Venue of International Seminar of SEAMOLEC 2009

The Seminar will be Held at Conference Room, 1st Floor, Sunway Hotel Phnom Penh, Phnom Penh, Cambodia on 8 October 2009

The committee will provide the seminar kits, meal, and snacks during the two days of the seminar. However the participants need to provide the international flight and hotel stay in Cambodia themselves.

About Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Phnom Penh is the capital and largest city of Cambodia, located at the confluence of the Mekong and the Tonle Sap rivers. Despite its reputation as a 'rough' city, Phnom Penh is easy to get around and is a great introduction to Cambodia.

For western visitors, Phnom Penh can be a rough change. It can be very hot and (in the dry season) dusty, its infrastructure is largely lacking, and it is very poor - much poorer than, for example, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Visitors who can't handle rubbish and dust in the streets, risky traffic, blocked sidewalks, prowling tuk tuk and moto-drivers, touts and beggars may not enjoy the city.

All that said, Phnom Penh has become far more pleasant and relaxed in the past five years or so. It is striving to architecturally become more of a 'developed capital', including high rise buildings, while still retaining much of the beauty that made it a Paris of the East before 1970. The city's French colonial buildings are beautiful, so its streetscapes make for a pleasant walk.

Cambodia's Department of Land Management still allows many architectural horrors to be built, though a determined group of Khmer architects is fighting the trend. Unhappily there are few green spaces as yet.

Infrastructure is improving - fewer power outages, streets are paved, rubbish is collected more frequently. Beautiful wide boulevards, fine colonial architecture and a parklike riverfront with cafés and restaurants aplenty help make Phnom Penh a worthwhile destination for some. Not necessarily for its standard tourist sights, which are few. But as a place to relax, watch the streetlife and absorb local color, Phnom Penh rates very high among Asian cities.

Departure taxes

International flights: US$25
Domestic flights: US$6

Both must be paid in US dollars cash. In theory, you can pay by credit card, but the option is usually unavailable.

By Flight

Phnom Penh International Airport [1] (IATA: PNH | ICAO: VDPP) is the larger of Cambodia's two international airports (the other is at Siem Reap, the gateway to Angkor Wat). There are daily flights from all major regional airports (Bangkok, Hong Kong, Ho Chi Minh City, Kuala Lumpur, Seoul, Singapore, Taipei, Luang Prabang in Laos, and Hanoi via Vientiane, Laos). Airlines include Asiana Airlines, Bangkok Airways, Malaysia Airlines, Vietnam Airlines, Korean Air, Lao Airlines, Shanghai Airlines, Thai Airways, Silk Air, Dragonair, amongst others. The Malaysian low-cost carrier Air Asia [2] has daily flights from Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur. The new terminal is a thoroughly pleasant and modern facility, and features a post office, bank (including ATMs), restaurants, duty-free shop, newsstand, tourist help desk, and business center.

The airport is about 11 km from the city centre. Taxis from the public taxi stand at the airport cost a flat US$9. Pay the fare at the taxi desk inside the door exiting the terminal, at which point you will be allocated a driver. For visitors on a budget without a lot of luggage, it's worth catching an official motocycle taxi for some US$2. Alternatively you can walk out to the main road and get a Tuk Tuk for about $5.

By bus

There are bus services to Phnom Penh from Poipet (on the border with Thailand) and from Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam (US$8-10, 5-6 hours), as well as from points throughout Cambodia. Two of the largest bus companies, Sorya (formerly Ho Wah Genting) and GST, both arrive and depart from the rather chaotic "station" at the southwest corner of the Central Market. Capitol Tours runs buses throughout Cambodia and onward to Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong Delta, where they link up with Vietnam travel giant Sinh Cafe. Advance bookings are advisable, and can also be sorted out by most travel agents and guesthouses for a token fee.

Many travellers arriving from Thailand break their journey with a detour to Siem Reap, site of the ruins of Angkor. Most buses depart from/to Siem Reap in the early morning, a few more follow around noon; the journey takes about 5 hours. There are also frequent services to Sihanoukville. Basic air-con bus fares start around US$3-4; double-deckers with comfy seats, toilets, drink, food and bus-hostess charge up to US$10.

