The capitals of Southeast and East Asia contains much that glitters and is modern, in cities like KL, Bangkok, Singapore, Tokyo, BJ, and so forth. The second tier capitals such as Jakarta and Manila have their share of modern skyscrapers and have seen major financial influx from China and the West among other places, and its reflected in their demographics and infrastructure. Clinging to the final rung of the third tier, below other third tier capitals like Hanoi, is Phnom Penh. However, despite the lack of modernization, there is much to recommend PP as a place to visit and a place to which to relocate.
Formerly under the dominion of the French (after many hundreds of years of fighting with SE Asian rival civilizations), PP still has the look to some degree of the colonialization from French influence. Even though in the 1970s a lot of the city was razed under Pol Pot’s extermination of the intellectual class (over 1,000,000 Cambodians were killed by their own people, mostly urban Cambodians), the city still has a feel like many cities where the French exerted their influence, leaving two and three story european looking buildings with small balconies with wrought-iron gating. In many ways, PP evokes Hanoi, a city with a similar history of colonialism, though the French were far less interested in maintaining their presence in PP.
At the same time, the other overwhelming non-Cambodian influence in PP is from China. Ethnic Chinese have been in Cambodia, resettled, for many generations, just like those in Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and other SE Asian countries. Estimates are that 50 percent of Cambodians are some part ethnic Chinese, and that influence is exerted around PP very obviously, I would say on a stronger level than experienced in Bangkok. This is something to keep in mind when visiting PP, and I’ll go into more detail later.
As a preface, I’ll mention that my primary reason to go to PP was to look at their textiles industry, particularly silk. Cambodia silk is of exceptional quality for the price, and its something worth considering having a look at if you visit, if only for gifts. Cambodia has a rapidly growing and largely under regulated economy, and also has significant tax benefit from Europe and elsewhere for export because of its third world status. I think there is a lot of business opportunity in Cambodia, and the field, despite the presence of the Chinese, is still fairly wide-open.
Of course, we’re not hear to talk about that.
Logistics
When you arrive in PP airport (two hrs and 15 in the air from Hong Kong), you’ll arrive directly into immigration. Assuming you’re from a visa-on-arrival country like me, you’ll queue on the left hand side with 20$ in hand and a passport sized picture of yourself that you should bring with you. You hand those to the clerk with your passport, and then proceed to the line in front of the desk immediately to the left. They’ll call your name a few minutes later, give you your passport back. Go through immigration check, and then past customs, and you’re in.
After passing customs, immediately on your left are several telecom operators selling sim cards. I myself used SMART, which I was familiar with from the Philippines (I’m guessing its the same company, but in any event I had no issue with the sim card or the data service - much of Cambodia is actually updated for very decent internet speeds and in my experience was far better than the Philippines). I bought for four days 5 dollars of data and 3 dollars for texting and calls, probably overkill but insignificant enough for me not to worry about the Delta.
After getting a sim, follow the walkway, turning left and you’ll find tuktuk hawkers, and taxi cabs. They’ll try to squeeze you for more, but for a foreigner $7 to riverside and $6 to Central Market area is more than fair (and probably double what locals might be paying). If you get too much flack and want to, its easiest enough to walk to the street past the parking lot in front of the hotel - once you’re in the middle of 20 tuktuk drivers, their negotiating becomes a lot easier going as they know they’ve competition.
The ride can be about 30 minutes to riverside, perhaps 5-7 less to Central Market. I found it quite enjoyable riding down Russian Federation Rd, a wide avenue with some park space along the way, surrounded by Cambodians on motorbikes. You’ll pass a bunch of luxury car dealerships on the way, which was a bit of a surprise until you’ve spent some time in PP and see all of the Range Rovers. I’ll note that on the way back to the airport after my trip, there was basically a minor wind storm that whipped up all the dust on the road into the tuktuk. Not that there’s much to do about this other than cover your mouth or take a proper taxi.
