After some funny confusion in passport control we made our way into Siem Reap. Our apartment is very modern despite driving on a dirt road through a crowded town to get here. Siem Reap seems to be a mash up of Arusha and Chiang Mai. It's crowded and noisy and a bit odorous at times, but the streets in the tourist section are clean and well lit and you can feel confident drinking the water and ice in the stalls. The Khmer Rouge regime decimated the country, from the actual population to the arts and culture and even sports. The young population is fiercely attempting to revive whatever they can and working hard to keep tourism a source of income. They are very proud of Angkor and it's temples (as they should be) and appreciative of the visitors from around the world.
Jan 29: Day one at Angkor
Being new to the area we opted for a driver and guide to see the main temples of Angkor, a city which was the center of a great empire some 800-1000 years ago. Only the stone city buildings and temples have survived the inevitable decay of time. Once, a town of 80,000 people lived within the city walls in wood houses that have all disappeared. Yes, it is a huge area (400 sqkm - 4 times the size of San Francisco) so you cannot see it all in one day. Our guide, Leap, took us to "the big 3". First stop, Bayon Temple and Angkor Thom. This massive city building and temple has 49 towers, all with carved heads facing the four Cardinal directions. This way the king can keep an eye on you, no matter where you are! It was very crowded and very hot but we learned a lot about the magnificent carvings and their meaning.
Next stop, Ta Prohm, famous for being in the film "Tomb Raider". Built in 1186, 5 years after Bayan, the king dedicated it to his mother. This Temple is fun to see because the forest is reclaiming it's land with trees growing on, around, and through the walls and roofs. It was very cool, but again very crowded and hot which led the boys to want to leave ASAP.
After a much needed stop for lunch, we finally arrived at Angkor Wat! This Temple is the largest religious building in the world! It took 37 years to build by the 2nd King and was originally built as a Hindu shrine to Vishnu. It was converted back and forth from Buddhism and Hinduism depending on the king at the time. Our guide took us through the back door, once again to avoid crowds, but it was still stunning! It is massive and could take a few days to explore it all, but we took the route most tourists do, up to the top (for those of us over 12-poor Zane and Bryce has to wait at the bottom of the stairs). The views were stunning and the 4 Buddhist shrines, one for each direction, were unique and peaceful.
Being new to the area we opted for a driver and guide to see the main temples of Angkor, a city which was the center of a great empire some 800-1000 years ago. Only the stone city buildings and temples have survived the inevitable decay of time. Once, a town of 80,000 people lived within the city walls in wood houses that have all disappeared. Yes, it is a huge area (400 sqkm - 4 times the size of San Francisco) so you cannot see it all in one day. Our guide, Leap, took us to "the big 3". First stop, Bayon Temple and Angkor Thom. This massive city building and temple has 49 towers, all with carved heads facing the four Cardinal directions. This way the king can keep an eye on you, no matter where you are! It was very crowded and very hot but we learned a lot about the magnificent carvings and their meaning.
Next stop, Ta Prohm, famous for being in the film "Tomb Raider". Built in 1186, 5 years after Bayan, the king dedicated it to his mother. This Temple is fun to see because the forest is reclaiming it's land with trees growing on, around, and through the walls and roofs. It was very cool, but again very crowded and hot which led the boys to want to leave ASAP.
After a much needed stop for lunch, we finally arrived at Angkor Wat! This Temple is the largest religious building in the world! It took 37 years to build by the 2nd King and was originally built as a Hindu shrine to Vishnu. It was converted back and forth from Buddhism and Hinduism depending on the king at the time. Our guide took us through the back door, once again to avoid crowds, but it was still stunning! It is massive and could take a few days to explore it all, but we took the route most tourists do, up to the top (for those of us over 12-poor Zane and Bryce has to wait at the bottom of the stairs). The views were stunning and the 4 Buddhist shrines, one for each direction, were unique and peaceful.
