Battambang is Cambodia’s second-largest city, but not modern technology yet – it retains a charming, small-town feel. It is famous for its well-preserved French colonial architecture and its thriving arts scene, often referred to as the Rice Bowl of Cambodia due to its fertile plains.The most iconic experience here is a ride on the Bamboo Train (Norry), a creative local invention made of a wooden platform on wheels that zips along old railway tracks. For a mix of history and nature, visit Phnom Sampov. This mountain features the somber “Killing Caves” from the Khmer Rouge era, but at dusk, it hosts a spectacular natural event- millions of bats streaming out of the caves in a massive, undulating ribbon across the sky. Don’t miss the 11th-century Wat Banan, often called a miniature Angkor Wat or the Provincial Museum, which houses exquisite pre-Angkorian statues. Battambang is a city of stories, best explored by bicycle through its surrounding fruit orchards and rice paddies.
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