Mad Monkey was my first dorm experience as until now I've been a bit of a 'flashpacker' but I couldn't have asked for a better introductory experience.
On my bus journey to Phnom Penh some girls told me some horror stories of when they stayed there such as people pissing the bed and having sex in the room but I'm pleased to say I was not exposed to any of this.
As well as being a fun, pleasant place to stay, Mad Monkey also do their bit for the local community.
They only employ young local people who have come from a difficult or poor background as one waiter at the Phnom Penh branch told us. His father was a policeman who was killed whilst his mother was pregnant by the Rebels from the Pol Pot regime after it had collapsed (see my previous blog on Cambodia's killing fields) so he grew up poor and never met his Dad, which he still feels angry and upset by, but you couldn't meet a nicer more genuine guy. He even took us out after his shift to the local clubs which was such a good night!
Mad Monkey will give these sometimes disadvantaged young people proper training, a chance to learn better English, a secure job and wage as well as free healthcare and education.
They also fund education and clean water initiatives across Cambodia mentioned in my thank you e-mail;
The company also has a really strong stance on peodophillia and prostitures which I really applause.
'If you bring a prostitute back and they're underage we will kick the shit out of you before we cart you off to prison' - just one of the house rules stayed on the website.
Overall I thoroughly enjoyed my stay at the Phnom Penh and Kampot branches of Mad Monkey (there's also a third in Siem Reap) and would definitely recommend.
