Day 6 to 11 in Cambodia: Koh Rong Sanloem

Off the coast of Sihanoukville there are two islands: Koh Rong and Koh Rong Sanloem. The latter is the smaller of the two and that was our destination. I will summarize our days on the island in one entry, that is the easiest.

We left early for the pier, which was not far from the hostel. Nevertheless, we took a tuk-tuk because even the short distance with suitcases on the dirt roads wouldn't have been pleasant.

Then we got on the boat and drove for about 30 minutes to Saracen Bay. This is the more developed side of the island. There is mobile phone reception and a lot of hostels and larger holiday resorts. It was accordingly busy, but the white beach and the bright blue sea were already wonderfully beautiful. We would have had to walk the entire beach, but luckily someone took us by boat, because walking with suitcases on the beach was quite exhausting.

Then we finally arrived at the start of the trail to Sunset Beach. We should have informed ourselves a bit better, because the way there took about an hour with the suitcases and we had to carry them almost the whole time. We also walked the path several times later without luggage, which was fine, but backpacks would have been a good idea.

At some point we finally arrived at Sunset Beach. There is much less going on at this beach and there are only a handful of accommodations. It was simply wonderfully beautiful there. Peace, a clean beach and a warm sea right outside the door.

At some point, all sweaty, we reached Huba Huba. We were greeted very friendly and felt at home immediately. The bar staff consisted of volunteers and it was a mix of French, English and a German. There were hammocks, loungers and good food. Electricity was only available in the evening when the generator was running and the water was not super clean, but that didn't bother us much. You are far away from the outside world and then it's okay if you don't have mobile phone reception anymore and there isn't always a huge selection of food because the boat delivery hasn't arrived yet.

Our bungalow was simple but sufficient, as we spent the whole day near the bar anyway. The sanitary facilities were not great and it could happen that you were surprised by a gecko on the toilet.

Our days at Sunset Beach were mostly about relaxation. Just lying in the hammock all day, reading, and occasionally bathing and eating. We played a bit of volleyball and we went snorkeling once. In between, I also tried my hand at building a sandcastle, but the owner's dogs quickly claimed it as their playground and almost completely destroyed it.
We also went on a plankton trip. It involved going out to sea in a kayak in complete darkness. Then we put on our masks and jumped into the water. With every movement, we saw many little glowing dots underwater. It was a unique experience: the moon was shining brightly in the cloudless sky and you just jump from the kayak into nothingness. In the darkness, you only see black underwater and a few glowing plankton. Slightly scary and I was very happy when I was back out of the water, but it was definitely worth it.

Since Thomas' cellphone still received messages, we found out what was going on in China. This completely disrupted our plans and kept us busy for 2 days. We walked back to Saracen Bay to use the Wi-Fi there. From there, we rebooked our flights and had to make a new plan, as the flight to Shanghai was no longer an option. Fortunately, we were able to stay with Matthias in Taiwan for the time being.

One of the biggest highlights was something else. As the name suggests, there are incredibly beautiful sunsets at Sunset Beach, and that was the case most of the days we were there. Unfortunately, two days were a bit rainy and cloudy, which is extremely atypical for this time of year, so the sun disappeared behind the clouds very early, but the other days were beautiful. We could simply lie in a hammock with a beer or cocktail and watch the spectacle.

Unfortunately, we had to leave this little paradise on earth at some point. Since Thomas didn't feel like carrying the suitcases all the way back, we took a kayak transfer to Lazy Beach. This was offered by Andrae from Sunset Adventures, with whom we also did the plankton tour. He loaded our luggage onto his kayak and Thomas and I rode in the other one. It was definitely a funny way to leave, as we had to navigate around a cliff and there were quite strong waves. Fortunately, the things only got slightly wet. From Lazy Beach, the way was much easier. Then we got on the boat and returned to Sihanoukville with a stopover on Koh Rong. There we took a bus to Phnom Penh, which eventually left with a delay of about 90 minutes.
So we were finally back in Phnom Penh around 9 p.m. and took a good shower.

In summary, it was a really awesome vacation. We made a good choice with the mix of sightseeing and relaxation, and Sunset Beach is definitely a place I would come back to, as there is so much more to do there. In general, Cambodia was a new experience for me and I am glad I had it, even though many of the small stories and experiences simply cannot be written in the blog.
Now I am curious how long I will stay in Taiwan and how the whole situation with China will develop.

As always, thank you for reading my entries and I am looking forward to being home soon :)