Nov 19, 2010

ankor what...

well peeps, the trip from laos into cambodia wasn't exactly the easiest border crossing we have done to date. after getting stuck at the border for over two hours in 40 degree heat our bus missed all connecting buses to phnom penh and siem reap so we were dropped at a road house and told to wait for another bus. with no details or bus tickets and still no where near our desired destination, we were certainly o-v-e-r i-t! we finally reached siem reap at one am, only six hours after we were meant to arrive... thankfully we got a room at a beautiful guest house first try.

we spent the next day wandering the streets and river banks of siem reap and meeting some of the very hospitable locals and snacking on some of delicious khmer cuisine. the town itself is a bit kuta come chiang mai. it has the tourist-trap aspect of bali (understandable given it's home to the eighth wonder of the world) but the small town quaintness of chaing mai with it's bustling restaurants, bars and hostels all within walking distance.

day two we got up for sunrise at ankor wat. this is one of the serious unexpected highlights of the trip. i hope the photos can paint a picture of how magical it was to witness the sun rising over this monumental site. we spent the morning with a lovely belgian who shared our tuk tuk while we made our way around ankor wat and the old city of ankor thom. it was great to be immersed in a place with such great significance to the asian history and culture and there was a real sense of tranquility and peace at the sites.

we spent the afternoon watching a storm role in before heading off the have some of the towns infamous pizzas and beer before heading to the ice cream parlour for some homemade gelato.

we were up early day three, to catch a bus en route to the beach. with kurt itching to get to the ocean and given our time constraints, we spent a few hours in phnom penh and headed for sihanoukville, cambodias premiere beach town. we are now soaking up the sun and eating some amazingly fresh seafood on a quiet little beach lined with restaurants, umbrellas and sun chairs. the beaches here while not as beautiful as our australian ones are still worth visiting, so were going to stick around for a few more days.

pics. ankor wat sunrise, bayon temple, the old city of ankor thom, the hidden wall, the temple goers, ankor thom ruins and a few in and around siem reap.



















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