Udong

Two weekend ago we made a first of many day trips out of Phnom Penh - on motorbikes!! We travelled with 4 of our friends to the old capitol of Cambodia, Udong.  Famous people you may (but probably don't) know who were crowned here include king Norodom and king Sihanouk. The main attraction is two hills with several stupas on them. These hills jut surprisingly out of the Manitoba-style terrain (uh... flat). We climbed up over a hundred stairs to the top and got a spectacular view of Cambodian countryside.

It was an awesome day. After the short hike, we rode around the hills and stopped for lunch on hammock laden platforms. Though we were slightly overcharged, it was still worth it. Julia tried to order chicken fried rice for us all, but it came as a large bowl of rice, and an entire chicken. Including the giblets. And the head. And the feet.

One of the nicest parts of the day was getting to drive through Cambodian countryside, and not in a bus, which is not the best venue for admiring the view. It is really beautiful, and the driving is really fun. We passed all sorts of people including a group of 3 motos carrying double bed frames on the back of their seat! Also, we saw lots of cows. And rice fields.

Besides the wonderfulness of the drive, and the great company, the best part of the day was knowing that it is getting cooler back home, but we all 6 of us got sunburned. Suck it!