Everything I had read said that to truly appreciate the temples of Angkor you needed to give yourself a few days of exploring. With that in mind, I left Phnom Penh and took the 6 hour bus ride to Siem Reap for a couple of days of exploring. I arrived late in the day but had no trouble finding someone to help me find a room as there were literally 15 tuk-tuk drivers waiting to help me out. It was almost too much as they were two deep surrounding me. Luckily, I made it out and got my bag before one of them could grab it to take to their tuk-tuk. I was heading towards a place that was recommended, but one my way I heard the calls for rooms at $6/night and I couldn't pass that up.
It was too late for me to check out any of the temples on my arrival, so I went to Pub Street to have a look around and was really surprised by the nice restaurants and bars.....and even more surprised by the aggressives ladyboys roaming the streets! I grabbed a quick meal and then crashed as the bus ride wore me out.
The next day I was up at a decent hour and went out to explore the temples of Angkor. I got a three day pass and figured I would come out every single day. The first stop was Angkor Wat, which is not only a national treasure (it's featured on the Cambodian Flag), but a world treasure. The structure definitely lived up to its billing as the largest religious buidling in the world. You could spend a few days at Angkor Wat alone and still not see it all. The next stop was one of my favorites, Angkor Thom and Bayon Temple, which can be described as the temple of faces. My third and final stop was Ta Prohm and the temple that is being swallowed by the jungle. Some of you Tomb Raider fans may recognize Ta Prohm as it was featured in the film with Angelina Jolie.
After persusing through those three temples I was pretty much templed out for the day and, as it turned out, for the next day as well. My third and last full day in Siem Reap led me to explore some of the lessor known, but still impressive temples of Angkor.
More later.......
Love, peace, and soul.
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