Crossing the border into Cambodia

Today we will be crossing the border into Cambodia; but first, our final trip in Vietnam with our Vietnamese tour guide.

We got up for breakfast, ready for the trip at 8.30am; we were slightly delayed as some people were leaving the boat today. Obviously, we didn’t need to dock to do this, they just transferred to a speedboat, as you do. Once we boarded the sampan for our excursion, we could smell the fish farms coming into view; this was our first stop. 



There are fish farms all along the Mekong; people live on them with their dogs, a deterrent for poachers looking to steal the fish. Hundreds of fish are kept in cages with nets, about 6 metres deep,  and they get fed massively each day before selling to the market once they are big enough; it is like watching piranhas when they get fed. Much of the fish is also exported to the USA but some is consumed by the local market. All I can say is, it stinks! It was so bad, I thought I was going to be sick. Not only that, I could smell it on my clothes when we got back to the boat. Why did I choose fish for lunch?



We swiftly returned back to the sampan and headed to see a Taoist temple; it was beautifully coloured and very busy for new year. It was only a short visit as we wee headed to a local village to see a coriander farm, Iain’s favourite, not really! We took the usual limousine as transport, this time having to avoid low hanging palm trees, bushes and of course, electrical cables; thankfully, I’m short. There were kids following us about and two even tried to run along behind the motorcycle carts. We waved at everyone we passed, many people wanted us to take pictures of their children. It was sweltering again, so we headed back the boat, for lunch to cross the border. As we were trying to get to the boat, the waves started to worsen and we had to abandon our disembark. They turned the sampan to the front, we were hoping we weren’t going to have to take a run and jump, but it made it a difference and we managed to get back to the safety of the boat, the welcome drink truly appreciated. 

















It was already 11.30am so we went to the sun deck for a beer before being called for lunch; we had now made it to the Cambodia border and had dropped anchor. A speedboat, with border security, came alongside the pandaw, picked up our passports and left. We had lunch,  the boat moved and all the formalities were done...and we didn’t even have to do a thing! Compared to the Russian/Mongolian border it was a dream come true.

Welcome to Cambodia!

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