I tried this fruit (about 25 cents). It tasted just like an orange hard persimmon! What a surprise. There are green and purple varieties of this fruit for sale all over Siem Reap. I'm not sure what it is, but it's tasty.
I revisited Preah Khan in the evening via tuk-tuk. On the prior day, I got there right at closing time, so this time I made sure I was early.
On the third day, I biked to the Terrace of Elephant and the Leper King, better visualized in the morning light (and more bearable too!). This Terrace allowed the Devaraja to review processions before him on the large parade ground.
Here is a close-up of a god, which, as with most cultures, has facial similarities with their own people.
Preah Khan was another city, just north of Angkor Thom. It also had the gods and demons lining the bridge crossing the moat. Here is a close-up look at one of the demons.
This was labelled as a "one-star" attraction in the Angkor Guide, indicating, little archeological or artistic interest, so I was quite surprised to find it as enjoyable as Ta Prohm, without the crowds. Like Ta Prohm, they've filled some movies here too.
All over SE Asia, people sell gasoline out of bottles. Interestingly, even in Cambodia they do this at the gas station. Those are empty bottles of Johnnie Walker Red Label filled with petrol.
Here is a perfect example of how lush Siem Reap can be.
This is looking a lot like the rest of Cambodia, but I'm not sure why. Siem Reap from gross appearance looks like it has the best roads and facilities in all of Cambodia from the hordes of tourists that visit. The roads are great and the gardens lush. For some reason, the "downtown" area looks like the rest of Cambodia, but the streets have expensive boutiques, art galleries, and bars. Wierd.
The old market in Siem Reap marks "downtown". The dark aisles are cramped and stuffy, smelling of fish paste. The floor is wet with the run off from the fish and meats department. Yum!
It looks like there's no one around, but there must have been about 25 tourists beside be waiting to take this photograph.
This is the most famous of temples that was mostly unrestored and left to be devoured by the jungle. There has been reinforcement to keep present arches from crumbling, but it gives a great idea on what Angkor must have looked like back in 1860.
This massive pyramid suffered greatly from poor engineering. For years, French archeologists were in the process of anastylosis, that is, the rebuilding of this structure using the methods the original builders had used. Thousands of stone blocks were numbered and placed in organized stacks and rows in the surrounding jungle. In 1975, these archeologists fled Pol Pot's bloody tyrrany, and when they returned, they discovered that all their records had been lost. So now they have a bunch of numbered blocks in separate areas of the forest without a clue as to where they go. Awwwwwesome, I'd say.
On the western side, there is an incomplete massive reclining Buddha. It just looks like a slightly organized pile of blocks.
The gate entering the Royal City. Everything is under the watchful eye of the omnipresent king.
Angkor Thom, is the Royal City just north of Angkor Wat. It is surrounded by a large wall and moat (now filled in). The bridges crossing the moat show demons on one side and gods on the other side, pulling on a serpent's tail.
There are bas-reliefs that line the walls surrounding the central courtyard at Angkor Wat.
Ben told me there were a lot of Koreans here, but I wasn't prepared for this. I actually think there maybe more Koreans tour groups in Siem Reap than any other nationality. I'm not sure what the Cambodian-Korean travel agencies devised, but it's a shattering success.
This is the one staircase that has a metal bar to hold on to. That's why most people descend this way.
You can actually hike up steep (and sloping) stairs, risking life and limb, for a good view of the Angkor Wat area.
Once described as "flaming pineapples", these towers are a national emblem of Cambodia and figure proudly on their flag.
Loads of Cambodians tend to the lawns at Angkor with machetes. It's tiring work, leaving them quite knackered by midday.
Actually, many of the temples started off as Hindu monuments, but as with the rest of the region, Hindu was replaced by Buddhism, and there was re-modelling that took place (knock off a Hindu statue and replace it with a Buddha). Buddhism co-mingled with Hinduism, both of which came from Brahminism, and their beliefs are often entwined in these cultures.
A one-day pass costs $20, but a three-day pass is $40. I got a 3-day pass, so I could enjoy the temples at my leisure.
Angkor Wat is actually a funerary temple, facing the setting sun. The Angkor kingdom was ruled by "God-kings", so in that regard, very much like the States. The "Devarajas" were incarnations of a diety, and when they died, passed on to become the deities. Some say this megalomania contributed to the demise of the Angkor kingdom, as it could not support the wars fought and temples that were constantly being built.
