Note: I wrote this blog post a few days ago while we were still in Siem Reap visiting some of the temples in Angkor Wat. I often will write some while Charles is painting, it allows him to produce art work that documents our travels and me to absorb what's around me and reflect on our travels.
Today is our second day in Angkor Wat. The temples are beautiful, the people are so happy and friendly, and the food is delicious - we really like Cambodia. Sitting in the jungle surrounded by ancient temples is pretty incredible. This place in many ways reminds me of Petra, I guess in that they are both amazing wonders of architecture built so long ago, but still withstanding the tests of time and in this case jungle.
When we were deciding on how to get to Siem Reap we debated whether to take a bus, to fly (what almost everyone recommended to us), or to take private cars/taxis. Since we have had good luck with private cars and taxis, we decided to go that route, it was cheaper than the plane (by a lot) but meant we wouldn't have to wait on a bus once we got to the Cambodia border. The ride to the border of Thailand was fast and easy. We obtained our visas and filled out our Cambodian entry card in a restaurant before we were taken to the Thailand departure terminal. That is where we found an extremely long line. It was only once we were in this line that Charles and I wondered whether the visas sold to us at the restaurant for a total of $84 were actually legitimate, guess we were going to find out. The guide who was escorting us through the border led us half way up the line to a group wearing stickers similar to ours, he said "you are with this group," and he walked away. We tried to smile and not make anyone angry as we seemingly cut in front of a couple hundred people. Then came the waiting in the hot humid 90 degree Thailand sun. It was so hot, and since we had no idea the wait would be like this, we had no water. We went from one line to another line lugging our backpacks and getting stamped out of one country and into another. The entire process took about 3 hours, which must be why most people pay the extra money to fly.
We finally arrived in Siem Reap after another 2.5 hours in the car, and we spent the evening enjoying our first Khmer dinner and cheap $0.75 beer.
I have been looking forward to visiting Angkor Wat our entire trip. I had heard from so many people that it was such a special and beautiful place. All of those things I read and heard do not do this place justice. To see such magnificent architecture tucked into the jungle and surrounded by villages where people still live without electricity is truly special.
The people here, especially the children, make me smile. The stories of their past make me want to cry, and yet they seem so happy, I can only smile in return. Yesterday two Cambodian girls, who were touring the temples with their family, followed me through the temple of Banteay Srei asking me questions in English. Eventually they tried to ask me to take a photo with them, but they were asking in Khmer. A tour guide overheard them and told me that was what they wanted. I agreed of course! I took a picture with each little girl, then their mother, then their father, then their grandmother, then their grandfather. Finally, after they had taken all the necessary pictures with their camera, I asked them to take one with mine. Charles was watching all this unfold behind me, I was wondering where in the world he had gone. (I posted the picture in my other Cambodia post which you can find here.)
Today is our second day in Angkor Wat. The temples are beautiful, the people are so happy and friendly, and the food is delicious - we really like Cambodia. Sitting in the jungle surrounded by ancient temples is pretty incredible. This place in many ways reminds me of Petra, I guess in that they are both amazing wonders of architecture built so long ago, but still withstanding the tests of time and in this case jungle.
When we were deciding on how to get to Siem Reap we debated whether to take a bus, to fly (what almost everyone recommended to us), or to take private cars/taxis. Since we have had good luck with private cars and taxis, we decided to go that route, it was cheaper than the plane (by a lot) but meant we wouldn't have to wait on a bus once we got to the Cambodia border. The ride to the border of Thailand was fast and easy. We obtained our visas and filled out our Cambodian entry card in a restaurant before we were taken to the Thailand departure terminal. That is where we found an extremely long line. It was only once we were in this line that Charles and I wondered whether the visas sold to us at the restaurant for a total of $84 were actually legitimate, guess we were going to find out. The guide who was escorting us through the border led us half way up the line to a group wearing stickers similar to ours, he said "you are with this group," and he walked away. We tried to smile and not make anyone angry as we seemingly cut in front of a couple hundred people. Then came the waiting in the hot humid 90 degree Thailand sun. It was so hot, and since we had no idea the wait would be like this, we had no water. We went from one line to another line lugging our backpacks and getting stamped out of one country and into another. The entire process took about 3 hours, which must be why most people pay the extra money to fly.
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| Filling out the forms for our Cambodian Visa at a restaurant near the border |
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| The very long line to get stamped out of Thailand |
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| Walking across the border into Cambodia (we didn't know at this point we had another long line ahead of us) |
We finally arrived in Siem Reap after another 2.5 hours in the car, and we spent the evening enjoying our first Khmer dinner and cheap $0.75 beer.
I have been looking forward to visiting Angkor Wat our entire trip. I had heard from so many people that it was such a special and beautiful place. All of those things I read and heard do not do this place justice. To see such magnificent architecture tucked into the jungle and surrounded by villages where people still live without electricity is truly special.
The people here, especially the children, make me smile. The stories of their past make me want to cry, and yet they seem so happy, I can only smile in return. Yesterday two Cambodian girls, who were touring the temples with their family, followed me through the temple of Banteay Srei asking me questions in English. Eventually they tried to ask me to take a photo with them, but they were asking in Khmer. A tour guide overheard them and told me that was what they wanted. I agreed of course! I took a picture with each little girl, then their mother, then their father, then their grandmother, then their grandfather. Finally, after they had taken all the necessary pictures with their camera, I asked them to take one with mine. Charles was watching all this unfold behind me, I was wondering where in the world he had gone. (I posted the picture in my other Cambodia post which you can find here.)
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