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And so to Siem Reap. The blogs are coming thick and fast as we come to the end of our travels. It has to be said that everything involving Cambodia was super easy. We barely had to think at all. Door to door from our hotel in KL to our guesthouse in Siem Reap took 6 hours. Kudos to Bary Inn, Air Asia, Cambodian Immigration and Happy Guesthouse.
Things didn't get any harder from there. We were met at the Airport by Phearun, our designated tuk tuk driver. I would recommend this man to anyone who finds themselves in Siem Reap. We did an amazing 3 day program with him for b***** all money.
Day 1:
First temple was Pre Rup, a good introductory guide to what you get from your wat. Then it was a long and scenic drive up to Kbal Prean. Turned out to be an awesome trek to a river and waterfall chock full of carvings. It is known as the River of a Thousand Lingas. Thus named because, during the dry season, hordes of men hopped in and turned the riverbed into a carpet of mini stone penises (or if you're not a child, 'phallic symbols'). For that is what a linga is. And by Jove does Cambodia love a nice big linga. Moving on from innuendo hour back to the culture quarter, this is a unique place to visit. It was especially cool in the wet season, as you had to search out the carvings under water.
On the way back from the phallic waterfall, we stopped at one of Angkor's other gems. Known as the Citadel of Beauty, Banteay Srei boasts the most intricate carvings of all the sites in Siem Reap. Then we did some more temples including one that really liked elephants and corners. We rounded of the day with the sun setting over Angkor Wat and the North Gate.
Day 2:
Picking up where we left off, it was back to Angkor Wat for sunrise. It really is a sight to behold, but if I'm honest, Siem Reap's main attraction wasn't my favourite. This is mainly because we then headed to Angkor Thom. This is home to a terrace made out of elephants, a temple with steps so steep you feel like a baby clambering up then and of course, The Bayon. The Bayon is one of the largest concentrated piles of awesome in the known universe. It is essentially a maze of smug faces on ruddy great towers. However, there are 4 faces per tower and every time you see a new one it is just as exciting as the 47 previous faces. There also some of the more interesting bas reliefs (big pictures of cool stuff, like tigers and elephants and wars and musicals and war based musicals about elephants on top of tigers).
So we did all of them and more, with a tasty lunch in between. One of the later temples is across a giant moat. As we were in the middle of the wet season, the route was flooded. Each year they build a boardwalk all the way to the temple, which is an experience in itself. Early finish today, then our longest journey yet...
Day 3:
The day starts with a nearly 2 hour drive out to a jungle temple. Nature has well and truly taken this land back. Trees have grown over and through walls and rubble. Where there are cracks there are roots and if not roots then fields of neon green moss. It was time for some proper Indiana Jones escapades as we ducked under old doorways filled with debris, using fallen walls as staircases up to those that still remain. There was Lara Croft shimmying around as we slid along tiny ledges on the outer parts of galleries and libraries. Buckets of fun without the boobytraps.
Next stop was a port where we picked up a rickety riverboat to one of Cambodia's floating villages. Our boat was made even more charming by the old wicker chairs foraged from someone's front room. As if we weren't having enough fun boating up a lake that is actually a forest, we both got to sit on the nose of the boat for the best views available. It never gets old looking at a bush and realizing there is actually 4 meters of tree underneath it.
The village was beautiful. Houses and public buildings raised on 6 meter stilts, the majority of which now lay underwater. Small boats for shopfronts, with people paddling down to number 4 for the groceries and kids diving off the front porch, scaring the chickens nesting under the house.
We finished with a couple more temples, including the original capital. Being considerably older than many of those seen previously, there was still plenty of different things to see.
Our last few days we spent seeking out really good Khmer dishes and ambling round the various markets. Lou got chased down the street by a tuk tuk driver, because she pointed at his batman themed ride. Rule number one: do not point at anything, people thoroughly expect you to buy it.
And with that we conclude. I urge everyone to go to Siem Reap and eat anything that comes in a coconut.
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