A note on currency- reals and US dollars are interchangeable. 4000 real is used as interchangeable for $1, in both directions. If you pay in dollars and the change is less than a dollar, expect to receive reals in exchange (i.e. 3000 for 75 cents, etc.).
With respect to taxis and tuks generally, for short rides, taxis will actually be cheaper assuming they use the meter. Tuks charge in increments of $1 and the taxis do not. On longer rides, I think Tuks are cheaper if you’re paying what you should be paying. Spend a little bit of time in PP and you’l get a sense of the cost -10 minutes should be around $2. 15 minutes, maybe $3. Often its best to just hand them the money after the ride, unless you feel like you need to negotiate before or you don’t have any clues how far you’re going. When you’ve arrived, just give them the appropriate amount - they’ll usually wont say anything. Most of them will be happy to wait for you if you want them to- the additional price should be marginal if you decide that while you’re having lunch you’d like them to wait for you.
I stayed near the Central Market, which is a pretty big landmark area. I booked a hotel called LeBiz through my points hound account (if you PM me I'll send you my referral link which gives bonus miles ontop of your rental to both of us) - which gave me 1100 frequent flyer points for booking this hotel on the network of my choice. I paid 48 per night for 4 nights, and the room was modern, a large waterfall shower with hot water, clean, decent internet in the room (better in the lobby) and a basic breakfast included. Always friendly staff (Cambodian staff, not the foreigner owner) and always had tuks waiting outside though they’ll try to get you for the foreigner rate. It was two blocks walk to Central Market, which was a designation for business, but also has very good bbq seafood and fresh fruit, along with a million stalls selling gems (fake and real) silk, tourist junk, etc. Of the PP markets, though, more foreigners visit Central, which is closer to the foreigner epicenter that is riverside. As a result, prices are higher in Central for somethings, and more english is spoken. Other markets, such as Olympic (near the stadium) and ORussey (which is a bit south from Central Market, maybe 10 minutes walk) have less english and lower prices. They are interesting to visit and definitely grittier, especially ORussey.
Riverside is perhaps five to seven minutes further west of Central Market max. It has hotels and guest houses ranging from $10 up to several hundred per night, and is also nearest to the Palace, one of the major sightseeing spots in PP. More bars, girlie bar, bar girls, and pricier restaurants abound, but hopefully Beyond can drop some intel on some less expensive dining options Riverside. Near Central Market I’ll mention Samdoo, a good and cheapish Chinese restaurant on Street 128. I ate there three times in four days.
The Riverside isn’t particularly scenic, and the river itself is brown and drab and quite dirty, a lot like what you may have seen in India. Its not like Thailand as a secondary source of transportation (or primary). Riverside also has far more beggars and street kids than other areas. Some streets feel like the rest of PP, and some streets feel like Nana in Bangkok. Further south on the Riverside, the area is less touristy and more laid back, with mostly locals and cheaper prices. I think long term that might be a better place to stay than north riverside which is catering to foreigners, at least for those on a stricter budget.
Why you came…
The girls in Phnom Penh are quite varied in looks, from skinny to a bit voluptuous with the occasional fatty, and from more thai/SE asia looking to Chinese looking. The last night, the girl I hung with pretty much looked latina, but light skinned. Actually she was a solid 8/9, but I didn’t close it because I couldn’t be sure that she didn’t want money - her english was crap and we (BB and I) knew that all of those girls worked at a KTV and were off for the night. This girl realistically reminded me of Jessica Alba, not quite on that level, but very good looking face and physique.
The girls themselves tend to have a mix of characteristics between Northern Vietnam and Thailand. They’re friendly in general like Thais to foreigners, but much shyer in nature and more conservative like Vietnamese girls. I also found they look a bit more like Vietnamese girls, though I haven't been all around Thailand, just a few spots. Finding a Cambodian girl for a hookup during a short stay is definitely doable, but for a quick jaunt through the city, you’re more likely heading towards finding a shore-able part time bar girl or something along those lines. BB can throw down some Khmer and probably has more game than many of us, and thus between the local vibe and that he can close quicker. However, in any third world country the line between working and not working is blurry, and I think anyone of experience in third world countries would admit that they aren’t 100 percent sure about 100 percent of their notches - to be otherwise is to deceive yourself.
