Chaos In Cambodia And Macgyver

treegre0b6r

bodian Taxis
Having spent two weeks in the loosening waterfront town of Sihanoukville, I was getting bored and so were the 3 chaps traveling with me. It was time to brain to the supposed chaos of Phnom Penh and finally Angkor Wat. Despite the legendary prestige of Cambodian roads,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], the landlord of our accommodations told us the road to Phnom Penh was smooth as cup. For twenty U.S. dollars, a local taxi would get all four of us to the metropolis without episode.
Around midday, two Australians, an Englishman and myself crammed into a Toyota Camry with our backpacks and mixed junk. Our driver was a agreeable fellow, smiling often. We did have a communication problem since he spoke about two words of English and we only spoke English. The road,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], whatever, was as smooth as agreed and we blessed ourselves on our stroke of luck.
For about an hour, we cruised through the placid Cambodian countryside. It was complicated to imagine the chaos that must have happened when the Khmer Rouge was in power. There actually wasn't much to watch further the occasional village. About half way via the trip, the absence of any sizeable towns became a concern.
In the proverbial middle of nowhere, our driver plucked over to the side of the road and turned off the automobile. Since we couldn't verbally communicate, many finger pointing was undertaken. Were we lost? Did he want more money? Was he working on strike? What the heck was going on?
Eventually, we diplomatic idiots were able to decode that the car was overheating. Lest you muse us complete idiots, I have to mention that the temperature gauge wasn't working. Regardless, our driver popped the hood and our smooth tumble came to a cracked end. Steam poured from a half-inch crack afterward to the radiator crap.
Road site aid seemed an iffy prospect in the middle of Cambodia. I mean, you couldn't really shriek your car warranty corporation.
Me: "Hi. My car is broken."
Operator: "Okay, we ambition send something out. Where are you?"
Me: "Um, somewhere in the middle of Cambodia."
Operator: mirth]... Click."
The driver looked at us. We looked at him. Simultaneously, we entire started laughing. What else could you do? We were in the medium of nowhere, the radiator was shot and it was 60 miles or so to Phnom Penh.
Looking behind, I tin tell you that Cambodian taxi drivers are a committed and creative group. We sat on the side of the road, contemplating the truth namely we were from now on have a many more reliable Cambodian experience then any of us had blueprinted. Mysteriously, our driver had gone off into the brush on the side of the road. After a few minutes, he returned with a dingy green leaf and a big smile.
Putting MacGyver to disgrace, he continued to patch the crack in the radiator using only the leaf and tube of superglue. We all migrated back as he applied the superglue to the boiling hot radiator, but nobody went up in flames. After granting because a appropriate value of period as drying/praying, all we needed was water.
Although admittedly not a car expert, I do understand pouring chilly water into the radiator of an overheating engine namely a bad idea. MacGyver, err... our driver, didn't cmd an eye antagonism our nationwide arm waving. With a big laugh, the water went into the radiator as we watched in horror. The only question was what would occur first, the foliage patch exploding or the engine seizing up?
Well, you can surmise how it turned out. Not only did we make it to Phnom Penh, we later studied the radiator had two additional leaf patches on the base. The road had been smooth, but my nerves were still shot. One direction or another, the roads of Cambodia will get you.
At fewest I have affluent bullets to mimic MacGyver fans.