Since the last post: Siem Reap -> Phnom Penh (2 nights) -> Bangkok (just arrived).
As nice as it was to see Camodia, it was just as nice to leave. Getting out of the country is not that easy however. If you don’t get up early you’ll have to wait until the next day. Or the next next day in my case. I wanted to leave sooner than I did, but all (cheap) modes of transport required that I woke up at the crack of dawn. So I stayed an extra day or two. But today, thanks to my early rising and the AirAsia pilot who rocketed me out of Cambodia in what I’m sure was record time, I’m now sitting in Bangkok. I’m glad to be back.
Nothing spectacularly bad happened in Cambodia. Quite the opposite. It was a good trip and very interesting too. But the country, especially Phnom Penh, can wear you down. Everything is an effort, a every deal a scam and every offer a shady proposition. It was while visiting Wat Phnom, the first Buddhist temple erected in the capital, that I knew I just wanted to be somewhere else. After I had climbed the stairs, with the beggars and cripples all holding out their hands, I reached the top and was told the entrance fee was a dollar. Now, a dollar is just a dollar right? Sure. But it’s not just a dollar. Because it’s the 8 dollars I forked out for the Silver Pagoda (three for me and five for my video camera!) and the other dollars I forked out on countless other attractions of culture. I don’t even like temples that much (Angkor being the exception). So I decided to just enjoy the view from the outside. At the time, it went something more like “I’ll be damned if I’m going to spend another dollar on some crap I don’t like.”
Normally, I automatically pass on recommended destinations because I figured they were just tourist traps which weren’t really all that interesting. But this time I really made an effort to see that side of things. If anyone at the Lonely Planet is reading this, take notes from here. After the Tuol Sleng museum and the killing fields, the Silver Pagoda is the next on the recommended viewing list. So I went there. Short story, it sucked.
It is named the Silver Pagoda because of the 5,000 silver tiles on the floor. Unfortunately I only saw about 10 of those tiles due to the carpet that covered pretty much the entire room. I also had to leave my camera outside because there can be no photographs taken inside the temple. There was a throne, there were ornaments, there was a lot of stuff plated gold. There also might have been a Buddha statue somewhere in there. I looked out the window. Some monks were strolling around. I think they were there for ambience because they didn’t really do anything but stand around. Photo opportunities of monks next to the temple are popular but I knew they probably had a price, so I took one from a distance instead.
It wasn’t just me either. Nobody was impressed. I’ve been to Angkor and I know impressed tourists. There, people were saying “oooh” and “ahh” all the time over most of the stuff. People talked to each other and smiled. Here, people walked around with looks of forced interest, though I think many of them were French so it was more like faux curiosit . They walked around, took photos, then moved on. They moved, but weren’t moved.
Somewhere along the line, I realized that I must’ve broken a bone in my foot. I realized because it was swollen and bruised. I consulted my good friends at eMedicineHealth, who gave some sage advice for self-diagnosis:
Take the shoe and sock off the good foot as well. Compare both feet side-by-side to figure out how much swelling is present in the injured foot.
Look for any large cuts or wounds. Large cuts or wounds that expose a broken bone are more serious.
Really? Can you imagine someone sitting there with a bone sticking out of the skin of their foot wondering if it’s serious or not? Unless you’re one of the X-Men, you would most likely be quite aware of the gravity of the situation even before you ‘compare both feet’. Luckily for me, no bones were visibly showing. In fact, walking and running hadn’t been an issue. I did remember the onset of bruising happened quite quickly after kicking that punching bag in the gym, so I assume it was that. As I am travelling in a third-world country and as I will be home soon, I also assume that my body has the situation under control. If it was serious, my body would tell me through pain. No pain, no worries. It doesn’t rhyme, but there you go.
It surprises me that I have come this far and only broken my foot. After all, my life flashes before my eyes every time I get on a motorbike taxi. I eat local food, but haven’t gotten sick. And, you’ll be pleased to know, faithful reader, that all my body parts and internal organs are intact. Except the foot, of course.
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