Growing up in England, we never went to the ‘beach on vacation’, we always went to the ‘seaside on holiday’! I think the difference was that in England the land next to the ocean often didn’t have sand or a real beachy feel so you literally were beside the sea. It was also more than that, seaside to me means small towns with character and charm with no large resorts or all-inclusive luxury properties. They were these charming little places where you went and ate taffy and relaxed next to the sea on the two weekends a year it wasn’t raining!
Kep to me is a return to the seaside. Located in the South of Cambodia on the Gulf of Thailand, it’s this charming town that takes me back to being a kid. It’s about collecting shells and eating fish and chips and not being overwhelmed with an abundance of choice, but rather being completely satisfied in the simplicity of it all.
Collecting shells at the seaside
In the 1960’s Kep was the escape of the rich and famous with a road of deserted villas that speak to Kep’s popularity in it’s heyday. Now Kep is a small town just waking up to the knocking of tourism on it’s door. There is construction throughout the little community and more restaurants, bars and guesthouses are popping up. But despite this more recent influx, Kep is still a seaside town. It doesn’t have the beach and nightlife of Sihanoukville or the name of Kampot, but it has more charm than either of them.
Once here there are about 10 hotels to choose from in the more midrange to high end market, though none that are truly luxury. There are also guesthouses throughout. See Kep Hotel reviews here. You can ride bicycles, make the obligatory boat ride to Rabbit Island and visit local pepper plantations, but really Kep is about slowing down and appreciating the little things: pepper crab, fresh prawns and family time…throw in some fish and chips and I might as well be 5 again.
Being kids at Rabbit Island
Getting there:
Kep is located about 4 hours from Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Journeys Within can arrange a van to take you there or there are regular daily buses.
Getting around:
Once there you can rent bicycles, motorbikes or just wander. To get to Rabbit Island you need to head to the pier and you can join with other travelers or rent a boat of your own for $20.
You can see my Kep hotel reviews here, my top five are:
1. Knai Bang Chatt
2. The Champey Inn Resort
3. Veranda Natural Resort
4. Kep Lodge
5. The Beach House
You can see my Kep restaurant reviews here, but my top five are:
What a day! I wanted to fit a lot in, but I wanted to keep the kids happy as well. I am proud to say that Teacher Erin and I rocked it and I think we did both. All four kids were asleep as their heads hit the pillow and I’m right behind them. Here is a quick photo summary of an amazing day in Phnom Penh that would be a great intro to the city for any family:
We woke up early and had breakfast at the hotel, then put on sunscreen, hired a tuk tuk for the day and headed out. We paid our tuk tuk $20 for the day, which is higher than I would usually pay, but there are six of us and I wanted him to be helpful getting the kids in and out and I wanted to keep him through dinner. It worked great and I felt he was worth the money.
We started out the morning with Wat Phnom, one of the city’s main landmarks. A huge Stupa marks this area and around the stupa are many Buddhas and places to place flowers and incense. My kids loved getting incense and then making their wishes.
Placing insence at one of the shrines at Wat Phnom
We spent a little while exploring Wat Phnom and dodging the monkeys that call this park home. Some of them appeared less than friendly so we gave them a wide-berth, but they were giggle worthy.
A monkey at Wat Phnom
Across the street from Wat Phnom is a fantastic playground. With new equipment and lots of options the kids were very happy here and gave them a break from looking at temples and behaving nicely. There are popcorn sellers at the entrance so it’s a good stop for a play and a mid-morning snack. Callie and I had to head to the embassy so Teacher Erin and the other kids played while we ran to get her passport renewed. We returned and we all got back in the tuk tuk and headed for lunch.
Playground fun!Couper and Chen enjoying Wat Phnom Playground
I had read about Le Jardin, but had never tried it. What a gem! Located on quite Street 360 it’s a lovely garden restaurant with a large sandbox, treehouse and toys for the kids. While Erin and I enjoyed a drink the kids played in the sand and enjoyed the shaded treehouse. They had a special where kids could choose a meal of a hamburger, cheeseburger or pizza, a drink and ice cream for $5, easy and not too pricey. I had some great garlic shrimp and Erin enjoyed the Pesto Pasta. Le Jardin also housed a lovely shop called Cheeky Monkey where we found some wonderful hand-made costumes and other beautiful kids clothes. It was the perfect mid-day break!
