The Best of Cambodia & Laos

Snakehouse INTERNATIONAL Here’s a fun night out. It’s part restaurant, part
jungle menagerie with snakes, turtles, and crocs. The snakes are all correctly labeled and
range in size from tiny, venomous little beasts to mighty, murderous pythons acting ever
so languid. The food is good (the animals are for viewing, not eating). Russian owned
and managed (this being the Russian enclave), Snakehouse serves a good selection of local
dishes and standard international fare, anything from spaghetti to steak and sandwiches.
The place is up on a hill above town and makes for a fun evening.
Soviet St., on the hilltop near Victory Beach. & 012/673-805. Main courses $4–$9. No credit cards. Daily
8am–11pm.
Starfish Café INTERNATIONAL Set up as an NGO to train and employ people
with physical disabilities, many of whom are victims of land mines, the Starfish Café
gives hope to a group of people who are systematically shunned by Khmer society. The
place has been around since 2001 and offers a time-tested formula of good sandwiches,
baked goods, and light local fare. The place funds local literacy programs and serves as a
drop-in point for clients of the Starfish Project (see their website for more information).
The friendly counter staff can offer good information about local tours and travel.
There’s an upstairs reading area as well as a shaded courtyard. They sell popular T-shirts
advertising the cafe as well as products from the Snar Dai Project, which sells goods made
by mothers of street kids.
Just behind the Samudera Market at the town center. & 012/952-011. www.starfishcambodia.org. Main
courses $3–$4.50. No credit cards. Daily 7am–6pm.
WHAT TO SEE & DO
Diving & Snorkeling
There are excellent diving opportunities around Sihanoukville and the surrounding
islands. Reefs encrusted with coral are a feature of nearby islands, supporting an abundance
of marine life including stingrays, moray eels, dolphins, and even the odd whale.
The waters off Sihanoukville are warm (consistently 81°F–88°F/27°C–31°C) and though
visibility can be quite low during the height of rainy season, in the diving season from
October to June it ranges from 10 to 25m (33–82 ft.). First-rate dive sites can be found
around the islands such as Koh Rung Samloem and Koh Kon, all within a 2-hour boat
journey. The very best sites are at Koh Tang, Koh Prins, and Condor Reef and are 4 to 6
hours away. There are now a number of dive shops in Sihanoukville, including those that
are PADI authorized. In addition to organized dives they offer introductory courses for
beginners. Most of the islands have uninhabited sandy beaches where divers can relax
between outings.
Two hours away, Koh Rung Samloem is the best nearby island to Sihanoukville and
can be done as day trip. The island is made up of a small fishing village, three principal
beaches, and several minor ones, all of which are almost completely uninhabited, including
some sheltered ones on the north side close to Koh Kon. Both islands feature rocky
reefs and go to depths of 18m (59 ft.). As with all of the nearby islands, the best diving
and visibility is on the west side. Koh Kon is a small island to the north of Koh Rung
Samloem and is home to rocky, coral outcrops. Koh Tang, Koh Prins, and Poulou Wai
to the southwest of Sihanoukville offer some of the best scuba diving waters in the area
and take 4 to 8 hours to reach, requiring an overnight stay. The area has reefs with depths
of 15 to 40m (49–131 ft.) and much better visibility than reefs closer to land. Koh Prins
also has two shipwrecks to the northwest. Koh Tang was the scene of “Mayaguez
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