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Published: August 6th 2006
Monk taking a break
We found this guy sitting in this window ledge at the top of Angkor Wat.Nearly 3 weeks in Cambodia now...Dan's first blog was actually written on our second day here, and since then we have come to just love it here, mainly for the people. This is kind of a long one (Sorry!) but there is just so much I wish we could share with you...I'll attempt to share a few bits and pieces.
We recently spent 5 days up in Siem Reap, northwest of Phnom Penh about 6 hours drive. The town sits just kilometers away from Angkor Wat, one of the 7 man-made wonders of the world. Massive temples built hundreds of years ago during the Angkor Empire, nestled among the jungle. Though many of them have been refurbished a bit, some have piles of stone where they have crumbled down. Huge trees surround them, and many of the tree roots are actually intertwined in the stone, having become part of the foundation over the last few hundred years. They are stunning to see.
A few words from Dan... We visited the temples
Heidi in our tuk-tuk
This little thing took us from temple to temple for two days. for 3 days, they cover a vast area and the only real way to see them is via a tuk-tuk/ motorbike. So the first two days we hired a tuk-tuk, drove around stopping at each temple, hopping out and spending 30mins - 1 hour exploring. The weather on the first day was miserable, it rained all day, yet it did give the temples a very mystical feel. On the second day it was great--no rain, not to hot, not to cold. So we made the executive descion to hire bicyles for the third and final day. We were up at 4:30am and biking out to see the temples at sunrise. The whole way people were riding past offering us food to buy for breakfast. We parked up at Angkor Wat (the main temple everyone comes to see); unfortunately, there was no sunrise so we carried on to Bayon Temple and stopped in at a local food stall to have breakfast. The owners were so kind, giving us a great breaky and free tea. They let us leave our bikes at their little cafe while we explored the temple nearby. The weather was perfect and at 2:00pm and 40 kms latter
Heidi and kids
We loved giving out the stickers to the children. (showing off my new hat, too! Just needed it to keep the hot sun of me :) we called it a day and headed home, with the intention to head back to see the sunset. Five o'clock came and we looked at each other and as if reading each others mind we both said...'Lets hire a tuk-tuk to get out there... I'm way too tired.' So we grabbed a tuk-tuk and the story ends there. I'm too annoyed to explain the rest of the saga. All I can say is, we didn't see the sunset!
Heidi again... However wonderful the temples were, I think the most enjoyable thing for us was interacting with the children. They are so beautiful, and I've fallen in love with them! Many people make their living from setting up little tourist shops outside the temple gates, and the children are everywhere. They sell copies of books about Cambodia, bracelets, silk scarves...and they are probably the best salesmen I've ever seen. Most of them speak wonderful English, having picked it up from tourists. Many of them go to school either in the morning or afternoon and then come out to sell the other part of the day. From 4 to 16 years old, they are so smart.
They always ask where
Huge trees, tiny people
The trees all around the temples tower above the ground, and many of them have their roots embedded in the temples now. you're from and then name the capitol of your country. Then they play a game where you give a country and they give the capitol. They bargain and bargain, and even when you don't buy, they love that you've talked to them and run after you waving good-bye and 'good luck' as if you were an old friend. We bought some stickers to give out to them, which they LOVED. It gave us another way to spend some time with them, and a few of them even gave me a bracelet in return...this is after I'd refused to buy any for 10 minutes. The generosity of people here is amazing.
Today we were in a market in Phnom Penh, and an older gentleman was selling books and postcards. I really liked one of the cards, but I had no small change to give him for it so I said , no, I wouldn't buy. We talked to him for a few minutes, had a few laughs...he was an old Khmer Rouge soldier, and now he pretty much has nothing. Before he left, he gave me the card and refused to take anything for it, insisting that I had to
have it. The majority of people here are very poor, yet they have this kind spirit about them. Even the beggars often have a smile on there face.