A great fresh veggie appetizerOutdoor seating at Le JardinThe sandbox and treehouse at Le Jardin
After lunch we headed to the Royal Palace. I had been a bit nervous of this as my kids were not fans of the Grand Palace in Thailand, but I was wrong. The Cambodian Royal Palace is very manageable in size and it is just a really lovely area. The high walls drown out traffic noise and the landscaping is beautiful. Sray Nut and Chen were very excited to see where the King lives and of course Callie was very excited about anything involving a real life Princess. We explored the Throne Room, the Ramayana Epic on the walls and we all loved the Silver Pagoda with its amazing floor and thousands of Buddha statues.
The kids at the Royal Palace Phnom PenhA scene from the Ramayana depicted on the Palace wall.Couper showing us what to do if the King showed up.
A couple hours in the heat though and we were all starting to fade so we had the tuk tuk take us to Open Book Library, a non-profit library set up for local children on road 240. Now, Road 240 is another blog post all in itself (shopping, restaurants and chocolate!), but the library was the perfect mid-afternoon break. The kids did puzzles, read books and just enjoyed the shade and fans, it was a really nice time and Erin and I each snuck off to visit a few of the closer boutiques while the kids relaxed. To give them a little treat we stopped next door at Chocolate, an amazing place that does hand-made Belgium chocolate right here in Cambodia!
Teacher Erin reading to the kidsChocolate: making Belgium chocolate in Phnom Penh!
Our last stop of the day was Sorya Shopping Center. We went to the top floor because we had heard there was roller-skating; there was, but no chance I was letting my kids, or myself, in there. All you have to do is think about the way Cambodians drive…let’s just say they aren’t much better on roller skates! We did have fun watching, and then we let the kids play in the play center and arcade and then wandered back down seeing a “modern” Cambodian mall.
Chen taking a break in the play place
Our trusty tuk tuk dropped us off at the hotel and after a much-needed swim we headed to dinner at my favorite restaurant in Phnom Penh, Friends! Couper didn’t make it past the appetizer, but the rest of us had an amazing dinner (you have to try the honey and garlic meatballs…amazing!).
Teacher Erin and the kids taking a quick swim before dinnerDinner at Friends!
It was a great day tour, and one we will definitely put on for families traveling with us in the future.
Some amazing new dress up clothes! Chocolate makes us happy!Trees in bloom in front of the Stupa.The perfect spot for our lunch breakThe kids at the Royal Palace
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Sray Nut, Teacher Erin, Callie and Chen at the start of the trip
I don’t think I’m going to ever win mother-of-the-year. I think I probably earn a solid C most days, perhaps B- if you take into account how cool my kids lives are (which I can’t take that much credit for, it just worked out that way). Anyway, today I earned at least an A-!
You see we are on a mission to get Callie a new passport (her’s expires in less than six months so I’m afraid she won’t be allowed into Thailand and Vietnam on our trips next month). Because I live by the motto ‘Go Big or Go Home’ I decided to bring Teacher Erin, Chen, Sray Nut and of course Couper, with us to Phnom Penh…and then tack on a couple of days at the beach for good measure. I like the idea that Chen and Sray Nut get to see their nations capital and I also like the idea of my kids playing on the beach with their best friends and getting to be the first ones to show them the ocean. Anyway, I can’t afford tickets for all of us to fly to Phnom Penh (that’s mother-of-the-year kinda money) so we needed to drive. On our recent trip to Kompong Thom Brandon and I had seen a sign for a hotel with a pool. Now it’s somewhat amazing that Kompong Thom even has a hotel, let alone one with a pool! I did some research and it looked nice. So we called and asked if we could stop for a swim and lunch. The very kind manager said that as long as we ate lunch we were welcome to swim!
My ballerina swimmers at the pool at Sambor Village Hotel
So this is how it played out…we left Siem Reap in a private van with driver at around 9am, made one stop for snacks (already ratcheting up the grade since I did get Doritos, but also got apples and grapes!) and then hit the road. We arrived in Kompong Thom one pack of grapes, one bag of Doritos and two vomit bags later at around 1130am. Rather than just stopping for lunch at the same-old side-of-the-road Khmer restaurants we drove an extra five minutes and came to Sambor Village Hotel. The kids were in their swimsuits in under five minutes and while our lunch cooked they swam and played. Car sickness, boredom and an iPad obsession were forgotten for Marco Polo, diving for their toys and races! When lunch came they were hungry and ate well and we were back in the car and heading South again by 1pm. Because they were tired from swimming they all napped the second half of the trip, even Callie, my anti-naps daughter.
