Why are we always surprised by the wall of heat that hits us as we step out of a plane in the tropics? Bang! in your face, a huge wall of hot humid air, it was 37c when we arrived in steamy Siem Reap.
Our second surprise within minutes was being hugged by a diminutive Gill, looking very trim after her recently completed 1000 mile walk. She looked amazing, bringining our pasty, fleshy, economy flown North European bodies into sharp relief. We spent three days in Siem Reap, catching up and exploring favourite haunts. Swanley travel had arranged cute duplexes at the formerly 'gay friendly' Golden Banana, thanks Gill! It's now thankfully rechristened the Rambutan Hotel. It was an oasis of calm, just across the river from the madness of downtown SR. We also loved the FCC of course, especially at happy hour!
Pub St has certainly grown since I was last here in 2006 and Gill a couple of years later. It's far from charming, but fed and watered us well for a couple of nights and a great place to people watch.
Angkor Wat, was of course the must see! Gill had done her research well and by avoiding the peak times, we almost had the temples to ourselves. Tuk tuk hired for a half day, we phut phutted out into the jungle. It is really spectacular and we were all blown away, even though it was only David who was seeing it for the first time. We scrambled up sheer staircases, exclaimed at household scenes in the bas reliefs and loved catching unexpected photo angles. saffron clad monks and gold draped Buddha's completed the scene. We also explored Bayon in Angkor Thom and Ta Prom, the Angelina Jolie one as the day got hotter and hotter. We ere so hot we must have looked a bit tired - the local guard suggested that "short walk best for you" as we were deciding which route to take around the temple... At one point David exclaimed that 'he was so hot that he could cry!' We agreed with him, and felt that our temple time was up for the day and indeed for this visit. Angkor Wat, big tick.
The splendours of Cambodia's past history is in stark contrast to modern day life for most of the locals, who appear to live in dire poverty. We had decided to visit a local, little visited fishing village on Tonle Sap, some 40km south of SIem Reap. The poverty didn't seem to bother Michelle Obama's motorcade though as she drove people off the road on her way to lecture poor people to let their kids go to school. if she had donated the cost of her trip and those of her security staff, then I'm sure more good would have come of her self satisfied smug visit. Anyway, she sped past us, we and everyone else chased off the road, there was a dying or maybe even dead young guy lying in the back of a hand cart next to us. Michelle, didn't even slow down. (That was an Ant rant...)
There is a closer fishing village to the one we visited but it is highly touristic and now Korean owned like a "poverty Disneyland". We really got a sense in Cambodia that they will take a handout from any country that offers it. Kampong Khleang was astonishing. As the lake level is so low, the stilt houses are hanging 20m up in the air, an extraordinary engineering feat, made possible by planks and nails. Kids played in the filth, dogs fought for scraps, people rocked slowly in their hammocks beneath their houses. Health and safety clearly had never visited! We chartered a small boat to take us down this creek and out onto the lake. It was hard to imagine that later in the year, this would all be 20 metres underwater. The creek bit was no more than half a metre deep, but Gill of course still sported her life jacket! Our taxi driver insisted on joining us in the boat and enjoyed taking photos too, he pointed out areas in the lake where 'Fish make babies'.
He was a fount of knowledge and we learnt how so much fuel in Cambodia is smuggled in illegally and hence not subject to tax. He explained this as our taxi was parked in a shed and he was buying petrol in a water container that was being weighed! He also told us how teachers and government workers are only paid $100 per month and have been told that they will need second jobs to survive, parents are therefore chipping in. He says many teachers in the area have "run away". Ironic as we had just seen him avoid paying fuel duty! It made us smile. We motored out to the lake to a small floating village with a school, shop, petrol station etc, the light brown shallow muddy waters lapping at their bows, it must be a strange existence to live out here. The route back to the shore was marked in the water by tree branches stuck in the mud, it was really at a low level.
Our evenings were spent drinking and eating, we enjoyed cocktails at the upmarket Shinta Mani, after having shopped at their little artisan market. Probably our favourite meal was at Haven, a restaurant that teaches street kids some marketable skills. SIem Reap is touristy, but we enjoyed it. The large groups of Chinese and Korean tours follow easy to avoid timetables, and tend to eat at their enormous edge of town chain hotels, so are not a problem in the evenings. We all had fun and vowed to return, maybe in the wet season.
