Oudong Mountain

Oudong is small town in the Kandal Provence about 40km outside of Phnom Penh. It's located at the foothill of the "mountain" Oudong which is fairly easy to spot from a distance seeing as Cambodia is so incredibly flat. In 1841 the King started constructing canals, terraces, bridges and erected hundreds of pagodas in the region. However, it was later abandoned by King Norodom in 1866 in favor of Phnom Penh and in 1977 the Khmer Rouge destroyed many of the remaining temples, monuments, and structures in the area. The temples that are left are now a tourist attraction however you will find more locals than foreigners in the actual town where you can relax in hammocks and get lunch.

The trek to the mountain was an adventure in itself which I've become accustomed to here. After several failed attempts at starting our friends tiny car we were finally on our way... Until we were pulled over by the police for "stopping on the white line" which also means "because we are a car full of white people". After some conversation about how we can avoid going to the station, we agreed on $4 to let us continue on our way... Until we realized no one actually knew how to get there. With our masks on (no a/c meant the windows were all down) we trucked along the busy, dirty, bumpy highway with only the knowledge that we were going in the right direction. We finally saw a hill in the distance and drove towards it. However, we had trouble finding the actual road leading into the town. We stopped 5 times to ask for help (meaning pointing to the mountain) to which most people awkwardly laughed and shook their head (also code for having no idea what we want). With a little patience and a good sense of humour we finally arrived.

It was 10 minutes of stairs to the top. 5 of which we were tailed by young kids with fans until the 10th time we say orh teh (meaning no). 

Drenched in sweat and happy to be at the top.

Great countryside views from the top. 

What seemed to be the main and newest stupa.

Old stupas with some local stands for snacks and water.

Thanks to a good zoom, I didn't need to get close to these furry demons. I didn't find monkeys cute before coming here and after being with someone who was bite by one, I am happy to stay as far away as possible! 

Kids playing a rock game on the steps.

Relaxing before heading back.