Phnom Penh to Siem Reap- Temples of Angkor

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  Siem Reap, Cambodia
Thursday, October 18, 2007

18/10
An early wake up as we need to be on time to get our boat from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap. A quick 6am breakfast then out to meet the ever reliable Mr. Wah. He took us the sort journey to the River front for which Deb paid him the princely sum of $10. The trip should only cost $1 but Deb wanted to thank him for being so reliable (I thought $5 was ample reliability reward!)
After the slightly better than pedestrian pace of the trusty Tuk-Tuk we wondered what we'd be in for with our chug along the river. We were pleasantly surprised as the vessel, although not new, was sleek and fast moving. As we settled in for our approx. 5hr journey to Siem Reap we were initially kept amused by watching the other passengers, especially a lady I named Mrs. Howell. She was the mother of quite a large brood and, judging by the language and accent, from one of the Scandinavian countries. She spent the first hour of the trip unpacking life jacket after life jacket finding the best ones for her brood and applying them to the children with such vigor I thought they were sure to turn blue at any minute

"Ginger" inside the boat to Siem Reap

. Obviously the daring seafaring nature of the Vikings has not been passed down through the generations!  I'm not sure of the name of our boat, but I guess the English translation must've been something like "SS Titanic" or perhaps even the "SS Minnow". Curiously Thurston Howell III seemed oblivious to "Lovies" fussings and the impending doom we were all about to suffer in the very near future.
While all this pantomime was unfolding the Deck hand, Gilligan (see photo), was going about his job of making and selling coffee to the other passengers (Maryanne, Professor etc).
On arrival at Siem Reap we met our new Tuk-Tuk driver, Mr Rith. He seemed amiable enough and transported us to view possible hotels. We decided on a little more expensive option as it had a pool (still only $25/night). We made arrangements with Mr Rith to pick us up the day after tomorrow for the start of our Angkor Wat tour. We decide tomorrow would be a good day to explore the town and lounge by the pool.
That is pretty much what we did for the entire next day. I think the standout part of the day was when we went to Pub Street for dinner. We chose a restaurant that offers work experience for the students from the Hospitality school. A young guy, seemingly travelling on his own, sat at the table next to us. Very shortly after a young, attractive Asian woman sat at the table next to him

1st view of Angkor Wat

. She was obviously known by the restaurant staff! From then on it was a fascinating study of body language and courting rituals. We watched while we finished a fine Khmer BBQ. Deb then ordered dessert and I ordered another drink. We didn't really want them, we just wanted to see what happened next!  Eventually we had to leave even though the story hadn't fully played out yet. Things were going very well though and we wondered what the final price would be!
We wandered around the markets for a while when Nancy Drew (AKA Deb ) decided we should swing past the restaurant one more time. Sure enough the targets were still there. Nancy decided we should sit across the road and continue surveillance. The pair left together and that was pretty much it, except that Nancy had the brilliant idea that tomorrow night she might send me into a restaurant on my own and sit across the road and see what happened! I didn't think this a good idea as it would be very embarrassing when no one approached!
19 - 20/10
Day 1 Angkor Temple Tour.
Mr Rith picked us up at the pre arranged time of 9:00am. It was a short trip to the entrance point. We paid our fee for a 3 day pass, posed for our pass photo, and progressed to our1st temple area Angkor Wat. It is pretty hard to describe your feelings when you 1st see these monuments

2nd view of Angkor Wat

. They are simply magnificent!  We thought the ruins at Tikal (Guatemala) were great but we both think these take the cake. They are huge, ornate, brilliantly designed and definitely need to go on anyone's "must see before I die" list. The ornate stone carvings relating religious tales are 50m long. It is marvelous what the restoration teams have achieved over the years. Much of what we see today would've originally been the world's biggest jigsaw puzzle.
Unfortunately there are the almost inevitable bits of graffiti, though luckily few and far in between. You are warned on arrival not to touch the monuments, but at one point we saw 1 idiot tourist using the ancient stone pillars as a nail file! The other unfortunate bits are the Khmer Rouge bullet holes dotted around the place. One piece of graffiti was painted. It had a name and date. The year was 1979, the end of the Khmer Rouge regime. I wondered whether this was left by the restoration team as a reminder of a more "irreverent" time. Although there was some damage from the time of the revolution I commented to Deb that we are lucky the damage is not more severe.
Our next stop was the Bayon Temple. Not as large as Angkor Wat but still impressive. We wandered around this area for an hour+ and eventually found our way to our Tuk-Tuk rendezvous point , the temple of the Leper King. Mr Rith was difficult t find at first. Our previous driver, Mr Wah, was always on the look out for our return, but not Mr Rith

