Cambodia Photo Journal: Border Crossing At Poipet

 

A young boy waits patiently for travelers to finish with their plastic drinking bottles.

As far as land border crossings go, the most interesting, and certainly the strangest one I’ve ever been to is the Thailand/Cambodia land border at Aranyaprathet/Poipet.  There seem to be a number of scams running at this border as well.  For a complete listing of scams to date, I’d recommend visiting Tales of Asia for a current update of road conditions and scams to be aware of.  Or, you can read all about our experience at this border here. 

Whatever your reason for traveling overland, this border crossing is definitely a travel tale you can write about, if you can put up with the constant headaches for 24 hours.  It is certainly the most eye-popping border I’ve been to with loads of people, trucks and other oddities to feast your peepers on.  It’s very Wild West and if you’re looking for a crazy Asian adventure to write home about, I guarantee you’ll find it here.

A heavily-loaded truck of scrap metal meanders through the crowded street with a load of scrap metal bound for Thailand.

Poipet is a smorgasbord of sights that constantly assaults the senses.  My head was swiveling every which way.  I could hardly wait to sit down and people watch.  As we waited for our visas to be processed people were crossing back and forth the border in every style imaginable. 

There were overloaded trucks, donkey carts, bicycles, and scooters.  Mothers walked with babies in their arms.  Children carried heavy bags.  Old men and women shuffled by and smiled toothless grins.  And every single one of them had some sort of job.  We watched kids picking up trash, vendors transporting vegetables and men sneaking very poorly disguised smuggled goods.

Although we got sucked into a scam bus, I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything.  It was a most memorable day in terms of the choatic, daily lifestyles of so many people who live near this wild and crazy border. 

Fresh coconuts being hauled from Thailand to Cambodia by cart.

This is a common sight in Asia.  Most people use scooters and motorcycles for their primary means of transportation.  It’s not uncommon to see families of four or five on a bike.  Helmets are not used often in Cambodia.

Cambodia is a land of superlatives.  This truck could be the most overloaded truck I’ve ever seen.

A young girl transports her goods in a bag on her head.

Another huge truck hauling cardboard into Thailand.

Most families use hand-drawn carts to transport their belongings and goods into and out of Cambodia.

These carts are used for hauling goods.  The bottoms of the carts and covered and usually have false bottoms for smuggling.