Part 3: Siem Reap

The third stop on my tour of southeast Asia was Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Siem Reap was different from Phnom Penh in a number of ways.

First it was much smaller. It was also much more tourist oriented, which is to be expected when your the main gateway to the Angkor Archeological Park. Hundreds if not thousands of tourists must descend on Siem Reap each week in order to catch a glimpse of these nearly 1000 year old marvels.

My first day in Siem Reap began by taking the boat from Phnom Penh. It took about 5 hours and was comfortable enough but after two days of intense heat and little sleap I wasn't feeling the best. So I checked in, took a shower and had a nap before heading out for a little stroll in the evening.

My second day took me out to the Angkor Archeological Park. The first stop and perhaps the most impressive was Angkor Wat. Simply amazing. Blazing heat and 5 temples took their toll. My third day was spent in bed ill. Thankfully I had an AC room by that point. What a difference that makes.

The third day was spent taking in another 5 temple complexes. All were much smaller than the Angkor Wat complex and so it made for a nice day.

The evenings in Siem Reap seem to revolve around Pub Street. Two blocks of restaurants which are all generally packed with tourists. There are massage shops everywhere and a couple of nice markets selling everything from silver to silk.

There were three things that made my stay in Siem Reap better than Phnom Penh. First was the guesthouse where I stayed. Nice, clean rooms with hot water and AC are a God send especially after a long day in the heat. The owner was a nice guy willing to help with anything. Second were the attractions. Exploring the Angkor complexes was harder physically given the number and heat, but they were much less draining than the Killing Fields and Tuol Sleng Prison. Third was a nice tuk-tuk driver that was knowledgeable and very helpful. He made exploring the park quite easy.

Never having made a trip like this before I'm learning a bit about myself as a traveler. One of the main things I've learned is that I a clean private room with AC, a TV and hot water. There are cheaper options about (one person told me about a place for $1 a night) but the extra cost is worth it for me. Not that $10 to $15 a night is expensive.

Cambodia as a whole was interesting. Meeting people who seemingly didn't know what the Killing Fields were blew my mind. I would have thought that the people there would be resentful of the west for part we played in helping to subject them to genocide. Perhaps there is some of that lingering in the background; somewhere. But in general the people seem to be too busy living their lives to get caught up in the recriminations of the past.

Next: part 4 - Luang Prabang