Day 370- 371- Angkor What?

When we arose to catch a seven o clock bus to Siem Reap the next morning the topic of everyone’s lips was the fight that happened the night before. We heard rumours that Adam(Angry Guy) was going to be booted out of the group without a refund but none of us were 100% sure what would happen until we talked to the tour guide, who was nowhere to be seen! It was a bit like being in Big Brother! We had to call her room to get her up! Luckily we didn’t miss our bus and we were on our way to Siem Reap which would take 7-8 hours including stops. Along the way our tour guide tried to resolve the situation that occurred the night before. Apparently Adam’s girlfriend would be able to return to the group if she wanted to but Adam wasn’t being allowed back on the tour under any circumstances.

Siem Reap has a population of about 750,000 and is the gate way to see the magnificent temples of Angkor , one of the wonders of the world. It has become an even more popular tourist destination since Tomb Raider and the most recent Indiana Jones movie have been filmed here. The name “Siem Reap” actually means “Thai’s defeated” in reflection of the various times the ownership over Angkor fell to the Thai kingdoms and was subsequently taken by the Khmer Kingdom .

The first stop of the journey was used to sort out our visas for Cambodia , we filled out all the necessary forms and were on our way over the border. While crossing from Thailand to Cambodia I was surrounded by a group of kids trying to take my football off me. They wanted it so much they followed me for 3 or 4 minutes and used all their energy to jump and smack the ball out of my hand. Unfortunately for them there was no way I was letting go! With everyone over the border with no problems so we boarded another bus to take us the rest of the way to Siem Reap. We passed through a lot of flooded little towns and saw a lot of locals bathing and fishing in the flooded water! Along the was we stopped off at a little shop where you had to buy something to use the bathroom. I did and used my first ever traditional South-East Asian bathroom. The room consisted of a hole and a bucket of water and a beaker in it for flushing. It was a unique experience and one which we’ll no doubt have to do many times along this trip.

When we made it to Siem Reap we noticed the roads were flooded here too but it didn’t look too serious. After checking in to our hotel and getting changed we headed out for a traditional Cambodian cook–it-yourself BBQ. We all took Tuk-Tuks to the restaurant and discovered that the flooding was a lot worse than we thought! Conor decided to wear jeans and shoes out and he soon regretted it! After initially trying to avoid the flooding he eventually gave up and ploughed straight into the water. The locals didn’t know what to think! Inside the restaurant we ordered a combination of the usual beef and chicken along with crazier choices of snake, crocodile, frog’s legs, squid and ostrich! We were a little apprehensive but it turned out to be a very nice meal. After a few drinks in a pub called Angkor What? we headed back to the hotel as we had an early start in the morning to catch the sunrise at the famous Angkor Wat temple!

On the way home everyone in the Tuk-Tuks got stuck at a particular junction and had to either switch Tuk-Tuks or help push it out of the pothole.

Half asleep we boarded the bus that would take us to the temples of Angkor . Our guide was very informative and enthusiastic as he informed us of the history of the temples, even at half 4 in the morning!
It costs $20 for a one day pass which would get us into any temple that we wanted for that day.

The main temples of Angkor were built between 802 and 1432. Angkor Wat is easily the most popular and well-known of all the temples of Angkor . This was our first stop of the morning and it was hard to be impressed on our arrival, because it was pitch-dark. We made our way up the steps and over what looked like a bridge to the entrance of the temple. As the minutes went by we could begin to see the temple more clearly. It was an awesome sight. It was very cloudy so we didn’t get an unbelievable sunrise but it was awesome none the less. After sunrise we spent the next hour and a half exploring the temple and learning about all the carvings on the walls. We went up and down staircase after staircase and into every nook and cranny. It’s in terrific condition for a temple that was built in 1150! It is an incredible place, hard to put into words amazing it is. It really does have to be seen to be believed!

After Angkor Wat we got to see all the various other temples including Angkor Thom and the jungle ravaged Ta Phrom where Tomb Raider was filmed! After 11 hours of temple exploring and climbing we were all shattered so we headed back to the hotel for a quick sleep before dinner. But when I woke up after an hour sleep I was even more tired!

Tonight, we headed for a traditional Cambodian restaurant where there was a dance show throughout the dinner. We were served a dish called Amok, a beef/fish dish and it was delicious. Afterwards we played some pool and discussed the day over a few beers before making our way through the flooded streets to the hotel to watch the United match!

The day was easily a 10/10! The Angkor Temples are probably the best thing we have seen so far on our travels!

Mike