This is to greet you all on the occasion of World Friendship Week. We would also like to wish one of your border guards at Poiphet, whom we had to pleasure to meet when my wife Ann and I were on a short tour of Cambodia last summer. It was the Cambodian border official who, last year, made our South Asian travel truly memorable. We had got our E-visas for Cambodia before leaving India, and after flying to Bangkok, traveled by train to the Cambodian border town of Poiphet. During the train journey, “experienced” western visitors cautioned us about the “tough time” we would have with “unfriendly” Cambodian border officials, advising us to keep extra dollar bills with us, “just in case”…
At the check point, we handed over the E-visa print-out along with our passports, eager to finish the formalities quickly and continue on our 4-hour car journey to Siem Reap, the city of the Angkor Wat. We were tense when we were photographed by Cambodia immigration, officials who seemingly gave us stern looks as they checked our passports. When it was over, we rushed to cross the road to beat others trying to board a taxi. That was when we realized that we had lost our little bag containing our return tickets, credit cards and all the currency… why were we so careless inspite of being warned, we asked ourselves.
It was then that the “unfriendly” border guard came running towards us, excitedly waving to us; in his hand was our little bag. He explained that we had dropped the bag when we rushed across the highway and asked us to check the contents, anxiously enquiring if all was o.k.. We hugged him and thanked the good Samaritan profusely. He allowed us to take a picture with him, but shyly declined to tell us his name.. We promised to meet him again during a future repeat visit, while also inviting him to our home in Chennai, India… Enclosed is the picture of my spouse with the man who made Cambodia truly memorable for us…
With best regards,
M.J.Krishna
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[...] We’ve just added a new story received from our visitor, M.J. Krishna. He and his wife traveled to Cambodia with e-Visa and experienced with an “unfriendly” Cambodian border officials in Poipet. Read full story. [...]
New e-Visa Story! - Cambodia e-Visa Blog
March 21st, 2008