The Khmer picnic is not a picnic per se ... No more packed lunches prepared in the morning before departure, the mats on which we will have lunch are most of the time ... Rented!
On weekends and public holidays, urban Cambodians like to go to these picnic spots, with family, friends or even work colleagues, to share a moment of conviviality and relaxation. These "resort" places are often located at the edge of a lake or a river, above which small bamboo huts have been built.
Nearby, real markets with tempting stalls offer all kinds of grills, pickles and fruits. Some stands sometimes offer real dishes, soups and salads that will be delivered to you once ready on the kantels you have chosen to spend the afternoon.
BAKHENG, RESTAURANTS ON THE EDGE OF THE MÉKONG
A picnic spot on the banks of the Mekong just outside Phnom Penh
Not quite outside the city as it continues to expand, Bakheng is located a stone's throw from the city center. You will find Khmer restaurants, some of which are open in the evening, lining the banks of the Mekong, where you can enjoy a good lunch sitting cross-legged on a kantel before lounging in a hammock. All the restaurants offer a wide choice of Khmer dishes, soups, grilled fish and meats, and other salads… A few passing vendors will offer you seasonal fruits, which can be used as dessert.
This place is also very popular with students from Phnom Penh who like to come and flirt there on weekends with their boyfriends, some establishments offering small huts out of sight.
Access: past the Japanese bridge located to the north of the city not far from the French Embassy, and after having traveled a few kilometers, you will enter the enclosure of the pagoda ... recognizable by its golden bas reliefs which covers its walls with bas at the top, and take a small road to the left, narrow, before reaching a second pagoda. At the exit of it, you will start to see the first signs indicating the restaurants, which you will find all along, even after Wat Varin, the second pagoda that you will come across.
It is a little before Wat Varin that you will find the ferry that will take you to Koh Dach, the Silk Island. A passage costs 500 riel per person, add 500 per motorcycle that will make the crossing.
Budget: to eat well and share a few dishes, 5 or 6 US $ per person should be sufficient. Count a little more if you want to refresh yourself with a few very cold beers.
Located on the banks of the Bassac, a few km outside Phnom Penh, the Kien Svay picnic area is a good escape from the city for a day.
You have two choices for lunch: some houses bordering the Bassac have their own cabins, in which you can sit for free by ordering home-prepared meals. Otherwise, by going to the market, you can buy grills and drinks, before choosing a rentable location for an hour, a half day or the whole day, indulge in a lazy nap in a hammock, play cards and drink some beer bottles chilled with ice cubes.
Access: you have to go to the south of the city and cross the Monivong bridge which leads you to Chbar Ampev. Once on the national road, continue for about fifteen kilometers, before turning left at Wat Koh Meas, where new picnic areas have been opened. Continue a few hundred meters before stumbling upon the market where you can choose your meal.
TONLE BUILT
About thirty kilometers from Phnom Penh in the direction of Takeo on national road number 2, Tonlé Bati is a pleasant option for a relaxing day outside the city.
A pretty countryside of rice fields and a charming ancient temple to visit, adjoining the river on which small wooden cabins have been built, make for an ideal setting for a lazy picnic.
However, for those who choose to order their meal on the spot, it is necessary to negotiate well beforehand with the touts who are sure to come to you and offer you their locations.
Many Phnom Penhois –khmers and expatriates– have to deplore the prices that are sometimes prohibitive…
Note that for foreigners, access to the site is chargeable - if you take it - and entry to the temple should also cost you around US $ 3.
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