Cambodia here I come
Door: Anne
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25 Februari 2016 | Cambodja, Preah Seihanouk
It's been a while since I have written a new story and a lot has happened since then. I'm not living in the Philippines anymore, but moved to Cambodia. Why? Read the story below.
Christmas in Malapascua was great, amazing night dive, the best food ever and good party with all of my friends. Couldn't be any better. Between Christmas and New Years I worked a bit but not enough to get by unfortunately and it's time to make other plans.
My friend Nancy, who I met in Bali, is working in Cambodia and she asks me if I could come and join her. She is the only diving instructor at the moment and she really needs help. Cambodia is on my travel list so yeah, why not? I contact her boss James and after two e-mails it's settled, I'm flying to Cambodia on the 6th of January! Another friend I met in Bali, Christoph, is also going to work for the same dive resort as divemaster. So 3 friends are going to work together, awesome!
Fortunately I still have more then a week to spend with my friends in Malapascua and make the most of it! New Years is coming up and there is a big party planned at the beach with firework.! But first I have to work, a friend asked me if I could guide 3 divers on the 31st and I take the job of course. First dive is sharks at 4.00 and then 2 dives at Gato Island. I have 3 Korean customers and really good divers, so easy work :) They tip me well so they must have a good time.
After work it's time to prepare for the party and it's really amazing! All my friends are at the beach, amazing fireworks and everyone is really happy. After the beach party it's time to go to the disco and it's one of the busiest I've ever seen. What a great night!
1st of January is a lazy day, sleeping and chilling as usual.
Then it's time to prepare my leave, flights are quite expensive but I have to be in Cambodia as soon as possible. My flight is booked for the 6th, so naturally there's a goodbye party at the 5th. It's so great to see how many good friends I have, Malapascua will always have a special place in my heart and I will definitely miss it.
The 6th of January I take a flight from Cebu to Manila at 22.00 and have a 7 hour stop over during the night. My original plan is to stay at the airport for the night, but as soon I arrive I change my mind. It's a very depressive airport, you are not allowed to enter the departure gate before 2 hours before check in! They have a couple of benches outside but I refuse to stay there with all my bags. Manila is not exactly the safest city in the world and losing another laptop is not on my to do list. So last minute I find a taxi to bring me somewhere to stay and luckily I find a nice room with a hot shower! And I can get a few hours of sleep, awesome!
My next flight from Manila to Ho Chi Minh leaves at 7.00 and I arrive in Ho Chi Minh City 2,5 hours later. From Ho Chi Minh City I fly to Phnom Penh to take a bus to Sihanoukville in the south of Cambodia. All in this trip takes me more then 30 hours! Flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur takes only 21 hours with an 8 hour stop over in Dubai. Crazy!
But finally arrived in Sihanoukville, from here it's only a 1 hour speed ferry ride to M'Pai Bay (Koh Rong Samloem), my final destination and new home. I stay for the night on the mainland and have to get used to the crowdiness and all the bars and even cars. Crazy!! I truly am an islander!
Next morning I take the speedferry to Kg Rong Samloem, the small island. When I arrive at the pier I notice it's more remote then Malapascua but I quite like the bay. I meet Nancy and Christoph and they show me around. We settle first in a dorm with volunteers but this is only a temporary solution, James (now my boss as well) has plans to rent the mayor's house (why not?) and wants to have the dive shop and where we sleep in one place. Besides a dive center, James runs Safe Cambodian Marine Life, a NGO project to grow corals on a frame in the bay and educate school children about marine conservation. People from abroad come and volunteer for the project and stay with us as well.
I'm happy I came here, because only a few days later I have my first Open Water students! My 4 students are really great! Tommy, Stuart, Elli and Juuso, a great group and so relaxed in the water. If you read this guys, thanks!
It's not hard to make friends and I'm always sad when people I really like leave. Some stay longer then intended, Tommy my first Open water student even stays here to do his divemaster :) And Nick, also my Open Water student and now a really good friend, stayed a week and a half instead of 3 days. Strange how a positive environment can change plans.
