Cambodia

March 2-9, 2009

We took our last Lao Airlines flight from Pakse to Siem Reap, Cambodia. Siem Reap is a very cute town. The streets are lined with restaurants and bars. We were a little surprised at how nice the city is considering how difficult it is to get there!

Photo: View from the back of a tuk tuk in the Angkor Temple Complex



Photos Above: Pre Rup

The main attractions, of course, are the Temples of Angkor. Upon arrival we explored the town, found some random person to do our laundry and then hired a tuk tuk to take us to the Temple complex. We bought a three day pass so that we could enter and leave the complex as many times as we liked over a three day period. That first evening we hiked up to Pre Rup and watched the sun set. It was a little disappointing – apparently every guide book tells people to visit this exact site to see the sunset and every tour group goes as well. So there were probably a thousand people all trying to watch the sunset and standing on the ruins! It was a bit cloudy as well, but we are still glad we made the trek up to see the famous sunset.





Photos Above: Bayon

Over the following few days we explored the different temples. It really is quite amazing how well preserved some of them are, while others are just crumbling ruins. We really only had the tolerance to do about a half day of temple seeing in the huge complex every day because the weather was unbearably hot. The highlights of the temple complex for us were Bayon, (a temple with many faces staring out at visitors), Ta Prohm, and of course the famous Angkor Wat.




Photos Above: Bayon


Photo: K in front of the Terrace of the Elephants


Photo: Preah Palilay


Photos: Phimeanakas





Photos Above: Angkor Wat


Photo: K in Siem Reap






Photos Above: Ta Prohm





Photos Above: Angkor Wat


Photo: Fish foot massage






Photos Above: Preah Khan

After our time was over in Siem Reap we took the bus down to Phnom Phen. The city also had many restaurants and we stayed near the river. Phnom Phen, though set in a beautiful location, had a very depressing vibe about it. We could not eat at any outdoor restaurant without being constantly harassed for money by all sorts of sad looking people. Many were children or did not have limbs. Though, one funny thing did happen while we were eating outside. A boy came to our table and was selling books. T just took a look at what he was selling – nothing seemed too interesting so he said no thank you to the boy. The boy said “why did you look at my books if you were not going to buy?!” T replied that he just wanted to see if there were any interesting books, but that he was not interested in what the boy was selling. To this the boy replied “Fuck you!” and stormed off!


Photo Elephant in Phnom Phen


Photo: Tuel Sleng Genocide Museum

While in Phnom Phen we visited the Tuel Sleng Genocide Museum (aka S-21), a school turned into a prison and used by the Khmer Rouge for torture and detention that generally was followed by execution during Cambodia’s recent civil war. It was an incredibly sad place to visit, with the photos of many of those killed staring back at us in the converted school rooms. The museum is well done, but it is very disturbing to believe that this mass genocide only occurred about 30 years ago….


Photo: Royal Palace - Phnom Phen


Photo: K in Phnom Phen


Photo: National Museum of Cambodia

We could not bring ourselves to visit the “killing fields” – though every tuk tuk driver offered to take us there. We only spent a few days in Phnom Phen. Though a very eye opening place to visit, we were not sad to leave Phnom Phen for Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.