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Cambodia in a nutshell!!
On october 23rd we had an early start and headed on a 4 hour journey to the thail/cambodia border. It was the first time id used a squattin toilet...and the first of many i can tell u that!! There was a buzzin market at the border with loads of designer bags which apparently were sent from america to help them finacially and they just sold them cheap?! maybe true?? It was very hot and amazing to see how hard the labour work was. As we entered there were just miles and miles of rice padi fields and lots of water buffalow, nice and green scenery cos its the wet season still. Tried some local fruit, and you could see how the poorer people lived futher away from the city as you drove closer. then suddenly big massive luxurious hotels popped up which apparently were owned by other countries and not very gd for the local people.
That evening we went for a meal at Temple Touc and saw 6 traditional dances, the market and some amazin paintins everywhere!! love them! We then had to get up at 4.30am to see the sunrise at Angkor Wat, was amazin. So many girls selling stuff which we now see everywher, its hard to say no to them but theres so many and it gets annoying now. We then went to Thom Pneh where Tomb Raider was filmed! You could see where buddhist statues had been removed when religion changed to Hindu and was a place to worship gods.
We then went to Angkor Thom (means big captial) and it was massive. Used to hold 1million villagers and the buildings were breathtaking. There were loads of bricks everywher, numbered for reconstruction and these numbers were written down to know where the stone went but the paper got destroyed in the war so were just left!! We then went back to Angkor Wat again to look inside and was very beautiful, amazing carvings in the wall. Teh stairs were very steep apparently so u look at ur feet as u climb to the worshiping areas as if bowing your head to the gods.
The next morning we went to see the poor people by boat in there floating villages, where they wash and go to the toilet in the river and the family come up to you begging with there little child holding a snake. ITs so sad to see, real cutlure shock. Saw there clever way of fishing and how they batted them out of the net, the families would even jump on your boat and try and sell you a drink. We saw amputees in wash basins paddling up to you for money. We then stopped at a restaurant where I held a snake and saw the view from the roof, its amazing how they live there. They had a fish farm and crocodile farm there too. We then went to a floating school and the kids are adorable!! It was good that our tour money went to the villagers :) Was really glad I went to see the real life of the people of cambodia. We were told they were there because people had tried to escape from the Khmer Rouge army as its easier to get away from then when not on land, and also because they didnt need to buy a plot of land. I also saw my first guy with a fake leg, whereas every other many amputee victims did not have this.
OCtober 25th Phom Pehn
We had a long journey to the capital, and went to a restuarant called Friends, really nice as they take kids off the street and train them up. The next day we went to the Killings fields, and S21 - an old school used to tortue people during the Khmer Rouge leadership time, and it was just horrific, and to think it only happened like 30 years ago. I was quite moved by what I saw.
We also visited the Golden Palace then the back packers area for lunch which was awesome. We saved a lot of babies as our tour leader would say (saving the next generation by drinking all the alcohol up so none for them!)
on the 27th we arrived in Sinahoukville, a beach resort with cute huts to stay in, so we catched some rays before it pissed it down, and then had a lush seafood BBQ by the beach. The next the group split and myself and some others went to the Mekong River and National park trip, which included beaching it, boating it, walking through some jungly forest bit and a bbq by the sea! lovely day! That night we went out and got through a couple of beer towers and played some fun drinking games. Next up Vietnam! woop!
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