Ancient Cambodia

January 2,

The airport transportation bus took us passengers to the wrong plane to start out with. Haha, I almost flew to Indonesia! Dang. Everyone un-boarded the plane and we took off for Siem Reap, Cambodia. This time our tour guide was Russ’s favorite; he even brought him a guitar. Our quip for Seng Hak the guide is ‘Seng Hak, you rock!’ I know, brilliant, but his laugh when we say it is priceless. He is a funny well educated Cambodian. After we settled into our hotel we toured Angkor Thom. It is the ancient city capital. The country is known for their Angkor Wat ruins; it’s on the currency and depicted everywhere you go. All the hotels and stores are named ‘Angkor’ something, translated ‘city.’ Cambodia is actually very tourist friendly in Siem Reap, over 2 million visitors in the year of 2007. Cambodia is French influenced, unlike Thailand being very British influenced like the driving situation etc. Everything is translated in Khmer (Cambodian language) and English. In Thailand they only had both languages if they needed to, trying to preserve the Thai culture. 4,000 riel equals $1, though Cambodians actually prefer the USD and accept it just about everywhere. Some Cambodians are even payed with USD.
Angkor Thom was incredible, quite a sight! It was amazing that visitors were allowed to walk all over the ruins. The ruins are made out of nothing but sandstone, no binding material—just rocks sitting on rocks. The engravings were very intricate. The weather has been surprisingly perfect, not hot as expected. I drank fresh coconut juice out of a coconut— quite a delectable treat! Angkor Watt was Hindu influenced meaning symmetry was one of the biggest concerns. This is the main temple of Cambodia. It has a huge moat around it, only 2 meters deep for times of war. This one was made and dedicated to a king. They are in two different spots in the city. PS there are wild dogs that run around everywhere. I miss my Chew dog! :-/
Thailand didn’t have too many people that would try and sell you merchandise. Cambodia being an even more poor country had plenty of beggars around these tourist spots. As soon as I got out of the van I was bombarded with little kids saying ‘madam, madam….’ In some areas it was annoying, they would try and trick you by saying a book was only $1 and then you’d go to look at it and they’d say $10 madam. Or once in Thailand this little girl said a flower was free after I refused it several times, then I took it and she said: $10 baht, $10 baht! Sneaky little guys, they are pro. Even if you say no they’ll still follow you around. In some area’s it was just sad, it was their way of making a living. If you buy one thing, be prepared to be flooded with all the other kids selling something…
After seeing Angkor Wat I ate my first Khmer cuisine. Everywhere we go the food is pretty much always ordered for the group ahead of time, we get to try a lot of different foods. The Khmer’s main diet consists of fresh water fish, and rice dishes, lots of ginger is used in Khmer and Thai food. Talk to you later!