The alarm went off at 05.00, obviously still dark but also still warm, no need for a fleece which our booklet said we would need, it was probably around 21 degrees C. Our guide and driver were there at 05.30 and we had a quiet drive of around 15 minutes to the Ta Prohm temple not far from Ankor Wat. Very quiet and apart from us there were only about another 6 or 7 people there. This temple was used to film a number of scenes for Tomb Raider, the temple area is still being restored with help from India and they are doing a fine job. They have only done a partial restoration to show how it would have been, in some ways to do more would spoil the magic of the place. Fiona and I both agreed that this was a much better experience than Angkor Wat itself. Although Angkor Wat is in a much better condition the numbers of people are off-putting. Of course us being there doesn't help but Cambodia is a relatively poor country and tourism brings in a massive amount of income. Today some of the roads in Siem Riep are closed off as the king is in residence, his pad is just down the road, we are opposite one of his park gardens. He is here because there is an economic conference of the Asean bloc which Cambodia joins this year.
We were back for breakfast around 08.30 and are now lounging around the pool. We get picked up around 15.00 for our 16.50 flight to Luang Prabang in Laos. The flight takes about 2 hours, we could have gone by bus which takes 14 hours. We have 3 nights in Laos before flying to Hanoi.