Lovely peaceful naps on the second leg
I did get vomited on two more times (I swear I have to get quicker on the barf bag draw!) but we all arrived in Phnom Penh around 4pm feeling like we had had a semi-fun day, instead of a boring puke-fest.
So from now on our guests that travel by road from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh we will be recommending a stop for lunch at Sambor Village Hotel and even if you don’t want to play Marco Polo, it’s a good lunch and a nice break from the road. So yea, maybe not most mother’s idea of an A- day (home cooked meals, discussing morals and values, etc) but I took what could have been a long day and turned it into a bit of an adventure…that’s some genius mothering in my book!
A possible lunch table at Sambor Village Hotel, Kompong Thom
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This past July I took my first trip overseas while pregnant, since then I counted that I have been on 17 different planes (including domestic and international)! Prior to my first flight I did a lot of research to see how I could travel safely and comfortably. I was very disappointed with the lack of information I could find and extremely disappointed at the suggestion that I simply should not travel overseas while pregnant. Well, for my job and as a personal preference, that just didn’t work. I must say that I did make the decision not to travel in my first trimester as I know that that stage is very delicate and the possibility of needing a doctor is much greater than after the 12 week mark (and I do not suggest travel overseas while in your first trimester). I went against the baby books, blogs and websites and decided to take a trip to Cambodia when I was 14 weeks pregnant. As a disclaimer – I’m not a health care professional, and don’t in any way claim to be. So my first suggestion if you are thinking about traveling overseas while pregnant is to discuss your travel plans with your doctor and see if your doctor says it’s safe to travel. If you’re doctor gives you the go-ahead – then here are a few of my personal suggestions to keep you happy and comfortable while you travel.
Stay hydrated! Stay hydrated! Stay hydrated!
Air travel and travel in general can be dehydrating and your body requires a lot of extra fluid while you’re pregnant. Grab your favorite water bottle and make sure to keep it full at all times. I find keeping a large refillable water bottle at my side is a great reminder to drink water. If you’re traveling overseas, stalk up on bottled or safe drinking water and always bring an extra bottle with you. It may feel inconvenient to carry around so much water, but if you get dehydrated your body can react by having strong Braxton Hicks and it’s scary and uncomfortable. While I was in Ohio I was running around chasing my 4 year old son and I had neglected drinking enough water and my body reacted whith Braxton Hicks, trust me – you don’t want this to happen – just carry around that extra water bottle okay?
Pack snacks, a lot of them and a variety of sweet and salty. – Travel sized packs are your friend.
While in Cambodia I knew that finding my current craving of Fig Newtons wasn’t going to be easy and I also knew neglecting my pregnancy cravings would equate to me being a grumpy travel partner. Because of this I neglected my “pack less” rule and stocked my bag with a good travel box of Fig Newtons. I also threw in travel sized packs of trail mix (with chocolate, cause a girl needs chocolate), fruit roll ups and lolli pops. The travel packs are great because you can put them in your purse or back pack, and keep the extra in your bigger bag which is likely to be checked, or in the trunk or in your overhead compartment. For the long car rides through the middle of the Cambodian countryside, I was so happy to something to satisfy any craving easily accessible. I think Andrea appreciated having snacks in the car too : )
Aisle seats are a requirement for a pregnant woman! While on the plane, get up and walk around at least once every hour, and stretch.
If you have the aisle seat you won’t feel as bad getting up all of the time (and you know you’re going to have to use the restroom every ten minutes anyways, because you’re staying hydrated ; ). Make a little track and walk up your aisle, down the opposite aisle and stretch in the extra space by the flight attendants working area. They won’t mind and you won’t feel silly doing ankle rolls right next to the people sitting opposite you. I like this set of stretches from wikihow.com : http://www.wikihow.com/Do-an-In-Flight-Fitness-Workout – If you’re a Glee fan you may refer to the video the principal made on airline stretches for pure entertainment.
