10 THINGS I LEARNED IN KOHRONG SAMLOEM
Last weekend was a long holiday, so I packed my back with a bit too many tops, put on sunscreen with extra SPF, locked my laptop away, and made my way with 8 friends to a remote Cambodian island surrounded by lush greenery, turquoise water, white sandy beaches, and best of all – almost no people.
People say the best way to know someone is to travel with them. They also say that you find yourself when you travel. So here is my trip summarized in 10 things I discovered along the way.
1. SOMETIMES THE WORST SITUATION CAN BE A BLESSING IN DISGUISE.
We left for the trip at 5 pm on Friday. After a freezing sleeper bus, 2 oxygen-deficient border facilities and another 3-hour bus ride, our last mode of transportation was a 2-hour boat ride scheduled to leave at 3 pm. By 2:30 we were all wearing sun glasses and ready to board. By 2:40 they informed us that the slow boat was cancelled and we needed to wait until 5 pm but would be upgraded to a 45-minute speed boat. By 2:50 we accepted the fact that making a fuss wouldn’t get us anywhere and decided to have a picnic by the shore. By 3:00 sharp when we had just finished unpacking all the snacks and board games, they shouted at us that spots opened up on the 3 pm speed boat. In less than 30 seconds, we grabbed everything and sprinted barefoot to the pier. Completely out of breath and looking like a mess, but we ultimately made it to the island 75 minutes earlier than planned at no extra cost.
2. SOMETHING IS WORTH NOT SHOWERING FOR.
After 24 hours sleeping on buses & boats, I was no longer the same person. My hair was oily, my skin felt tacky, I was secretly scheming in my head to be the first one to hog the bathroom once we arrived. Yet the moment we stepped foot on the coveted island, none of this seemed to matter. I’ve never been to paradise, but the semi-untouched Koh Rong Samloem must come pretty close. The island looks like an oval mirror with flawlessly white smooth sand as an edge, endlessly stretching beside pristine water that reflects the blue sky. I’d never laid eyes on a beach so breathtakingly beautiful. The entire coastline was quiet and almost empty. As I stood there watching the sea glow with a range of blue hues under the warmth of sunset and listening to the soft lapping of waves on shore, it no longer bothered me that my face was covered in 2 days of sunscreen and sweat. It also helped that I got to share the moment with 8 friends who were equally greasy (most likely) and equally in awe (most definitely).
3. IF YOU CAN’T PUT OUT THE FIRE, ENJOY THE WARMTH.
3 hours after checking in, we were barely half way to the restaurant when the staff pointed us to a red glow of fire on the other side of the jungle. The flame grew bigger in front of our eyes as wind blew large blasts of heat through the thick trees. They told us to return to our room and pack everything “just in case we need to run”. Handling crisis isn’t really my forte, but I refused to believe that we had come all this way to just run away. So after calmly following orders to zip our bags up, we returned to the table by the sea patiently waiting for food. I still don’t know which shocked the staff more: the growing flame or our dead-serious question “but dinner is still served, yes?”. There wasn’t much we knew to do, but if those were our last minutes, at least we spent them admiring a hauntingly beautiful red-glowing sky. The fire was eventually doused, and our stomach finally stopped growling.
4. THERE ARE STARS IN THE SKY, THERE ARE ALSO STARS IN THE WATER.
Do you remember the glowing water scene in Life of Pi? On our 2nd day on the island, we leapt into the chill water at night and I saw it come to life with my own eyes. Imagine the blackness of the sea on a moonless night. Now imagine it glimmering with a million flecks and flashes of light - like fireflies dancing just beneath the surface of the water. This otherworldly phenomenon is created by fluorescent plankton which glow soft blue light as we wave our hands and legs in the water. I will never forget the first time I dipped my hand into the dark water and saw a flurry of light following my finger tips. That ethereal moment standing beneath a sky speckled with stars and swirling in the sparkling sea - calling it “magical” would still be an understatement. I later read that climate change has made some of these bio-luminescent bays go dark. This reminds me how fragile and potentially fleeting nature is, how little I have seen, and how incredibly lucky I was to be there when the enchanted waterway was still shining.
5. TRAVEL CRUSH NEEDS NO REASON, AND WILL PULL AT YOUR HEART STRINGS.
We unwind for the following 2 days in rustic wooden bungalows at the far end & sunrise side of the beach. The resort was lovely, the staff was even lovelier - each one of them chill and accommodating. We didn’t see the owner on the first day, but when we did the following morning, my heart skipped. It literally took one nice smile of his. Adding in the Italian accent, the fact that he offered us free chocolate-flavored shots, the way he clasped his hands while wishing us goodnight, and I got butterflies in the stomach for the rest of trip. I really wanted to give him a hug before we left, but he wasn’t wearing shirt at the time (or ever). So I settled for letting him carry my bag onto the boat. It wasn’t until we returned to the mainland that I realized I didn’t even know his name. No Facebook stalking possible now, but that’s a beautiful thing in its own way because I can fully remember him - not for who he is - but how he is.
