University of Cambodia Business and Economics lecturer Chheng Kimlong said. according to ppp

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Killing Field tourism: Haunting memorial or gratuitous commercialism?

A Buddhist stupa towers over the site and is usually the first stop for visitors passing through Cheoung Ek, though there is competition from the souvenir shop to the left of the entrance. During the Khmer Rouge era, Pol Pot sought to eliminate all forms of religion and murdered most of the country's monks and religious minorities. Visitors to Choeung Ek, Cambodia's most infamous Killing Field, learn about the Khmer Rouge's murderous past in graphic detail, but locals don't benefit. From 1975 to 1979 an estimated 1.4 million Cambodians were killed under the despotic rule of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge. The executions took place on what have become known as Cambodia's Killing Fields. The best known of these is Choeung Ek, 17 kilometers from the center of Phnom Penh. Here, an estimated 17,000 men, women and children were butchered by the Khmer Rouge. It is a suitably grim and eerie memorial to those who died, an Auschwitz-Birkenau for Asia. But unlike the Holocaust memorial, Choeung Ek is not a UNESCO World Heritage site and today questions are being raised about the benefit of Killing Field tourism for local inhabitants. Choeung Ek is run by Japanese company JC Royal, which pays the Cambodian Government an annual US$15,000 levy for the site. Meanwhile, the five million survivors of the Khmer Rouge era appear to derive little benefit from it. Many live on less than US$1 per day, an injustice that adds to the upset caused by delays in punishing the perpetrators behind Cambodia's darkest era. 


How to getting there
Choeung Ek is a 17-kilometer drive from the heart of Phnom Penh. A taxi or tuk-tuk should do a return trip for US$8-10, depending on how long you want to spend at the site. The journey takes about 45 minutes, depending on traffic.  CNNgo.com, 18 May, 2011

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UAE direct flight push by tourism ministry

THE United Arab Emirates will review beginning direct flights between Dubai and Phnom Penh, according to Minister of Tourism Thong Khon.
The minister spent much of last week in Dubai, where Dubai Civil Aviation Authority President and Chairman of Emirates Airline Sheik Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum pledged to review a 2005 Memorandum of Understand to establish the flights, he said yesterday.
“They will review their MoU with us again, in order to push direct flights from Dubai to Cambodia as soon as possible,” he said, but declined to provide a timeline for the flights.
While direct flights would boost tourism, Thong Khon said that UAE-based firms were interested in business opportunities in the Kingdom, which would be facilitated by direct flights.
“[The UAE] is preparing to cooperate on trade and investment with Cambodia. UAE-based companies plan to buy rice, rubber, fruit and lumber from Cambodia,” he said.
Representatives from the UAE are to travel to Cambodia to study the opportunities in more detail.
Cambodian Association of Travel Agents President Ang Kim Eang said yesterday he welcomed direct flights from the UAE.
A number of countries have recently begun direct flights to Cambodia, including Air France, which resumed flights between Paris and Phnom Penh on March 31 after a 37 year hiatus.


According to PPP. Thursday 28, April 2011

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Seven Days in Cambodia

Cambodia is arguably the most underrated country in Southeast Asia. Long Thailand's shadow, Cambodia has emerged as a historian's paradise with a growing infrastructure and services industry, shuffling tourists to its epicenter, the Angkor Wat and its hot spots Siem Reap, the floating villages of Battambang, and the quiet refuge of Sihanoukville Beach.

