Battambang: caves, bats and evil monkeys

Battambang (pron. bat-dam-bong) is the second most populous city in Cambodia but it seemed much quieter, slower and more peaceful than Phnom Penh or Seam Reap. Immediately obvious was that although the city is reasonably well set up for tourists there were not that many to be seen. Actually, there are probably more expats living here than tourists visiting so this probably contributes to the tourist friendly eating/drinking/coffee options. 

We travelled to Battambang from Siem Reap by mini bus (Mekong Express, $6 pp). The trip was just under three hours and very comfortable despite a seating mix up that meant I (Daz) was squeezed in to the middle seat on the back row while Jen rode in the comfortable seats we thought we had booked up front. Short trip, comfy seats, good air con and tiredness from a big night out made this a non issue.
There are two things every tourist does in Battambang: the bamboo train and the killings caves/bat caves. We hired a tuk tuk for the day for $15. I won’t leave the driver’s name as he was a little pushy and didn’t bother showing up for the second half (sent his brother instead). There seem to be far more tuk tuks than tourists in town so finding a decent driver and getting a decent price is very easy.

The ride to the Bamboo train takes approx 30 mins through some nice country scenery. You pay $5pp and sit on cushions on a small open bamboo carriage. This was once used by the farmers but is now almost exclusively for tourists. I had low expectations but it was actually very fun. This thing moves seriously fast and is best described as a flat roller coaster going through farmland. There is only one track so when you hit oncoming traffic you jump off, disassemble the ‘train’ and wait for the track to clear. Check out the videos of the ride and Daz trying to helpful and build the train – a good gym workout. About an hour in total and well worth doing.

[youtube https://youtu.be/9xF-SYmYtZk?h=240] 
[youtube https://youtu.be/0bI76AKv8jE?h=240]
Must see tourist attraction #2 involves a 45min ride to Phnom Sampeau  (basically the only hill in an otherwise very flat area). From the base it is a steep, hot walk to the top to see some Buddha statues and pagodas but most significantly the Killing Caves where the Khmer Rouge brutally murdered thousands of people and threw them (alive or dead) into the cave. Yet another reminder of the cruelty of the recent past.

Heading further up to the top of the hill we had to navigate via some very tight security – hundreds of monkeys. If you are thinking awwwww monkeys and picturing something cute like the Tarsiers we wrote about in Bohol then stop. These were evil (perhaps mutant) monkeys that give you death stares, steal food from babies (with such fast movements they would work well as pickpocketers on a subway), stomp on tin roofs then jump down at you, and climb to the top of a tower pole and shake it violently to create a booming sound to ensure everyone knows who’s the boss.  Fortunately we carefully navigated through (Jen under the watchful eye of a sweet, helpful nun), took some snaps then walked down to the bottom to await the arrival of the bats at the bat cave.

The Bat Cave is home to over a million Asian wrinkle-lipped bats. At dusk each night they emerge from the cave in a line producing a stunning display that lasts about 45 minutes. The bats can eat 50% to 100% of their own body weight in insects each night. This provides protection for the local crops that could otherwise be destroyed by pests – great natural bug protection. I might get a pet bat or two to keep the mozzies away in our room at night.

[youtube https://youtu.be/U2UI-1t3HN0?h=240]

After ticking off the main tourist attractions on day one we used day two to collect our Vietnamese visas [aside: I’ve read this is difficult.. it is super easy. Rock up to the Consulate of Vietnam in Battambang with a passport photo and $50, fill in a very short form and your passport is ready to collect the next morning.] then hired bicycles from Battambang Bikes on 2.5 Street for $2 per day. We cycled out following the roads along the river to Ek Phnom which has a modern Buddhist Pagoda and a pre angkor temple which was built in 1027. The temple was a good destination but obviously hard to compare having just come from Siem Reap. 

We stayed at Here Be Dragons hostel in the fanciest room they have – double room with air con and ensuite for $15 per night. Facilities were basic but clean. Already missing the pool and cold towels on arrival from The Aviary,Siem Reap, but our cost run rate is too high and we need to build up backpacker credentials. The next few stops are going to be budget friendly. The hostel is right on the riverfront where the locals all gather around sunset to do group aerobics classes to pumping tunes! Awesome but I could see we were quite a distraction so we didn’t hang around to take pics. 

Battambang seems to have plenty of good food options, although we weren’t here long enough to explore thoroughly. A big shout out to Jaan Bai, another restaurant providing training and employment to those in need. 

I write this entry sitting at Kinyei cafe drinking the best coffee (a flat white!) I’ve had since leaving London while Jen devours a delicious breakfast toastie she just called “da bomb”. A child, perhaps two years old sits at a table near us crying, his mum (local) explains that he wants to watch a cartoon on YouTube. I could just as easily be sitting in Esters in Stokey, London. Whilst many things here are very different, some things are the same the world over 🙂

[Read more good coffee tips on the awesome MoveToCambodia site, we used this site a lot during our trip]

Next up, Kampot: home of the pepper! To get there we need to spend 10+ hours on a couple of buses (via Phnom Penh)…