So what to do in Siem Reap? Visit the Angkor ruins just north of the city!
Angkor was a great Khmer kingdom that built massive stone religious temples in the 10th through the 13th centuries. The most famous of all ruins is Angkor Wat, but there are loads of other ruins there too.
The Angkor ruins were "re-discovered" by the French late in the 19th century in a state of ruin. The jungle had encroached on many of the structures, and actually, poor knowledge of how to built with stone, lead to the early collapse of many of the sites (the Khmer used the stone as if it were wood). For the definitive guide to Angkor check here:
www.theangkorguide.com/
Sunrise Guesthouse, an excellent place in Siem Reap. Four dollars got me a double bed, fan, with bathroom (western toilet). No hot water, but I didn't need it. They had bicycle rentals for $1.50/day and sold me a 6-pack of water for 2500 rial (4100 rial = 1 USD).
It turns out this older man spoke Mandarin, so we got along fine.
Arun restaurant has some of the best value in town. Look at that plate of spring rolls for $1.30! Siem Reap is full of tourists and acommodation to meet any budget. The quality of food is much better than I found in Phnom Penh.
Gambling is illegal in Thailand, but not so in Cambodia. A healthy casino industry thrives in Poipet on weekenders from Bangkok. Looks like a mini-Biloxi.
There are cheap tourist buses that run from Khao San Road to Siem Reap for as low as 250 BHT, but I chose to go to the city bus station and take a non-touristy bus to the border. For 207 BHT, I was on an air-conditioned first-class Thai bus to Aranya Prathet at 0730 and arrived at the border at 1130. I had beat the tourist buses (and crowds) and was able to get my Cambodian visa on arrival for $20, paying no one else for commission. On the Cambodian side, I bought a $10 ticket on a tourist bus (at least it was air-conditioned) for a bumpy 4.5 hour ride to Siem Reap.
The tourist bus scam is explained here:
www.talesofasia.com/cambodia-overland-bkksr.htm
Basically, the buses make money off of commission to rest stops and guesthouses and from "helping you" apply for your visa. You leave late, stop many times, and arrive at night in Siem Reap when it is too dark and you are too tired to find your own accommodation.
A return visit to the Middle Eastern area on Soi 3 off Sukhumvit. I caught up with Emily's parents on their last night in Thailand.
Big screens televisions were set up at various points so all could hear the beleaguered PM speak. Apparently he is a billionaire and has pushed numerous government contracts toward his various companies and investments, yet he remains quite popular in Thailand. He dissolved the parliament last week amid corruption charges, and hopes being reelected next month (as he most likely will as the opposition parties are boycotting the election) will make the corruption charges irrelevant.
I took an overnight bus from Chiang Mai to Khao San Road. I had only slept a couple hours before arriving at 0630. All the places were full, but after waiting around a few hours, I got a place in an back alley.
It is crowded this weekend near Khao San Road as a pro-Thaksin rally was held all day. Traffic stopped for the latter part of the day when Prime Minister Thaksin spoke. Tomorrow the anti-Thaksin rally will be held in the same place. It is almost a festive mood as people are waving flags and street vendors are out in force. There is also a strong police presence, but things remain quite calm.
Tomorrow I will head to Siem Reap on the government bus to avoid the tourist bus scam between Khao San Road and Siem Reap.
My friend Alex brought me to this place year for "the old one-two" which was a pizza and a plate of pasta. Loved it!
I joined Emily's parents' tour for their final meal together in Chiang Mai. We were brought to a 89 BHT hot pot place. I think we were the only ones who enjoyed the meal as the rest of them were sort of confused with the whole DIY cooking process.
These wonderful 'dogs are only 10 BHT each. They are filled with meat and glass noodles and do not taste the same anywhere else.
At the roti place across from the mosque, you can get these great snacks -- only 2 BHT each!
The guys at Koon's or "K bar". It was great coming back to this place and being immediately greeted with complete shock. This may be the best bar in the world.
A big crowd showed up for the second weekend of live music at Aiya's.
A couple dishes, a couple plates of rice, soup, cucumber salad...a good value.
The noodle and wonton soup place on the left and the Muslim food stall on the right. I loved eating here last year.
The portions were huge and everything was only 20 BHT. You just needed to know what you wanted because they didn't have a menu, and you had to order in Thai.
