Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
staircase up Phnom Preah Reach Throap. Foreigners are welcome to practise meditation
here with experienced monks or nuns for one or several days. Meditation sessions are
daily from 7am to 9pm and from 2pm to 5pm. In between you can hang out in the library,
which contains scores of books on Buddhism, not to mention an impressive collection of
pirated Lonely Planet books. The en-suite guest rooms are fairly comfortable by monastic
standards, albeit sans mattresses (wicker mats are as good as it gets). You'll be fed break-
fast and lunch, but no dinner. There is no fixed price for a meditative retreat here, so
donate according to your means; US$25 per day would be considered about average.
Meditation sessions are free.
There are scores of food stalls around the bustling main parking area at the base of the
northern staircase.
Getting There & Away
Udong is 37km from the capital. To get there take a Phnom Penh Sorya bus bound for
Kompong Chhnang (10,000r, one hour to Udong). It will drop you off at the access road
to Phnom Udong, and from there it's 3km (4000r by
moto
). Other bus companies also
make the trip to Udong. To return to Phnom Penh flag down a bus on NH5 or take a
moto
(US$6 to US$10, depending on your haggling skills).
If going it alone, head north out of Phnom Penh on NH5 and turn left (south) at a prom-
inent archway between the 36km and 37km markers.
A taxi for the day trip from Phnom Penh will cost around US$40.
Moto
drivers also run
people to Udong for about US$15 or so for the day, but compared with the bus this isn't
the most pleasant way to go, as the road is pretty busy and very dusty.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Tonlé Bati
Tonlé Bati
(admission US$3)
is the collective name for a pair of old Angkorian-era temples
and a popular lakeside picnic area. It's worth a detour if you are on the way to Phnom
Tamao and Phnom Chisor. You can eat at one of several restaurants here and hire an inner-
tube to float around the lake for 2000r. Just avoid Tonlé Bati at weekends, when it's
mobbed by locals.
