monday, august 7, 2006

the best way to get from phnom penh to siem riep (the town where you stay to explore the temples of angkor wat) was by speedboat, so we had a really, really, early start in order to catch the speedboat by 8pm. once we got there, we found the ride pretty smooth...able to sleep no problem. the villages on the mekong river were just amazing, its like nothing has altered them in the past 300 years or so.

this was especially evident when we started slowing down towards the dock. whole villages were on stilt houses or boats with roofs constructed on them. all the children waved at the passing boat, some while swimming in the river. they have to literally swim to their friends house...all the huts were on water.

when we pulled up to dock somebody from the hotel had a sign with our names on it...convenient. what wasnt so convenient was the mode of transportation to the hotel...a moto. the tuk tuk had been ok, but the moto was nothing other than me on the back of one motorcycle and amanda on the back of another. no helmets, protection, nothing...just balance yourself and hold on. it didnt help that the road was terrible. all dirt, mud, full of potholes and skidmarks. when we finally arrived at the hotel after a 30 minute ride we were glad to still be standing, sore bottoms not withstanding.

the hotel was nicer than we expected...very close to the central market and restaurant area of siem riep, clean, and modern. but the moto drivers stuck to us like glue...they basically ordered us to go for lunch and then meet them back at the hotel at 4pm in order to see angkor wat at sunset. amanda and i arent good at saying no, so we said ok, went up to shower and then explore siem riep.

what a great town! cheap markets, tons of international restaurants, massage parlors, definately a boom town generated from tourism but a good one. we had great mexican for lunch, did some shopping, and then went back to meet the drivers to finally see the long awaited angkor wat.

what a place! the biggest religious site in the whole world and its just mindblowing. it must have taken hundreds of years and millions of people to build the place...its that big. the size of the moat alone boggles the mind, not to mention the outer walls, gates, staircases, and wats (triangular temple tops). we took as many pictures as we could as we walked further towards the center, along with a bunch of other tourists. you dont notice them, though...this place could handle 20 times more tourists and still be great.

the stairs you walk up to the main part are stairs only in the vague sense of the word...its more like climbing because theyre so steep. still, we climbed to the top and took more pictures. hard to describe how it looks, but i urge you to do an internet search on angkor and see some pictures if i cant figure out how to post them on this site.

after sunset, we went back into town to get a nice dinner and introduction to sweet and mild cambodian coconut curry. after that we got an hour full body massage that was great...id never had one before and now i dont wanna go without. they walk on your back and everything, the whole deal. after that we went to a bar for some beers. the local beer, conveniently named angkor, is quite good. this whole night was dirt cheap too. its easy to live like a king or queen in cambodia.

2 more days in this place...what could be better?