Tag Archives: Mac Hathaway
Travel: In Search of Lost Roads 2
Part Two: A Way through the Floodplains of the Tonle Sap This unlikely path through the floodplains of the Tonle Sap was the main reason we were on the temple loop. But long before we even caught the ferry across…
The Labyrinth of the Girls
After stonewalling the 440 Board of Directors for months, alcoholic, womaniser, and 440 columnist Mac Hathaway has returned to his role as guide to the labyrinthine complexity of hostess bars. This sudden turn of events occurred two weeks ago, when…
Cambodian Travel: In Search of Lost Roads 1
Part One: Temple Hunting in Kompong Chhnang We had stayed in Kompong Chhnang once, for a single night, to break up a hard trip back from Pursat on an old Daelim. That trip had given me the impression that Kompong…
Travel Advisory: Submerged Coconuts
I felt fantastic after work on the Friday before Pchum Ben and promptly met two friends at Kandal House for steaks in blue cheese sauce and three bottles of red wine. I went with one of them, Davie, to the…
Travel: Getting Lost to Find Kampot
We enter the village of Trang Khnat Doung, turn right onto a brown dirt road studded with sharp stones, and drive towards the hills in the distance. The highway behind us is an easy option to Kampot. But we turn…
Travel:The Caves of Kampot
With a day to spare after our backroads ride to Kampot, my buxom Khmer girl and I decide to combine an excursion to some nearby caves with a ride to the beach in Kep. Just a short ride out of…
Daytrips: Phnom Bayang
We stop for breakfast in Takhmau. My plump Khmer companion has a hangover from the previous night. She droops in her chair, takes small sips from a glass of hot tea, and stares into her bowl of noodle soup. Sometimes…
Cambodia Stories: The Marriage Tourist of Pursat Province
While even the sleepiest provincial capital is a bricks and mortar affair, the areas between them are what we call ‘shack territory.’ Recently, I found myself deep in the shack territory between Pursat and Battambang, where the only signs of…
Daytrips: Kirirom Revisited
The road unfurls like a grey ribbon on a green carpet. We pass through lush orchards and grassy fields. The thickly forested mountain ahead looms ever larger. We veer right and skirt the base of the mountain. Then we begin…
The Khmer Funeral: Mekong Whisky, Tantric Sex Magic, and Severed Dog’s Heads
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Khmer funerals are a thing to behold. Just one week after I moved into my sprawling new villa, an old man who lived in the area croaked and his family began arranging the necessary ceremonies. I would have had some…