Research the area where you’ll be traveling and have emergency contacts available.
Hopefully you won’t ever need this information, but you’ll feel better knowing you have someone to call if you need to. Also, make sure you have means of communication while you’re traveling. Bring a phone that works in the area which you are traveling, or if you have a guide with you during your trip ask them ahead of time to make sure they have a cell phone. You may also ask your guide to help you find a disposable cell phone for your use during the trip.
Pack for comfort.
I’m all for style, especially during pregnancy when you may not feel your best anyways. However, when traveling you’ll like your trip a lot better if you pack shoes that you can walk in and waistbands that allow for stretching. Also, make sure you’re packing things that keep your temperature cool enough (or warm enough). Traveling in Cambodia in May would normally be a pregnant woman’s nightmare, but I packed clothes that were cool, breathable and I survived. Quick tip: Maxi Dresses are a pregnant woman’s best friend.
Andrea and Me - and Me in a maxi dress : )
Put your feet up whenever possible.
Cankles are not pretty nor comfortable and the best way to avoid the dreaded cankle is to keep your feet elevated whenever possible and to stay hydrated.
Ask your doctor what medications are safe to take if you have traveler’s stomach or fever and pack them with you.
Hopefully you won’t need them while out, but just in case you do, I’m sure you won’t want to be trying to translate “is it safe to take while pregnant” to a local pharmacy.
Buy travel insurance.
This way, if you don’t feel well prior to travel or decide you’re not up for the trip you don’t have to make the tough decision to stay or leave with the whole financial issue making the decision that much more difficult. There are so many other great reasons to get travel insurance if you’re traveling while pregnant, but I know my ability to make decisions while pregnant is sorely lacking and I like anything that helps me make a decision easier. If booking with Journeys Within ask your tour consultant about their Travel Guard policy (it’s really extensive and offers great coverage for pregnancy)
Keep sanitary. Carry hand sanitizer and don’t experiment with street food (on this trip!).
You want to make sure that your hands are clean, because I’m sure you’ll be enjoying al those snacks you packed with you and you don’t want to transport grubby germs onto your food before you place it in your mouth. Also, keep an eye on what you’re putting into your mouth. Make sure the food you are eating is either packaged well or if prepared for you, cooked to full tempurature. If you’re a fruit lover, choose fruits that can be peeled. I had an obsession with fresh pineapple juice – it was amazing. And since they cut the peel off I could enjoy as much of it as I wanted!
If traveling in Southeast Asia, be Malaria smart.
Pregnant women are more susceptible to malaria and it is more dangerous for you if you contract it. There are ways to avoid it though. Do NOT take anti-malarials while pregnant – and discuss this with your doctor as I said before I’m not a health care professional. DEET bug spray is your best defense, but you want to use it very sparingly while pregnant. At dawn and dusk when malaria biters are out, wear long sleeve shirts and full length pants or skirts, then apply DEET OVER your clothing. This will deter the bugs and you won’t be putting the chemical onto your skin where it can be absorbed by baby. Also, request bug coils or candles wherever you are and if they’re too far away, insist they move them closer to your table.
Bring some pregnancy books with you.
This way if you have a thought or a question while you’re out you have a nice easily accessible reference. I downloaded pregnancy apps on my iPad. I like the What to Expect app and the Pampers app. I also have the Contraction Timer app. This was helpful when I had my scare with the Braxton Hicks contractions. When I called my doctor to ask her about the contractions I could tell her the exact spacing between them and she let me know everything was fine. This website has a lot of great pregnancy apps to check out too: http://www.goomedic.com/25-pregnancy-applications-for-iphone.html
My current reading materials
Communicate your needs.
If having a kid has taught me anything, it’s to communicate my needs. Being polite and afraid to speak up will get you no where. If you’re hungry, ask to stop for food. If you need a restroom, ask to stop. If you need a break or need to cut the day short – there is nothing wrong with that!! Let your travel companions know what you need and I’m sure they’ll be compliant. If you say what you need your entire trip will be so much more comfortable – I promise.
Enjoy your trip!
Traveling is fun and an adventure and it doesn’t have to stop just because you’re pregnant or have children. If you plan ahead and prepare and discuss your travel plans with your doctor, the trip can be all you need right now. Being pregnant should be a highlight of your life and just think of how cute your pregnancy pictures are going to be when you have a beautiful overseas backdrop! Relax and enjoy the trip, you deserve it.