If you have seven days in Cambodia, be sure to check out the following sights.
Angkor Wat and Siem Reap - Angkor Wat is the largest piece of religious architecture in the world. This temple complex was the backdrop to the Tomb Raider series and spans over a 15 mile radius with Angkor itself and smaller structures like the TA Prohm temple and the Angkor Thom monuments with the rocky faces of past god-kings staring at you. Revel in its more than one kilometer of art along walls and its majestic rise above the sunrise. Dawn is the best time to visit this complex.
Floating Villages - Entire villages are built on 6 m long sticks on the water. Everything from small pharmacies to markets bob above the water with everyone dependent on catching fish for a living. The most popular floating village is Chong Kneas and Kompong Phhluk with a special shout out to the Prek Toal floating village bird sanctuary that is home to some of the rarest birds in the world.
Battambang - Battambang is Cambodia's second largest city after capital Phnom Penh and is a rural paradise, with a mix of wetlands, mountains, and Angkor inspired temples. It is not highly trafficked and is predominantly a colonial themed farmer outpost with dirt-cheap accommodation. When you're here, check out Phnom Sampeau, a killing spouted during the Khmer Rouge during the Pol Pot period now lined with Buddhist statues in caves, and Wat Banan, a miniature version of Angkor Wat.
Sihanoukville - For relaxation, head to the beaches of Sihanoukville. Although not as picturesque as a Ko Lanta or Ko Phi Phi with its grainy sands, Sihanoukville is a blow to the senses with dive bars and large sprawl. However, this area is a bustling sex tourism spot with large amounts of unfinished construction around. Look to the out islands for as close to turquoise waters as you can get.
All in all, Cambodia has taken countless strides towards becoming an ideal tourist destination after the Pol Pot and Khmer Rouge regime of the 1970’s.

By Eli Blue

Crave Online

Apr 27th, 2011

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UAE direct flight push by tourism ministry

THE United Arab Emirates will review beginning direct flights between Dubai and Phnom Penh, according to Minister of Tourism Thong Khon.
The minister spent much of last week in Dubai, where Dubai Civil Aviation Authority President and Chairman of Emirates Airline Sheik Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum pledged to review a 2005 Memorandum of Understand to establish the flights, he said yesterday.
“They will review their MoU with us again, in order to push direct flights from Dubai to Cambodia as soon as possible,” he said, but declined to provide a timeline for the flights.
While direct flights would boost tourism, Thong Khon said that UAE-based firms were interested in business opportunities in the Kingdom, which would be facilitated by direct flights.
“[The UAE] is preparing to cooperate on trade and investment with Cambodia. UAE-based companies plan to buy rice, rubber, fruit and lumber from Cambodia,” he said.
Representatives from the UAE are to travel to Cambodia to study the opportunities in more detail.
Cambodian Association of Travel Agents President Ang Kim Eang said yesterday he welcomed direct flights from the UAE.
A number of countries have recently begun direct flights to Cambodia, including Air France, which resumed flights between Paris and Phnom Penh on March 31 after a 37 year hiatus.


According to PPP 

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European beauty

The pictures from above gives us new insight into a very different ex-continent, the ravishing beauty.

Ancient castles, vast wheat fields, the peaceful seaside town ... is characteristic of Europe. Are also the familiar logo, but the photos were taken on board, giving viewers a new perspective on the continent.

The majestic mountains.

Gently meandering river.

The ancient castle picturesque.

Vast fields of barley.

Acres of bright tulips.

A strange hill.

The volcano is off.

Vast green pastures.

According to the Vietnam Post and Telecommunications

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Go to Battambang

Battambang, Cambodia

Sitting on the Sangker River just south west of the Tonle Sap Lake, Battambang town is at the heart of Cambodia's 'rice bowl', and even though it is the country's second biggest town, it still has a very local, untouristed, provincial atmosphere. Much of the architecture is French colonial and traditional Cambodian. Few buildings are over three stories, and the main streets are shared by cars and horse carts alike. Unlike more touristed towns, the local economy is truly local - based firmly in rice, wood, sapphires and food crops - and is reflected in the character of the town. Similarly, as you leave Battambang by road, the scene quickly becomes one of small villages, rice paddies, and farmland, offering an excellent opportunity for the visitor to see a bit of 'unspoiled' rural Cambodia. The nearby countryside also harbors old pagodas, Angkorian era ruins, caves, waterfalls, and even Khmer Rouge period killing fields. Battambang means ‘disappearing stick’, and is named after a powerful stick used by a legendary Khmer king to achieve and maintain power in the Battambang area.

