The three hour drive to Siem Reap from the border was equally eye opening. We passed through one small town between our start and end point, otherwise it was all country, littered with occasional houses and random shops. I was the only one (besides our driver) who stayed awake for the journey, and I was rewarded with a glimpse of real Cambodia. I will never again see so many naked Cambodian children playing carelessly. I tried to imagine living in a house like that. One room, no electricity, open to the elements, perhaps just a hammock or a cot to sleep on, and only a scooter for transportation. The more I thought I could somehow do it, the more I thought about how my humble home would need a flat screen TV and a PS3. Plenty of beer. Imported wine. With that, the thought that I could manage in a life like this vanished when my first world needs came back to me.
Siem Reap was more charming than any part of Thailand I visited (not to say that parts of Thailand aren't charming. Just not the parts I visited). I think this was because of the French influence on architecture and the general feel of the city. Like a lawless version of New Orleans, I honestly felt like I was in an old Western much of the time. Dirt roads, (motorized) horses and carriages, and second or third floor railings. It was just what I wanted. It also helped that our tuktuk driver, nicknamed Homeboy, was honest and nice. It was strange how a tourist city built on Angkor's back could feel so genuine.
I had looked forward to seeing Angkor Wat for years. It had been on my "bucket list" so to speak, and it seemed to have a time limit. As popularity for the site grows, it will surely lose part of its appeal and cleanliness (a-la Thailand...). I can't stress how large the Angkor Park complex is. At one time, Angkor was the size of modern day Los Angeles, making it by far the largest pre-Industrial Era city by landmass in history. Today, there are still over a thousand identified temples and structures.
Some highlights:
Of course, Angkor Wat, the largest religious building in the world and the most recognized temple among the Angkor ruins (naturally undergoing renovations when I get to see it).
Ta Phrom. This one is interesting because it is the only temple on the main circle of temples that is maintained like the other temples used to be before the French restored them: covered in jungle. It's actually a delicate balance because UNESCO wants to keep it meshed with jungle, yet doesn't want the jungle to overtake the structures to the point of destroying their integrity. Thus, there is usually some renovation construction going on here. Also, this temple is the place where part of the movie Tomb Raider was filmed, and also the reason why Angelina Jolie adopted a Cambodian baby. I probably would too, if I were rich. They're so cute.
Bayon in Angkor Thom. This structure was the most visually stunning and the one with the most incredible story. When the French discovered Angkor, they made a point to put the rubble back together as much as they could so that they would resemble temples more than piles of rock. In the case of Bayon, it was in such disrepair that they had to disassemble the entire structure brick by brick. As they did so, they drew a picture of every single brick and laid them out in the surrounding field. When they finished that part (taking years, of course) the Imperialist Japanese were expanding their reach to SE Asia and the French conservationists couldn't continue their work safely. Of course, after World War II, a civil war took place with the Khmer Rouge eventually rising to power. With an extreme ideology, the Khmer Rouge sought to destroy all records of the past, including all the pictures that the French had drawn of every brick at Bayon. When work at Angkor continued in the 80s after the Khmer Rouge fell, they had no record of what the temple looked like and thousands of bricks to put back together. Amazingly, they did it like the most complex jigsaw puzzle you've ever seen. I'd hate to be the guy in charge of that project.
We saw other temples and complexes while in Angkor, but for some reason BLOGGER is not letting me upload any more pictures. Perhaps I exhausted my space limit somehow. It's kind of making me angry. As such, we will change pace a bit and talk about how we rented a boat to take us around a floating village and a floating forest.
The interesting thing about these floating things is the water they are in: the Tonle Sap. The largest freshwater lake in SE Asia, the Tonle Sap varies from 2,700 sq. km in the dry season to a whopping 16,000 sq. km in the wet, changing the flow of the Tonle Sap river. As there is such a difference, nearby inhabitants (human, animal, and plant alike) need to adapt. As such, villages were built on high stilts.
In the dry season, they are on land and cars and scooters are the mode of transportation, but in the wet season, the waters swell and the only way out of your house is by boat. It's really interesting. The plant life, too, must adapt to being flooded for several months out of the year.
Cambodia is mostly flat, providing views that would be impossible in many places in the world. I wish I had gotten a picture of this, but one of the most beautiful weather scenes I've ever seen took place on this boat. Threatening rain, the gray cloud cover above was absolute. However, in the distance you could see a distinct curtain falling across the sky indicating where the rainfall began. I could see the rain literally miles away from where it was raining. It was gorgeous and my description of it does it no justice (but neither would a picture). It was interesting to see exactly when it would start raining, as the curtain slowly approached us.
Siem Reap was actually pretty magical. I wondered if Phnom Penh would have the same type of charm and appeal. Siem Reap would be tough to top and I honestly didn't want to leave.
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