柬埔寨與泰國之間的三不管地帶／李明熙
15 天東南亞之旅，從暹粒出發，經曼谷和合艾、檳城和吉隆坡，以新加坡為終點，全程陸路過境，為求重拾丁點放浪感覺。說是「丁點」，因為我們住得奢華，餐餐飽肚，雖是背包上路，但不再是青年時的餐風飲露式浪遊。
由暹粒到曼谷，最便宜的是坐公車到 Poipet，過境後坐每日只得兩班的火車從 Aranyaprathet 到曼谷，十年前試過反方向，這種經驗一次就夠。最快是坐的士到邊境，抵達泰國轉坐班次頻密的旅遊巴，若有四人分擔的士費，可作考慮。最方便的是直通車，車上有水有小食有 WiFi，25 美元一位。
直通車公司多，好壞參差，一定要在網上多讀用家評價。十六座比旅遊巴可快，但大巴闊落，坐位可調至接近躺直。我倆覺得，空間比時間重要。
早上八時由暹粒出發， 開往邊境只需 3.5 小時，說是國家高速亦只是兩線行車，但相對十年前，現在大部份是柏油路。柬埔寨邊境像無掩雞籠，無數的騙子希望帶你過境。因為蓋過離境印後，還要步行 300 米才到泰國入境處，這路上有不少賭場會所，屬三不管地帶，騙子們會絞盡腦汁地說你的簽證不行，又會擺出接駁交通取消等理由，希望你在賭場會所留宿，撈點油水。
泰國關口的格局比較嚴緊，指示清晰，關員亦不會公然向你索取小費。過境後，返回同一輛旅遊巴，開上泰國高速，下午六時到達曼谷，全程十個小時。
Local Khmer Food/Kimberlogic
Siem Reap is a fast growing town. It has something for everyone from budget backpackers to very high end luxury travelers. Although I always travel with fewer things than a backpacker, I am no longer in my 20’s looking for cheap booze and anything to put in my stomach to soak up the copious amount of alcohol consumed during a backpack journey.
In my 30’s, I look for culture and experiences and Siem Reap did not disappoint. It seems every place in Siem Reap serves something resembling pizza and when we first arrived with empty stomachs and no bearing of the city, it seemed like a safe option…it wasn’t, but that didn’t deter us. Because of the rapidly growing tourism, Siem Reap has all kinds of cuisine available from fast food chains to fine French dining. Only having 2 days in Cambodia, our goal was to try all of the local Khmer food we could find.
On the first day in Cambodia we made the mistake of looking for lunch around 3pm. Most places close between 3 and 5:30 to prepare for dinner service, so after trying 2 restaurants recommended by a guide book and being turned away, we were on our own. We love to eat where locals eat, but sometimes that is just not possible when there is a language barrier. Luckily, we found a café packed with locals and one table of foreigners, so we knew they would be willing to serve us.
The most famous Khmer dish is Fish Amok, so we ordered that with fresh spring rolls. When the food arrived, the Amok was served in a coconut and the spring rolls were colorful and fragrant. This was the best tasting meal of our stay in Cambodia with the best local atmosphere; nothing fancy just good, fresh food. We even had a good laugh with the locals when they saw me, a westerner, mastering the chopsticks, while my husband, Chinese, struggling with a fork since there was only one pair of chopsticks available.
A restaurant on the second floor balcony is typically more expensive, but not always better. The next day we had lunch on a beautiful wooden balcony in a lush garden setting. Although the facility was gorgeous the food, edible, but not good. It was quite disappointing. It enforced the life lesson of not judging a book by its cover.
After a subpar lunch we were determined to have an excellent last meal in Siem Reap. We agreed to go to a more expensive restaurant that actually accepted credit cards, which is not common in Cambodia. Café Indochine had a beautiful wooden balcony in a garden setting just like our lunch, but this time the food was excellent. We got 3 authentic Khmer dishes to share, one being the fish Amok again, shrimp with kampot pepper and chas kruang beef. Each dish had a distinct flavor yet all three dishes complimented each other nicely. When the bill came, it was even cheaper than our lunch and satisfied us even more.
