This country is so beautiful. When even the 6 hour ride North from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap on a non-air-conditioned dirty cramped bus can be enjoyable if you spend the whole time staring out the window. I think the most apt word would be 'enchanting.' The landscape, the people, the way of life. Enchanting.
We looked on in awe at the sprawled rural communities with their faded gray huts of twig, bamboo, and palm fronds nestled high on stilts as this rainy season turns the countryside into wetlands. Their front yards are huge ponds that don't look deep until you catch someone wading in up to their necks to bathe. Their backyards are rice paddies and beyond that is endless stretches of jungle. It's also not been uncommon to see skinny all-white cows laying about on the elevated walkways that connect the properties.
There's actually a lot to do here in Siem Reap, but it's mostly used as the gateway for the [UNESCO] World Heritage Site and Wonder of the World: Angkor Wat. We bought a 3 day pass which is a good thing because there is soooOOOOO much to see! For those that don't know, Angkor is a massive (really massive) area filled with old (really old) temples. Angkor was once the capital city of Cambodia (800-1100AD) back when all kings' seemed to do was built giant things.
The religion of the day (late 1100's) was Hinduism and King Sarvayarman II (or according to Brock: King Sorrywhatshisname Number 2) erected some spectacular monuments, most notably Angkor Wat ('wat' meaning temple). Then there was some fighting, the kingdom changed hands yada yada and the new religion became Buddhism. The new king, Jayarvarman VII (or Jobovurasomething Numero Seven) built a few hundred more monuments and now some 800 years later we have heaps upon heaps of super large ruis to look at!
They really are quite astonishing to see and it's fun because they actually let us all walk up in 'em and explore. There is a lot of restoration going on because, hey, they're old, and the Thai's destroyed a lot of them as well.
We are seeing it all via our delightful tuk tuk driver, Bunta, who, like most drivers, makes deals with hotels to deliver guests for free in order to solicit their services during the length of our stays. He speaks (what I like to call) achievable English and has acted us our unofficial guide. Unofficial because guides are supposed to be trained and certified, thereby allowing them to charge $25USD a day. So Bunton guides us unofficially and we unofficially tip him a lot more than we would if he was just our driver.
[sidebar: We've noticed things like that in Thailand as well. For instance, when we went on our elephant trek they didn't really give us the chance to take pictures of eachother because they take one and try to sell it to you for 500 Baht (about $15!! One photo, yeah right). Once we are away from the main centre though, the elephant guide said, "if you pass me your camera I'll take as many pictures as you want for 50 Baht, just don't tell them." So the moral of the story is that even in South East Asia people will take any opportunity to screw The Man.]
I love riding in tuk tuks as it offers unobstructed views on all sides of the scenery to enjoy, even if it's just fat pregnant monkeys on the side of the road for us to laugh at. The breeze is wonderful as well.I particularly enjoyed stopping for gas and a 7 year old girl waddled out with a funnel and a 2 litre bottle of Johnny Walker Red now containing gasoline, she then filled us up! That's nothing compared to when we stayed in Phangan and the manager's 8 year old son was the resident bar keep. It's good to see kids expertly popping the tops of beers, keeps 'em honest.
On our 2nd day we had a big hike up a mountain, well not big, 1.5 kms, but it's bloody hot so I double the distance in my head. So hot that we sweat like the proverbial whore. Though, to be honest, I'm not so wrung out by the sweating as the urination station situation is a bit questionable so it's more convenient to expell the ocean's amount of water we drink via perspiration. Sometimes peeing in S.E. Asia is a traumatic ordeal.
The climb itself was enjoyable because we're literally walking through jungle and all the trees and greenery are so picturesque that I almost find myself expecting a pack of velociraptors to jump out of a clearing. On a completely unrelated note, I don't believe there is any substance to the claim that television has altered my generation's perception of reality.
Alas, no dino attacks. Just harrassed by butterflies.
It's important to stay on marked trails here because there is an estimated 4-6 million landmines scattered throughout Cambodia. It's not recommended (reccommended?) to Robert Frost it. I gladly stick to the road most well beaten down thank you very much!
Other than the explosive countryside, I am very much in love with Cambodia! Especially all its mind-blowing eccentricities. If, in Canada, a parent had even one helmet-less child on their lap while driving a motorbike, they would probably never see their kid again! Here it's a family of 6 on a scooter, no biggie. I saw 3 women on a bike and the driver was a super old little granny with a baby on her lap and an industrial sized package of toilet paper tucked under her arm.. while driving! Haha and when she spotted my open-mouthed and agape she just smiled with a look that said, "this is how we do."
They do love Canadians though, always incredibly sweet to us and excited to learn about our country. So I think it's important to reciprocate their kindness considering most people here will never get the chance to leave and travel. We (tourists in general) are the only Canada they'll know, so we represent!
Even when they get overly aggressive with their sales tactics. About 15 times a day we have to run a gauntlet of child peddlers. I would love to be able to help all of them, but it's impossible, we get approached by hundreds of people every day trying to sell us their junk.
I've already bought a few (what I've agreed to call) silk scarves as they are very pretty, soft, cheap, and yes, what all you ladies are going to get as gifts.
Whew, I'm monopolizing the computer so I'll write in a few days. We're heading to Kratie (Kratchay) tomorrow morning for a few days, then a few days in Ban Lung, then North to the Laos border!!
Take care