Sent from my iPad
Our second surprise within minutes was being hugged by a diminutive Gill, looking very trim after her recently completed 1000 mile walk. She looked amazing, bringining our pasty, fleshy, economy flown North European bodies into sharp relief. We spent three days in Siem Reap, catching up and exploring favourite haunts. Swanley travel had arranged cute duplexes at the formerly 'gay friendly' Golden Banana, thanks Gill! It's now thankfully rechristened the Rambutan Hotel. It was an oasis of calm, just across the river from the madness of downtown SR. We also loved the FCC of course, especially at happy hour!
Pub St has certainly grown since I was last here in 2006 and Gill a couple of years later. It's far from charming, but fed and watered us well for a couple of nights and a great place to people watch.
Angkor Wat, was of course the must see! Gill had done her research well and by avoiding the peak times, we almost had the temples to ourselves. Tuk tuk hired for a half day, we phut phutted out into the jungle. It is really spectacular and we were all blown away, even though it was only David who was seeing it for the first time. We scrambled up sheer staircases, exclaimed at household scenes in the bas reliefs and loved catching unexpected photo angles. saffron clad monks and gold draped Buddha's completed the scene. We also explored Bayon in Angkor Thom and Ta Prom, the Angelina Jolie one as the day got hotter and hotter. We ere so hot we must have looked a bit tired - the local guard suggested that "short walk best for you" as we were deciding which route to take around the temple... At one point David exclaimed that 'he was so hot that he could cry!' We agreed with him, and felt that our temple time was up for the day and indeed for this visit. Angkor Wat, big tick.
The splendours of Cambodia's past history is in stark contrast to modern day life for most of the locals, who appear to live in dire poverty. We had decided to visit a local, little visited fishing village on Tonle Sap, some 40km south of SIem Reap. The poverty didn't seem to bother Michelle Obama's motorcade though as she drove people off the road on her way to lecture poor people to let their kids go to school. if she had donated the cost of her trip and those of her security staff, then I'm sure more good would have come of her self satisfied smug visit. Anyway, she sped past us, we and everyone else chased off the road, there was a dying or maybe even dead young guy lying in the back of a hand cart next to us. Michelle, didn't even slow down. (That was an Ant rant...)
There is a closer fishing village to the one we visited but it is highly touristic and now Korean owned like a "poverty Disneyland". We really got a sense in Cambodia that they will take a handout from any country that offers it. Kampong Khleang was astonishing. As the lake level is so low, the stilt houses are hanging 20m up in the air, an extraordinary engineering feat, made possible by planks and nails. Kids played in the filth, dogs fought for scraps, people rocked slowly in their hammocks beneath their houses. Health and safety clearly had never visited! We chartered a small boat to take us down this creek and out onto the lake. It was hard to imagine that later in the year, this would all be 20 metres underwater. The creek bit was no more than half a metre deep, but Gill of course still sported her life jacket! Our taxi driver insisted on joining us in the boat and enjoyed taking photos too, he pointed out areas in the lake where 'Fish make babies'.
He was a fount of knowledge and we learnt how so much fuel in Cambodia is smuggled in illegally and hence not subject to tax. He explained this as our taxi was parked in a shed and he was buying petrol in a water container that was being weighed! He also told us how teachers and government workers are only paid $100 per month and have been told that they will need second jobs to survive, parents are therefore chipping in. He says many teachers in the area have "run away". Ironic as we had just seen him avoid paying fuel duty! It made us smile. We motored out to the lake to a small floating village with a school, shop, petrol station etc, the light brown shallow muddy waters lapping at their bows, it must be a strange existence to live out here. The route back to the shore was marked in the water by tree branches stuck in the mud, it was really at a low level.
Our evenings were spent drinking and eating, we enjoyed cocktails at the upmarket Shinta Mani, after having shopped at their little artisan market. Probably our favourite meal was at Haven, a restaurant that teaches street kids some marketable skills. SIem Reap is touristy, but we enjoyed it. The large groups of Chinese and Korean tours follow easy to avoid timetables, and tend to eat at their enormous edge of town chain hotels, so are not a problem in the evenings. We all had fun and vowed to return, maybe in the wet season.
Sent from my iPad