Getting to Battambang

  Air

At time of printing there are no flights to Battambang.
Siem Reap to Battambang

Boat

Daily ferry departs in each direction at 7:00am. $20-$25/person. It's a picturesque, 6-8 hour journey across the Tonle Sap and along the Sangker River in the wet season, but can be considerably longer in the dry season due to low water levels. Ask about current conditions. The boats in no way meet international safety standards. There is no direct boat from Phnom Penh.
Road

(National Routes #6 and #5, via Sisophon): The road from Battambang to Siem Reap around the west side of the lake is in excellent condition. The perennially broken stretch between Siem Reap and Sisophon has been fully repaired.
Bus

Three bus companies (including Neak Krorhorm, Phnom Penh Sorya and Rith Mony) run one or two daily a/c buses, most leaving in the morning. Buy tickets at the bus company office (see map.) $4-$5, 2½-3 hours.
Taxi

A private taxi costs $35-$45 and takes about 3 hours.
Phnom Penh to Battambang

Road

(291km, National Route #5): The road is paved and in good condition.
Bus

Several bus companies (including Phnom Penh Sorya, Neak Krorhorm and Capitol Tours) run multiple daily buses between Phnom Penh to Battambang. First bus departs at 6:30AM and the last at 3:00PM. Fare: 17,000R-20,000R. The trip takes 5 hours. In Battambang, buses depart from the various transportation company offices.
Taxi

A private taxi is $35 - $45. Shared taxi: 25,000R per person. 4 hours. Prices for shared local transport are very nominal, but are also crowded and uncomfortable. Buy more than one place for the extra leg room.

Getting Around Battambang

Like most of Cambodia, the choice is motorcycle taxi (motodup), rent a car with driver, or rent a motorcycle. Your hotel can arrange a car or motorcycle rental. Cars are about $20/day and motorcycle rental runs $5-$8/day - a bit more expensive than other towns. Motodups are plentiful during the day. Just step onto the street and they will find you. They can be much more difficult to find at night. A ride in town should range 500 to 1500 riel.

Battambang Hotels/Guesthouses
Au Cabaret Vert

Range: $50

The Cabaret Vert is an eco-resort. You are welcome in spacious bungalows around a natural swimming pool. Its restaurant offers French cuisine (foie gras, andouillette, ...) but also the Cambodian cooking (our speciality: fish amok). It is about an ecological hotel where everything is made in the respect for the nature: swimming pool without chlorine, air conditioning by geothermal science, watering of the garden by rainwater. The team of Cabaret Vert also proposes you visits of Battambang and its countryside.

Tel: 053-6562000

www.aucabaretvert.com

Bambu Hotel

Range: $50-$85 (breakfast included)

New, fully outfitted and equipped hotel/resort complex sporting well-appointed, traditionally inspired rooms. All rooms with a/c/ CTV, DVD, stocked mini-bar, wifi, en suite bathroom with hot/ water. Swimming pool and full restaurant and bar serving Cambodian and international fare. Located in a quiet area on the east side of the river only 2 minutes from town center.

Visa/MC/ANZ

Tel: +(855)(0)53-953900

Fax: +(855)(0)53-953951
bookings@bambuhotel.com
www.bambuhotel.com 

Bus Stop Guesthouse  

Range: $10-$30

Clean, Australian managed guesthouse in the center of town offering fan and a/c rooms with cable TV, en suite bathroom. Lightning fast wifi internet access in the restaurant and rooms. Western food. Tour services and expert travel advice. Motorcycle rental. Free pick up service and free wifi.

