Battambang is located in the west of Cambodia close to the Thai border. Set on the river, it is a small and calm town in comparison to the busy streets of Phnom Penh, but was one of the last strongholds of the Khmer Rouge.
We arrived into Battambang after a 7 hour journey to the outskirts of the city. After a bit of confusion over where the bus would drop us (at a shopping centre around 3km outside the centre) we called our hotel, Emerald BB, and their resident tuk tuk driver came to collect us (bonus!).
We cleaned up and headed out to explore the city. The centre is set around the covered market area, and streets running parallel up from the river provide many nice cafes and restaurants from which to watch the world go by. We enjoyed a dinner at the White Rose restaurant of our new found favourite dishes, Beef Lok Lak and Fish Amok sitting on the balcony overlooking the streets below. Finishing our evening with a stroll along the river front and a bag of sweetened popcorn as dessert from one of the vendors on the path.
Cooking - savoring the delights of Battambang
Having realised how much we liked the dishes of Cambodia, we decided to book ourselves onto a cooking course. We were picked up the next morning by Nary's Kitchen and taken to their restaurant / cookery school.
We were met by our teacher Toot and started our morning at the local market to pick up a few of the ingredients we would need including; fresh coconut milk, spring onions and eggs. We both have grown to love the local markets as we've been travelling as they really give you a sense of the everyday lives of the local people from the sounds, sights and smells of the produce, market sellers and shoppers.
Loaded up with our goods, we headed back to Nary's Kitchen and scrubbed up ready to get cooking! We were shown step by step how to make 4 dishes; Fish Amok, Beef Lok Lak, Spring Rolls and Banana Tapioca pudding.
All were surprisingly easy to make, with the amok paste taking the longest as it required some good pounding from the pestle and mortar for about 5 minutes!
Once prepared we were then able to cook up our dishes on small gas stoves. The Fish Amok had been steaming, the banana pudding boiling away on the stove so we just needed to fry off our spring rolls and then cook through the marinaded beef.
By lunchtime we had finished cooking our little Cambodian feast (we were hungry from all the beautiful smells!) and were more than ready to sit back and savor our efforts...mmmmm!
Fancy trying Cambodian out...here is our step by step guide to making Fish Amok thanks to Nary's Kitchen.
Circus - enjoying the thrills of Battambang circus
Having enjoyed an afternoon chilling at Eden Cafe (on the river) with a nice big mug of tea followed by some french fries and a beer, we headed to the Phare Ponleu Selpak Circus on the edge of Battambang.
Home to an Arts and Performance college of over 1,000 students, they put on a show of circus acts every Thursday, Friday and Saturday with the show rotating on each day. We were there for their Cabaret Show and what a great atmosphere it was!
The students put on a show with some simple yet hilarious slapstick humour, and we were in awe of just how flexible some of them were - contorting their bodies and balancing in ways that made the audience (mainly foreigners) 'oooo' and cheer very loudly.
By the end of the hour, the whole audience were whooping and clapping along merrily, enjoying every moment - even when they didn't quite manage to make the throw / jump (well they are students!)
We had a thoroughly enjoyable evening and spent dinner at the local Indian restaurant (we needed a change from Fish Amok and Beef Lok Lak now!) discussing how great it is that these kids are gaining such great skills and learning in a really supportive environment. If you go to Battambang or Siem Reap in Cambodia - be sure to go to the Circus!
Countryside - exploring the surroundings of Battambang
Thanks to another great recommendation from our good travelling buddies Beckie and Nick (thanks guys!), for our final day in Battambang we called up Savat (their tuk tuk driver in Battambang) and arranged a tour of the local area, spending the morning north of the town, and the afternoon in the south ($22 for the day).
Our tour started at the ruin of Wat Basat - Julia's first taste of a ruined temple. Some of the central structure had been reconstructed from matching up the large stone blocks with their detailed carved design features, but it was the tumbled blocks scattered across the ground that provided us with the intrigue and excitement to explore.
