[OSL]

I was going to go to Thailand because I thought shit would have quieted down by now. At this point I am thinking of going to Cambodia instead, because NaughtyNomad said it is basically like SE Asia's best kept secret, hiding in the shadows of Thailand's tourism might.

Also, it is dirt cheap. My main motivation is to go and train in Pradal Serey (like muay thai) and western boxing. Of course, I am also going ot be bangin around.

Has anyone gone? Would love to hear people's thoughts - I've already read's NN's blog post on the topic.

I want to know mostly about hooking up. I already know what I'm going to be doing there.

Do girls speak English?

Are STDs a huge problem there? I've heard people catching shit in Phuket, Thailand.

I'm a light skinned, athletic Asian guy - are my chances just as good as they would be for a White traveler?

Did you get mugged or pickpocketed?

Any other crime, hookup, or language related advice would be very useful.

[Lumiere]

i will be there in july too so info appreciated

[beebopaloo]

Apparently Cambodia has got the highest rate of HIV in all of south east asia (and south east asia has got the second highest rate in the world..)

I have just done the typical things, Phnom Phen and Angkor Wat. Game wise it kinda sucks both places. If you have been to Vietnam, it is similar. Not many girls can afford to go out, so you'll probably have to game prostitutes.

But it is cheap, the food is nice, people are pretty friendly and many of them speak english.

I think if you could fly into either Chiang Mai or Phuket, you could still have a blast. Seems as if Bangkok is the only bad place to be.

[naughtynomad]

My best mate just had a baby there with a Cambodian girl. Beware of the honey trap.

[thegmanifesto]

Great movie to check out before going to Cambodia:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000AZ...ive=380601

Called City of Ghosts. Real Smooth.

I have never been, but that movie made me want to go.

[OGNorCal707]

I'm also interested in Cambodia, and have a few specific questions... First off how widely is English spoken, can you get around easily without speaking any Khmer? Are most women a tourist will encounter looking to get paid for sex, or can you find regular girls out and about at bars, clubs, etc.? Are there a decent amount of tourist women there, and if so do you know what countries they mostly are from? I hear Cambodia is pretty lawless, do you really have to watch your back and stay on your toes (are people out to scam/rip you off)? It sounds like weed is pretty accepted as part of the culture there, if you are used to the highest grade of herb, will the "happy pizzas" get you stoned? Is there decent chronic (skunk) bud to be found, and do you have to worry about the police when purchasing/smoking/traveling with bud? Can a person find psychadelic mushrooms and opium? Are these two difficult to find and are they likely to be legit? Finally anyone been to the beach town of Sihanoukville? I hear mixed things about it, some people say it is totally pollutated and overrun with tourists and not worth going to, others say it is chill, beautiful, and definitely a must visit spot. Either way I hear it is a great party scene and good herbals to be found, can anyone give a breakdown on the scene there and weather it's worth going to?

[memphis]

I have been to a lot of dangerous places, but Cambodia tops the cake. I kid you not. The best advice I can give anyone is to skip Cambodia. I was arrested for being homeless there. Pickpockets are rampant. The police are extremely corrupt. I knew someone who lost his money when a Cambodian bank closed. I know another guy who was sick in a hospital in Cambodia for a month because the DOCTOR was was making him sick on purpose to increase the bill. There is worse gun crime in Cambodia than in the USA, but at least the USA has better police. If Thailand is the 3rd world, Cambodia must be 4th world. Honestly, if you care about your life, avoid Cambodia.

http://www.comebackalive.com/df/dplaces/.../index.htm

[speakeasy]

(05-17-2010 05:27 AM)youngmobileglobal Wrote:  

I was going to go to Thailand because I thought shit would have quieted down by now. At this point I am thinking of going to Cambodia instead, because NaughtyNomad said it is basically like SE Asia's best kept secret, hiding in the shadows of Thailand's tourism might.