In the four nights we did several different restaurants, a few bars including a Bia Hoy (like Vietnam street beer) roadside place, several clubs including for a fashion show, the club at the casino Naga World, Darlin Darlin (also mostly filled with pros but some tourists and maybe barang hunters too) and the notorious hooker bars Pontoon and Heart of Darkness (though Heart has somewhat had a change of heart now and hosts a mixed crowd, one night was mostly gay I think, we didn’t stay and the other had a feeling more like it was Pontoon). Pontoon itself has two rooms, loads of foreigners, girls and guys (backpackers or dudes looking to lighten their wallets). My notch came from a Pontoon shore, half-Singaporean girl/half Cambodian. BB if he likes can share the story of why these girls were “scared” of him.![[Image: angel.gif]](https://rooshvforum.network/images/smilies/angel.gif)
Anyway, this girl, for whatever reason, looked almost Japanese to me, very tiny spinner with a tight body.
She was very standoffish at first, especially for a bargirl because of the aforementioned issue with my drinking companion. In any event, when I spoke to her in my terrible Chinese thats when she warmed up and then I laid it on thick Chinese style. From that point on, it was easy, like rolling downhill. Besides I’m sure my hotel is a much better place to sleep than wherever she lived in PP. I ended up taking her and two other BB-refugees to a late night Chinese restaurant not far from PP tower, very good seafood, and then the girl (just one) back to mine.
The first night we saw a live band play at a club, Code Red, that was 99 percent Cambodian. Good talent levels, but all tables and breaking in wasn’t likely to be a same night thing, and I was pretty exhausted from the travel. As I mentioned before, the last night we went to a club more oriented towards Cambodian girls who are interested in Barangs (unlike the first night) but I was stuck on a work call with the US and I didn’t arrive til perhaps 2AM. We found the KTV girls there and then ended up bouncing to Heart with them, as this place was basically emptying out. There were some mixed couples in that place, and I think BB was right in saying that seems to be the best place to find a non-pro. I did open another girl in that place before moving onto the KTV girls, but she had a ladyboy vibe and strong jawbone. I asked BB for assurance, and he agreed it was a bit close to tell - that was enough reason. I may have left one there, but I’ll steer a wide course around that type of potential encounter.
Prices
Costs are low for basic living. Getting around is very cheap. Decent guesthouses with internet are $10 per night without committing to a long term rental. Double that would move you somewhere more desirable and perhaps more polished.
Food prices range from a cheap meal of $1-2, the aforementioned BBQ of shrimp/squid (with steamed rice and some raw vegetables) was perhaps $6-7 (Samdoo was around the same price, perhaps a bit more), and the japanese place we ate was around $25 per man, but it was fine dining and we had a bottle of wine. THere’s also a great bar on top of the Phnom Penh tower, Eclipse Sky Bar, excellent date place with decent food - probably around 15-20 before drinks (say 5-6 per drink). I know riverside has some fancy french spots, but I didn’t go.
Language
Many Cambodians speak some english, some pretty well to excellently, though many do not. It seems that the language ability is definitely higher nearer to Riverside, not surprisingly and higher among younger people. Also I found a lot of people spoke some to a decent amount of Mandarin, particularly in the markets and more of the people middle aged or older. I don’t know that I encountered many younger cambodians speaking Chinese though there are a few. Sometimes Chinese was more effective as a way to communicate and negotiate, and everything (EVERYTHING) is negotiable from the markets, it seems, as in other aspects of the city.
Overall, I found PP to be a very pleasant city to visit, and a decent location for someone on a limited but location independent budget. I don’t think I’d live there forever, but the locals are friendly and not ethnocentric like their Thai cousins to anywhere near a degree, prices are lower for many things than BKK central areas, traffic isn’t bad and generally logistics are ok. Its a worthy entry to being on the map as a possibility for expatriates who walk just a little bit on the wild side.
