During our last days in Phnom Penh it becomes clear to us that we really do need to go to Siem Reap to see the temples of Angkor. We had been hesitant to make the trip because of the high admission prices and tourist traffic. Again and again, other travelers we talk with lament over our neglect to go to Angkor. Finally, our desperation to leave the city and the availability of transport send us on our way to Siem Reap.
We check into a 'dorm room' at the Garden Village guesthouse which is a mattress on a covered deck with a mosquito net hung over it. We link up with a girl we rode into town with and arrange for a Tuk Tuk to pick us up at the guesthouse at 5am for a full day of temple touring. We buy two UFC's (canned coffee with milk) and PB&J supplies and head to bed. It turns out that our accommodation is not too bad and the price is right, $1 per person.
Our sight-filled day begins at Angkor Wat about 20 mins before sunrise. Its difficult to describe the experience entering the temple in the pitch black, flanked by hundreds or other flashlight bearing tourists. Serene, tranquil and creepy all at the same time. We choose our viewing spot and drink our UFCs as day slowly wakes. Half an hour into the morning and we've decided it was worth the admission price. We spend nearly 4 hours at Angkor Wat alone before visiting 5 other temple/religious monuments (only a small fraction of the sights to visit in Angkor). They are all uniquely awesome...and exhausting. We bought a useful book about the temples from a kid at Angkor and were happy to have some facts about the different sites. At 4pm we arrive back at the guesthouse and we are spent. It was well worth the visit.
Today we relaxed and chose our next destination. Now feeling like we've seen enough of Cambodia for now we will return to Thailand and head for a very small town called Surin. The path from Siem Reap to Surin is not well worn by tourists and there are no busses going there. We will take a shared taxi to the border crossing O'Smach and arrange transport to the town from there. It could be a very interesting journey.
