Day Inn Angkor Siem Reap

... people, played connect 4, dominoes and snap with some of the girls for a few hours, embracing life in Cambodia. In the evening Stevey boy and me were invited to a celebration party, celebrating the birth of a child, who's father invited people from the Green bannana guesthouse. We were the only foreign people at the party, it was nice to be invited to such a important occassion for the family. I congratulated the father and ...

... Srei playing all kinds of instruments most of which I've never seen but I'd love to give them a try sometime. A large instrument in the front row captured my eye and I couldn't figure out whether it was a string instrument or some form of percussion. The only "instrument " that I recognized and I've actually played before was the 'leaf'. Yes there was a guy up front with a leaf in his mouth. If you've ever played the leaf ...

Da unser thailaendisches Visa ablief mussten wir zumindest fuer kurze Zeit Thailand verlassen und entschlossen uns einen Abstecher nach Kambodscha zu machen. Hier fuhren wir nach Siem Reap um die bekannten Tempel von Angkor zu sehen. Insgesamt gab es in der groessten vorindustriellen Stadt mit ca. 1 Mill. Einwohneren ueber 1000 Tempel ...

... rediscovered" as some Western archeologsts may have said.<br><br><br>The monuments<br>I visited around 10 monuments and could not tell you which is my favorite. What is for sure, is that my favorite architectural elements are:<br>- the face towers of Angkor Wat, the Bayon and Ta Som:<br> <br><br>- the bas-reliefs of Angkor Wat and of the Bayon (pictures for later...sorry, batteries are out!).<br><br>About modern Cambodia, now.<br>After French protectorate, a ...

... the sheer scale of the temple that wins so many hearts, but on closer inspection the staggeringly intricate reliefs carved into the outside walls are one of it's greatest assets. The inner building is off limits to the public but it was possible to walk through into the courtyard to admire the main temple complex at close hand. As on many over visits to temples I often try to conjure up an image of how it would have looked and felt like when alive ...

... was a cramped fit. Our driver skilfully navigated the Siem Reap streets without splashing me with any water. Siem Reap itself is an odd place, we started off down this long road that had nothing but opulent and plush hotels on either side of it for miles. When we entered the town centre it was buzzing with a vibrancy that was just as exciting as Bangkok but no where near as busy or polluted. More on that description later as I'm exhausted right now! <br>

Angkor Wat - 7th July <br><br> The next morning we took our Tuk-Tuk to the most breathtaking of all the temples in Cambodia, perhaps the world - Angkor Wat. <br><br>Angkor Wat means "Temple that is a city", not surprising, as it is the largest religious structure in the world &#8211; eat your heart out, Notre Dame. The temple is surrounded by a 190m wide moat measuring 1.5km by 1.3km. Apart from the defensive properties, the ...

... figured I should wait for Theresa so I decided to see some minor temples near the entrance to Angkor Thom and then see the sunset at Bayon (Som&#8217;s suggestion). He dropped me off at Baksei Chamkrong which was pretty much just a tour &#8211; a pyramid style temple similar to the ones we saw in Chang Mai but the one big difference, this one had a ton of bats inside. From there I walked over to Phnom Bakheng which is on a large hill ...

... soon to see here in Siem Reap, but uninhibited, looted, destroyed by war, and still naturally beautiful and extremely impressive. Then we followed the old Angkorian highway, through many minefields, across Angkorian bridges and tiny villages with heaps of friendly locals waving as we sped past on our motos. Many of the villages we passed I waved constantly- making me feel like Ms America in a NYC parade.... yet realizing I am only a big white farang among ...