What?
Trip Start
Apr 09, 2008
1
59
115
Trip End
Apr 19, 2009
Siem Reap,
Cambodia
Sunday, November 2, 2008
The next morning I went out into town to get a feel for the place, in the market I bought a new watch actually a casio the same as the first watch I ever had way back in school. It is strange it brings back memories and I already know all the controls. I also tried to repair my camera in the watch shop
Big Watt
. It hadn't been working right since the sand dunes of Mui Ne. I used their screwdriver to take it apart and tried toget some of the sand out but instead I electrocuted myself, quite badly. It felt like someone had pinched the muscles in my shoulders and I turned around to see who had done it, then I felt the burn in my fingers and realised what I had done. I was less eager to try fixing it after that and put it back together. It still doesnt zoom. I took some time, looked at some temples and parks and ended the day in a restaurant. A burly bloke with diamond rings on his fingers wondered over and we started talking. He told me his niece wasmoving to england and maybe I would like to meet her tomorrow to give her some advice on the move. I told him I was going to see the watts but if they still needed my help the day after I could meet them for lunch. I was thinking free lunch and local people to talk to. So I went back to the hotel to get an early night to prepare for the 5 o'clock start (thats 5 in the morning) at the temples.I got up late, 5.30 by the time I got down to the hotel reception. There was no sign of the guy I had arranged with but I managed to find a tuk tuk just roaming the streets and got him to take me instead. I had some idea of where I wanted to go so I gave hime instuctions. The site is huge. I mean Salisbury plain big, and covered with ruins andtemples, some still half buried in the trees, others with trees growing out from the walls. Think tomb raider and india jones and you are more or less there. I went to see some carvings on the bed of a river and various astounding temples that it is so much easier to just upload pictures for. (I will do that soon I promise). The whole place is amazing. It really deserves its status as one of the new wonders of the world and the pride of the nation. I returned to town at about 4, so 11 hours of temples and I was exhausted
Head Watt
. I went out to eat something and met a nice british/australian guy. We chatted and drank and I tried barbequed snake, crocodile and emu (imported from Oz I'm sure). The next morning I went out to meet this guy and his niece. I decided not to take anything valuable with me. There was some confusion about where we were to meet but eventually I ended up in a hotel room. He tells me that he is a croupier trying to coach me as a card shark. I completely forgot about the niece and being scared about valuables. If I had stopped to think none of what follwed would have happened. He told me he had a 'method' and if we worked together we would win every time. So I got a free lesson on winning at black jack. Then there was a knock at the door and a man walks in, he introduced himself as being a gambler from singapore and the game started. He was true to his word I kept winning and by the end I had won 42000 USD but the singapore guy we were playing wouldnt end the game or give the money over until I showd him my money, until I went to the bank and got my half (as in 21000 USD) Of course I dont have that much, and couldnt withdraw it if I had it. I think the whole thing was designed to make me take my money out of the bank and I would never have seen it again. I just went back to my hotel and nothing was lost I just got a free black jack lesson. But I could have won 20000 USD. I was just disappointed becasue we never had lunch.
That night after booking my bus to Bangkok I met some people in the hotel, an aussie guy, an irish lad, an american man, a bloke from germany. I told them the above story about the card shark and we laughed together and had a few beers and agreed to go out later. We played poker in the hotel and drank the aussie's whisky. We named our selves the UN and decided to go out in search of new member states. Girls in other words. We started at a roadside food stall where we ate and drank the delishious local food meanwhile some girls and some lady-boys on the street corner tried to attract our attention, much to our amusement. We then went to the night market where they have a species of chinese fish that eats deadskin from your feet, I am quite ticklish and it was hard to stay in the water but after 30 minutes my feet felt really soft and clean. After we had a drink in the market and went to one of the few clubs in town. All in all it was a great night. The next morning I was up early to take the bus out of town.
