Thanksgiving!! I had a day full of share taxi travel from Sen Monorom to Phnom Penh, and then Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville. Quicker than the bus at least! Normally in the share taxis they sit 2 people in the front seat, and 4 in the back. Of a 4 door Camry. I happily paid double to have the front seat to myself.

I was headed for Otres Beach in Sihanoukville, which I heard was the nicest beach, and more laid back. I was looking forward to a nice $20 a night bungalow on the beach! The only potential hitch was that there aren’t as many sleeping options there, so I called a bunch during the drive to make sure I at least had somewhere for the first night. Booked, booked, booked. Uh oh. I resorted to my back up plan, and called the only more expensive place on the beach ($80 a night). Not only did they have an open bungalow, but they were also serving Thanksgiving Dinner!

By the time I arrived in Sihanoukville it was around 5. After 2 weeks watching Cambodians overload their motos, I felt no shame as I loaded myself and my bags onto the back of a tiny moto, and headed straight to Otres Beach. As we drove through Sihanoukville I was worried. I had heard it was a tourist trap, and it was. Multi-story hotels, Casino, traffic, sunburned people everywhere. We drove about 10 minutes before we got to Otres, and it was hard to believe it could be part of the same place. Just one dirt/sand street off the beach, stand alone bungalows, and 1-2 story restaurants and guest houses. Thank god. We drove through the small main area, past an empty white sand beach, and to an area further down the beach where there were a few more places. Mine was at the very end.

Wow! The property was not that big (only 10 bungalows), you really were away from the Sihanoukville madness, and on a near empty beach at that location. I checked out the hotel and my bungalow. Swimming pool! AC! Toiletries! Private enclosed outdoor shower off my bathroom! It wasn’t luxury by American standards, but after recently spending a night in a hammock next to livestock, it sure felt like it!!

Next stop – Thanksgiving Dinner. I walked to the restaurant area, and talked to the owner who was from Texas. With an accent! I was feeling right at home as I sat down beachside with a glass of wine and my plate of turkey, cranberry, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, salad (you have no idea how much I’ve missed salad). And for desert – pumpkin pie, and mango cobbler!! The mango cobbler was obscene. The only thing that kept me from eating the whole thing was the other 25+ people I was supposed to be sharing it with. Among those people – Americans, Italians, Swiss, French, British. And a man that looked like Jesus with long dark hair and a long beard. And eyeliner. And a flowy shirt with floral embroidery.

As much as I wanted to spend the next week right where I was, I couldn’t justify the price if there were cheaper options. The next morning I walked the half hour down the beach to the first area where most of the bungalows were, and started asking about availability. I settled on the nicest of the beach front private bungalows, which was owned by Italians. It had a shared bathroom, a mosquito net, and a fan for $12 a night. I went straight back to use the pool at my other place before I checked out, moved, and then spent the rest of the day on the beach.
Couple of things I should mention about Otres Beach – for starters, as I understand it most of the places there don’t own the land, and are leasing with the understanding that they may be kicked out if someone with big money comes in to develop. Thus the budget bungalows – nobody is going to invest too much in something they may lose. Second – the only water available either comes from wells, or is trucked in. This means that everyplace on the beach (except my $80 a night place) has sandy colored water in the showers and toilets. Third – none of the places are allowed to add toilets to their bungalows if they don’t already have them. So a bungalow with it’s own toilet is a treat! Fourth – it’s rapidly changing. There is building all over the place, and there’s a giant a new resort that looks close to completion at the start of the beach. But for now it is a laid back, budget friendly place with basic beach front bungalows. The type of place you can kick back and go shoeless for a couple of days. Which I did when someone stole my flip flops. I inherited a new pair a couple days later though, so it was fine.

At the main part of Otres Beach there’s always a few ladies walking the beach selling fruit and giving massages, pedicures etc. I got a manicure pedicure from a sassy girl (yes I know it’s not hygienic). It’s completely normal for one lady to be working, have her friend stop for a chat, and then start helping out while they’re talking. So I had my sassy lady doing my feet and another lady doing my hands. They also get a little territorial. Once you have a fruit lady, or massage lady they remember you. If you go to someone else you’re cheating on them.

That night I fell asleep to the sound of waves right outside my door. In the middle of the night (and every night while I was there) it down-poured. Which was not convenient for the shared bathroom. First thing in the morning I went to ask if there was a room available with a bathroom inside.

Later that morning I went to the bungalows next door to start kitesurfing lessons. There is one guy (IKO certified) giving lessons with a couple of kites, and a boat. Good thing about the boat – we had an off shore wind, which will take a beginner right out to sea with no way back since you don’t know how to go upwind. There were a couple of Australians who had started the day before, so they would go first in the morning while I rode in the boat, and then I would go in the afternoon. The boat by the way – the instructor and his buddy built themselves.

I watched the other guys, watched the instructor get angry and yell at them when they messed up, then his face morph from annoyance to patience as he said “it’s ok”. Over and over again. It rained in the afternoon – so no lesson for me.

Next day – back for my kitesurf lesson. The Aussies went in the morning/early afternoon, and got yelled at while I watched. Then the wind died completely. No lesson for me. Again. Nothing to do about it but get drinks at the bar, and play darts and connect four with the Aussies.

I was hoping to have a full week of lessons, and my days were slowly chipping away. At this rate I would only have time for 2 days worth. It’s hard to make any progress with one or two days of lessons at a time. Plus I didn’t want to be yelled. The next day I told the instructor I was out.

The days went too quickly! I relaxed on the beach, was entertained by the kids selling bracelets, visited with my beauty ladies, my fruit lady braided my hair everyday, saw the Jesus looking guy from Thanksgiving a couple of times.

Before I knew it, a week had gone by, and it was my last day in Otres Beach. That afternoon I sat at the bar for a while researching Vietnam. While flipping back and forth between my Ipad and Lonely Planet book, I noticed the guy sitting next to me doing the same thing. I asked if he was researching where he was going next, and he said no, he was working. With a Lonely Planet book? What was he working on? Updating one of the Lonely Planets. He was also one of the two writers of the Lonely Planet Cambodia. So much good info!! If only I met him 3 weeks ago!!

I ended up talking to the new owner of one of the neighboring places. She was from San Francisco, and had just bought the place and moved 6 weeks ago. She introduced me to her friend, who had lived in Otres Beach for 2 years, and also happened to be friends with the Lonely Planet guy. The tourists come and go, but these people had a small community. I listened to them talk about everybody’s business for a while, and then went up to the bar to settle my tab for the week. I wondered if maybe I should stay a couple of more days….? It was so relaxed here, my fruit lady did my hair everyday for free, and I had met a really cool group of people. But no, I had 3 days on a practically deserted island I was looking forward to. And then Jesus spoke to me. Long hair, beard and eyeliner Jesus! I was so excited, like he was a celebrity. I was so excited I only talked for a minute, and then ran off. Why? I don’t know.

Tomorrow – Koh Rong!