6. YOU REALLY HAVE TO BE IN SOMEONE’S SHOES TO FULLY UNDERSTAND THEM.
The last time things didn’t work out between me and a guy, it was because he had to leave Saigon. “The city noise is too much and I miss nature” - he told me before returning to a foreign secluded island. I tried to understand but it was difficult. What did “missing nature” even mean - we had countless trees in Saigon! Then last weekend I found myself taking an overdue break from it all, stepping into another world where things like ATM, wifi connection, honking noises and mobile phone waves simply didn’t exist. Instead of frantically replying to emails, I spent hours floating around in the calm water, watching the colors transform the evening sky, and enjoying the serenity of doing nothing. In that blissfully idyllic moment, a light bulb went off in my heart - this was how it felt. I was already missing nature, even when I was right in the middle of it.
7. IT TAKES VERY LITTLE TO MAKE ME HAPPY, LIKE A BEACHY WIND.
Back in the city, I did everything in my power to hide from the dusty wind. I would never step out of the house unless my entire face and hair were completely covered. Out in the island, the ocean breezes instead blew this fresh salt-laden air landward and it would be a shame to not let it caress my face and gently ruffle my hair. There was the soft breeze that made my dress move as if it was alive, then there was also strong gust of wind that gave me the real tousled beach hair look. They say whatever you physically feel in nature, you are emotionally feeling in life. With wind on my face, salt in my hair and sand on my toes, I feel as if I’m a part of everything.
8. FINDING A COMMON LANGUAGE MIGHT BE A DISASTER IN DISGUISE.
Before we left for the trip, our boss told us to be careful. I didn’t think much of it until the last night which we spent in Sihanoukville town. While the rest went to a local bar, 3 of us wanted to head back early. The usual crowd of tuk-tuk drivers aggressively greeted us as soon as we stepped out and we decided to go with a driver who spoke amazingly decent Vietnamese. When we left downtown and functioning streetlights behind, however, we started to feel slightly apprehensive as the vehicle drove into a pitch-black deserted dirt road running parallel to the beach. It was so dark that I couldn’t see my friends, but I knew they realized too in that moment that we were 3 girls - quite scantily clad that night - alone with a strange foreign man. Because the driver knew Vietnamese, we couldn’t say anything but holding our breath and silently picturing worst case scenarios. When we finally arrived at our boutique hotel and the tuk-tuk guy politely opened the door for us, I felt sightly bad for having the suspicion. But hadn't luck been on our side that night, we could have easily been dumped in the wilderness somewhere. Note to self: remember that I am a girl and that sometimes put me at greater risk of harm, no more dimly lit road at night, and always be in a big group.
9. POUR YOUR HEART OUT AS IF YOU ARE PLAYING TRUTH OR DARE UNDER THE STARS.
There wasn’t a lot to do on the island. We ate, read, drunk, played board games, slept in hammocks, lounged on the beach, swam in the crystal clear water, and bonded over multiple versions of Truth or Dare. Our group knew each other from work, so most of the conversations we had prior to the trip revolved around numbers and deadlines. On our last night, when the alcohol kicked in and the electricity was turned off, we got up close and personal taking turn to share impressions of each other. Among the many things said, some made my heart flutter, some made it sink. Some left me speechless in the best way possible, some left confusion. Some made me understand my friends better, some made me feel like I hadn’t really known them all this time. Was it cheesy? Yes. Was it difficult to say? Oh yes. But wouldn’t life be so much better if we learnt to say I-Feel-Lucky-To-Be-Your-Friend, I-Love-You, I-Thank-You, even I’m-Mad-At-You more? Hell yes.
10. YOUR BEST FRIEND WILL SEE YOU THROUGH ALL THE MAKE-UP.
When on the island, do as the islanders do: going barefaced. As much as I love smoky eyes, I wasn’t going to reapply it after each of the 5+ showers a day. My friends find my sleepy eyes look very amusing. But my best friend wasn’t at all surprised because this had been the usual sight whenever I slept over. The first thing she did, as always, was laser-eyeing my speckled skin and insisting on popping my pimples. If this is not love, I don’t know what is. Whether or not I wear the physical or emotional make-up, she never fails to see right through the facade and finish my thoughts well before I even say it. I realize after this trip that though it’s scary to lose people, it’s scarier to lose oneself. So, to my best friend, I love you, thank you for making sure I always find myself, and I feel lucky for our awesome twinness. Google is telling me that twinness isn’t a word, but trust me - it is definitely our thing.