25th October 2015
A day earlier, I informed the hostel staff that I needed a tuk-tuk to the airport. The staff wasted no time in flagging down a tuk-tuk on the street. The driver agreed to a fare of USD5 and we would leave at 6:30 a.m.
The driver was waiting for me when I checked out of the hostel. He did not take the main road to the airport. Instead, he took a back road which merges with the main road two-third of the way out. On the way, I was able to see how the average sub-urban Cambodian live in Siem Reap.
Siem Reap International Airport was a small, single-storey building. It was being expanded. The building was modern and nicely adorned. However, it was a beautiful building occupied by corrupted Immigration officers. When the duty officer was going through my passport for the departure stamp, he asked me for money. I replied I had no USD. Then, he gave me the "give-me-money" sign and asked me for Malaysian Ringgit. I replied it was in my backpack. He flipped through my passport without taking action to stamp my passport. I just waited. He gave up finally and stamped my passport.
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