Cambodia stopped being a "secret" about 5 years ago. I remember halfway through last decade people were calling it "the new Thailand."

I have no intention of ever going. People rave about it, but all the photos I've seen of the place make it look depressingly poor and undeveloped(it is indeed a 4th world country technically speaking). Even Thailand's poverty can shock the unaccustomed eyes, and Thailand looks like Scandinavia compared to Cambodia. The Angkor Wat complex looks interesting, but I can hardly see myself enduring a 17hr flight just to go see that without there being other things in the region I plan on hitting as well.

[naughtynomad]

(05-17-2010 02:40 PM)OGNorCal707 Wrote:  

I'm also interested in Cambodia, and have a few specific questions... First off how widely is English spoken, can you get around easily without speaking any Khmer? Are most women a tourist will encounter looking to get paid for sex, or can you find regular girls out and about at bars, clubs, etc.? Are there a decent amount of tourist women there, and if so do you know what countries they mostly are from? I hear Cambodia is pretty lawless, do you really have to watch your back and stay on your toes (are people out to scam/rip you off)? It sounds like weed is pretty accepted as part of the culture there, if you are used to the highest grade of herb, will the "happy pizzas" get you stoned? Is there decent chronic (skunk) bud to be found, and do you have to worry about the police when purchasing/smoking/traveling with bud? Can a person find psychadelic mushrooms and opium? Are these two difficult to find and are they likely to be legit? Finally anyone been to the beach town of Sihanoukville? I hear mixed things about it, some people say it is totally pollutated and overrun with tourists and not worth going to, others say it is chill, beautiful, and definitely a must visit spot. Either way I hear it is a great party scene and good herbals to be found, can anyone give a breakdown on the scene there and weather it's worth going to?

You can whatever the hell you want here. Cambodia ROX!
Sihanoukville is great for a few days; it's DIRT cheap - 50c for a beer.
I've been twice. This country is lawless, hedonistic and additive.
100 % worth it.
Here's a Phnom Penh guide I wrote before.
My best mate travelled with me to Cambodia in 2006. He's still there.

[thegmanifesto]

"Cambodia stopped being a "secret" about 5 years ago. "

No doubt.

That movie I recommended was out in 2003!

Rule of thumb:

You have to go to a place Before a movie comes out about it to be ahead of the curve.

It kind of reminds me of all those cats that were thinking they pioneered Thailand after The Beach came out.

[hydrogonian]

(05-17-2010 10:50 AM)naughtynomad Wrote:  

My best mate just had a baby there with a Cambodian girl. Beware of the honey trap.

lol...the sweetest posion trap known to man.

[kindredspirit]

Speaking of which, any of you have kid(s) with a woman? How do you reconcile the single lifestyle with being a good dad?

[naughtynomad]

(05-17-2010 05:46 PM)kindredspirit Wrote:  

Speaking of which, any of you have kid(s) with a woman? How do you reconcile the single lifestyle with being a good dad?

I narrowly escaped the same faith. To sum up my Cambodian experience...
Click here

It's a long story...

[InternationPlayboy]

From what I've read, it's a pretty crazy country, and you can get away with just about anything. I also read the women are horrible. Check out this guide..... http://www.roadjunky.com/guide/2158/camb...ide-online

[Dutch]

Quit spamming the forum, Nasty Nomad.

[naughtynomad]

(05-19-2010 03:36 AM)Dutch Wrote:  

Quit spamming the forum, Nasty Nomad.

Spamming... harsh. I have no financial gain here. I'm trying to contribute and frankly I don't feel like copying and pasting everything I write on my personal blog. "Dutch", with 2 posts, I would say this is a passive aggressive attempt by another member posing as a new one. I will refrain from further out-links if such a negative perception exists as I don't want to get a reputation as a spammer, but at the same time if I have a new city report I don't see why I should fill a whole page on a thread when I could just leave a small link.