Tel: +(855)(0)53-730544
E-mail: info@busstopcambodia.com
Website: www.busstopcambodia.com
Khemara Battambang I Hotel 
Range: $20 - $450

92 rooms. A/c rooms and suites with all amenities: cable TV, fridge, en suite with hot water. Swimming pool. Located in a quiet area. Large parking area. Karaoke rooms. Conference rooms and banquet facilities. Gym, sauna, spa, steam. Free Wifi in rooms. Restaurant.
Tel: +(855)(0)53-737878, +(855)(0)17-612168

Fax: +(855)(0)53-732626
E-mail: admin@khemerahotel.com / gm@khemarahotel.com
Website: www.khemarahotel.com
La Villa
Range: $60-$85

Nicely restored 1930s colonial house. Seven rooms with a/c and fan, stylishly decorated with antiques and Art Deco furniture. Western and Asian food and a wide selection of cocktails served in the a/c restaurant or garden. Swimming pool.
Tel: +(855)(0)53-730151, +(855)(0)17-411880
E-mail: lavilla.battambang@gmail.com
Website: www.lavilla-battambang.net 

Park Hotel

Range: $5-$12

Overlooking a nice little park near the entrance to town. Reasonably priced a/c and fan rooms with attached bathroom, cable TV, hot water and fridge. Free pick up.

Tel: +(855)(0)53-953773, +(855)(0)12-817170             
park_hotelbtb@yahoo.com
Spring Park Hotel

Range: $6-$35

Located near the New Iron Bridge at the south end of town. A/c and fan rooms with all amenities including IDD and Internet port. En suite bathroom. Conference room. Elevator. Free Pick up. Boat, bus tickets available.

Tel: +(855)(0)12-849999
spparkhotel@yahoo.com
Stung Sangke Hotel

Range: $40-$120

A leading hotel in Battambang with 130 rooms and suites. Walk only 5 minutes from ferry dock and a 10-15 minute walk to visit colonial architecture, the provincial hall, Phsar Nat and historic pagodas.

Tel: +(855)(0)53-953495

E-mail: info@stungsangkehotel.com

Website: www.stungsangkehotel.com
Battambang Restaurants/Bars

Au Cabaret Vert

On the menu: Traditional Cambodian dishes (with our specialty: fish amok!) and French cuisine (delicious home-made foie gras, andouillette with mash potatoes). Without forgetting to mention the daily special !  New wines are selected each month to awaken new flavors over the dishes. Fine dining in a calm atmosphere ! The bar space offers various cocktails, rums, teas and expresso to enjoy at the counter or at the pool.

The Apple of Love (Pomme d’amour)

Patrice cooks Khmer cuisine with a French twist, sophisticated and creative. As the food is exceptional, the cozy atmosphere is exquisite and the local staff a delight. All the culinary delights are gathered in the Apple of Love front the appetizer to the wine card offering all of the wines on the planet.

The Bamboo Train Café and Bar Welcoming local restaurant a wide selection of Cambodian dishes as well as several western selections. Very nice Cambodian curries and local salads such as Green Mango Salad and Banana Flower Salad. Western breakfasts, burgers, pizzas and more. Full bar and pool table. Open 7:00AM - 9:30PM. Tel: 012-517125

Bus Stop Guesthouse  The home of the Premiere League in Battambang. Crazy drink promotions during Premiere League. All Games Live on the 42" Mega Screen! Australian run sports bar and pub offering quality pub food with all your favorites, from schnitzels to hamburgers, even bangers and mash. Full English breakfasts a specialty. Icy cold beer and full spirit menu. Rock n Roll music from the 50's to the 90's. No hip hop! Expert travel advice. Open 6:30AM - Late.

www.busstopcambodia.com
  The Bungalow Guesthouse Restaurant Guesthouse restaurant and bar with an photo extensive menu of Khmer and Thai dishes as well as some western food including burgers and pizzas. Comfortable place. Good food. Some of the best coffee in town.

www.thebungalow.us
Chinese Noodle Restaurant Inexpensive local restaurant Just a few doors down from the White Rose. Very good fresh made noodles, noodle soup, lots of Chinese dishes. Good place for a local breakfast noodle soup (kuiteo) or fried meat and rice.

The Colonial Friendly welcoming little town center restaurant serving up some very nice beef steaks, meat and vegetable pies, pastas and toasted sandwiches at very reasonable prices. Pan fried beef steak with home-made wine, garlic, mushroom or pepper sauce. Chicken and mushroom pie and curry vegetable pie. Drinks, snacks and more.

