Since my last post, I've gone on an island vacation and had a very even-keeled week of work, each with its attendant ups and downs. And lots and lots of itchiness...
So where'd I go?
Jacques and I headed south-west early Monday morning for a five and half hour drive, navigating one and two lane roads with an inordinate number of trucks going both ways. There was a lot of holding of breath and passing into oncoming traffic. Luckily, animals and pedestrians weren't added obstacles. You may ask, what was my hurry? Well, if I hit 60mph more than once or twice, I'd be surprised; and most often my speed was 40mph or less.
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| Jacques handled the drive much more calmly than me |
At last, though, we made it to Sihanoukville and the port there. I met up with my friend and colleague L and her family, and we searched for the ferry that was to take us to our island paradise. Oddly, since we were staying at the same place on the island and had called the same ferry company in advance, and despite the fact they told us there was only one ferry to our island, we were on different boats. Mine left a little earlier than L's, so off I went with Jacques, a backpack, a small duffle of my clothing, and two tote bags (one for Jacques' stuff, one for miscellaneous items I thought of last minute).
As we went to board the boat, which had a maximum capacity of around twenty people, it surprised me to see there were TWO other dogs going on the same ferry. What the...?! Those of you who know Jacques know what happened then: he started growling and snarling, a Chinese woman behind me began to scream, and I had to run away from the boarding area, leaving my bags behind. Once Jacques calmed down, we returned to find that my bags were the only things not loaded, and just one seat open in a two-facing-two nook. I waved at the boat company people to take my bags and the shook their heads: "No room! You take!"
Have you ever tried being the huge Western woman with five bags and a dog everyone's terrified of, squeezing down the aisle of a little ferry crammed with people, dogs, and more luggage than you could shake a stick at? No? Well, don't. I did end up being the shrill one, practically throwing my bags and one of the boat company guys since there was no way my sliver of bench was gonna fit me and all my stuff.
It was Jacques' first boat ride and I had no idea how he'd do. In the few tuktuk rides he's taken he's tried to jump out, but he hates swimming, so it really was a crapshoot. And, he got to be crammed next to peoples' legs. Sometimes Jacques is less-than-friendly to people, especially when they reach down to pet him.
It was a long boat ride. As you can see, though, Jacques was far less tense than me:
Maybe an hour later, we were deposited on a long pier at our island paradise, Koh Rong. You know the stereotype: gorgeous aquamarine waters, white powdery sand beach, bungalows, palm trees, kayaks and paddle boats dotting the shoreline. On side of the island (the east side) we stayed, there are about five little resorts, each with its own pool(s) and restaurant. L's family and I stayed at the brand new You & Me Resort. It's really not possible to tell you in words that will be any more illustrative than photos, and so here you go:
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| Jacques checking out our digs for the week. |
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| Relaxing on my shady porch. |
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| My bungalow at sunset. |
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| The beach. |
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| Jacques & I got up every morning to seen sunrise. Mostly it was cloudy, but still lovely. |
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| The best sunrise while we were there. |
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| Checking out the island pagoda on a very hot day. |
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| Adventures are fun with a buddy. |
There you have it! We stayed on the island from Monday to Friday. Each day I got up to see the sunrise and walk Jacques before enjoying a breakfast of fruit, homemade passionfruit jam on toast, and my choice of eggs or cereal or Khmer noodles. Then it was time to beach a bit, to dip in the ocean and then the pool and then back, maybe with a quick nap in between. The 11am-3pm hours were crazy hot and there wasn't a lot of shade to hide in near the water, so I mostly read my book or snoozed during that time. L and family and I sometimes hung out, sometimes explored together, and sometimes did our own thing. It was pleasant and easy, as a vacation should be.
What was there to do, you ask, besides beach and pool? Well, we walked half an hour to a small pagoda, which seemed to be a real mix of Chinese and Cambodian. And another time I went on a boat ride with three other families - each with two adults and two or three kids - to go snorkeling, which was a blast. We tried out the restaurant at the resort next door - Secret Garden - several times, and I got a massage there too.
But really, one should soak up the wind and sand and salt on an island paradise, don't you think? So I mostly did that.
The boat ride back to the mainland was better in some ways - I was with my friends, and there was only one other dog that Jacques had gotten used to during the week - but was mostly TERRIBLE. It was an incredibly windy morning, so much so that we hadn't gone to the beach because the sand-spray was too painful. And so the boat ride was choppy, and crammed with people, and with drivers who seemed to want to go fast until they got nervous and shut off the engine, letting the boat ride uuuup a swell, pause, and then slam back down. My butt came out of my seat on many occasions and Jacques' legs were shaking by the end of it, from exhaustion. He seemed no worse for wear.
We spent the day and evening in Sihanoukville to recover, L and family staying at a different hotel (that didn't accept pets) than us. The weather was calmer on the mainland and Jacques and I got in a long shoreline walk before dinner.
Dinner was delicious. I met L and family at Chhne Meas Restaurant, recommended to us by a colleague for its excellent seafood. We ate very, very well.
After a night at the clean, slightly run down yet nicely decorated Vinina Boutique Hotel on a mattress as soft as my dining room table, Jacques and I followed our routine: morning walk, breakfast, and then we hopped in the car and motored back to Phnom Penh. Although it took about the same amount of time - five hours and change - it seemed an easier drive to me. Perhaps I got used to the passing; or maybe there weren't quite as many trucks; the island paradise vacation may have relaxed me to the point of staying calm in traffic. In any case, we made it home without incident.
Well, I did come home with one souvenir I'd much rather not have: bug bites. The sand fleas, invisible and choosey in their targets, had found me and apparently fallen in love with my flesh. It's a week later and the bites have not stopped itching for a single moment. Fifteen or twenty welts cover my upper arms and lower legs, and dot my chest and neck. They're unpleasant, too, swelling up and oozing and scabbing over.
I'm exercising my willpower to actively Not Scratch, but it's hard and not a little maddening. No one else in my group got more than one or two bites. Jacques seems perfectly fine, not scratching at all.
I'm just lucky.
After a nice week at work that buzzed along busily but manageably, I'm now ready to sleep away the itchiness and have a low key weekend. And to start it off, I played my favorite boardgame, Wingspan, with the Oceania expansion set a good friend bought me over the holidays.
Though I can't help but feel a little lonely and sad to be spending my Friday night in, alone but for my furry friend and some Mozart playing...
Still, life is pretty good, and with the Omicron variant starting to spike and peak here, a night in isn't all bad.
Yeah, life is good!
