Email to Friends: Susdaai from Siem Reap!‏

I really like Cambodia! The people are friendly and nice and there is lots of exploring to be had. My parents hooked me up with an amazing hotel in Siem Reap and it has been sooo nice to have a comfortable bed, a pool to relax in and cool off from the heat, and super hot showers and baths. It is amazing how the red SE Asia dirt sticks to you. It took a bit to adjust from the small village in Lao with a population of probably less than number of employees at this hotel and riding in a bus with a chicken in a burlap sack at my feet to luxury accommodations with business travelers (including a group from Microsoft). But it provided a much needed break from living out of my backpack for the last month! And while I didn't get my clothes professionally laundered, the hot water got them much cleaner than they were, and I got to do bathtub laundry instead of sink laundry... Movin' on up!!!

The first day, I purchased a three day pass for the temples. Tried to visit Angkor Wat at around 9:30am and it was horrible. Tour bus after tour bus of mainly Japanese and Chinese tourists. You could barely even take pictures as they shove you out of the way and get in every shot you are trying to take. So I left and found a much quieter temple with a climb up and nice view and called it a day.

The next day, I got up a little before 5am and found a tuktuk driver to take me to Angkor Thom. Most groups go to Angkor Wat at sunrise, so being the only person climbing around these temples was breathtaking. It is where several shots in Tomb Raider were apparently filmed. Lots of separate structures within the walls, my favorites being one with huge faces made of crumbling rock, another with long mazes of dark hallways and high walls with murals. Spent hours running around alone before the first tour groups showed up.

Decided to walk and just stop whenever I found a temple. Each was a little different, made in different times and by different rulers. After walking several kilometers, some Australian guys that had hired a tuktuk insisted I hitch a ride with them, so went to a place called Ta Prohm. Oh, and that Google maps camera car happened to be over here right now so I may show up walking on multiple dirt roads in Siem Reap. These temples were also neat, as they are being engulfed by huge trees. They are also doing restoration work on some, which was interesting to watch. Took a lunch break for some traditional Khmer coconut curry soup with fish, vegetables, pineapple and a side of rice. It was a delicious roadside lunch! Walked further on the loop of temples and finally felt templed-out for the day, so hired a guy with a motorcycle to take me back to my hotel.

Later that night, I set off for town to hit the night market and food stalls, but got side-tracked as usual. My tuktuk driver from the morning was hanging out with a bunch of other drivers in a parking lot on the way to town, enjoying some Angkor beer and chicken skewers with papaya salad. They invited me to join them and treated me to dinner and a few beers. Afterward, they were heading to a disco club and invited me along. I played it safe and let people I had met in the hotel know who I was going with first and they gladly have their tuktuk number. It was definitely an experience. Only locals (mainly men and a random kid brought with his mom and dad) are there. It is dark with lots of fog machines, music, and light shows. Oh, and a line of women "paid for their company" all stand up and greet you when you enter. But everyone was really nice (even the women that were chosen as company), the beer was cheap (I ordered a draught beer and they bring a whole, big dispenser for the table for $6), and everyone took good care of me and made sure I felt safe and was okay.

The next morning, I slept in until 8, a luxury for me. Had breakfast at the delicious hotel buffet (they have cheese... and real cheese is almost impossible to get in SE Asia due to refrigeration issues). Decided to run errands and wander around, so walked to town and explored, booked my boat ticket, and found and signed up for the cooking class someone had recommended. Around lunchtime, I decided to try Angkor Wat again. The tuktuk drivers gave me a tip to go during lunch, as many tour groups head back during lunch. Found a motorcycle driver who said he could drive me, wait for as long as I wanted to stay, and drive me back to my hotel for $5. I had a much better time... a fraction of the people and got to explore for hours. Really impressive piece of architecture and very different from the previous temples visited. Took an afternoon swim to cool off during the afternoon rain and tried to go to see a local boxing match at the arena, but they are apparently only on Monday and Wednesdays.

Today, I took another cooking class to compare the spices and flavors used to Laos. We each got to choose one appetizer and one main dish, with a shared dessert. I chose spicy shrimp salad and my favorite traditional dish of samlor kteas (the spelling varies since their alphabet, like every country I have visited, is different) which is a spicy coconut milk/vegetables/pineapple and meat or fish soup I have been eating every day. Went to market to pick our ingredients and had lots of fun. Soaked in the last of the sun at my nice pool (trying to get rid of my flip flop and sarong tan lines from staying covered around locals everywhere else). Meeting my parents' sweet friend who I met the first day who is a student and driver for dinner and drinks after wandering the night market and them promise the hotel bartender and staff I would come have one last beer to say goodbye before catching my 6:30am ride to the 7:30am boat to Battambang.

Cambodia is wonderful, but also has a very sad side. People in Laos worked hard but were very poor, but Cambodia seems even worse (especially in the low season). As always when traveling, I am trying to spread my money around as best I can and not haggling too much, since they can use the few extra dollars way more than I can. There are also many orphans here and people with missing limbs and deformities from land mines that are trying to make an honest living. The men injured by landmines playing beautiful music outside the temples for money make me cry. I better harden up before going to see the Killing Fields outside of Phnom Penh.

Hope you are well. I will find a guesthouse with wifi in Battambang, so I can be reached if needed.

Love,
Betsy