Bayon Temple

. We eventually found him, parked among the other Tuk-Tuks, curled up and fast asleep. We discovered over the next few days that this was Mr Rith's favourite pass time! I quickly gave up looking out for his smiling features and learnt it was quicker to scan the sea of Tuk-Tuks and find the one with a woolly head poking out one end and a foot poking out the other!
The next day was a 5:00am start for the sunrise over Angkor Wat. We arrived in plenty of time and followed a line of other tourists and staked our claim on a vantage point and waited. He sky eventually began to turn red, we took our photos and thought the show was over and that we might head over and get some breakfast. Luckily, just before we left the sun started to peek over the temples. It was now we got our best shots.
Satisfied, we went for breakfast. The children sellers remembered us from the day before and tried there luck again. Deb decided to but a Temple guide book so we could, from then on, legitimately say, "No thanks we already have one."  Unfortunately, instead of calming the attention, the sight of the $US signaled to the others , "We have a player!" and the frenzy really ramped up. The children we said "no" to yesterday were most indignant and thought it only fair we buy something from them as well. Eventually they moved to new targets and we were left to our breakfast. We shared a really good banana pancake and struggled through some truly forgettable coffee

Bayon Temple 2

!
On leaving the sunset show I located Mr Rith's tell tail head and foot. He was woken by one of the new minions of child sellers and we continued on our journey.
He drove us to a number of different temple areas, each one significant for its design, purpose and different construction methods used.
Each area had its sellers. The children would ask where you were from then launch into a rehearsed phrase list eg
"Capital city Canberra...Population 22 million"
"G'Day Mate...G'Day Sheila"
"How's it goin' cobber"
One inventive lad even came out with, "The Dingo's got my baby!"
Around lunch time we thought we had better let Mr Rith get back to town as we were certain he had a serious afternoon nap planned! We paid him and made arrangements to see some further out temples tomorrow at a more civilized 9am start.
21/10
Deb deided to stay back for a day of massage and pedicures, so it was just Mr Rith & I

Boat Phnom Penh - Seam Reap

. We ventured further out today and went to what is commonly called the Womens' Temple. It is smaller than some of the others but well know for the quality of the ornate carvings. When I finished there I went back to the car park to look for Mr Rith. The park was very busy and my usual method of finding him failed me. I walked to the end of the park without luck, turned back &, surprise of surprises, he was pulling up behind me. He seemed unusually lively today.
The last place I visited was Ta Prohm. Mr Rith was very interested in how long I was going to be. He indicated he had a busy afternoon and would like to be back to Siem Reap by 1pm. I wondered what appointment an industrious fellow as him would have that could keep him so alert. I imagined it there must be a very important heat of the National Cambodian Napping Championships, of which Mr Rith was surely defending his crown!
Ta Prohm turned out to be my favourite. It's the one you see in postcards with the huge trees growing out of the ruins. Unfortunately it was crawling with people. I had to be patient in order to get pictures without masses of people in them. Patience not being one of my strengths, I found this difficult. I was also conscious of the time as I didn't want Mr. Rith to miss his chance at back to back titles.
I found him alert and ready to transport me back to the hotel so he could be ready for his afternoon adventures

Cambodian Gilligan

. Deb and I then entered into an SMS fest trying to find each other. I told her I was opposite some shops that she would know, but neglected to tell her I was in a side street opposite the shops. Consequently she couldn't find me and was a source of amusement for the Tuk_Tuk drivers as she searched. According to Deb they were teasing her by pretending to cry as she searched. Eventually I realised my error and went out to find her.
We had dinner at the Butterfly Garden Restaurant. It is worth a visit as it does good work for the needy. Only worth one visit though as it is over priced by Cambodian standards and not as nice as it sounds in the tourist guides and website.
23/10
Decided on a leisurely, lateish breakfast followed by a 2hr tour of Lake Tonle Sap (floating village etc). Very interesting tour. Our guide pointed out the features: floating schools, floating basketball courts, floating police station, practically floating everything! If you thought we would be protected form the sellers by being surrounded by water, then think again. They have their own boats and ambush you at various points.
Back to the hotel for our last night. The Mekong Angkor Palace has been adequate but not great. Minor inconveniences: The cleaners do things like take the dirty towels but forget to replace them with clean ones

Clean towels in new hotel!

. One day they they forgot to clean our room altogether.
One notable feature of our suite is the bathroom. It seems to have been ingeniously engineered to amplify the sound of all activity carried out within. It seems to have more in common with a amphitheater than a conventional bathroom. Deb & I have named this area the "Thunderdome".
Have now made the necessary Tuk-Tuk arrangements for tomorrow's trip to the airport. We will probably have our last Cambodian meal at the Asia Restaurant.  We like the Asia as they proudly proclaim not to serve "monkey, dog, cat, or worm."
We have enjoyed our time in Cambodia but both feel ready to move on..........BEYOND THUNDERDOME!
 

Post your own travel photos for friends and family More Pictures

Craig & Lion Statue	Deb with the child sellers	Floating Village Catholic School	High Priestess Deb
Sunrise over Angkor Wat	Temple with Tree	Temple with tree 2	The Lake sellers ambush
View from the boat to Siem Reap

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