The clock on my phone says it’s 1:30pm. The clock in my body isn’t sure it’s buyin’ that.

After an extraordinarily long day or so of travel, we arrived in Phnom Penh last night at 10:30pm local time. Thanks to a bewildering array of pandemic-related entry restrictions, we got out of the airport at about 12:30am and didn’t get checked into our hotel until around 1:30am.

But thanks to the jetlag, both Benjamin and I were up bright and early at around 6am. By 8:30, we’d already walked almost four miles. We had a delightful breakfast of grilled pork and white rice at a streetside cafe and then returned to our hotel, grabbed the car and headed out to get Cambodian SIM cards and run a few other errands.

I quickly rediscovered my Cambodian driving skills, and made it to the phone shop, tailor (might as well get a few cheap shirts made while in the Penh) and lunch without getting ticketed or damaging any persons or properties..

We had lunch at a fantastic Chinese noodle restaurant and wandered around the Central Market, where Benjamin sampled his first ever dragonfruit.

We’re back at our hotel, supposedly napping. I can’t sleep, but I figure I’ll need whatever energy I can muster to make it to sundown. I’m going to try to stay up as late as I can tonight, get a decent night’s sleep before heading out for Battambang first thing in the morning.
I figure we should make it to Battambang in five or six hours. In the early 2000s, the drive took ten, maybe 12 hours. With massive improvements in road conditions, the drive is now closer to five. But traffic in and around Phnom Penh can be pretty hairy, so we’d like to get on the road pretty early.

It’s been a bit odd not visiting our homes in Prek Eng, but we’ve decided to stay in the city today. I don’t want to be driving back into town late in the evening, falling asleep at the wheel. So we’ll see those guys in about a week after we return from Battambang.

We’ll probably take some GoPro time lapses around Phnom Penh tonight and through the countryside tomorrow. But the real work will begin on Sunday. Speaking of, I suppose I’m probably going to be preaching, and I haven’t the vaguest idea of what I should say. 

More soon.