Cambodia and Angkor Wat
Cambodia was beyond amazing! For such a small country, it held so many great things. The overall atmosphere of Cambodia made every day good, no matter what. Streets were filled with little Tuk-tuks, tiny shops, fruit stands and people just going about their day. Locals would smile and were always helpful.
This is a funny story about locals being helpful. One day, as the bus arrived, there was supposed to be someone there ready to pick us up. My family and I had a pretty good load, considering the fact that we were traveling for two months. Assuming that there was a car outside, we picked up our bags and got ready to go. Our “bags” consisting of two 50 pound pieces of luggage, one 30 pound piece, three 10 pound backpacks, a Nikon camera, and a couple small extra bags. That was quite the load, so we assumed that the hotel sent a car. Nope. Definitely NOT a car. They sent a rickshaw. A rickshaw is a tiny open-air cart on the back of a motorcycle. That’s all we got…a rickshaw.
Phnom Penh was the first city. Everything worked out perfectly. Well, there was this one thing…the room was five floors up the hotel – no elevators or escalators. Remember all those bags? Yeah, that’s right. We had to haul everything up five flights of stairs! Luckily, the locals were there to help again. Two guys helped with the haul. Then, we slowly realized that every time we needed to get to the room, we had to CLIMB. But on the bright side, the hotel had a beautiful view of the Royal Palace and the room was nice and clean.
One of the highlights of Phnom Penh was a traditional dance show. Locals dressed in ornate costumes told an ancient story of Cambodia. Going inside the Royal Palace was also pretty awesome. The building were absolutely stunning. They were plated with gold and each structure had a unique and extremely ornate design. Each plant was blooming and filled the complex with vibrant colors.
Siem Reap was also a great city. There was only one problem here – the first Air B&B. The renter neglected to tell us that there was no running water. Maybe there was a shortage in the city? Nope. Just his house. So, we had to move to another hotel that was a few miles away. Other than this small hiccup, everything else went well.
If you have ever heard of it, Siem Reap, Cambodia, is home to the temple of Angkor Wat. This is a gorgeous ancient complex outside of the city. Since we had a pass for multiple days, we hired a rickshaw (NO BAGS this time) to drive around this humongous place. Angkor Wat, itself, was not the only temple here. In fact, there were a ton of them! There were probably around twenty different temples across the whole area. Among this BIG group of ruins, one of them was where the movie Indiana Jones was filmed. This particular temple had vines growing everywhere, stones fallen from years of erosion, and other jungle-like aspects to it. Each temple was different. Not a single one of them was exactly the same as the one before. Angkor Wat had a distinct three-topped roof, the Indiana Jones temple had vines and several trees, one temple was even underwater!
Luckily, we had extra time one evening to watch the sun go down over Angkor Wat. This was an absolutely gorgeous scene. Would’ve been even better had I not had to sit in the blazing sun for three hours, but it was still great. Seriously, every second was worth it.
There was one day in Siem Reap that we had nothing to do. Well, my family and I can always find some way to occupy ourselves. We went swimming at the new hotel’s pool, walked all the way to across town to get me a Starbucks (what can I say, I love my coffee), and we went to see a show called “Same, same but Different”. This was about tourists in Cambodia, so we found it pretty amusing. Actors portraying themselves as tourists had on masks and the Cambodians tried to communicate and show to tourists how they live. At one point, the tourists were trying to stay dry and cover themselves up from the rain and the Cambodians were dancing and singing in the rain. This is because the Cambodians appreciate the rain that helps their crops thrive.
All in all, Cambodia was great. There were lots of unique and fun experiences along the way. One thing I will miss about Cambodia is the locals. They were all so sweet and helpful! I would definitely recommend visiting here at some point. Trust me, it is worth it!
