DAY 2 IN CAMBODIA

Completed a full day of fasting in Cambodia!!

• SUHOOR (EARLY BREAKFAST/PRE-DAWN MEAL)
  The time in Cambodia and Indonesia is the same, and both suhoor and iftar times are quite similar too. Around 3 AM, I started getting ready for suhoor after buying some food from a mini market. I had two cans of sardines for protein, some noodles and slices of white bread for carbs, a banana for fruit, and drank 1.5 liters of water. Yes, I need a big suhoor!

• BANGUN DAN SIAP-SIAP
  I went back to sleep around 7 AM because after suhoor I usually can't sleep right away—partly because I keep going to the bathroom from drinking so much water.
  I woke up again around 9 AM, still feeling a bit sleepy.
  

  I planned to go out around 9 or 10 AM to save energy until Maghrib. But my friend had already gone out at 9, so we decided to just meet up at the tourist spot.
  Alright, time to get ready for an adventure in Phnom Penh, Cambodia!

• TEMPLE VISIT
  We agreed to meet at the Wat Phnom Historical Site. The entrance ticket was just $1. Wat Phnom is the most famous Buddhist temple in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. It was built in 1372 by a woman named Daun Penh and stands on a small hill about 27 meters high. The temple is an important place of worship and a symbol of the city, often visited by people praying for good luck. The atmosphere is peaceful, surrounded by trees and traditional statues. We only spent about 30–40 minutes there because it was really hot!
  
  
  
  
  

• SOUVENIRS
  After finishing up at the temple, we planned to visit a souvenir spot—basically, the market! Of course, we walked there in the late morning, around 10:00 AM. It’s called Central Market Phnom Penh.

  
  There were so many trinkets here—like magnets, keychains, and lots more. The prices were really cheap too! I bought a magnet for about $0.75.
  
  
  
  
  Around 11:00 AM, we returned to the hotel to cool off and rest. We had already checked out when we left earlier this morning, so we just waited in the lobby and decided to leave again at 12:00 PM. This is where we parted ways—my friends were heading to another temple, and I decided to go to the mall, Aeon Mall, because I just couldn’t handle the heat in Phnom Penh anymore.

• GO TO MALL
  Here, I used Grab to get to Aeon Mall. There were several transportation options, including tuk-tuks and cars. To keep it cheap, I decided to take a tuk-tuk. I paid directly with my debit/credit card linked to my Grab account. The fare for a 1-3 km ride was around $1 to $2.
  
  
  I arrived at Aeon Mall around 1:30 PM and just sat around in the mall area, walking around until I finally came across this symbol... Is it the symbol of a temple, or something else...?
  
  

  After checking, it turned out to be a prayer room, or mushola! I was so happy! The setup was really similar to the ones in Indonesia! There were also a few people praying there.
  
  
  
  

• IFTAR
  Around 4:30 PM, I headed to the supermarket to look for something to break my fast. It was very similar to Aeon in Indonesia! Everything looked so tempting! I was also waiting for my friend to arrive because we planned to break our fast together.
  
  The prices weren’t too expensive or too cheap, but still manageable for me. For example, rice was around $0.30, papaya was about $1.30, and duck was $4. It took about an hour of waiting until it was time to break our fast, so we just had a casual chat about what we did while we were apart earlier.
  

• INDEPENDENCE MONUMENT
  In the evening, after breaking our fast around 7:30 PM, we headed to the Independence Monument by tuk-tuk. It was a short distance, less than 3 km, so the fare was only about $0.65 per person when split among three of us.
  
  

  This monument is quite similar to the National Monument (Monas) in Indonesia, surrounded by a jogging track, so there were also people exercising in the evening. The ticket? It's free, of course!
  
  
  
  
  We spent time here until around 8:30 PM, and after that, we took a tuk-tuk back to the hotel to pick up our luggage and head to... BANGKOK, THAILAND by bus!!!! And here are a few things you should know about Phnom Penh, Cambodia:

  • The city and country aren't as scary as the news portrays, because our intention was just to have a vacation. The locals are very friendly.

  • I felt comfortable and safe here, even though it was just 2 days and 1 night. But still, you have to be cautious!

  • Muslim-friendly! There are many mosques, you can still hear the call to prayer, and halal food is fairly easy to find.

  • Public transportation, especially Grab, is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!! It's very affordable.

  • Some of the locals speak English, especially around Aeon Mall and the hotel.

  Next, let’s head to Thailand!!!