Formerly under the dominion of the French (after many hundreds of years of fighting with SE Asian rival civilizations), PP still has the look to some degree of the colonialization from French influence. Even though in the 1970s a lot of the city was razed under Pol Pot’s extermination of the intellectual class (over 1,000,000 Cambodians were killed by their own people, mostly urban Cambodians), the city still has a feel like many cities where the French exerted their influence, leaving two and three story european looking buildings with small balconies with wrought-iron gating. In many ways, PP evokes Hanoi, a city with a similar history of colonialism, though the French were far less interested in maintaining their presence in PP.
At the same time, the other overwhelming non-Cambodian influence in PP is from China. Ethnic Chinese have been in Cambodia, resettled, for many generations, just like those in Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and other SE Asian countries. Estimates are that 50 percent of Cambodians are some part ethnic Chinese, and that influence is exerted around PP very obviously, I would say on a stronger level than experienced in Bangkok. This is something to keep in mind when visiting PP, and I’ll go into more detail later.
As a preface, I’ll mention that my primary reason to go to PP was to look at their textiles industry, particularly silk. Cambodia silk is of exceptional quality for the price, and its something worth considering having a look at if you visit, if only for gifts. Cambodia has a rapidly growing and largely under regulated economy, and also has significant tax benefit from Europe and elsewhere for export because of its third world status. I think there is a lot of business opportunity in Cambodia, and the field, despite the presence of the Chinese, is still fairly wide-open.
Of course, we’re not hear to talk about that.
Logistics
When you arrive in PP airport (two hrs and 15 in the air from Hong Kong), you’ll arrive directly into immigration. Assuming you’re from a visa-on-arrival country like me, you’ll queue on the left hand side with 20$ in hand and a passport sized picture of yourself that you should bring with you. You hand those to the clerk with your passport, and then proceed to the line in front of the desk immediately to the left. They’ll call your name a few minutes later, give you your passport back. Go through immigration check, and then past customs, and you’re in.
After passing customs, immediately on your left are several telecom operators selling sim cards. I myself used SMART, which I was familiar with from the Philippines (I’m guessing its the same company, but in any event I had no issue with the sim card or the data service - much of Cambodia is actually updated for very decent internet speeds and in my experience was far better than the Philippines). I bought for four days 5 dollars of data and 3 dollars for texting and calls, probably overkill but insignificant enough for me not to worry about the Delta.
After getting a sim, follow the walkway, turning left and you’ll find tuktuk hawkers, and taxi cabs. They’ll try to squeeze you for more, but for a foreigner $7 to riverside and $6 to Central Market area is more than fair (and probably double what locals might be paying). If you get too much flack and want to, its easiest enough to walk to the street past the parking lot in front of the hotel - once you’re in the middle of 20 tuktuk drivers, their negotiating becomes a lot easier going as they know they’ve competition.
The ride can be about 30 minutes to riverside, perhaps 5-7 less to Central Market. I found it quite enjoyable riding down Russian Federation Rd, a wide avenue with some park space along the way, surrounded by Cambodians on motorbikes. You’ll pass a bunch of luxury car dealerships on the way, which was a bit of a surprise until you’ve spent some time in PP and see all of the Range Rovers. I’ll note that on the way back to the airport after my trip, there was basically a minor wind storm that whipped up all the dust on the road into the tuktuk. Not that there’s much to do about this other than cover your mouth or take a proper taxi.
A note on currency- reals and US dollars are interchangeable. 4000 real is used as interchangeable for $1, in both directions. If you pay in dollars and the change is less than a dollar, expect to receive reals in exchange (i.e. 3000 for 75 cents, etc.).