Scouring the ruin we found intricate calved doorways, corner stones and windows - a taste of what would come at Siem Reap (our next destination).
Savat called us onward and then took us around many of the local crafts found in the villages of the surrounding area. These places really were the real deal - not just 'put on' for tourists, as there were locals at each stop purchasing their wares...
1. Sticky rice - bamboo stalks filled wth cooked sticky rice and red beans
2. Rice paper - the rounded rice papers used to make the famous spring rolls.
3. Rice wine - this 70% alcohol rice wine made through traditional machinery and methods
4. Fish market - with literally vats of fish paste - it stank (we didn't stop for long!)
5. Dried bananas - thinly sliced banana placed under the sun on bamboo slats and left to dry and crisp up in the sun.
We the headed to Wat Ek, another small ruined temple - this one found behind one of the newer temple/shine complexes . This one didn't have the depth of calving that could be seen on the earlier Wat Basat, but still made for a nice stop before we headed south to the Bamboo railway.
The Bamboo Railway ($5 per person) came about after the railway become disused after the fall of the Khmer Rouge. The trucks - known as Norrys - are used as a way of transporting goods and people between towns along the line. It is a bit of a novelty and seems to be only really for tourists now, but was great fun as you really do pick up some speed - some 50kmph!
There were a few rickety moments were we wondered if we would derail on route but, with only one line there and back, we were slowing on a regular basis to stop and let other carriages go past (literally lifted off the railway and then lifted back on!). The total trip took about 15-20 minutes each way.
We had a 10 minute look around the stalls and brick-makers at the end of the line and then mounted on again for the return journey...we are sure he decided to get a move on as we really flew down the track this time!
After our feet were firmly back on the ground we headed on over to Phnom Sampeau, where there is a notorious cave used by the Khymer Rouge - known as the killing cave. A 15 minute walk up a hill just outside the tourist hub-bub of stalls and eateries (located here for the bat-cave) brought us to another of the cave. Many victims were bludgeoned to death and then tossed into 50 ft shafts into the cave (see Phnom Penh for more on the Khermer Rouge). Here the remains of several thousand people have been found - another horrible reminder of the horrors that this country has faced.
There was a circular walk available up to the top of a pagoda on a hill, but we didn't have the time to do this walk. We headed back down to our driver as he said he would take us to his "secret" bat cave. So instead of us hanging around with the hoards of other tourists at the bottom of the hill on the street packed with stalls and pop up bars, we headed off to Savat's secret cave.
As we pulled up on the side of a road, Savat pointed us up a rocky hillside towards the secret spot where we could watch the bats. It was a bit of a scramble to the top, but totally worth it as we sat back with a beer in hand to watch the sunset before the bats came out.
There were around 10-20 people in total - Savat had only a few other tuk tuk driver friends that knew about the secret cave so we got to enjoy the experience in peace, with an amazing sunset and spectacular view of the bats.
As the sun went down behind the clouds on the horizon, the bats started to leave their cave earlier than expected. There were thousands...possibly millions of small black bats scaling across the skyline in front of us. This was one incredible sight.
Leaving the safety of their dark home, they flew out like a long snake together, following each others path before and twisting occasionally should they be slightly spooked, and eventually breaking out across the skyline in the distance.
The trail must have continued for around 30 minutes and was still going as we decided to head back down the hillside in the dwindling light. We felt very privileged to have been able to experience it thanks to Savat and his tuk tuk friends being "in the know!".
We ended our final day in Battambang with dinner and a $0.50 beer at Ambrosia restaurant. Again recommended by Nick and Beckie, we ordered and played Connect 4 whilst we waited, unfortunately our food arrived before Julia had a chance to win, but we got through 10 games so we gave up and planned our next adventure - the notorious boat to Siem Reap.
 |
| Scream!!!! |
We arrived into Battambang after a 7 hour journey to the outskirts of the city. After a bit of confusion over where the bus would drop us (at a shopping centre around 3km outside the centre) we called our hotel, Emerald BB, and their resident tuk tuk driver came to collect us (bonus!).