Back to Siem Reap...a cool little town with TONS of tourists, therefore, several cool bars and restaurants (overpriced, of course!, well, to us budget backpackers 😊). Plus, all the kids walking around selling books and postcards, and the tuk-tuk drivers lining the streets asking you if you need a ride. There can be five in a row, and each one will ask you... 'tuk-tuk?', just in case you change your mind in the next few strides. We spent hours walking around the few square blocks, and Dan would talk to them all, explaining that no, we're just walking, asking them where they're from (which they all love, laughing at us asking THEM the common question), and thanking them for asking. As annoying as they can be at times, if they don't have a ride, they don't take home any money for the day, so they HAVE to ask and be aggressive about it. They always wish us good luck and say they could take us somewhere tomorrow.
The only difficult
Dan sitting in the doorway of the temple
Nearly the only ones here one afternoon, we spent a long time just sitting up high, enjoying the view and silence. think about the town was all the beggars. The kids selling books and things usually come from families and go to school, but there are many young children and mothers walking around, scarf tied around their shoulder making a sling to hold the baby on their hip. They are dirty, and the babies are often naked. Some hold an empty bottle of milk. They all ask for food or money. Obviously, we gave a little, but we have been told that it only encourages the begging. Still, there is no other way for people to get money since there is no type of social security here.
There are also landmine victims who beg--missing legs with crutches, missing arms, burned faces...both children and adults. Some sell books and have a sign saying they want to live with dignity, therefore they sell rather than just begging. Some of the guys will walk around for hours on crutches, approaching people. No one just sits on a corner, they all come up to you. I know this all may sound a bit depressing, but I think people need to know what Cambodia is like.
I actually got a bit upset one evening.
The cutest sales team
These darlings talked with us a while out near the West Barray, a lake west of Siem Reap. They used their best selling techniques and we barely got away without buying something. So many kids were around, Dan had just been talking with a guy whose face was messed up and he had no arms. He tried to hug Dan with what was left of his upper arms. Add the crying babies, with their big brown eyes...it was too much for me, and I lost it when we got back to the guesthouse. However, the longer I'm here, the more I'm getting used to seeing landmine victims, used to the beggars, and just realizing that this is life here.
We also got to see a bit of the countryside around Siem Reap. Rice is the main crop, and now that it's raining, everything is so green and lush, and the red dirt of the roads is thick and clay-like. Homes in the country are small, usually one room, and sit on 4 stilts above the ground. Some homes are pretty nice while others are thatched walls and roofs. Babies run around naked or just in a shirt since they don't wear diapers here. Everyone rides bicycles and motorbikes, though the rich people have cars. People cook over wood-burning stoves, so there are people that have huge piles of wood on the
Looking out over the countryside
After climbing up a steep hill, and several steep stairs, one temple brought us up so high that we could see the countryside in every direction. back of a bicycle going down the road. It's such a different way of life, so simple. We would wave from our tuk-tuk or bike and get huge smiles and waves back.
I could go on and on...!!
I just finished a book, "First They Killed My Father'', by Loung Ung, a Cambodian woman whose family lived through the Pol Pot Regime, and she eventually got relocated to the U.S. when she was 10 or so. It is a touching story, and it gives some good background and info about what local people had to endure during Pol Pot's takeover. She is now a key rep for a landmine victims' organization. It is a sad story, but I encourage all of you to try and pick up a copy or read some other book about Cambodia and the lives of the people during the regime. It's almost surreal to think of what they had to go through, and for the ones who survived, its incredible that they have such wonderful spirits and have moved on from those days.
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Katie Taddeucci :)
non-member comment
Amazing!
Hi guys! I LOVE reading your blogs....and I must say I am learning a lot as I read, stuff I never knew before or was never exposed to. I just think it's so wonderful you guys are doing this...I know I tell you that every time I talk to you! Hope you are feeling back to yourself, Dan...what a journey this has been (well, for both of you!). Lots of love and miss you tons, Katie