– Written by a Teacher in Cambodia –
There are 4 modes of transportation here in Cambodia: cars, bicycles, motos, and tuk-tuks (motos with a carriage on the back, kind of like a taxi service). It is strange – we definitely stand out because we walk places! People just don’t walk places, because they have one of the above, or because they live where they “work”. Cars are pretty new here, so the streets have rules that are more like guidelines. Cars drive wherever is convenient, regardless of what side of the road it is on even! For example, to cross a busy street, all we do is walk out into it, and cars just drive around us rather than stop. To get gas, motos and tuk-tuks stop at places on the side of the road where people sell gas in coke liter bottles. They funnel it into the moto and off we go! Also, it is difficult to drive as an American, because the police know you have money. The corruption is pretty bad, so you can just pay off the police here. If you get pulled over, you normally have to pay about 5 to 10 dollars, and then they just let you go. Yesterday, we got pulled over for going through a street that was apparently “1-way for vehicles” but not for motos or tuk-tuks. After some bargaining, we drove off having paid 5 dollars.