We cleaned up and headed out to explore the city. The centre is set around the covered market area, and streets running parallel up from the river provide many nice cafes and restaurants from which to watch the world go by. We enjoyed a dinner at the White Rose restaurant of our new found favourite dishes, Beef Lok Lak and Fish Amok sitting on the balcony overlooking the streets below. Finishing our evening with a stroll along the river front and a bag of sweetened popcorn as dessert from one of the vendors on the path.
Cooking - savoring the delights of Battambang
Having realised how much we liked the dishes of Cambodia, we decided to book ourselves onto a cooking course. We were picked up the next morning by Nary's Kitchen and taken to their restaurant / cookery school.
 |
| Toot! |
We were met by our teacher Toot and started our morning at the local market to pick up a few of the ingredients we would need including; fresh coconut milk, spring onions and eggs. We both have grown to love the local markets as we've been travelling as they really give you a sense of the everyday lives of the local people from the sounds, sights and smells of the produce, market sellers and shoppers.
Loaded up with our goods, we headed back to Nary's Kitchen and scrubbed up ready to get cooking! We were shown step by step how to make 4 dishes; Fish Amok, Beef Lok Lak, Spring Rolls and Banana Tapioca pudding.
 |
| Smashing it! |
All were surprisingly easy to make, with the amok paste taking the longest as it required some good pounding from the pestle and mortar for about 5 minutes!
Once prepared we were then able to cook up our dishes on small gas stoves. The Fish Amok had been steaming, the banana pudding boiling away on the stove so we just needed to fry off our spring rolls and then cook through the marinaded beef.
 |
| Fish Amok |
By lunchtime we had finished cooking our little Cambodian feast (we were hungry from all the beautiful smells!) and were more than ready to sit back and savor our efforts...mmmmm!
 |
| Our home-cooked meal |
Fancy trying Cambodian out...here is our step by step guide to making Fish Amok thanks to Nary's Kitchen.
Circus - enjoying the thrills of Battambang circus
Having enjoyed an afternoon chilling at Eden Cafe (on the river) with a nice big mug of tea followed by some french fries and a beer, we headed to the Phare Ponleu Selpak Circus on the edge of Battambang.
 |
| Ta-da |
Home to an Arts and Performance college of over 1,000 students, they put on a show of circus acts every Thursday, Friday and Saturday with the show rotating on each day. We were there for their Cabaret Show and what a great atmosphere it was!
The students put on a show with some simple yet hilarious slapstick humour, and we were in awe of just how flexible some of them were - contorting their bodies and balancing in ways that made the audience (mainly foreigners) 'oooo' and cheer very loudly.
 |
| Trapeze |
 |
| Don't drop it! |
We had a thoroughly enjoyable evening and spent dinner at the local Indian restaurant (we needed a change from Fish Amok and Beef Lok Lak now!) discussing how great it is that these kids are gaining such great skills and learning in a really supportive environment. If you go to Battambang or Siem Reap in Cambodia - be sure to go to the Circus!
Countryside - exploring the surroundings of Battambang
Thanks to another great recommendation from our good travelling buddies Beckie and Nick (thanks guys!), for our final day in Battambang we called up Savat (their tuk tuk driver in Battambang) and arranged a tour of the local area, spending the morning north of the town, and the afternoon in the south ($22 for the day).
 |
| Savat! |
Our tour started at the ruin of Wat Basat - Julia's first taste of a ruined temple. Some of the central structure had been reconstructed from matching up the large stone blocks with their detailed carved design features, but it was the tumbled blocks scattered across the ground that provided us with the intrigue and excitement to explore.
Scouring the ruin we found intricate calved doorways, corner stones and windows - a taste of what would come at Siem Reap (our next destination).
 |
| A small taster of Angkor |
Savat called us onward and then took us around many of the local crafts found in the villages of the surrounding area. These places really were the real deal - not just 'put on' for tourists, as there were locals at each stop purchasing their wares...
