Siem Reap
Trip Start
Sep 03, 2007
1
180
220
Trip End
Jun 17, 2009
Siem Reap,
Cambodia
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Through an informal security check and then a wait in the modern departure lounge. I couldn't see any shops, so no JW rating but I did spot a bright coffee counter and treated myself to an egg and bacon baguette. The hotel breakfasts were still tending to be spicy food and although eggs were available, we tended to eat just juice and toast in order to complete our (non dairy) daily malaria tablet prescription.
9.30 and we walked across the tarmac to our turbo prop ATR72 and took off for 'Siem Reap' to the north
Cambodian dancers
. We could see the Mekong and the other rivers that join it in Phnom Penh, one of the main reasons for its commercial development. We were also flying over the enormous 'Tonie Sap Lake', which is one of the largest in South East Asia and during the rainy season grows from 2500 sq km to 10,000 sq km. This is partly achieved by the excess water from the Mekong flowing backwards through the river system into the lake and we could see these wide flowing rivers and much surrounding land covered in water.The thirty five minute flight was soon over and we were met by a van and set off for the town of Siem Reap, stopping en route to be photographed for our temple entry passes.
The town has grown rapidly, purely because of the famous, ancient Khmer (Cambodian) temples in this region and has many new hotels, restaurants and lots of souvenier shops, becoming effectively a tourist town.
Lunch was at a local restaurant and after a quick look round the stereotyped local shops and stalls, we returned to the reasonably modern hotel for a swim in the fair sized swimming pool.
Supper was back in town at a Khmer (Cambodian) restaurant that had a 'show' of traditional dancing
Angkor Wat 1
. The first storey room was open to the street and the ventilation fans struggled to cool down the hot, humid night air. The lights were covered by 60cm diameter by 2 metre long, light coloured fabric, making hanging illuminated drums , around which geckos slowly crawled, with their usual gravity defying ability, making several unusual moving silhouetted friezes.The meal and show (and the draught Angkor beer) were good and we returned to the hotel for a good night's sleep.....................
Wednesday 24th September
...................................which lasted until the alarm clock went off at 4 (YES 4) am. By 4.45 we were assembled in the hotel lobby, ready sunscreened and bug-sprayed (but too early for breakfast) for a full day out.
The reason, we were going to see the dawn at the great temple of 'Angkor Wat', the fabulous ruin that is one of the 130 abandoned Hindu temples in this region.
Arriving at the temple we walked with dozens of other masochists along the rough stone paving and waited on the steps of a temple building overlooking the main complex
Angkor Wat 2
.Dawn slowly broke and the spires of the temple gradually came into view until, as the sun burst from behind it, the whole site became visible. The initial effect was captivating but it was not until we had walked round and through the various areas, that we could appreciate the scale of the building and the fabulously carved sandstone walls that adorned every part of it.
It had been built by a king in the 1100's and over the years had been neglected but restoration work is slowly taking place. The site is over a 2 km square and surrounded by a 100 metre wide moat.
The temple is on three levels but the highest level, which rises to 65m, is closed, as the steep stonework steps are now dangerous. There were enough other interconnecting steps between the levels to keep us busy.
This area used to be the centre of the (much larger) ancient Cambodge, land since having been lost to Vietnam on the east and Thailand on the west. Each new generation of king would build a new temple, hence so many.
At 9am we were ready for breakfast in one of the nearby thatch covered eating places
Angkor Wat 3
. Here we were met with a group of children selling bracelets, books, shawls, necklaces and had to endlessly refuse their determined sales pitch. "Hey mister, you buy a bracelet for your girlfriend?" "I have a wife." "That's OK, you can buy her one as well!" Some of these kids were around six years old and persistence wasn't in it.After breakfast another temple, 'Ta Keo', which was built before Angkor Wat and is smaller. All the temples' construction was based on a lava rock foundation and inner walls, with decorative carved sandstone on the outer walls. This area had been one of the final refuges of the ousted Khmer Rouge during the 1970's 'war' and had been extensively land mined. We were told that many areas around are still dangerous and still claiming victims, something we saw in the limbless people begging at the temples but we were assured that the areas we were visiting had been cleared!
Next 'Ta Prohm', a big temple built after Angkor Wat and overwhelmed by the jungle. They have managed to clear access to the site but for the most part the area is so taken covered by trees that have grown through and around the buildings, that to remove them would cause the site to collapse.
This was a very atmospheric place with a great air of mystery and had been used in the 'Tomb Raider' movie. It was perfect for an 'Indiana Jones' set and was a really intriguing visit.
On the way back into town we called at the 'Landmine Museum' to see their effect and the work that is being carried out to remove them
Angkor Wat 4
. I must admit that this is one museum we did not go into.Back at the hotel at 2pm and we decided to have a quick snooze ...........until 6pm when it was time to get ready for supper. In town we found a French / Cambodian restaurant, although I didn't eat much as I was entertaining a new batch of 'unfamiliar bacteria'.
Thursday 24th September
A lie in and time for breakfast, as we didn't leave until 8.30am. On the way out we stopped off for a (tethered) balloon ride which gave us a great view over the Angkor Wat site.
Today, another temple - 'The Baphuon', which was on a 3km square site, the sites getting bigger and better with each generation and had fabulously carved faces of Buddha on the four sides of innumerable towers. There was also a great, 131 foot reclining Buddha that was being restored. The site was like a giant jigsaw, with blocks of carved and decorated stones littering everywhere.
On the way to the site we passed over a bridge that was decorated with carved figures in a tug of war, symbolizing the quest for immortality
Angkor Wat 5
.Lunch stop and the gauntlet of children selling things, although we were getting 'battle hardened' by the crowd of people who surrounded us at every site we had visited in the last two days. At one site I was asked "Where you from?" I reply "England", there is a slight pause whilst my inquisitor does a split second brain shift and then "England, capital - London, Population-65 million, Aww roit moite, lubbly Jubbly. Now you buy something?" As I said persistence but I wasn't sure whether their English lessons were really educational. A few minutes later a young girl asks "Where you from?" " England." "England, capital-............................" Someone was working hard to produce this clone like approach. I've yet to reply Spain or Latvia to see what the response is.
In the afternoon we drove west to the edge of the great lake Tonie Sap, which was working up to its yearly maximum size during the current rainy season, something we had seen from the swollen river flowing through town. There is a literal floating town here that moves depending on the height and area of the lake. The townspeople make their living from fishing and as the waters rise move closer to Siem Reap. In the dry season they float their houses many miles away as the water falls
Angkor Wat video
. There is a floating school, restaurants, shops and even a floating basketball pitch. We took a long boat ride out on the lake to view this intriguing site.
Returning to the hotel in the late afternoon there was time for a refreshing swim before changing for dinner. At this time we also said goodbye to Karen. She had been feeling unwell for a few days and a visit to a doctor had diagnosed her with low blood pressure. The flight arrangements had now been completed and she was sadly on her way home.
Our dinner was at a Khmer restaurant in town, where Andrea, our tour leader, ordered a wide selection of dishes, which gave a fantastic range of tastes and textures in the ingredients and spices that they had used.
