transport in Cambodia 1 - the moto
on Phnom Penh Pal (Cambodia), 18/Apr/2013 14:57, 34 days ago
Please note this is a cached copy of the post and will not include pictures etc. Please click here to view in original context.

A few weeks ago Gordon and I learned to ride a moto. In about 30 minutes. Turns out driving a moto is as easy as everyone says it is - in a straight line and on concrete anyway.Adam, our teacher, looks on as Gordon manoeuvres round a 'corner'For some further practice we went out to my colleague Soklaing's house, about 20km from the city. We joined the new volunteers who had recently arrived in country for their moto training. We didn't do the moto training when we arrived as we knew we wouldn't have motos for our placements in Phnom Penh. However, we'd recently thought it would be fun to learn as it would mean we could hire motos when we went to visit some of the provinces.I forgot to take my camera out with me when we went out on our big 1.5 hour drive that let us practice on different road surfaces and in traffic etc so I don't have many pictures (and obviously I wouldn't have taken my hands off the handlebars when I was driving!!). So here's what I did take. All three of them!parked up at Soklaing's beautiful houseteacher Adam, Marissa, teacher Peter, host Soklaing, Rolly and Kentplus the feast that Soklaing's family prepared for usmy trusty steed for the day - a Honda Dream Excess(I think the Excess means it's a step up from the bog standard Honda Dream)Motos are definitely the transport option of choice for the majority of Cambodians, and the model of choice is generally the Honda Dream. And it's no wonder - they're indestructible! They're inexpensive to run, will take all grades of fuel, parts are cheap and plentiful and they're a doddle to drive. You only need one hand to drive it, leaving the other free to hold on to a small, often sleeping, child (complete with their IV drip) or whatever other cargo you're transporting that day. It's not uncommon to see four people on a bike. Who needs a car when you have a Dream?Sadly, I don't have a picture with four people (plus) on the moto. Will try harder.What's the collective term for motos? A madness of motos? Chicken coop needing moved? No problemDrive through boggy mud (see behind) carrying snacks for 30 plus bucket etc for doing a hand-washing demo?Easy. Although, obviously, that was a Cambodian driving, not a Barang (foreigner).Trailer plus cargo plus people? Pile it on!delivering ice - what a light load this Dream is getting