Fresh Eats NGO-based training café and restaurant serving Khmer and western food. All-day western breakfasts. Free wifi. Located on Street 2-1/2.

  Khmer Delight Restaurant Popular city center restaurant offering Asian/European traditional and fusion cuisines – an interesting array of choices, including such Khmer favorites as Lok Lak as well as dishes from Indonesia, Italy, Australia and France. Excellent lasagna. Very generous portions at very reasonable prices. Great value. Delicious Battambang fruit shakes. Beer and wine.

La Villa The finest western dining in Battambang. Excellent western and Asian food and a wide range of cocktails served in an a/c restaurant or the garden patio of a nicely restored 1930s colonial villa. Wine selection. Western managed. Located on the river road on the east side of the river.www.lavilla-battambang.com

Madison Corner

Friendly family atmosphere of Patrice and his lovely Khmer wife Nary, where you can enjoy a drink, draft beer, cocktail, home-made rum and a large variety of ice creams and local snacks. Some of the best crepes in Cambodia. A Battambang meeting place. 6AM-Midnight. Great place for breakfast an espresso before catching the boat to Siem Reap.

www.madison-corner.com
Riverside Balcony The name says it. Very pleasant riverside location. Western managed balcony bar and restaurant hovering over the banks of a quiet stretch of the Sangker River. Beer, spirits and good conversation. Burgers, pasta, enchiladas, specials on the board.
White Rose Long popular with the NGO crowd, this small, corner shop Cambodian restaurant offers an extensive menu, good Cambodian food, ice cream, reasonable prices and ponderous service. Street 2.. 6:30AM - 10PM.

Battambang: What to See

Battambang City is absolutely full of wonderful colonial-era architecture and historic old pagodas, and the surrounding countryside harbors not only Angkorian-era temple ruins and pagodas but also offers some of the most picturesque rice paddy and village scenery in the country. The new edition of Ray Zepp’s essential guide to Battambang and the surrounding area, Around Battambang, is available at tourist hotels and restaurants throughout Battambang City. Zepp’s 164 page guide contains invaluable information on Battambang’s historic pagodas, Angkorian era temple ruins, surrounding countryside and local travel details. Highly recommended. 

Bamboo Train

The bamboo train is a unique and creative form of ad-hoc local transportation. It consists of a small (perhaps 2.5m x 4m), motorcycle engine-powered bamboo cart that rides the railroad rails picking up and dropping off passengers, cargo, animals, motorcycles along the way. When it meets on on-coming train or bamboo train, it can be disassembled and taken off the rails in a minute or two, allowing the other to pass. When touring the countryside ask your driver to take you to a rail crossing where you can meet a bamboo train to take a ride.
Circus

The Phare Ponleu Selpak NGO gives Cambodian children from poor and disabled families the opportunity to “access culture via different artistic activities” including music, drawing, drama, dance and circus. Offering traditional Cambodian circus acts every Thursday evening. Call 053-952424, 017-696371 for schedule updates. Located on Route #5 about 1km west of town.

Website: www.phareps.org .

Cooking Classes

Nary Kitchen is offering twice daily Cambodian cooking classes, morning and afternoon, taught by Ms. Nary. The class is about 2-1/2 hours and includes a market trip, preparing a single traditional Cambodian meal (recipe sheet included) and then enjoying the fruits of your labor for lunch or dinner. See map for location. Tel: 012-763950.
Countryside Tour

The rural countryside outside of Battambang is National Geographic picturesque. Within just a few kilometers of town the countryside turns into small villages filled with stilted houses and rice paddies that stretch to the horizon. You’ll see plenty of countryside on the way to any of the local sites. Check out some of the local products in the making - rice paper, noodles and the fishpaste market. It’s all very traditional if not a bit unhygienic and smelly, but a interesting experience and adventure nonetheless. The roads are often rough and during the dry season. always exceptionally dusty. Bring a good hat and a krama to cover your nose and mouth.
  Ek Phnom

Ek Phnom is an 11th century Angkorian-era ruin built as a Hindu temple under Suryavarman I. The temple consists of prasats on a platform with some carvings in pretty good condition. Wat Ek Phnom, a modern pagoda, sits next to the ruin. The river road drive to Ek Phnom from Battambang passes through small villages and rice paddies and is an absolutely beautiful countryside drive. 