There is another dive center in M'Pai Bay, Cambodian Dive Group and we work close together with them. Simon, the founder is a sometimes strange but friendly Englishmen. If we don't have enough work I freelance for him and if we need a boat or equipment he helps us out. Coral Gardens Dive Resort (where I work for) is quite new and Nancy, Christoph and me are new to the dive world so it's good to have someone around who can help you out.
A few weeks ago Nancy quit Coral Gardens and moved to Simon, which is a shame but we see each other a lot. Now Christoph and I run Coral Gardens together when James is not here. How often do you get a change to run a dive resort? It's not always easy, but a great experience.
In the past month we have moved around a bit. We moved from the first dorm to the Chill Inn, the main bar and dorm. We have a 3 bedroom dorm with the 3 of us which is great. We are hanging out there every night anyway to play pool, play cards or sit at the bar. The owner Shea and his brother Kyle are really great and Shea even let's me bartend when he wants a night off :) Well.. that happened only once so far, but Christoph and I will take over the bar in April when Shea's sister is getting married. A dive resort AND a bar, perfect life!
We stay at the Chill Inn for two weeks and then can finally move to the house! The diveshop moves in there as well, so we have a dorm room with 6 beds and an area for the equipment.
I stay here for a week or so and move out again, I have my own bungalow!! Awesome! It's good to leave the dive center for the night. Although we use the dive center for movie nights, karaoke and chill out at the patio. Not so bad :)
My bungalow is really nice, small but with my own bathroom. I really like it.
And it's good to have a private bathroom, I got a salmonella infection a week ago. Not really nice. Had to go to the hospital to check it out and couldn't work for almost a week. But with the right medication I was back on track and ready to work.
Last Monday (22nd of February) there was a full moon jungle rave in Saracen Bay and of course I went there. There are 6 British volunteer girls and they went as well. We arrived at night in Saracen with a boat (45 min) and the party is in the jungle. 400 steps up the hill! But it was great! Dancing all night long till 8 in the morning. Maybe we go next month again :)
I have a really great time here in Cambodia, wouldn't change it for the world! I have enough work and a lot of friends.
Come and visit me in Cambodia!
Christmas in Malapascua was great, amazing night dive, the best food ever and good party with all of my friends. Couldn't be any better. Between Christmas and New Years I worked a bit but not enough to get by unfortunately and it's time to make other plans.
My friend Nancy, who I met in Bali, is working in Cambodia and she asks me if I could come and join her. She is the only diving instructor at the moment and she really needs help. Cambodia is on my travel list so yeah, why not? I contact her boss James and after two e-mails it's settled, I'm flying to Cambodia on the 6th of January! Another friend I met in Bali, Christoph, is also going to work for the same dive resort as divemaster. So 3 friends are going to work together, awesome!
Fortunately I still have more then a week to spend with my friends in Malapascua and make the most of it! New Years is coming up and there is a big party planned at the beach with firework.! But first I have to work, a friend asked me if I could guide 3 divers on the 31st and I take the job of course. First dive is sharks at 4.00 and then 2 dives at Gato Island. I have 3 Korean customers and really good divers, so easy work :) They tip me well so they must have a good time.
After work it's time to prepare for the party and it's really amazing! All my friends are at the beach, amazing fireworks and everyone is really happy. After the beach party it's time to go to the disco and it's one of the busiest I've ever seen. What a great night!
1st of January is a lazy day, sleeping and chilling as usual.
Then it's time to prepare my leave, flights are quite expensive but I have to be in Cambodia as soon as possible. My flight is booked for the 6th, so naturally there's a goodbye party at the 5th. It's so great to see how many good friends I have, Malapascua will always have a special place in my heart and I will definitely miss it.
The 6th of January I take a flight from Cebu to Manila at 22.00 and have a 7 hour stop over during the night. My original plan is to stay at the airport for the night, but as soon I arrive I change my mind. It's a very depressive airport, you are not allowed to enter the departure gate before 2 hours before check in! They have a couple of benches outside but I refuse to stay there with all my bags. Manila is not exactly the safest city in the world and losing another laptop is not on my to do list. So last minute I find a taxi to bring me somewhere to stay and luckily I find a nice room with a hot shower! And I can get a few hours of sleep, awesome!
