Hammock Time!

I left Phnom Penh at some ungodly hour bound for Kep. After a pleasant enough journey (Penhom Penh Soyra are the best I've travelled with so far) I reached the seaside. My flagging spirits were lifted at the first glimpse of the ocean. Kep is a tiny place, its the sort of place you check into a bungalow and hang there for however long you stay. That's what I did! I stayed at Botanica, run by a Belgian guy with great food and a well stocked bar. I met a wonderful cast of characters including a fellow museum AV tech from England! Kep really only became a destination in the early part of the 20th centruy when the French built villas along the coast and named it Kep-sur-Mare. These villas were looted and burnt by the Khmer Rouge and most remain burnt out husks - but the most photogenic husks (left)! Callum Morton may have put a ruin outside the Arts Centre for Melbourne Festival but Kep has the real thing! However there is progress and some of them are being renovated awaiting Kep's inevitable transformation into a resort town. It has no beach to speak of but the walk along the coast road past the crab markets is lovely. One of the highlights of my 3 days in Kep was a visit to a restaurant at the crab markets to eat crab with green Kampot pepper. People rave about the crab and the pepper and they are justified on both counts. Kampot pepper (specific to this part of Cambodia) has a gentle heat when dried and is mild and delicious when green. Oh, and the sunset from our oceanside table was beautiful (left). Seriously, if you come to Cambodia go to Kep, its the perfect place to recharge after too many temples and the hustle and bustle of Phnom Penh.