Jan 30: Sunrise
The boys had enough of the heat and the crowds and opted out of sunrise over Angkor Wat, but Steve, Autumn and I woke up at 4am to get there in time. The video below shows our journey along with a tour of another temple we explored this day. The rain cooled off the stone and going to the smaller temples meant much fewer people so we had a great day that was very different than our first. Had we only done the one day with the guide I would have been disappointed in Angkor, but giving it a second chance proved to be our best decision ever. So we decided to come back one more time....
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| 15 minutes before sun up. |
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| There it is folks... Sunrise over Angkor. Underwhelming, but totally worth it. |
Jan 31: Sunset
We waited for the heat of the day to pass and brought the boys back in to see some lesser visited temples. They had a blast and understood why we wanted to go back. Then we went back to Bayon Temple for sunset. This was simply take your breath away stunning! It was peaceful and cool and the sun lit the faces just so. We all felt privileged to be there and it actually made me want to return!
Things to know when traveling to Siem Reap (by Steve)...
- Firstly, if it's not on your bucket list, it should be. This is a special place.
- Could have stayed here for a week and paced the temples out. There is more to do than just the temples. And it's cheap, by American standards.
- US Dollars is all you need. Don't bother getting Riels
- Rely on the hotel to arrange transportation and guides
- Long pants are not necessary. Just dress respectfully.
- Get a guide for day one, then just a driver the next days with maybe a guide book.
- Angkor is big. Takes time between temples. But the drive is nice as you pass locals selling goods, and using area like a giant recreation park.
- Only visit in the morning or late afternoon. Crowds and heat in midday are a distraction.
- Spread the big three (Angkor Wat, Ta Prohm, Bayon) across three days. The "secondary" temples are much less crowded and really fun to explore.
- Sunrise is worth it, but mostly to force you to get to park early. Even if sun is obscured, it's still worth it to beat the crowds. Sunrise is crazy crowded at Angkor Wat.
- It's clean (by SEA standards) and safe.
- Food costs about $7 per plate, beer is $1
- The tuk tuk's are fun (they're actually called Remorques). It's like a horse drawn carriage, but 20th century style. Way better than the Thailand Tuk Tuks. If you need a great Remorque driver, call Tiger, he's the best: +855 93 23 30 53
- The night life looks fun and relatively tame.
- Good to carry a small backpack with camelback water bladder.
- Renting and riding a bike around the temples looks awful. Just hire a Remorque.
- Don't feed or get near the Long Tailed Macaques (the Cambodians call them Swa Monkeys). They're mean and they bite.
- Firstly, if it's not on your bucket list, it should be. This is a special place.
- Could have stayed here for a week and paced the temples out. There is more to do than just the temples. And it's cheap, by American standards.
- US Dollars is all you need. Don't bother getting Riels
- Rely on the hotel to arrange transportation and guides
- Long pants are not necessary. Just dress respectfully.
- Get a guide for day one, then just a driver the next days with maybe a guide book.
- Angkor is big. Takes time between temples. But the drive is nice as you pass locals selling goods, and using area like a giant recreation park.
- Only visit in the morning or late afternoon. Crowds and heat in midday are a distraction.
- Spread the big three (Angkor Wat, Ta Prohm, Bayon) across three days. The "secondary" temples are much less crowded and really fun to explore.
- Sunrise is worth it, but mostly to force you to get to park early. Even if sun is obscured, it's still worth it to beat the crowds. Sunrise is crazy crowded at Angkor Wat.
- It's clean (by SEA standards) and safe.
- Food costs about $7 per plate, beer is $1
- The tuk tuk's are fun (they're actually called Remorques). It's like a horse drawn carriage, but 20th century style. Way better than the Thailand Tuk Tuks. If you need a great Remorque driver, call Tiger, he's the best: +855 93 23 30 53
- The night life looks fun and relatively tame.
- Good to carry a small backpack with camelback water bladder.
- Renting and riding a bike around the temples looks awful. Just hire a Remorque.
- Don't feed or get near the Long Tailed Macaques (the Cambodians call them Swa Monkeys). They're mean and they bite.
All for now... Next Stop, Vietnam!
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