We Love Cambodia: Featuring Temples, Tuk Tuks, and A Fish Spa
Off to Cambodia! I was surprised at how few people we talked to in the islands area and Bangkok had planned to go to Cambodia. I have read that it is a beautiful country and they use US dollars as their currency so it's easy to navigate. There's one primary reason we intended to head there: Angkor Wat. It's a giant area of temples, some reconstructed and some left in disrepair.
***This is a long post***
***This is a long post***
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| Famous Tree at Ta Som Temple |
When we booked our flight at 6:20am we were concerned about how early it was. Turns out that on this trip we just get up really early all the time no matter what so it was easy haha. Our hotel was only about a 10-minute walk to the airport but they have a free shuttle so we took it. Getting through security and stuff was easy (after 5 flights so far this trip, this is old hat). We got pastries for breakfast and my almond croissant was delicious.
The flight was uneventful (no one leaned their seat back this time!!!). The sunrise was beautiful though. The plane landed and we fast walked to the customs area. We did our research and planned ahead for this part. A couple weeks ago, we applied for Cambodian visas online and got them so we didn't have to wait in that line. We also filled out our immigration paperwork on the plane so we could run right up to the border patrol.
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| Tuk Tuk Ride from Airport |
Our hostel arranged for a tuk-tuk to pick us up from the airport. Tuk-tuks are the primary way for tourists to get around here. They're motor scooters outfitted with a small covered seat area trailer. Bangkok has these too but we never rode in one because they're so expensive there. I don't know what it was but we immediately fell in love with Siem Reap. It's kind of like a small town and not as touristy as the islands.
Our hostel is called Onederz Hostel and it is absolutely fantastic. They have a big lobby where you can buy breakfast for $2 and lunch/dinner for $3. A bar is attached that has very cheap happy hour ($0.50 for a beer!!!!). There are tons of places to sit and hang out with lots of plugins to charge devices. There's a separate area for the private rooms across the street that's quieter (where our room is). They arrange a ton of different tours of temples and other highlights of Siem Reap and Angkor Wat. Basically, it's great.
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| Breakfast at Onederz Hostel in Siem Reap |
We checked in and hung out while the room was getting ready. Our room is small but adequate. We booked a Grand Circuit Tour with sunset for 12:30pm. The Grand Circuit is the tour that hits some of the outlying Buddhist and Hindu temples that not everyone goes to. We planned to visit 4 temples and then watch the sunset from the top of one of them. The weather turned extremely hot as we left for the tour.
I never got our drivers name and he didn't speak English very well but he did a good job driving us around. We would get to a temple, he tells us we have an hour, we would explore, he would nap, then we would get back and he would drive us to the next temple. That was the routine.
The whole Angkor Wat temple complex was constructed over a few centuries but most of the building was done between 1100 and 1200 AD. As I said, we visited 4 temples and each one had its one distinct flavor.
The first temple was Preah Khan and it is one of the largest complexes in all of Angkor Wat. By virtue of being one of the first temples we saw, we loved it. It had a very horizontal structure (spread out). There were lots of doorways right in a row that made for cool photos. The carvings on some of the pieces of stone were amazing too.
Next up was Neak Pean. This temple is in the middle of a lake so we had to walk a loooooong boardwalk to get to it. It has a large square pool surrounded by 4 smaller square pools. It was awesome but a short visit overall. This is also when it started to get super crazy hot.
Third was Ta Som. Not much to write about here other than the spectacular tree (see picture at the top) that has overgrown the far Eastern gate. Some of the local sellers know this so there are people standing there bugging you as try to take a picture. They wouldn't leave Lacey alone. The picture is good though haha.
While we were at Ta Som, there were a bunch of sellers out by the road. A group was watching a woman peeling some fruit. Turns out, she was peeling away all the flesh to leave like a gelatinous core that was filled liquid. It was really weird but I bought some and ate them.
Fourth was Eastern Mebon. Not much to say about this one other than it was hot and we ate a bunch of fruit outside before going into it. It had a temple mount with 4 towers and carved elephants guarding the ascent.
Lastly, we went to Pre Rup to watch the sunset. Pre Rup is the tallest temple we saw today. When we arrived, there was still about an hour before sunset and it wasn't too busy. By the time sunset was about to start, it was genuinely crowded up there. The view was okay but some tall trees were obstructing a very good view. We left before the sunset was totally finished because we were exhausted from the heat and walking.
Before we left Pre Rup, our tuk-tuk driver showed us a piece of paper with $20 on it and was trying to tell us some information. We legit did not understand him and were kind of freaking out. We thought he was trying to scam us out of another $20 to get home (we're idiots). So the whole ride back to our hostel (about 30 mins), we were stressing and making all these dumb plans. Turns out, he was telling us he can show us more temples another day for $20. We got back and he was really nice and we are really dumb.
