Tuk Tuks, and Why You Should Care About Them

And now might be the time for a discussion of tuk-tuks. In general, any three wheeled conveyance that is unenclosed is a tuk tuk (my definition).To see a picture of a Thai tuk-tuk, check out this page. And if you want a charmingly written piece of advertising for the That tuk-tuk, click here (beware, often they accidentally say exactly the opposite of what they really mean). And, for an imaginary conversation with a tuk tuk driver, click here.

Ok, but we're not talking about Thai tuk tuks right now. Frankly, in Thailand, Evan and I don't bother with them. They're too much hassle, and their charm is somewhat offset by the feeling that you're being scammed. So far, we have taken one tuk tuk ride in Bangkok, we did it because all the taxis were taken and we had to, and we won't be doing it again any time soon.

Cambodian tuk tuks? Whole different kettle of fish. Technically, the conveyances in Siem Reap are not tuk-tuks, they are remorque-motos. For one thing, the tuk tuks in Siem Reap are not three wheeled, they are four wheeled: the two wheels on the motorbike, and the two wheels on the carriage-like contraption it pulls behind it.

Pros:
-Super awesome looking. Feel like you are definitely somewhere exotic.
-You have your own personal driver for the day. When was the last time you could afford that?
-Choice of many colors and styles, so you can accessorize your outfit with a custom tuk tuk.
-You get to experience Cambodia directly. No glass or metal in between you and the scenery!

Cons:
-You have your own personal driver for the day. And he has a captive audience, so he is free to scam you as much as his conscience can handle, like, oh, I don't know, say, drive you only to the locations where he gets kickbacks? Our tuk tuk drivers offered to drive us to the lake (the super cool Tonle Sap), but neglected to tell us that they would really only drive us to a guy selling exorbitantly priced boat tickets, and if we refused to buy them, we were not allowed to go to the lake itself. We found that out when we got there, refused to be scammed, and drove back without seeing an inch of the lake. I still want to go.
-You get to experience Cambodia directly. That dust I was mentioning earlier? When you shower later, you'll find it everywhere. If you're not smart enough to cover your face during the ride, you'll have orange lungs by the end. And although I've never been in one when it rains, the roof will only protect you from rain going straight down. From what I've seen of Thai rain, that would be a very small percentage of the precipitation.

There are other various pros and cons, but you get the idea. In Siem Reap, you pretty much can't go anywhere in anything but a tuk tuk, because of the tuk tuk mafia, or some such thing. Our taxi driver had to transfer us to tuk tuks at the end of the ride from Poipet, because he said he'd get in trouble if he took us any further into town.

Conclusion: tuk tuks are recommended, provisionally. Bargain your ass off. Don't spend more than $15 a day for one. After you're done bargaining, be nice to your driver. He's probably supporting a whole extended family on what you just paid him.