My next flight from Manila to Ho Chi Minh leaves at 7.00 and I arrive in Ho Chi Minh City 2,5 hours later. From Ho Chi Minh City I fly to Phnom Penh to take a bus to Sihanoukville in the south of Cambodia. All in this trip takes me more then 30 hours! Flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur takes only 21 hours with an 8 hour stop over in Dubai. Crazy!
But finally arrived in Sihanoukville, from here it's only a 1 hour speed ferry ride to M'Pai Bay (Koh Rong Samloem), my final destination and new home. I stay for the night on the mainland and have to get used to the crowdiness and all the bars and even cars. Crazy!! I truly am an islander!
Next morning I take the speedferry to Kg Rong Samloem, the small island. When I arrive at the pier I notice it's more remote then Malapascua but I quite like the bay. I meet Nancy and Christoph and they show me around. We settle first in a dorm with volunteers but this is only a temporary solution, James (now my boss as well) has plans to rent the mayor's house (why not?) and wants to have the dive shop and where we sleep in one place. Besides a dive center, James runs Safe Cambodian Marine Life, a NGO project to grow corals on a frame in the bay and educate school children about marine conservation. People from abroad come and volunteer for the project and stay with us as well.
I'm happy I came here, because only a few days later I have my first Open Water students! My 4 students are really great! Tommy, Stuart, Elli and Juuso, a great group and so relaxed in the water. If you read this guys, thanks!
It's not hard to make friends and I'm always sad when people I really like leave. Some stay longer then intended, Tommy my first Open water student even stays here to do his divemaster :) And Nick, also my Open Water student and now a really good friend, stayed a week and a half instead of 3 days. Strange how a positive environment can change plans.
There is another dive center in M'Pai Bay, Cambodian Dive Group and we work close together with them. Simon, the founder is a sometimes strange but friendly Englishmen. If we don't have enough work I freelance for him and if we need a boat or equipment he helps us out. Coral Gardens Dive Resort (where I work for) is quite new and Nancy, Christoph and me are new to the dive world so it's good to have someone around who can help you out.
A few weeks ago Nancy quit Coral Gardens and moved to Simon, which is a shame but we see each other a lot. Now Christoph and I run Coral Gardens together when James is not here. How often do you get a change to run a dive resort? It's not always easy, but a great experience.
In the past month we have moved around a bit. We moved from the first dorm to the Chill Inn, the main bar and dorm. We have a 3 bedroom dorm with the 3 of us which is great. We are hanging out there every night anyway to play pool, play cards or sit at the bar. The owner Shea and his brother Kyle are really great and Shea even let's me bartend when he wants a night off :) Well.. that happened only once so far, but Christoph and I will take over the bar in April when Shea's sister is getting married. A dive resort AND a bar, perfect life!
We stay at the Chill Inn for two weeks and then can finally move to the house! The diveshop moves in there as well, so we have a dorm room with 6 beds and an area for the equipment.
I stay here for a week or so and move out again, I have my own bungalow!! Awesome! It's good to leave the dive center for the night. Although we use the dive center for movie nights, karaoke and chill out at the patio. Not so bad :)
My bungalow is really nice, small but with my own bathroom. I really like it.
And it's good to have a private bathroom, I got a salmonella infection a week ago. Not really nice. Had to go to the hospital to check it out and couldn't work for almost a week. But with the right medication I was back on track and ready to work.
Last Monday (22nd of February) there was a full moon jungle rave in Saracen Bay and of course I went there. There are 6 British volunteer girls and they went as well. We arrived at night in Saracen with a boat (45 min) and the party is in the jungle. 400 steps up the hill! But it was great! Dancing all night long till 8 in the morning. Maybe we go next month again :)
I have a really great time here in Cambodia, wouldn't change it for the world! I have enough work and a lot of friends.
Come and visit me in Cambodia!
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