Here are a few pics of me prego while traveling (although, I’ll admit my tummy hadn’t quite popped yet in these!)
Shadow Belly Pic. In Vegas.Enjoying my Trip!
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I showed up at San Francisco Airport with 300 lbs of luggage! I was flying Asiana Air and I was sure that there were going to be disapproving stares at best and absolute refusal to help at worst. Turns out my sweet smile (a girl can dream) and my story about the school in Cambodia and a quick flash of toothbrushes and toothpaste was enough and we were on, luggage and all. I had been dreading the check-in for days, not that I am generally a light packer, but I try to have my luggage weigh less than the travelers! Anyway, with this initial hurdle cleanly jumped I thought we were good to go.
Until the plane was 30 minutes late leaving San Fran and there was “abnormally strong headwind”. Suddenly our hour and a half transit time was about 10 minutes! I debriefed the flight staff from my seat in the second to last row. I explained that I had a flight at 630pm and the information on channel one of my personal flight computer said we were arriving at 616pm. The first flight attendant suggested the following:
“As soon as the seatbelt sign comes on, run for the front of the plane, that way you don’t have to wait.”
Yea, okay lady, good in theory, but in practice I have two kids under the age of four, we all have at least one piece of carry on and some of us might have two. Not to mention that this plane is full of Koreans, lovely people, but they do not believe in the seatbelt sign and they are of the ‘shove right back’ ilk.
I called the kids into a family meeting and explained that we had ten minutes to get from this plane to the next plane or we wouldn’t be able to see their daddy tonight. I stressed that we all would have to run, that they needed to listen to mommy and that if we didn’t make the flight we would have to eat Kim-Chee for the next 24 hours.
As we landed and taxied people were, as I predicted, already up in the aisle. I don’t know if my mom taught me well or I have a weird premonition that one day one of my planes is sure to run into the terminal while attempting to be hooked to the arm-thing, but I refuse to take my seatbelt off until instructed to do so. As soon as the light went out I was up, I grabbed my hand luggage and the kids and we started down the isle…about 2 feet, and then we hit the wall of Koreans. As I saw my chances slipping away, the pretty, 100-pound-at-the-most flight attendant pushed past me and grabbed Callie’s hand (I had made Callie the engine while I was running clean up). In Korean she started yelling at people and shoving. I caught a glimpse of Callie’s eyes through the mix of elbows and hang luggage and told her to push and that I was right behind her. I gave Couper a slight knee-to-the-back in an attempt to convince him to plunge after Callie and away we went. We shoved our way from back to front and got off right after the business class passengers…victory number 1!!
When I had asked them on the plane to get us assistance at the gate I had stressed that one of those people-movers would be in order. In this case the people mover was a 100lb gate agent with a walkie talkie.
She grabbed Callie’s hand and we started running. At first Couper ran, then he lay down and refused to go another step, so I loaded him onto his Trunki (www.trunki.com: check them out, they’re awesome). He sat on his, hunkered down, gripping the handle like his life depended on it and started the ride of his life. I pulled Couper with one hand, wheeled my carry on luggage with the other and tried to keep my shoulder bag on my shoulder with my teeth. All was going well with this method until we had to corner. At this point, the Trunki tipped over and Couper flew off, let the screaming commence! I scooped him and his trunki up and kept running.
Callie, who was still running her little heart out, holding the hand of the gate agent turned around, in full run mind you, and yelled, “run Couper, if you want to see daddy you have to run!”. I would have been telling Couper the same thing if I could breath!
We finally made it to transfer security and put our bags through, then it was back to running full-out. We made it to the gate, covered in sweat and breathing like I had run a marathon (Seoul Airport is big so it was at least a half marathon). Korean Air had kindly held the flight for us, so everyone got a good look at us as we struggled down the aisle sweating, with hand luggage at all angles and Couper still screaming.
Five hours later on arrival in Siem Reap, Couper takes off in a dead run out the doors of the terminal and into his daddy’s arms, Callie and I have a bit less gusto, but Couper obviously believes in a sprint to the finish. The 300 pounds of luggage, it didn’t run fast enough…they say it will arrive tomorrow.… Read more »
