7 thoughts after 7 days: Phnom Penh, Cambodia

The most wonderfully weird country I’ve ever seen.

I arrived in Phnom Penh on a Friday afternoon. It was rumored among Remotes to be “the La Paz, Bolivia of Southeast Asia.” What does that mean, you ask? Well, you’ll probably have to go to La Paz to find out.

I didn’t love La Paz, but I loved Bolivia. It’s this secret beautiful land full of strange, spectacular things. Cambodia is same same, but different.

There was said to be a lot of pollution. It’s a poor country. There’s a lot of shit that went down here.

It’s Asia.

The Asia that doesn’t have digital nomads.

The Asia that doesn’t have fancy toilets.

The Asia that doesn’t have high speed internet.

It’s the Asia that I’ve been waiting and wanting to be slapped in the face with for a few months now.

It took me a solid week to fall fully in love with Cambodia, so here’s a little deep dive into our strange little love affair.

1. Talk about a slap in the face with weirdness!

I told you I wanted this awhile ago. And while Kuala Lumpur gave me that sensory overload that was new and weird, it didn’t shake me to my core.

I can safely say that Cambodia, especially Phnom Penh, is the most chaotic place I’ve ever been. Almost daily I’m 90% certain I’m riding to my death in a tuk tuk. I don’t always know what I’m eating. And I watch my purse like it holds the golden ticket.

I’m so uncomfortable in Phnom Penh that it makes me comfortable. It reminds me why I began to fall in love with traveling to new places in the first place. That discomfort that leads to comfort in newness.

2. I don’t think I’ll ever feel at home here.

When I wrote this down about a week ago, it felt like a bad thing. Now, I feel pretty neutral about it.

It’s hard to feel like you belong here. You’re clearly a tourist. You can afford different things. You take tuk tuks. Your tuk tuk driver asks you if you’ve been to the Killing Fields yet. You can’t escape and pretend to be a local like in Europe.

3. Gotta be able to walk.

Phnom Penh is not a walkable city. There are literally no sidewalks.

This effects travelers like me so much because we tend to wander in order to get acquainted with a new city. When you can’t do this, it doesn’t feel like home.

4. You can’t reap the full benefits of Remote Year if you don’t travel to the new city with the group.

This past travel day I skipped because I was still on an island in Thailand. I arrived about a week later than the rest of the group and I feel like I’ve been playing catch up ever since, and that’s not a fun feeling.

Whether it’s as simple as getting to the workspace, or trying a restaurant for the first time that everyone is already sick of, coming late to the party changes your experience on Remote Year. There’s no doubt that we’re in a little bubble; however, when you pop out of it, it’s strange to finagle your way back in.

I think missing more than a week in any city on Remote Year is a mistake, but that’s just my personal opinion. And I’ve made that mistake about 1/3 of this year. My reasoning mainly comes back to the price tag that comes with it, but to each their own.

5. Holy trash.

Cambodia is full of trash. It’s everywhere. On the street. In the parks. In the countryside.

It’s kind of overwhelming from the perspective of a California native, where I maybe bought a plastic water bottle a handful of times a year. It makes me wonder why this is so and how can it be stopped. Is it education? Do they just need to know that my iced coffee doesn’t need a purse? I don’t know but I’m kind of compelled to find out and figure it out.

6. The tears are already flowing.

It’s our second to last month on Remote Year. Hell, there are less than six weeks left.

At our Welcome Party this month, we had a little open mic time and it just became a cry fest. I don’t even know what I said during my few minutes on the mic, but I’m pretty sure I cried.

I also just cried on a bus coming back from Siem Reap. Stupid music.

I’m ready for my next step, but I am so, so sad this is over. Being open and feeling the feelings, but man is it hard.

7. The people that make you better.

I’m finding my allies (looking at you, Antonio Neves). And I am SO grateful for that. I feel like I can point to these people I’ve spent the last 10 months with and know that they made me a better person. Thank you, people. I love you.

BONUS!

Don’t be happy because other people are happy. Don’t be upset because other people are upset.

Be how you feel. Not how you think you’re supposed to feel.

I’m happy in Cambodia and that’s that.

Check out my recaps of Còrdoba, Buenos Aires, La Paz, Cusco, London, my Remote Year hiatus, Prague, Belgrade, Split, Kuala Lumpur, and Chiang Mai. Follow along on Instagram for my daily adventures.