My very first time officially riding or driving on the right hand side of the road. Cambodia drives on the right hand side which is different from Malaysia and Thailand so immediately after the Border there was somehow a weird swing switch where all vehicles switch from left to right if you were going from Thailand to Cambodia and vice versa if going the other way.
Funny thing was there was no real rule or guide on the switch but somehow it just happened.
Suddenly my left mirror is more important and while I need to stop on the right side, the normality of leaning the bike to the left side is still dominant. Not only that turning left now is a challenge.
Suddenly my left mirror is more important and while I need to stop on the right side, the normality of leaning the bike to the left side is still dominant. Not only that turning left now is a challenge.
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| General Conditions of Roads in Cambodia - Riding on Construction Gravel Road |
The Cambodians drive like a fluid motion where they somehow never stop. I cant seam to understand how this works especially at junctions turning left where I tend to stop, look around then slowly inch my way through but the locals here somehow will ride across the road and face oncoming traffic head on till the very last minute and if you chicken out and stop then they will then have the right to continue fluidly riding their way turning left somehow.
It also seams that the horns here are used differently, like a warning ... get out of my way else I’ll ram you down kinda horn. So obviously only the big trucks and bus use them more than the little bikes. The bigger the vehicle the more bad ass they usually be.
It also seams that the horns here are used differently, like a warning ... get out of my way else I’ll ram you down kinda horn. So obviously only the big trucks and bus use them more than the little bikes. The bigger the vehicle the more bad ass they usually be.
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| Sliding on Mud Road by Pressure of Big Ass Timber Log Trucks in Cambodia |
Roads are also a mess ... somehow main roads can be gravel roads for 20 to 50 kilometers and I keep missing a turn because the main road looked like a barely constructed road. I now worry about puncture from stones as everywhere riding was through gravel dirt roads.
The worst was the journey from Sihanoukville to Koh Kong roughly 240km distance and throughout the journey I was doubtful that I would even make that journey without an accident.
The worst was the journey from Sihanoukville to Koh Kong roughly 240km distance and throughout the journey I was doubtful that I would even make that journey without an accident.
It’s always a guess if the roads are good for travel and even then you never know what kind of difficulties might happen in Cambodia such as rain or trucks or cows. Yet the idea of traveling 240km in a day seams like a big hurdle. I gave myself the whole day with even a halfway point emergency overnight stop if I have to.
Route number 48 in Cambodia was supposed to be a scenic ride to Koh Kong but I was unlucky. There was major road construction works all the way to Koh Kong and even the tarmac became pure gravel.
Route number 48 in Cambodia was supposed to be a scenic ride to Koh Kong but I was unlucky. There was major road construction works all the way to Koh Kong and even the tarmac became pure gravel.
I now had to learn to understand what kind of gravel I was riding on. Large stones, small stones, compacted stones, un-compacted stones, some I could go at 40km/hr if there was no pressure from other vehicles while most I had to go around 20 to 30 km/hr.
Vibration hurts the joints of my elbow, my butt ache, my heart skips with every minor slide, and each f*cking car/truck that beeps me while overtaking even thou there was a big space and barely any cars make me want to give them the finger but alas my hand must not leave the handle.
Vibration hurts the joints of my elbow, my butt ache, my heart skips with every minor slide, and each f*cking car/truck that beeps me while overtaking even thou there was a big space and barely any cars make me want to give them the finger but alas my hand must not leave the handle.
The trail of gravel dust and pebbles flying after their overtaking also makes me want to f*cking kill them .... four wheels wont slide and these gravel feels like normal road to these 4x4 monsters but on a two wheel, gravel + side inclination + sharp curve + going downhill is a f*cking disaster waiting to happen if I even turn my head to look at the view.
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| Riding on Loose Gravel in Cambodia - Route 48 |
In and out ... gravel after gravel and so many turns ... if only I had come a few months later, I think this road route 48 would be a wonderful ride though a very scenic part of Cambodia.
Its weird as well since the lifestyle in Cambodia is so relax where everything seams to be on slow mode. Everything is on slow mode ... but when they hit the road, somehow they have an urgency like an ambulance but once they reach their destination, they just take forever to move on with the next task.
Traveled on : Nov 2018
Its weird as well since the lifestyle in Cambodia is so relax where everything seams to be on slow mode. Everything is on slow mode ... but when they hit the road, somehow they have an urgency like an ambulance but once they reach their destination, they just take forever to move on with the next task.
Traveled on : Nov 2018
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