We removed the passenger seats before heading to Phnom Penh, knowing we'd be returning with a moto, washing machine, and more.
Father's Day Donuts 🍩
After we exchanged our washing machine, the ladies were complaining of hunger pains, but I had a trick up my sleeve, a pre-planned donut stop. These donuts were from a fancy shop, well beyond our price range when considering breakfast options, but we are allowed to do some things once and never again.
There were a few custom Father's Day donuts in our box, and despite Srey-Yuu showing a mean face, she was only trying to guard the donuts because I am known for eating exponentially more and also faster than my family, putting donut security at high-risk. As we drove and munched, we headed towards the motorbike dealership part of town.
The New Ride 🧸
After going to a shop with secondhand bikes fresh off teh container direct from Japan, we realized we wouldn't have time to arrange the license plates and taxes, plus the prices were out of our range. Not to be deterred, we sweet-talked the shop owner and told him we had maybe $600 at most to spend, he sent his buddy with us to another smaller shop around the corner with a C70 in our price range, but it was really rough and would need a few hundred bucks of repair work.
I really wanted a Super Cub 70 because the engine size is perfect for a new rider/learner, and my aim is to teach my wife and oldest daughter how to ride. Well, 70s are getting pretty rare, but there was a very sharp looking 90 fresh off the container from Japan, but with a license plate that the shop owner had arranged just for situations like ours. Although it was $750, we decided to snatch it up because it was in such good condition. Anyhow, the Super Cubs tend to increase in value with the passage of time, and that can't be said for all the plastic-clad modern motos that begin to fall apart after a year or two.
On The Road Again 🛺
Once we negotiated a final price, the guys were soon anxious to load the bike into my tuk-tuk without listening to my advice on how to load and tie it down. I have raced motorcross for many years and also transported used cars and motorcycles in a previous life, so I'm actually quite good at transporting things without the loss of paint. The guys were giving me that "You're a stupid foreigner look," so I just let them do it their way, knowing it would be easier to just drive around the corner and redo all the ropes instead of trying to do it myself at their shop.
Once they had loaded the bike in my tuk-tuk in a way that would be sure to scrape copious amounts of paint off of the moto and tuk-tuk on the journey back home, the guy that did the tie-down job demanded a $2.50 tip for his three minutes of shoddy work. Too tired to argue, I paid the ransom and headed around the corner to undo all of his work and retie everything in a way so that metal wasn't touching metal.
Confidence is not something lacking in Cambodia, and it is usually paired with a lack of education and skill, often with disastrous and dangerous results. It's wild to think these guys have sold and repaired motorbikes day in and day out for years and years, but haven't even bothered to learn a few basic helpful knots and how strap a moto down without damaging it or the transport vehicle. Things aren't likely to change either because most folks aren't open to learning a more efficient or better way to do their job. Fast and reckless is the way to get things done, and I often find egos are too fragile for suggestions.
My wife usually pinches me when I begin to make friendly but helpful suggestions. I even tried to tell the guys several reasons why it would be better to load the bike front wheel first, but I was pinched by my wife and the guys laughed at my idea. I really worry about Cambodia's future with such sensitive egos and a reluctance to learn better ways to do things. Anyways, I have digressed as I often do, hope you at least partially enjoyed my ramble. Stay tuned for stories of the journey back home....
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