Kampot, the small fishing town on the Preaek Tuek Chhu River in Southern Cambodia, was my absolute favorite trip in the country.
When my friends and I finally got WiFi again after a few days on Ko Rong Samloem, we were surprised to find that most accommodation had already been booked because of Khmer New Year (Songkhram). In our scramble to find somewhere to sleep, we booked a bus to Kampot for the same day and I ended up booking a tent at a hostel. After a ferry that was two hours late and a bus that broke down in the middle of nowhere Cambodia TWICE, we finally made it to Kampot.
Bus break down #1 
Bus break down #2 
My tent
You probably don’t know this, but Kampot, Cambodia is world-renowned for its pepper (the ground kind, not the chili pepper kind). So, on my first day there I rented a motorbike and drove an hour through the beautiful countryside to La Plantation, one of Kampot’s famous pepper plantations that offers free tours and tastings. I tasted twelve different types of pepper (I know what your thinking and yes, they do taste different), which was informative but thoroughly annihilated my taste buds. On my drive back from the plantation, a little Cambodian girl ran into the street (they’re small dirt roads) and threw a bucket of water on me. Initially I was pretty thrown, until I remembered that waterguns and hoses are all part of the celebration for Khmer New Year!
Cambodian countryside 
Crossing the train tracks 
The road was simultaneously beautiful and very uneven and hard to drive on 
La Plantation! 
I fully embraced being a tourist and wore the hat. 
Pepper! 
The tour of La Plantation 
A different kind of pepper! 
Me after the bucket of water was thrown on me
I also stopped by the main town of Kampot for a while. The streets were filled with young people celebrating, laughing, and chasing each other with waterguns.
The Durian Roundabout (there were soooo many street vendors selling durian in Kampot) 
#culture 
Lotus Pond 
Kampot is beautiful.
The next day I took my motorbike to Bokor National Park to see the Damrei Mountains, which form the southeastern part of Cambodia’s Cardamom Mountains.
Driving into the park, blissfully unaware of the long twisting and turning road I was starting on. 
The remains of an old village on the mountain, featuring some street art. 
The mountains! 
I actually had to drive back before seeing the entire park because a thunderstorm was coming.
Despite the cool exploring I did there, the best part of Kampot was embracing the laid-back culture of the town by spending my time swimming and kayaking in the river and watching one of the most beautiful sunsets I’ve ever seen.
The Yellow Sun Hostel, Kampot 
The dock 
Embracing the hippie lifestyle in Kampot 
The only way I ever want to eat breakfast. 
This is just adorable. 
The sunset day two. 
The sunset day 3 
Fire Sky
Such a beautiful place! Was that you with the little girl?
😀
So colorful! Scenery is gorgeous. Great photography. People seem so laid back and and carefree!