With respect to taxis and tuks generally, for short rides, taxis will actually be cheaper assuming they use the meter. Tuks charge in increments of $1 and the taxis do not. On longer rides, I think Tuks are cheaper if you’re paying what you should be paying. Spend a little bit of time in PP and you’l get a sense of the cost -10 minutes should be around $2. 15 minutes, maybe $3. Often its best to just hand them the money after the ride, unless you feel like you need to negotiate before or you don’t have any clues how far you’re going. When you’ve arrived, just give them the appropriate amount - they’ll usually wont say anything. Most of them will be happy to wait for you if you want them to- the additional price should be marginal if you decide that while you’re having lunch you’d like them to wait for you.
I stayed near the Central Market, which is a pretty big landmark area. I booked a hotel called LeBiz through my points hound account (if you PM me I'll send you my referral link which gives bonus miles ontop of your rental to both of us) - which gave me 1100 frequent flyer points for booking this hotel on the network of my choice. I paid 48 per night for 4 nights, and the room was modern, a large waterfall shower with hot water, clean, decent internet in the room (better in the lobby) and a basic breakfast included. Always friendly staff (Cambodian staff, not the foreigner owner) and always had tuks waiting outside though they’ll try to get you for the foreigner rate. It was two blocks walk to Central Market, which was a designation for business, but also has very good bbq seafood and fresh fruit, along with a million stalls selling gems (fake and real) silk, tourist junk, etc. Of the PP markets, though, more foreigners visit Central, which is closer to the foreigner epicenter that is riverside. As a result, prices are higher in Central for somethings, and more english is spoken. Other markets, such as Olympic (near the stadium) and ORussey (which is a bit south from Central Market, maybe 10 minutes walk) have less english and lower prices. They are interesting to visit and definitely grittier, especially ORussey.
Riverside is perhaps five to seven minutes further west of Central Market max. It has hotels and guest houses ranging from $10 up to several hundred per night, and is also nearest to the Palace, one of the major sightseeing spots in PP. More bars, girlie bar, bar girls, and pricier restaurants abound, but hopefully Beyond can drop some intel on some less expensive dining options Riverside. Near Central Market I’ll mention Samdoo, a good and cheapish Chinese restaurant on Street 128. I ate there three times in four days.
The Riverside isn’t particularly scenic, and the river itself is brown and drab and quite dirty, a lot like what you may have seen in India. Its not like Thailand as a secondary source of transportation (or primary). Riverside also has far more beggars and street kids than other areas. Some streets feel like the rest of PP, and some streets feel like Nana in Bangkok. Further south on the Riverside, the area is less touristy and more laid back, with mostly locals and cheaper prices. I think long term that might be a better place to stay than north riverside which is catering to foreigners, at least for those on a stricter budget.
Why you came…
The girls in Phnom Penh are quite varied in looks, from skinny to a bit voluptuous with the occasional fatty, and from more thai/SE asia looking to Chinese looking. The last night, the girl I hung with pretty much looked latina, but light skinned. Actually she was a solid 8/9, but I didn’t close it because I couldn’t be sure that she didn’t want money - her english was crap and we (BB and I) knew that all of those girls worked at a KTV and were off for the night. This girl realistically reminded me of Jessica Alba, not quite on that level, but very good looking face and physique.
The girls themselves tend to have a mix of characteristics between Northern Vietnam and Thailand. They’re friendly in general like Thais to foreigners, but much shyer in nature and more conservative like Vietnamese girls. I also found they look a bit more like Vietnamese girls, though I haven't been all around Thailand, just a few spots. Finding a Cambodian girl for a hookup during a short stay is definitely doable, but for a quick jaunt through the city, you’re more likely heading towards finding a shore-able part time bar girl or something along those lines. BB can throw down some Khmer and probably has more game than many of us, and thus between the local vibe and that he can close quicker. However, in any third world country the line between working and not working is blurry, and I think anyone of experience in third world countries would admit that they aren’t 100 percent sure about 100 percent of their notches - to be otherwise is to deceive yourself.
