Today we left with our driver to see the coffee plantation near Sen Monorom and coupla other places.
A guy at the coffee plantation showed us around the farm, and there was bananas, dragon fruits, coffee, avocados...many different things. Then we drank coupla cups of strong Mondulkiri coffee, which is very good!
We also bought 1kg of it to take home and about 100g of coffee beans for 6$ altogether.
Then we firstly thought to see the Busra waterfalls 35 km away from Sen Monorom, but after we had driven about ~10 km we noticed that there's a road toll for cars of 15000 riel and a fee to the falls 5000 riel/person, so 6,25$ altogerher for seeing a one waterfall was a bit too much! So we decided to turn back and go to wait to see the elephants instead to Pulang village.
-- And there we waited about 2hrs before one of them came back. :P
In the meantime we bought 4 chicken pups as a gift to one poor lady and her family (6000 riel, so about 1,5$, the price of a beer can!) I bet they got a nice home. :o) We also visited her very tiny cottage where a family of 5 lived (and the sixth was on the way, for god's sake...). Jeez, that was a bit awkward, but a rate chance to see what was inside those most humble of schaks..
We also saw waterbuffalos from 2 metres away, who stalked at us :D
Finally the elephant came, he looked a bit sad somehow.. We gave him bananas. In he there wasn't any scratches visible, but his spine was quite visible, which may be a sign of malnourishment..not a good thing. Seeing him, I felt even more less that I'd want to ride an elephant like that. He felt so kind, I padded his nose a lot, and his eyes looked so kind, but also a bit sad. And I felt even more disappointed that we couldn't pay a visit to the Elephant Valley Project.. :( But can't help that. I still saw an elephant close, the last time had been when I was about 6yrs or so, and we were in a circus at home, and circuses back then were aloud to keep elephants in Finland (a good thing, that they don't anymore!). When we were leaving, the lady to whom we bought the chickens came to give us some potatoes she had just cooked (to thank us again for our gift, said our khmer driver). :)
Then we drove back to our guesthouse and went for a dinner to Khmer Kitchen. Good food, certainly best in Sen Monorom, I believe. And then one beer at The Phat Gecko, a little bar near our guesthouse. Then packing and go to sleep. Tomorrow were off, back to Phnom Penh. We asked our driver that we could drive by "the upper way", which goes via Skuon, the Spider Town! ;D It's gonna be approx. 20 mins longer way said our driver, but that's nothing since we can see (and maybe taste a leg) of those giant spiders!
And we've already agreed on the fixed 80$ price for the journey from Sen Monorom to PP (it's about ~380 km).