Cambodia Day 5 – bats in Battambang

Sunday 16th October 2022

Today we did a full day tuk tuk tour with DJ. I found him online (which is where I think you find all the best things in life – including my amazing husband!).

DJ picked us up at 9am, and off we went to Wat Samrong Knong, a Buddhist temple and our first stop. DJ explained to us that during the Khmer Rouge reign, it was used as a prison. It’s weird to think a place of worship was put to such horrific use.

We then continued down the road to the Samrong Knong Killing Field, a very sobering experience. When you get close to the memorial, you realise the windows are completely filled with skulls and bones – all victims of the Khmer Rouge. Around the outside of the memorial are grisly bas reliefs, documenting the torture that occurred. DJ shared his own personal story with us. He’s only a few years older, but was born in a Thai refugee camp and only moved to Cambodia at the age of 11. It made me realise just how recent the history is, and I felt very privileged to hear his fascinating stories.

Our next stop was to learn how rice paper is made, such a manual process but really interesting to watch. We also got to sample them, in the form of freshly fried pork spring rolls – delicious! Definitely one of the better spring rolls I’ve tasted.

Our next stop was another food related one. This time to see how dried banana is made. We got to sample some, and also bought a bag to take with us tomorrow as a snack for the long train ride (we’ll be heading to Phnom Penh).

Then on to another temple – Preah Mhakunthkut. It was quite an idyllic setting and we enjoyed a leisurely wander around.

On the way to the Bamboo train, DJ took us past the Lok Ta Dambong Kra Nhoung Shrine – it’s a bit crazy as it’s basically a shrine where people to go worship, in the middle of a roundabout!

The bamboo train is basically a bamboo platform that they balance on two sets of wheels (to turn it around, they literally pick up the platform and rotate, the put back on the wheels!), with a removable engine at the back. Very fun to ride, and a great experience.

By this time we were getting hungry, so very happy when DJ suggested taking us somewhere for lunch. On the way, we came across a very narrow, rickety bridge. He told us to walk across and he’d meet us on the other side – I’d assumed via some proper roads! But no, after crossing by foot (and admiring the beautiful views over the river), he followed us straight across.

We continued to a little restaurant at the side of the road, where we shared a Khmer dish of beef fried noodles that DJ recommend (not sure of the name, but it was delicious – slightly like sweet and sour, but nicer). We also had to order a beer to share – the name (Krud) just had us too intrigued not too.

Clearly DJ thought we were in need of some exercise, as our next stop on the tour involved a LOT of steps. At the top was Phnom Banan Temple. Nice enough, but not sure it was worth the climb – although it was satisfying reaching the top!

Next it was further into the mountain, to the killing cave. The name comes from the fact that the Khmer Rouge would blindfold people and push them over the edge of the cave entrance, down the steep drop to kill them. Utterly horrific, and ever so sad.

We continued to the top of the mountain, where we were rewarded with beautiful views and some nice temples. There were a lot of monkeys around here, which made me slightly nervous, especially after there was a lot of commotion (am guessing they were fighting)

The route back down was much easier than the climb up. At the bottom, DJ pointed out the huge Buddha under construction (not that we could miss it!), and we settled down at one of the tables on the street for a cold beer, while we waited for the bats to emerge from the caves.

It was an awesome sight – I was stunned by how long it goes on for (an hour, apparently!). We watched for about 30 minutes, then DJ took us to another viewing point, where we saw bats emerging from another cave – we were further from the cave entrance, but if anything this one was more impressive (seemed to be more bats)

Our final stop was a beautiful location overlooking rice fields to view the end of the sunset. From here, we could see both columns of bats from the two caves we’d just watched – slightly surreal, but amazing.

DJ dropped us off at the night market by the river, and we wandered around it before heading up along the river to grab dinner.

We ate at Japan Bai, and I must say it was exceptional. A little pricey (our bill was $40, but that included a few cocktails) but definitely worth it. we ordered a few small plates to share – bigger than we expecting, so we left very full! For me, the corn fritters and pork bao were stand out dishes, the crispy pork salad and chicken satay were close runners up!