In the four nights we did several different restaurants, a few bars including a Bia Hoy (like Vietnam street beer) roadside place, several clubs including for a fashion show, the club at the casino Naga World, Darlin Darlin (also mostly filled with pros but some tourists and maybe barang hunters too) and the notorious hooker bars Pontoon and Heart of Darkness (though Heart has somewhat had a change of heart now and hosts a mixed crowd, one night was mostly gay I think, we didn’t stay and the other had a feeling more like it was Pontoon). Pontoon itself has two rooms, loads of foreigners, girls and guys (backpackers or dudes looking to lighten their wallets). My notch came from a Pontoon shore, half-Singaporean girl/half Cambodian. BB if he likes can share the story of why these girls were “scared” of him.
Anyway, this girl, for whatever reason, looked almost Japanese to me, very tiny spinner with a tight body. She was very standoffish at first, especially for a bargirl because of the aforementioned issue with my drinking companion. In any event, when I spoke to her in my terrible Chinese thats when she warmed up and then I laid it on thick Chinese style. From that point on, it was easy, like rolling downhill. Besides I’m sure my hotel is a much better place to sleep than wherever she lived in PP. I ended up taking her and two other BB-refugees to a late night Chinese restaurant not far from PP tower, very good seafood, and then the girl (just one) back to mine.
The first night we saw a live band play at a club, Code Red, that was 99 percent Cambodian. Good talent levels, but all tables and breaking in wasn’t likely to be a same night thing, and I was pretty exhausted from the travel. As I mentioned before, the last night we went to a club more oriented towards Cambodian girls who are interested in Barangs (unlike the first night) but I was stuck on a work call with the US and I didn’t arrive til perhaps 2AM. We found the KTV girls there and then ended up bouncing to Heart with them, as this place was basically emptying out. There were some mixed couples in that place, and I think BB was right in saying that seems to be the best place to find a non-pro. I did open another girl in that place before moving onto the KTV girls, but she had a ladyboy vibe and strong jawbone. I asked BB for assurance, and he agreed it was a bit close to tell - that was enough reason. I may have left one there, but I’ll steer a wide course around that type of potential encounter.
Prices
Costs are low for basic living. Getting around is very cheap. Decent guesthouses with internet are $10 per night without committing to a long term rental. Double that would move you somewhere more desirable and perhaps more polished.
Food prices range from a cheap meal of $1-2, the aforementioned BBQ of shrimp/squid (with steamed rice and some raw vegetables) was perhaps $6-7 (Samdoo was around the same price, perhaps a bit more), and the japanese place we ate was around $25 per man, but it was fine dining and we had a bottle of wine. THere’s also a great bar on top of the Phnom Penh tower, Eclipse Sky Bar, excellent date place with decent food - probably around 15-20 before drinks (say 5-6 per drink). I know riverside has some fancy french spots, but I didn’t go.
Language
Many Cambodians speak some english, some pretty well to excellently, though many do not. It seems that the language ability is definitely higher nearer to Riverside, not surprisingly and higher among younger people. Also I found a lot of people spoke some to a decent amount of Mandarin, particularly in the markets and more of the people middle aged or older. I don’t know that I encountered many younger cambodians speaking Chinese though there are a few. Sometimes Chinese was more effective as a way to communicate and negotiate, and everything (EVERYTHING) is negotiable from the markets, it seems, as in other aspects of the city.
Overall, I found PP to be a very pleasant city to visit, and a decent location for someone on a limited but location independent budget. I don’t think I’d live there forever, but the locals are friendly and not ethnocentric like their Thai cousins to anywhere near a degree, prices are lower for many things than BKK central areas, traffic isn’t bad and generally logistics are ok. Its a worthy entry to being on the map as a possibility for expatriates who walk just a little bit on the wild side.
I've referral links for most credit cards, PM me for them & thanks if you use them
Strip away judeo-christian ethics ingraining sex is dirty/bad & the idea we're taking advantage of these girls disintegrates. Once you've lost that ethical quandary (which it isn't outside religion) then they've no reason to play the victim, you've no reason to feel the rogue. The interaction is to their benefit.
Frequent Travs
Phils SZ China