Our bus picked us up early Thursday morning for Siem Reap, and we gave up most of the day to travel and being lazy. The next morning we started with the Angkor Wat complex, and visited the temples in the “small circuit”. It’s mid-November, so it’s supposed to be the cooler season – but it was roasting! You have to dress modestly for the temples (short sleeves and knee lengths bottoms. Same with most of Cambodia outside of the major tourist areas). We were drenched in sweat walking around and climbing the steep, shallow-stepped staircases in the temples. The sun was so strong by mid-day it bleached out most of my pictures. I can only imagine what the hot season is like!!

The temples really were incredible, but after a while they start to blend together. There are people at every temple entrance trying to sell things. Women shouting “Water lady?” “Hat?” There are kids as well, and they are impossible to dodge. They run out with postcards and bracelets, counting them out “one, two, three….”, or listing the locations on the postcards as they follow you around.

In hindsight I wish we had gotten a tour guide. You can appreciate how much effort must have gone into building these – but I think we missed a lot about what the carvings meant, how the temples were used, and why they were abandoned. You can research all that on your own – but really, who has the patience? The ones that stuck out to me – Angkor Wat of course. Too bad there was a giant scaffolding over a big portion of the entrance.

Ta Prohm – ancient trees that had grown into the temples over time. I can’t imagine it’s possible to separate the two without damaging the structures.

Bayon – faces carved into every side of the towers on the top level.

The next day we took a break from temples, and walked around Siem Reap. We went for massages at Lemon Grass, which were pretty stellar (although my heart still belongs to Lakshmi in Varkala). We discovered the small cafe chain The Blue Pumpkin – tasty snacks, ice cream, and AC. Did a little shopping, but no buying. Walked Pub Street. As the sun sets all the street kids start to come out and beg. You know you should never give money to street kids anywhere, but here they make make it even more difficult to say no. A young girl will walk up carrying a baby, looking desperate, and saying “I don’t want money. Milk for baby.” They are AGGRESSIVE, and act appalled that you could be so heartless if you say no. Then they return the milk to the local store for cash. I had been warned – but it didn’t make it any easier.

Sunday – back at the temples. Everything really was a blur at this point. The only one I can remember the name of was Preah Khan.

We went to dinner just off Pub Street that night, and discovered the alleyways on either side of it. They were full of cool shops and restaurants – much nicer than on the main streets. We tried to find some night life, without much luck. X bar looked promising (had a tattoo parlor inside and a half pipe on the roof), but there weren’t enough people for it to really get going.

The following day we did some more shopping. I stopped for a fish pedicure. It was very weird. Kind of like torture, but also funny.

Tuesday Sarah left for her flight back to Thailand, and I was picked up for my Moto tour. How could I forget to mention the motos?!?!?! They fall somewhere in between a bicycle and a dirtbike, and are the mode of transportation for the average Cambodian. They’ll pile a family of 4 or more onto one. I found a place that does moto tours out of Siem Reap, which sounded great to me. I was eyeing a 3 day trip with a guide into the North, but since I’d never driven one before I thought I should try it out with a half day tour first. My guide Mr Ny picked me up at the hostel, and drove me out of the city to my own personal moto. After a quick lesson on how to start, and what the different gears were – we were off. It was super easy to ride, and so much fun to get into the country a little more. We drove on dirt roads by rice fields, and little houses on stilts. You don’t have to get too far out of the cities for things to change completely. In Phnom Penh and Siem Reap things are pretty modern with ATMs, restaurants, massage parlors, and shops everywhere. When you get out in the country it’s nothing but fields, and small houses built up on stilts. And gas stops. We kept driving by these stands with bottles filled with liquid. I thought it was the rice wine I had read about, but there were so many of them I figured either the country was full of alcoholics, or I must be wrong. It was gas.

That day while driving my moto I got the thumbs up from a teenage boy. I felt very cool. Settled! I would leave the next day for a 3 day trip north east to Preah Vihear!