[naughtynomad]

Actually, come to think of it Nasty Nomad isn't a bad name...

[Vacancier Permanent]

Naughtynomad,
Don't pay attention to trolls. Your posts are some of the most interesting and informative in this whole forum. So please DO continue to post.

Cheers.

[OSL]

Yeah, I second that. I get a lot of value from naughty nomad's stuff.

[Lumiere]

bump

i think i am going there this weekend

any advice of best way to get there from pattaya / bangkok

[hydrogonian]

(05-17-2010 11:03 AM)thegmanifesto Wrote:  

Great movie to check out before going to Cambodia:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000AZ...ive=380601

Called City of Ghosts. Real Smooth.

I have never been, but that movie made me want to go.

Rented this one per your recommendation. It was good. Although, I cant say it stoked my urge to go

I think I may be passed the stage of my life where Id get a thrill out of going to the most lawless and dangerous areas of the world. Although, Id still go on the assumption that the way the movie framed the vibe in Phnom Penh was a little hollywood, and not entirely the way things are, at least outside of certain parts. Maybe it had something to do with the way they framed the expat population there as all borderline criminal or extremely desperate. Not people that Id care to hang out with. But again, thats probably just hollywood, at least to a certain degree.

[kindredspirit]

I think a place like Cambodia, Vietnam, or Laos would be a cool "backdrop" for a sex-filled getaway if you bring along your own woman -- for my tastes, an Eastern European babe, contrasting sexily with the Asian setting and populace.

[hydrogonian]

(07-02-2010 09:25 AM)kindredspirit Wrote:  

I think a place like Cambodia, Vietnam, or Laos would be a cool "backdrop" for a sex-filled getaway if you bring along your own woman -- for my tastes, an Eastern European babe, contrasting sexily with the Asian setting and populace.

haha...I like that...its very next level to think about the aesthetic of the woman against her environment, and to want to change it up accordingly. I think you have the gift, my friend...

Also, thinking about an eastern European woman in Cambodia just changed my opinion of going there I think. Maybe part of my aversion was thinking about the prospect of fucking almost destitute Cambodian village girls while there. I'm not that into that disparity too much, as the world views and motivations are just too different to make it exciting beyond getting my rocks off. Thailand would be different, as the infrastructure alone makes me think of those people as less poor, even though the reality may be slightly different.

[Farang]

Cambodia is an amazing country with a dark (recent) past and far from a secret or a hidden gem, well and truely on the tourist trail. Yeah it's poor but it's beautiful, scenic, cheap, easy to travel in, food is great, some astounding sights. Siem Reap for the Angkor Temples is out of this world, Phnom Pehn is crazy in a good way, Kampot absolutely stunning and Sihanoukville a beautiful little beach town with loads of night life, cheep beer (50 cents), great food and plenty to do. Lots of readily available drugs both of the pharmacetical and natural (opium, weed, mushrooms) in bars and cafes. It's not an overly dangerous place for a tourist, I felt VERY safe travelling solo even walking about at night in dark places. Plenty of people speak English especially in the tourist places.

Plenty of working girls to have sex with and you might be able to get them for free if they like you or you play games but the chances of meeting a non pro are slim. Cambodian girls are traditional and reserved for the most part, they don't go out to bars because they can't afford to and on the odd occassion they do they'll have a male chaperone.

Well worth travelling to but not if you're travelling only to 'get a flag'.

[OSL]

Bump. Anyone else been to Phnom Penh? I might do a month in this country.

I view SE Asia as being a strategic second spot after my strong focus on China. While I am launching my site and product I will be going through these countries, collecting hours of video/audio interview material for my blog, and coming up with ideas for derivative products based on career hacking, entrepreneurship, and elite social circle infiltration.

Basically I am going to land in these countries and see how many job offers I can get and how many big swinging dicks I can meet up and party with, maybe play golf. That's how shit rolls in these countries. Sometimes you just have to show up and knock on the door.