Phnom Banan

Phnom Banan is a mountain top, 11th century Angkorian-era ruin consisting of five prasats. Peaceful location with a nice view of the area. Also L’Ang But Meas cave. Very old (150 years+) active pagoda at the base of the mountain.

Pagodas

Both Battambang town and the surrounding countryside are replete with pagodas, some of them very old and highly respected. See Ray Zepp's bookAround Battambang for complete information about visiting the local pagodas.

Phnom Sampeou Mountain

Phnom Sampeou Mountain, steeped in legend, and topped by Wat Sampeou and a group of caves used as ‘killing caves’ by the Khmer Rouge, containing the skeletal remains of their victims. The wat is unexceptional but the view is spectacular. Ask about the legend of Neang Rumsay Sok. 

Provincial Museum

The Battambang Provincial Museum on the riverfront in the center of town houses a large collection of Angkorian and pre-Angkorian artifacts - statues, carvings, bits of ancient temples, pottery, etc. One of the best provincial museums. Hours: 8AM-11AM/2PM-5PM, make reservations for weekend visit and they will open the door for you. Admission: $1. Tel: 092-914688, 016-896727.

Shopping in Battambang

Phsar Nath in the center of town is the main phsar (traditional market) and is geared to the locals, sporting the usual variety of fruits, vegetables, meat, clothes, sundries, food stalls, etc. Gem dealers, a couple of banks, photo shops and moneychangers line the streets that ring the phsar. Phsar Leu, just south of town, seems to be the place to buy the local specialties: oranges and pomelos from Pursat province. The oranges are said to be the best oranges in the country.

Chea Neang Drink Shop is a small convenience store on the west side of Phsar Nath, popular with foreigners and offering ice cream bars, cheeses, yogurt, wines, and other imported items.
The Smiling Sky Bookshop Second hand bookshop dealing in English language books - Cambodia related titles, novels, popular literature. Buy sell trade. On Road #2 near the White Rose.
Local goods Marble sculpture from Pursat province, woodcarvings from Battambang and sapphires from Pailin dominate the souvenir market in Battambang. Many of the hotels as well as the small souvenir/art/curios shops on Road #1 on the river in the center of town offer a selection of wood and marble products. The art shops have a better selection than the hotels and a couple have very interesting collections of curios, old trinkets, coins, antiques and oddities - well worth a look.
 Cambodian sapphires and rubies mined in Pailin near the Thai border are brought to Battambang to be graded, cut and polished. There are some good deals on stones in Battambang but be very careful when buying. Fake and low quality jewel scams are common so you need to know gemology or know your gem dealer very well. Gem and gold dealers are located in the center of Psah Nath, in little shops surrounding the psah, and in a few shops on Road #1.  

Internet/Phone in Battambang

There are Internet shops all over town. KCT Internet Cafés has a shop next to the White Rose restaurant. Teo Hotel also has a small Internet shop. Access is relatively fast and stable. About $1.50/hour. Most internet shops offer very inexpensive internet phone. Bus Stop Guesthouse has free wifi, probably the fastest in town.

Banks in Battambang

Money

Like the rest of Cambodia, the Cambodian riel is the official currency but the US Dollar is the de facto tender. Hotel prices are set in dollars. Unique to Battambang and western Cambodia, Thai baht is in common use as well.
Banks and ATMs

All banks encash travelers checks and change money and most have ATMs.Canadia Bank, UCB and ANZ Royal are located in front of Phsar Nath, all with ATMs. The ACLEDA Bank on the east side of the river offers Western Union. Moneychanger/goldsellers are concentrated around the market with a few along Road #1.

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