1. Sticky rice - bamboo stalks filled wth cooked sticky rice and red beans
 |
| Bamboo sticky rice |
2. Rice paper - the rounded rice papers used to make the famous spring rolls.
 |
| Making the rice paper for spring rolls |
3. Rice wine - this 70% alcohol rice wine made through traditional machinery and methods
 |
| Rice ready for fermenting |
4. Fish market - with literally vats of fish paste - it stank (we didn't stop for long!)
 |
| Fish gore |
5. Dried bananas - thinly sliced banana placed under the sun on bamboo slats and left to dry and crisp up in the sun.
 |
| Sweet dried bananas |
We the headed to Wat Ek, another small ruined temple - this one found behind one of the newer temple/shine complexes . This one didn't have the depth of calving that could be seen on the earlier Wat Basat, but still made for a nice stop before we headed south to the Bamboo railway.
 |
| Wat Basat |
The Bamboo Railway ($5 per person) came about after the railway become disused after the fall of the Khmer Rouge. The trucks - known as Norrys - are used as a way of transporting goods and people between towns along the line. It is a bit of a novelty and seems to be only really for tourists now, but was great fun as you really do pick up some speed - some 50kmph!
 |
| Is it a bamboo train or a flying carpet? |
There were a few rickety moments were we wondered if we would derail on route but, with only one line there and back, we were slowing on a regular basis to stop and let other carriages go past (literally lifted off the railway and then lifted back on!). The total trip took about 15-20 minutes each way.
 |
| Get out of our way!!! |
We had a 10 minute look around the stalls and brick-makers at the end of the line and then mounted on again for the return journey...we are sure he decided to get a move on as we really flew down the track this time!
After our feet were firmly back on the ground we headed on over to Phnom Sampeau, where there is a notorious cave used by the Khymer Rouge - known as the killing cave. A 15 minute walk up a hill just outside the tourist hub-bub of stalls and eateries (located here for the bat-cave) brought us to another of the cave. Many victims were bludgeoned to death and then tossed into 50 ft shafts into the cave (see Phnom Penh for more on the Khermer Rouge). Here the remains of several thousand people have been found - another horrible reminder of the horrors that this country has faced.
 |
| More bones |
There was a circular walk available up to the top of a pagoda on a hill, but we didn't have the time to do this walk. We headed back down to our driver as he said he would take us to his "secret" bat cave. So instead of us hanging around with the hoards of other tourists at the bottom of the hill on the street packed with stalls and pop up bars, we headed off to Savat's secret cave.
As we pulled up on the side of a road, Savat pointed us up a rocky hillside towards the secret spot where we could watch the bats. It was a bit of a scramble to the top, but totally worth it as we sat back with a beer in hand to watch the sunset before the bats came out.
 |
| Sunset |
There were around 10-20 people in total - Savat had only a few other tuk tuk driver friends that knew about the secret cave so we got to enjoy the experience in peace, with an amazing sunset and spectacular view of the bats.
As the sun went down behind the clouds on the horizon, the bats started to leave their cave earlier than expected. There were thousands...possibly millions of small black bats scaling across the skyline in front of us. This was one incredible sight.
 |
| A snake in the sky |
Leaving the safety of their dark home, they flew out like a long snake together, following each others path before and twisting occasionally should they be slightly spooked, and eventually breaking out across the skyline in the distance.
The trail must have continued for around 30 minutes and was still going as we decided to head back down the hillside in the dwindling light. We felt very privileged to have been able to experience it thanks to Savat and his tuk tuk friends being "in the know!".
 |
| Bats, bats and more bats... they just keep on coming! |
We ended our final day in Battambang with dinner and a $0.50 beer at Ambrosia restaurant. Again recommended by Nick and Beckie, we ordered and played Connect 4 whilst we waited, unfortunately our food arrived before Julia had a chance to win, but we got through 10 games so we gave up and planned our next adventure - the notorious boat to Siem Reap.
The opportunity was taken by the rest of the travelers to head into the local market, where we were introduced to a local delicacy. Vendors were quickly on hand to offer their trays of cooked spiders.http://donfreed.com/
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