We rested up a bit and then got drinks and a snack from our hostel. Beer is only $0.75 and so I had a couple. Lacey had a pine colada but it tasted a little funky. Our hostel is in a perfect location because it's steps from the Night Market and Pub Street. The Night Market is very similar to other night markets around Asia. There are lots of stalls where people sell trinkets, souvenirs, and primarily clothes. There's also food stalls and massage places and stuff like that. Pub Street is the main party, bar, and restaurant street in the city. Lots of loud music and people hanging out street side.
Our journey to the Night Market had 1 main purpose: to get Lacey a foot spa using fish. Yes, you read that right. It's a famous thing in Cambodia to put your feet in a tank of water and let fish eat away the dead skin. Lacey found one that looked reputable and, after some convincing, I followed suit. It was hilarious and ticklish and very, very weird.
We got some food and more drinks at a restaurant after wandering around for a while like we always do. Then we stopped at a club for a bit just to check it out. Finally, at the end of one of the longest days of this entire trip, we came back to the hostel and went to bed. Our AC wasn't working and we didn't feel like making a big fuss at that time so we slept in extremely warm temperature.
Sorry for the long post but this was another unforgettable day in a string of them for us. I still can't quite put my finger on why I like it here so much but I really do. I don't know what's on tap for tomorrow but check back!
I never got our drivers name and he didn't speak English very well but he did a good job driving us around. We would get to a temple, he tells us we have an hour, we would explore, he would nap, then we would get back and he would drive us to the next temple. That was the routine.
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| Lacey at Preah Khan |
The whole Angkor Wat temple complex was constructed over a few centuries but most of the building was done between 1100 and 1200 AD. As I said, we visited 4 temples and each one had its one distinct flavor.
The first temple was Preah Khan and it is one of the largest complexes in all of Angkor Wat. By virtue of being one of the first temples we saw, we loved it. It had a very horizontal structure (spread out). There were lots of doorways right in a row that made for cool photos. The carvings on some of the pieces of stone were amazing too.
 |
| Neak Pean Temple |
Next up was Neak Pean. This temple is in the middle of a lake so we had to walk a loooooong boardwalk to get to it. It has a large square pool surrounded by 4 smaller square pools. It was awesome but a short visit overall. This is also when it started to get super crazy hot.
Third was Ta Som. Not much to write about here other than the spectacular tree (see picture at the top) that has overgrown the far Eastern gate. Some of the local sellers know this so there are people standing there bugging you as try to take a picture. They wouldn't leave Lacey alone. The picture is good though haha.
 |
| Weird Fruit with Weird Center |
While we were at Ta Som, there were a bunch of sellers out by the road. A group was watching a woman peeling some fruit. Turns out, she was peeling away all the flesh to leave like a gelatinous core that was filled liquid. It was really weird but I bought some and ate them.
Fourth was Eastern Mebon. Not much to say about this one other than it was hot and we ate a bunch of fruit outside before going into it. It had a temple mount with 4 towers and carved elephants guarding the ascent.
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| Me at Eastern Mebon Temple |
Lastly, we went to Pre Rup to watch the sunset. Pre Rup is the tallest temple we saw today. When we arrived, there was still about an hour before sunset and it wasn't too busy. By the time sunset was about to start, it was genuinely crowded up there. The view was okay but some tall trees were obstructing a very good view. We left before the sunset was totally finished because we were exhausted from the heat and walking.
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| Sunset at Pre Rup |
Before we left Pre Rup, our tuk-tuk driver showed us a piece of paper with $20 on it and was trying to tell us some information. We legit did not understand him and were kind of freaking out. We thought he was trying to scam us out of another $20 to get home (we're idiots). So the whole ride back to our hostel (about 30 mins), we were stressing and making all these dumb plans. Turns out, he was telling us he can show us more temples another day for $20. We got back and he was really nice and we are really dumb.
We rested up a bit and then got drinks and a snack from our hostel. Beer is only $0.75 and so I had a couple. Lacey had a pine colada but it tasted a little funky. Our hostel is in a perfect location because it's steps from the Night Market and Pub Street. The Night Market is very similar to other night markets around Asia. There are lots of stalls where people sell trinkets, souvenirs, and primarily clothes. There's also food stalls and massage places and stuff like that. Pub Street is the main party, bar, and restaurant street in the city. Lots of loud music and people hanging out street side.
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| Siem Reap Night Market |
Our journey to the Night Market had 1 main purpose: to get Lacey a foot spa using fish. Yes, you read that right. It's a famous thing in Cambodia to put your feet in a tank of water and let fish eat away the dead skin. Lacey found one that looked reputable and, after some convincing, I followed suit. It was hilarious and ticklish and very, very weird.
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| Getting Our Feet Cleaned By Fish |
We got some food and more drinks at a restaurant after wandering around for a while like we always do. Then we stopped at a club for a bit just to check it out. Finally, at the end of one of the longest days of this entire trip, we came back to the hostel and went to bed. Our AC wasn't working and we didn't feel like making a big fuss at that time so we slept in extremely warm temperature.
Sorry for the long post but this was another unforgettable day in a string of them for us. I still can't quite put my finger on why I like it here so much but I really do. I don't know what's on tap for tomorrow but check back!
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