Kampar to Cambodia

The flight took 1 1/2 hours. That's a good thing because my seat was at the back against the wall so that it could not recline, so there was a pillow awkwardly stuck into my neck as I nodded out. It was impossible not to close my eyes after sitting in the airport all night. The odd viewing of "Mr. Bean" on the airport TV's was encouraging. I watched him climb to the top of a high diving board and completely related to his reaction. He laid down and clung to the board! That would be me!

On arrival, I heard a little voice say, "You're not going to like this." Whether it was the devil or God, I don't know, but it was right!

Squares of paper were passed around to fill out for Immigrations. Once inside the airport, we were required to pay $20 US! When I saw the currency was in US, I asked the man at the counter whether I had to pay since I was from Canada. (His reaction was disdainful and harsh, or so it seemed to a weary traveler.) He handed me a slip of paper and sent me back.

Then, as soon as I put the pen down, he called me. Me?

"Twenty dollars."
"I don't have dollars, only ringgit."
"I can take that." (Oh! And he did take it and short-changed me of 5 whole ringgit, by the way.)
"Picture."
"I have no picture."
"Twenty-five dollars."
"WHAT?"

So, the little voice had been so right. My gut reaction was to find a bus out of there as soon as possible. They were using American dollars for everything. The Cambodian Riel was only used for change in place of coins! I'm sure the taxi driver charged too much.

He couldn't find a guest house. We went to four but they were all booked up. Then the fifth one had no Electric City. (electricity) On to the next. . . It had a room available for two days but there was no electricity! The taxi driver told me I'd better take it because I wasn't going to find another room. So, I did.

 I think the reason they call it the "Tropical Breeze" is because that's what everyone is praying for. . . a BREEZE!

They were asking for $12 US / night, but I refused to pay more than $10. They were happy with that. The rooms are generally rented to groups so that a dorm will be rented out to 4 people at a time. Mine was a room for 2.

Cambodia!

There was a travel agency in Kampar and I finally found it. In fact, I spent three hours there while they went on and offline, trying to find a ticket. When they finally found one for 400RM plus, plus, they tried to get someone on the phone to "give them permission" to sell the ticket to me. That attempt was futile, so after a while, I left. They were apologetic but excused themselves with being a small and new agency.

The following day, I had a similar experience in Old Town where I found an agency that couldn't really help me with a reasonable price due to the Chinese New Year travel explosion. My son called me from Seremban and we decided to meet up in K.L.
 

So, I flew home on my bike, packed my bags, fed the dogs and caught a taxi to the train station. I was in K.L. Sentral in a couple of hours. Tim met me and we went to Air Asia. It was cute; you put your passport information in a little machine that looks sort of like a one-armed bandit and it coughs out a flight! I joked with the young guy helping us,

"Now the machine will grow wings and I just jump inside, right?" Haw. Haw.
 

So, Tim and I went off for dinner. Then to the airport where he paid for my luggage. It was 100RM!! Then, I said good-bye to my dear son at 11:00 pm or so and sat on a hard seat until 4 am. They allowed us to board the plane at 5:50 am. Cambodia was only an hour and a half away.

Having not slept all night, I admit I was not my best when confronted with "The Visa". It cost $20, but if you had no picture of yourself to supply, the price automatically rose to $25, which was my case. (They like to charge in American dollars here.) Once I got through that, collecting my luggage went smoothly. Now, on to find a room. That was not so easy!

Siem Reap was full to the eyeballs with foreigners! Everywhere you turn, there are Caucasians! Apparently they come to see the ancient temples. Go figure!

When I finally found a room at a guest house that wasn't booked up, there was no electricity! The guest house clerk told me, "No Electra City. We were told on TV that it will come back at 6pm."

Travel Agencies in Kampar

Here's a map for my Western friends. The land on the right is Malaysia and the islands on the left are Indonesia. You can get an idea of how close Indonesia is. Thailand is on the other side of that squiggly yellow line at the top.

So, today, I went looking for a travel agency in Old Town Kampar. I rode my bike up and down a lot of streets and walked my bike up stairs and down stairs past the shops, searching for anything that looked like it might be selling airline tickets. After a while, I stumbled on an Air Asia sign in a teensy shop window. There was an "OPEN" sign in the window. So, I got off my bike. The shop was closed! Bummer.

When I got home, I went online to search for a travel agency in Kampar, but the "Yellow Pages" and "Business Directories" would only come up with other cities in Perak. Apparently, there are travel agencies in Kampar. YOU JUST CAN'T FIND THEM.

. . . Before I leave

Malaysia has been my home for the past six months. During that time, I rented a house with three bedrooms in it. It took me a month to clean it. I had to get up on a ladder to wash the ceilings and fans. The windows were filthy also. The kitchen had to be thoroughly cleaned by hand and the back porch was overrun with weeds and a large bamboo bush that sunk into the crack between the wall of the house and the pateo.

I was left with a spotlessly clean, empty house. So, what did I do? I prayed for "stuff". At first, things began to trickle in. I bought a DVD player. My son gave me a bed and TV to use. There were two countertop cuboards, so I put one in the kitchen and one in my bedroom.

Then one day, my son pulled up with a truckload of furniture! Wow! He unloaded a washer, fancy TV and two TV stands, another DVD player, a glass coffee table, five shelves, a desk, 3 dressers, a huge double bed and backboard, two wardrobes, dining table and chairs, hutch, oven and fridge! Wow! again.

I was set. My little school room was already painted (by me) with an air-conditioner installed and I had no more worries anymore about needing anything! Yep! Life was a breeze on skis. Let me tell you. It was a great feeling. I thought I had it made in the shade. All I had to do was maintain.

But, God must have had other plans. . .

Because, that's when the door closed. I had two weeks to pack my bags and leave the country. Was I shocked! It was a bit frightening. I had no plans. I had no travel funds. I know nobody in any surrounding countries.

Where should I go?



Below: A Hindu Temple in Seremban. 

 A shopping temple in Seremban, next door to
the Hindu temple.

Ah, Seremban Parade . . .

Where did your Starbucks go? :(

                     Sometimes you can find floral displays in little squares and cobble stone sidewalks.

                          Covered walkways keep the sun and rain off. Always a nice touch for pedestrians.

 

                       Natural shade is best! Can't beat God's creation. It even detoxifies the air for us.

Memories! The past six months were a follow up to the two years and eight months I'd lived in this country previously. So, I guess that makes three years and two months living in Malaysia? Roughly?

You do get in a rut. But, then it occurred to me, "I've never been to Vietnam! Nor Cambodia!"

Since the cost of living in Cambodia is apparently quite cheap and I have somewhat of a trickle of income from freelance writing, maybe I should go and check it out.