I think that no tour of South East Asia is complete without a visit to Angkor Wat. So, we went there.
Disclaimer: pretty much the rest of our time is spent in touristy areas. Does this make us cool hippie backpackers? Maybe not. However, my feelings are that a place is touristy for a reason. Of course there are hidden gems, and of course we like finding them. But if a place is nice then people are going to find it and go there. We are not the first globe trotters, here. I've come to terms with being on the beaten path.
So, Siem Reap, the town closest to Angkor Wat is full of tourists from boutique spas, to resorts to backpacker hostels. This also means there is an array of international restaurants.
Also, there was a holiday while we were there. Obviously, because I don't think we've visited one place without a holiday so far (except New Zealand- oh western cultures- you are lacking in the holiday arena).
We hoped for glimpses of the Cambodian king.
As we drove in from the airport the streets were illuminated with signs marking Night Markets and Pub Streets (see what I mean by international?). It was lively and enticing.
We were fortunate to be out of the center of town and right around the corner from the best restaurant in town. We do our research when it comes to places to eat. All the higher ratings had expensive menus- this one, Moloppor had everything for under $3.50. And they had the most amazing fruit juices of our lives. We ate there at least once a day.
Just like Vietnamese food, Cambodian is fresh, although spicier. I think we were both satisfied with everything we got. (Except for the papaya salad that was heavily dosed in fish oil and really lost it's appeal when I dug up a gray crab claw.)
Anyways, obviously, we didn't come to Cambodia just for the food. (Although, do you ever wonder of we are just eating our way around the world? I guess technically we are. But, honestly, I spend a good amount of time thinking and talking about food- Matt can attest to this.) We were here to see Angkor Wat. We had previously thought we could easily walk to the various temples from town, but we were wrong. It's best to hire a tuk tuk from your hotel which will carry you to each one. We opted for a one day tour (I think there are enough temples to spend a few days touring, but we know our limits). We did decide to leave early for the sunrise behind Angkor Wat.
It was a cold ride out of town. I had brought a scarf knowing that I would need to cover my tank top to enter the temples, but also knowing anything more than a tank top would be too hot.
We bought our tickets (which were very official with our pictures- Matt's picture looks super eager and mine looks shifty, like I might steal a relic). Then we walked through the dark into Angkor Wat.
The dark form emerged before us. We walked over to the grass and waited for the sun to rise. It is amazing to watch the sun rise over something ancient. It's been happening for centuries and that morning we got to watch it wake up for the day. It was truly beautiful.
Then, all of a sudden, there's enough light to fully recognize this iconic building. It was impressive.
I watched the sun rise very carefully.
Once the sun had risen enough and it was safe to go into the temple without tripping, we wandered through. Getting up for sunrise, while it's a good size crowd, still keeps you ahead of most of the tourists, so our whole visit was calm and relaxing, we just meandered.
Angkor Wat is the main and most well-known temple. But within the same area are many other temples, some even bigger than Angkor Wat.
I'm not sure how many we went to, but what I liked was that while they fit together, they were also very unique.
At our second stop faces were carved into every surface of the temple. I liked that one.
Another had elephants, while another was pyramid shaped.
Matt's favorite had banyan trees growing all over. He remarked how the building was interesting, but the work of the trees was even more fascinating.
Centuries ago it had been a very sophisticated area with irrigation and farms and culture. It was abandoned when the capital was moved away from Siem Reap. People returned in the 1600s and restored some of the Wats.
Today, there is still restoration work and many are in cooperation with other countries, such as China and India. We think this reflects the cultures of ancient times and how they merged in various places.
About the time of Matt's favorite, the crowds started to catch up with us. This particular temple seemed small but was actually courtyard after courtyard. At that point, I decided it was about time for the tour of wats to be done for the day.
Matt drank a coconut and I chatted with a young girl selling souvenirs. She told me she needed to make money to go to school. I wasn't sure what to make of this (not sure I've made up my mind even now), but we talked some about school. We shared some French words and I asked her about reading. I didn't buy anything, but I've often thought about the exchange.
After a nap (we'd been up since before sunrise, after all...) we wandered the market with the rest of the tourists. We also found a Gloria Jean's coffee shop with excellent wifi, which is exceptionally convenient. Also, I love Gloria Jean's. They have one at the Modesto mall and apparently all over South East Asia... I have no idea how Modesto, of all places, got in on that one.
And that was that. It was a quick visit and we were off to our final destination in Asia (unless you count the geographical majority of Turkey, which I've decided that I don't): southern Thailand. We're off to soak up the sun and salty sea as well as a few final Thai Iced teas!