By boat

Ferries connect Phnom Penh to Siem Reap and usually take 4-5 hours; tickets for foreigners typically cost US$20-30. Many (but not all) of these ferries offer the option of sitting on the roof, which makes for a much more scenic, albeit less comfortable ride than the bus; take sunblock, a hat, and enough water to last you for several hours just in case the boat gets stuck.

Fast boats leave every morning around 8AM from Chau Doc in Vietnam's Mekong Delta and take 5 hours to reach Phnom Penh. The boats make the return journey the same day and leave Phnom Penh around 1 PM arriving in Chau Doc in the early evening.
[edit] By train

There is a very slow, once-weekly passenger train service between Phnom Penh and Battambang via Pursat. The journey is scheduled to take 14 hours but may be much longer, even though the distance by rail is only 275km. It costs US$5 one-way for foreigners.

* Phnom Penh to Battambang - Saturdays, departs 06:20, arrives 20:00
* Battambang to Phnom Penh - Sundays, departs 06:40, arrives 19:00

Get around

Phnom Penh's main streets are in good shape; however other streets and footpaths are often rutted and pot-holed, clogged with garbage, stagnant water, parked motos, sleeping people, livestock and building materials. Many smaller streets either lack signage or bear misleading signs, however, Phnom Penh is logically laid out (see orientation) and navigating the city is not difficult if you know where you're going.

* Motorbikes (but not self-drive cars) are available for rent, however Phnom Penh traffic is chaotic and dangerous even by Asian standards: public transport (other than motorbike taxis) is safer.

* Motorbike-taxis (motodops, motodups or simply motos in local parlance) are ubiquitous and will take you anywhere for a small fare. A trip from Sisowath Quay to Central Market costs about 2,000 riel (50 US cents). Fares are higher at night and with more than one passenger.

* Taxis are available at a few locations - most notably outside the Foreign Correspondents Club on Sisowath Quay. Taxis do not have meters, and fares must be agreed in advance. Fares vary, due to fluctuating fuel prices; ask hotel/guesthouse staff for assistance (hotels and guesthouses will organise taxis on request).

* Tuk-tuks Cambodian-style consist of a motorcycle with a cabin for the passengers hitched to the back. They are cheaper than taxis and offer a scenic experience of the city. Their clientele is exclusively tourists, and most drivers in tourist areas speak some English.

* Cyclos are three-wheeled cycle-rickshaws. Considerably slower then a motodop, and gradually becoming less common in the city, they are still popular with locals and foreigners alike. The nature of the seat lends itself to a quick and easy way to transport all manner of goods from one place to another, even other cyclos and the occasional motorbike as well.

* Walking can be a challenge, as cars and motos sometimes do not stop for pedestrians. To cross safely, judge gaps in the traffic and proceed with care - give oncoming vehicles ample time to see and avoid you, or try to cross with the brightly coloured and revered monks. On larger roads, two streams of traffic travel in each direction, totalling four streams of traffic you have to watch for: thus constant 360 surveillance is required when crossing roads. There is almost no street lighting off the major boulevards, and walking there at night is not recommended.

Cautions:

1. As a huge number of scarred or maimed locals can attest, motorbikes - either as rider or passenger - are the least safe alternative. On a motorbike you are exposed to the worst consequences of the city's bad drivers and appalling accident rate.

2. To obviate later disagreements, bargain a fare before you leave.

3. Sometimes the only English a driver knows is something like "Yes, no problem" - leading you to believe he knows where he is going when he does not. Most tuk tuk and moto drivers in Phnom Penh come from rural villages. Incredibly, some cannot find Sisowath Quay or Sihanouk Boulevard. Notwithstanding, drivers are not above some bluffing to get you onboard. Make sure the driver knows where he is going before getting in/on.

4. Don't leave bags or other goods exposed to snatchers on motorbikes: such thefts from tuk tuks and motorbikes are now epidemic in Phnom Penh.