Our plans for day four were totally scuppered as soon as we met up with our TukTuk driver, No 10, who informed us that the Royal Palace and the museum were closed, but he swiftly offered to show us some sights if we were interested. We hopped on board and headed out in to the city. Approaching the roundabout, our driver – No. 10 – pointed out the statue of the King with some brief chat about him being good most of the time!
“Fancy a monastery…” No 10 asks? “Oh yes!” we chorus! We were totally unaware that you could just wander in to monasteries, so the answer was definitely yes, so round the roundabout we shot, cutting across three lanes of traffic driving straight into Wat Langka. This is the joy of a good TukTuk driver, he gave us great details of the monastry and was able to fully explain the Cambodians take on Buddhism. We returned to our TukTuk enlightened and grateful for the local knowledge.
His next suggestion was Wat Phnom, the temple that Phnom Penh was built around and gave it it’s name. The temple is built on a hill and the thought of climbing stairs in intense heat and humidity didn’t fill us with joy but it was definitely worth the effort. Not only was the temple lively but we spotted hornbills, mynah birds, monkeys, cats, cages of sparrows and a tree full of fruit bats!
Returning sweaty to the TukTuk No 10 suggested trying sugar cane juice from a street cart which turned out to be less sweet than we expected but incredibly refreshing.
Heading back into the city and across the river out to where the old fishing village used to be, it was sad to see how the area was being replaced and constricted by posh riverside apartments. It was still possible to catch glimpses of the old way of life, the market stalls and ferry. Finally pulling up alongside the Mekong showing us where the upper and lower Mekong meets the Tonle Sap river. The reach of these rivers covers most of Southeast Asia, something which felt unimaginable as we stood watching the fast moving muddy waters.
Back onboard our TukTuk and on to our final stop, the Golden Temple and monastery in Chrouy Changva alongside the Mekong River. A quiet temple waiting for students to return after lunch. We then headed back for lunch at the hotel, taking a circuitous route to see more city life.
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